Virtual area based telephony communications
First Claim
Patent Images
1. A method, comprising by computer apparatus:
- maintaining a persistent virtual area that supports establishment of respective presences of communicants operating respective client network nodes connected to the virtual area and persists even after all network nodes have disconnected from the virtual area, wherein the virtual area comprises multiple zones each of which supports establishment of respective presences for communicants and is associated with a respective dial-in telephone number for calling into the respective zone;
establishing a respective presence in a particular one of the zones of the virtual area for a first user operating a client network node;
responsive to a request received from the client network node while the communicant is present in the particular zone and comprising a telephone number of a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) terminal device being operated by a second user who is not present in the virtual area,managing establishment of a realtime audio connection between the client network node and the PSTN terminal device in association with the virtual area, wherein the managing comprises transmitting the telephone number of the PSTN terminal device to a PSTN service provider, andestablishing a presence in the particular zone of the virtual area for the second user of the PSTN terminal device; and
administering transmission of data associated with the particular zone of the virtual area to the PSTN terminal device.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A persistent virtual area that supports establishment of respective presences of communicants operating respective network nodes connected to the virtual area even after all network nodes have disconnected from the virtual area is maintained. A presence in the virtual area is established for a user of a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) terminal device. Transmission of data associated with the virtual area to the PSTN terminal device.
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Citations
30 Claims
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1. A method, comprising by computer apparatus:
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maintaining a persistent virtual area that supports establishment of respective presences of communicants operating respective client network nodes connected to the virtual area and persists even after all network nodes have disconnected from the virtual area, wherein the virtual area comprises multiple zones each of which supports establishment of respective presences for communicants and is associated with a respective dial-in telephone number for calling into the respective zone; establishing a respective presence in a particular one of the zones of the virtual area for a first user operating a client network node; responsive to a request received from the client network node while the communicant is present in the particular zone and comprising a telephone number of a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) terminal device being operated by a second user who is not present in the virtual area, managing establishment of a realtime audio connection between the client network node and the PSTN terminal device in association with the virtual area, wherein the managing comprises transmitting the telephone number of the PSTN terminal device to a PSTN service provider, and establishing a presence in the particular zone of the virtual area for the second user of the PSTN terminal device; and administering transmission of data associated with the particular zone of the virtual area to the PSTN terminal device. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 13, 14, 15, 16)
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4. A method, comprising by computer apparatus:
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maintaining a persistent virtual area that is associated with a dial-in telephone number designated for calling into the virtual area, supports establishment of respective presences of communicants operating respective client network nodes connected to the virtual area, and persists even after all network nodes have disconnected from the virtual area; in response to receipt of the telephone call from a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) terminal device directed to the dial-in telephone number, instantiating the virtual area and establishing a presence in the instantiated virtual area for a user of the PSTN terminal device, wherein the PSTN terminal device is associated with a second telephone number; after the instantiating, establishing a presence in the virtual area for a communicant operating a client network node; and after the presence for the communicant has been established, managing establishment of a realtime audio connection between the client network node and the PSTN terminal device in association with the virtual area. - View Dependent Claims (29)
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12. A method, comprising by computer apparatus:
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administering a persistent virtual area that is associated with a dial-in telephone number designated for calling into the virtual area, supports establishment of respective presences of communicants operating respective client network nodes connected to the virtual area, and persists even after all network nodes have disconnected from the virtual area; in response to receipt of a telephone call directed to the dial-in telephone number from a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) terminal device associated with a second telephone number, instantiating the virtual area, and establishing a presence in the instantiated virtual area for a user of the PSTN terminal device.
