Pairing devices in conference using ultrasonic beacon and subsequent control thereof

• US 9,544,541 B2
• Filed: 03/30/2015
• Issued: 01/10/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 10/27/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hewlett-Packard Development Company, L.P. (HP Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Polycom Incorporated (Plantronics, Inc.)
• Inventors: Chu, Peter L., Liu, Yibo
• Primary Examiner(s): Anwah, Olisa
• Application Number:
  US14/673,477
• Publication Number:
  US 20150208033A1
• Time in Patent Office: 652 Days
• Field of Search: 348/14.01, 348/14.04, 348/14.05
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/165 Management of the audio stream, e.g. setting of volume, audio stream path
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/568 audio processing specific to telephonic conferencing, e.g. spatial distribution, mixing of participants echo suppression in two-way loud-speaking telephone systems H04M9/02; sound field processing per se H04S7/30
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/142 Constructional details of the terminal equipment, e.g. arrangements of the camera and the display
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/15 Conference systems

Abstract

A videoconferencing system has a videoconferencing unit that use portable devices as peripherals for the system. The portable devices obtain near-end audio and send the audio to the videoconferencing unit via a wireless connection. In turn, the videoconferencing unit sends the near-end audio from the loudest portable device along with near-end video to the far-end. The portable devices can control the videoconferencing unit and can initially establish the videoconference by connecting with the far-end and then transferring operations to the videoconferencing unit. To deal with acoustic coupling between the unit'"'"'s loudspeaker and the portable device'"'"'s microphone, the unit uses an echo canceller that is compensated for differences in the clocks used in the A/D and D/A converters of the loudspeaker and microphone.

Claims

1. A method implemented at a first device for conferencing the first device and a second device in a near-end environment with a far-end, comprising:

connecting the first device in the near-end environment to the far-end with a far-end connection;

outputting connection information in an imperceptible acoustic beacon in the near-end environment with the first device;

connecting the first device via a near-end connection with the second device in the near-end environment by receiving a response at the first device from the second device via the near-end connection, the response being based on the second device using the output connection information and requesting connection of the second device with the first device;

obtaining, at the first device via the near-end connection, a control from the second device; and

operating a function of the first device in response to the control.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first device comprises a conferencing unit;

and wherein the second device is selected from the group consisting of a portable device, a peripheral device, a cellular telephone, a smartphone, a personal computing tablet, a personal digital assistant, a hand-held computer, a netbook computer, and a laptop computer.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the far-end connection comprises an Ethernet connection, a Wide Area Network (WAN) connection, a wireless connection, an Internet connection, a cellular connection, a Plain Old Telephone Service (POTS) connection, or a combination thereof;

and wherein the near-end connection comprises a Local Area Network (LAN) connection, an intranet connection, a Wireless Local Area Network (WLAN) connection, a Personal Area Network (PAN) connection, a Wireless Fidelity (Wi-Fi) connection, a wireless connection, or a combination thereof.

4. The method of claim 1, wherein outputting the connection information comprises encoding the connection information in an audio signal of the acoustic beacon modulated with frequency-shift keying.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein the connection information comprises a network address of the first device encoded in the acoustic beacon.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein outputting the connection information in the acoustic beacon with the first device comprises outputting the acoustic beacon with a loudspeaker of the first device, the acoustic beacon being ultrasonic.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising capturing first audio at the first device for sending to the far-end.

8. The method of claim 7, further comprising obtaining, at the first device via the near-end connection, second audio captured with the second device;

and sending the second audio when the second audio has a greater level than the first audio.

9. The method of claim 8, further comprising:

capturing first video at the first device for sending to the far-end;

obtaining, at the first device via the near-end connection, second video captured with the second device; and

sending the second video to the far-end with the first device via the far-end connection when the second audio is being sent to the far-end.

10. The method of claim 1, further comprising sharing, via the near-end connection, content between the first and second devices.

