Communication systems and methods of operating communication devices assigned individual and group unique identifiers

• US 9,661,146 B2
• Filed: 11/30/2015
• Issued: 05/23/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 03/15/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Sorenson Ip Holdings, LLC
• Original Assignee: Sorenson Ip Holdings, LLC
• Inventors: Walker, Merle L., Walters, Lane, Brooksby, Scot L., Parent, Jesse Leigh, Shields, Richard, Andersen, Jason
• Primary Examiner(s): Patel, Hemant
• Application Number:
  US14/954,743
• Publication Number:
  US 20160088161A1
• Time in Patent Office: 540 Days
• Field of Search: 348 1401- 1416, 370259-271, 370351-357, 37920101, 37920201-20701
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42102 Making use of the called party identifier
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42391 where the subscribers are hearing-impaired persons, e.g. telephone devices for the deaf
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/0024 Services and arrangements where telephone services are combined with data services arrangements which combine a telephonic equipment and a computer H04M7/0012
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/141 between two video terminals, e.g. videophone telephonic communication systems combined with television receiver for reception of entertainment or information matter H04M11/085

Abstract

Described are systems and methods for operating a plurality of communication devices configured to be associated with a user group. Each communication device of the plurality of communication devices may be configured to communicate with one or more servers both as an individual communication device with an individual unique identifier assigned thereto and as the user group with a group unique identifier assigned thereto.

Claims

1. A video communication system comprising:

a plurality of video communication devices associated with a user group, wherein each video communication device of the plurality of video communication devices is assigned a group unique identifier that is shared with the plurality of video communication devices of the user group, and an individual unique identifier that is unique as to other video communication devices of the user group, wherein each of the video communication devices is configured to;

receive an incoming video call responsive to an incoming video call request being addressed to either its individual unique identifier or the group unique identifier for the user group; and

transmit outbound video call request for establishing an outbound video call with another video communication device, wherein the outbound call uses the group unique identifier as its caller identification (caller ID) for outbound calls initiated by the video communication devices that are members of the user group; and

a video relay service including a call routing server configured to route incoming and outgoing video calls to and from the video communication devices of the user group and provide sign language interpretive assistance for the hearing-impaired user during the calls.

2. The video communication system of claim 1, the call routing server is further configured to:

receive the outbound video call requests from the plurality of video communication devices; and

transmit the group unique identifier to the another communication address to use as the caller ID for the outbound video call initiated by any of the video communication devices of the user group.

3. The video communication system of claim 1, wherein the group unique identifier and the individual unique identifier are in a format selected from the group consisting of a numerical format, an alphabetic format, and an alphanumeric format.

4. The video communication system of claim 1, wherein each of the video communication devices is further configured to:

query a database and receive individual account information responsive to receiving individual account credentials; and

query the database and receive group account information responsive to receiving group account credentials for the user group.

5. The video communication system of claim 4, wherein the database is included within a remote server.

6. The video communication system of claim 1, further comprising a profile server configured to:

manage individual account information accessible only by a corresponding individual video communication device of the plurality of video communication devices; and

manage group account information shared with all video communication devices of the user group.

7. The video communication system of claim 6, wherein:

the individual account information includes information selected from the group consisting of an address book, a blocked caller list, a message history, text messages, video messages, a call history, personal user information, and any combination thereof, associated with an individual user account; and

the group account information includes information selected from the group consisting of a group blocked caller list, a group message history, group text messages, group video messages, a group call history, a group address book, and any combination thereof, associated with a user group account.

8. A video communication system comprising:

a call routing server of a video relay service configured to;

provide sign language interpretive services for hearing-impaired users;

receive a video call request initiated by a first video communication device that is associated with a first user group, the first video communication device having a first group unique identifier that is shared with other video communication devices of the first user group, and a first individual unique identifier that is unique as to the other video communication devices of the first user group; and

establish a video call between the first video communication device and a second video communication device using the first group unique identifier as a caller identification (caller ID) for the call indicating the user group as a source for the call rather than the first individual unique identifier for the first video communication device.

9. The video communication system of claim 8, wherein the video call request received from the first video communication device is addressed to a second individual unique identifier for the second video communication device.

10. The video communication system of claim 8, wherein the video call request received from the first video communication device is addressed to a second group unique identifier associated with a second user group including the second video communication device.

11. A method of operating a video communication system, the method comprising:

receiving an incoming video call responsive to an incoming video call request;

routing the incoming call to an individual video communication device responsive to the incoming call request being addressed to an individual unique identifier for the individual video communication device;

routing the incoming call to a plurality of video communication devices responsive to the incoming call request being addressed to a group unique identifier for the plurality of video communication devices that are part of a same user group;

establishing an outbound video call with another video communication device responsive to receiving an outbound video call request, wherein the outbound video call uses the group unique identifier as its caller identification (caller ID) responsive to the outbound video call request being initiated by one of the plurality of the video communication devices that are members of the same user group; and

providing sign language translation services to either the incoming call or the outbound call via a video relay service when one of the parties to the call is a hearing-impaired user.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

transmitting individual account information to one of the video communication devices of the plurality, but not to the other video communication devices of the plurality that are members of the same user group; and

transmitting group account information to each of the video communication devices of the plurality that are members of the same user group.

13. The method of claim 12, further comprising:

receiving an update to the group account information at a remote profile server from one of the video communication devices of the plurality that are members of the same user group;

saving the update within a database of the remote profile server maintaining the group account information; and

broadcasting a notification from the remote profile server to the other video communication devices of the plurality that are members of the same user group that the group account information has been updated.

17. The method of claim 11, further comprising assigning the group unique identifier to each of the video communication devices associated with the user group responsive to creating the user group by:

promoting one of the individual unique identifiers of one of the individual video communication devices of the user group to be the new group unique identifier; and

assigning a new individual unique identifier to replace the promoted individual unique identifier.

18. The method of claim 11, further comprising assigning the group unique identifier to each of the video communication devices associated with the user group responsive to creating the user group by:

demoting the current group unique identifier by assigning the current group unique identifier to be a new individual unique identifier for one of the individual video communication devices of the user group; and

assigning a new group unique identifier to replace the demoted group unique identifier.

19. The method of claim 11, further comprising adding at least one additional video communication device responsive to a user request at one of the individual video communication devices already assigned to the user group.

20. The method of claim 11, further comprising withdrawing at least one of the video communication devices from being a member of the user group and disabling access to group information responsive to a user request at one of the individual video communication devices already assigned to the user group.

14. A method of operating a communication system, the method comprising:

receiving an incoming video call at a video communication device from a call routing server associated with a video relay service (VRS) providing interpretive assistance during an established video call responsive to an incoming video call request being addressed to either its individual unique identifier or the group unique identifier for a user group of associated video communication devices; and

transmitting an outbound video call request to the call routing server associated with the VRS for establishing an outbound video call with another video communication device through the VRS, wherein the outbound video call uses the group unique identifier as its caller identification (caller ID) for outbound calls.

15. The method of claim 14, further comprising:

retrieving and displaying group account information responsive to the video communication device being logged in using group credentials for the user group; and

retrieving and displaying individual account information responsive to the video communication device being logged in using individual credentials for the video communication device.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising periodically receiving updated group account information from a remote server associated with the VRS, the updated group account information being updated by another video communication device that is a member of the user group.