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17. A method, comprising by computer apparatus:
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in a persistent virtual area that is associated with a dial-in telephone number designated for calling into the virtual area, establishing a respective presence for a communicant operating a respective client network node connected to the virtual area; managing establishment of a realtime audio connection between the client network node and a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) terminal device in association with the virtual area, wherein the managing is based on a request from the client network node comprising a second telephone number of the PSTN terminal device and the managing comprises transmitting the dial-in telephone number and the second telephone number to a PSTN service provider; and administering transmission of audio data associated with the virtual area to the PSTN terminal device. - View Dependent Claims (18, 19, 20)
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21. A method, comprising:
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in response to receipt of a telephone number associated with a particular location in a virtual area from a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) terminal device, instantiating the virtual area and establishing a presence for a user of the PSTN terminal device in the particular location in the instantiated virtual area; and administering transmission of data associated with the particular location in the virtual area to the PSTN terminal device. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23)
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24. A method, comprising by an electronic device of a user:
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connecting to a network infrastructure service environment supporting communicant interactions in a virtual area comprising zones each of which supports establishment of respective presences for the user of the electronic device and other communicants and is associated with a respective telephone number; displaying a graphical interface comprising a graphical representation of the virtual area and a graphical representation of the user in a particular zone of the virtual area; from the user, receiving a command to communicate with a user of a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) terminal device who is not present in the virtual area; based on the command, transmitting to the network infrastructure service environment a request to establish a presence for the user of the PSTN terminal device in the particular zone of the virtual area and to communicate with the PSTN terminal device over a connection assigned to the telephone number associated with the particular zone of the virtual area; responsive to information received from the network infrastructure service environment, exchanging audio data with the PSTN terminal device in connection with the telephone number associated with the particular zone of the virtual area and receiving data describing the virtual area and positions of objects in the virtual area; and during the exchanging and based on the received data, concurrently displaying a graphical representation of the user of the electronic device and a graphical representation of the user of the PSTN terminal device in the particular zone of the virtual area. - View Dependent Claims (25, 26, 30)
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27. Apparatus, comprising:
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a memory storing processor-readable instructions; and a processor coupled to the memory, operable to execute the instructions, and based at least in part on the execution of the instructions operable to perform operations comprising connecting to a network infrastructure service environment supporting communicant interactions in a virtual area comprising zones each of which supports establishment of respective presences for a user of the apparatus and other communicants and is associated with a respective telephone number; displaying a graphical interface comprising a graphical representation of the virtual area and a graphical representation of the user in a particular one of the zones; from the user, receiving a command to communicate with a user of a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) terminal device who is not present in the virtual area; based on the command, transmitting to the network infrastructure service environment a request to establish a presence for the user of the PSTN terminal device in the particular zone of the virtual area and to communicate with the PSTN terminal device over a connection assigned to the telephone number associated with the particular zone of the virtual area; responsive to information received from the network infrastructure service environment, exchanging audio data with the PSTN terminal device in connection with the telephone number associated with the particular zone of the virtual area and receiving data describing the virtual area and positions of objects in the virtual area; and during the exchanging and based on the received data, concurrently displaying a graphical representation of the user of the electronic device and a graphical representation of the user of the PSTN terminal device in the particular zone of the virtual area.
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28. At least one non-transitory computer-readable medium having processor-readable program code embodied therein, the processor-readable program code adapted to be executed by an electronic device to implement a method comprising:
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connecting to a network infrastructure service environment supporting communicant interactions in a virtual area comprising zones each of which supports establishment of respective presences for a user of the apparatus and other communicants and is associated with a respective telephone number; displaying a graphical interface comprising a graphical representation of the virtual area and a graphical representation of the user in a particular one of the zones; from the user, receiving a command to communicate with a user of a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) terminal device who is not present in the virtual area; based on the command, transmitting to the network infrastructure service environment a request to establish a presence for the user of the PSTN terminal device in the particular zone of the virtual area and to communicate with the PSTN terminal device over a connection assigned to the telephone number associated with the particular zone of the virtual area; responsive to information received from the network infrastructure service environment, exchanging audio data with the PSTN terminal device in connection with the telephone number associated with the particular zone of the virtual area and receiving data describing the virtual area and positions of objects in the virtual area; and during the exchanging and based on the received data, concurrently displaying a graphical representation of the user of the electronic device and a graphical representation of the user of the PSTN terminal device in the particular zone of the virtual area.
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Specification