11. A first device, comprising:

a loudspeaker for outputting audio in a near-end environment;

one or more interfaces for communicatively connecting the first device with a far-end in a far-end connection and with a second device in a near-end connection; and

a processing unit communicatively connected to the loudspeaker and the one or more interfaces, the processing unit configured to;

connect with the far-end in the far-end connection;

output connection information in an imperceptible acoustic beacon in the near-end environment with the loudspeaker;

receive a response at the first device from the second device via the near-end connection to connect with the second device in the near-end connection, the response being based on the second device using the output connection information and requesting connection of the second device with the first device;

obtain, via the near-end connection, a control from the second device; and

operate a function of the first device in response to the control.

12. A method implemented at a first device for conferencing the first device and a second device in a near-end environment with a far-end, comprising:

detecting, with the first device in the near-end environment, an imperceptible acoustic beacon output by the second device in the near-end environment connected to the far-end with a far-end connection;

decoding, with the first device, connection information from the detected acoustic beacon;

connecting the first device with the second device via a network connection by sending a response from the first device to the second device via the near-end connection, the response using the decoded connection information and requesting connection of the first device with the second device; and

transmitting a control to the second device for operating a function of the second device.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising transmitting audio captured with the first device to the second device via the network connection.

14. The method of claim 12, further comprising transmitting video captured with the first device to the second device via the network connection.

15. The method of claim 12, further comprising sharing one or more of audio, video, and content via the network connection between the first and second devices.

16. A first device, comprising:

a microphone for capturing audio in a near-end environment;

one or more interfaces for communicatively connecting the first device with a second device in the near-end environment via a network connection; and

a processing unit communicatively connected to the microphone and the one or more interfaces, the processing unit configured to;

detect, with the microphone, an imperceptible acoustic beacon output by the second device in the near-end environment,

decode connection information from the detected acoustic beacon,

send a response from the first device to the second device via the near-end connection to connect with the second device via the network connection, the response being based on the decoded connection information and requesting connection of the first device with the second device, and

transmit a control to the second device for operating a function of the second device.

17. A method implemented at a first device for conferencing the first device and a second device in a near-end environment with a far-end, comprising:

connecting the first device in the near-end environment to the far-end with a far-end connection;

outputting connection information in an imperceptible acoustic beacon in the near-end environment with the first device;

connecting the first device via a near-end connection with the second device in the near-end environment based on the second device using the output connection information;

obtaining, at the first device via the near-end connection, a control from the second device;

operating a function of the first device in response to the control;

obtaining, at the first device via the near-end connection, second audio captured with the second device; and

sending the second audio to the far-end when the second audio has a greater level than first audio captured with the first device.

18. The method of claim 17, wherein outputting the connection information comprises encoding the connection information in an audio signal of the acoustic beacon modulated with frequency-shift keying.

19. The method of claim 17, wherein the connection information comprises a network address of the first device encoded in the acoustic beacon.

20. The method of claim 17, wherein outputting the connection information in the acoustic beacon with the first device comprises outputting the acoustic beacon with a loudspeaker of the first device, the acoustic beacon being ultrasonic.

21. The method of claim 17, wherein connecting the first device via the near-end connection with the second device based on the second device using the output connection information comprises receiving a response at the first device from the second device via the near-end connection, the response requesting connection of the second device with the first device.

22. The method of claim 17, further comprising:

capturing first video at the first device for sending to the far-end;

obtaining, at the first device via the near-end connection, second video captured with the second device; and

sending the second video to the far-end with the first device via the far-end connection when the second audio is being sent to the far-end.

23. The method of claim 17, further comprising sharing, via the near-end connection, content between the first and second devices.

24. A first device, comprising:

a loudspeaker for outputting audio in a near-end environment;

a microphone for capturing first audio in the near-end environment;

one or more interfaces for communicatively connecting the first device with a far-end in a far-end connection and with a second device in a near-end connection; and

a processing unit communicatively connected to the loudspeaker and the one or more interfaces, the processing unit configured to;

connect with the far-end in the far-end connection;

output connection information in an imperceptible acoustic beacon in the near-end environment with the loudspeaker;

connect with the second device in the near-end connection based on the second device using the output connection information;

obtain, via the near-end connection, a control from the second device;

operate a function of the first device in response to the control;

obtain, via the near-end connection, second audio captured with the second device; and

send the second audio to the far-end when the second audio has a greater level than the first audio captured with the first device.