System and method for managing incoming requests for a communication session using a graphical connection metaphor

• US 9,900,280 B2
• Filed: 03/29/2010
• Issued: 02/20/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 03/30/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Inventors: Geppert, Birgit, Roessler, Frank
• Primary Examiner(s): PITARO, RYAN F
• Application Number:
  US12/749,094
• Publication Number:
  US 20100251119A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,885 Days
• Field of Search: 715753, 715758
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0486 Drag-and-drop
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/10 Office automation; Time management
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1822 Conducting the conference, e.g. admission, detection, selection or grouping of participants, correlating users to one or more conference sessions, prioritising transmission
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/04 Real-time or near real-time messaging, e.g. instant messaging [IM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/046 Interoperability with other network applications or services
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 51/56 Unified messaging, e.g. interactions between e-mail, instant messaging or converged IP messaging [CPM]
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1069 Session establishment or de-establishment
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1094 Inter-user-equipment sessions transfer or sharing
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/403 Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/247 Telephone sets including user guidance or feature selection means facilitating their use user interfaces specially adapted for cordless or mobile telephones H04M1/724
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/27453 Directories allowing storage of additional subscriber data, e.g. metadata
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/27475 using interactive graphical means or pictorial representations
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2201/42 Graphical user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2203/5027 Dropping a party from a conference
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/22 including a touch pad, a touch sensor or a touch detector
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/62 user interface aspects of conference calls
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42068 where the identifier is used to access a profile
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42161 via computer interface
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42221 : Conversation recording systems at the subscriber's set H04M1/656
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/42289 : with carrierprovider selection by subscriber
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/563 : User guidance or feature selection
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/564 : whereby the feature is a sub-conference
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/21 : for social networking applications

Abstract

Disclosed herein are systems, methods, and non-transitory computer-readable storage media for presenting a selected media message to a first user. The method includes displaying via a graphical user interface (GUI) a notification associated with a request from a first user for a communication with a second user in the context of a graphical representation of a communication session including at least the second user, receiving a second user input identifying a selected action associated with the first user via the GUI, and performing the selected action relative to the first user. The second user can be notified of the incoming request via a communication session displayed as a set of graphical elements representing a structure of the communication session via the GUI. The first and/or second user can be a communication session of multiple users.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

displaying, by a processor and via a graphical user interface, a notification associated with an incoming request from a conferencing communication device for a first user, at a first user communication device, to join a conference call, wherein the notification associated with the incoming request comprises a text request from a third user, currently in the conference call, for the first user to join the conference call and a list of a plurality of participants currently in the conference call, wherein the first user is notified of the incoming request via a set of graphical elements, in the graphical user interface, representing a structure of the conference call that shows avatars connected together for the plurality of participants in the conference call, wherein the conference call comprises one of a voice or a video communication session, and wherein the first user communication device is currently involved in a second communication session with at least a second user communication device;

in response to receiving the incoming request and the first user communication device being currently involved in the second communication session, presenting, by the processor, to the first user, an interface to receive an instruction from the first user; and

receiving, by the processor and via the graphical user interface, the instruction for handling the incoming request to join the conference call.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the first user is notified of the incoming request via a set of graphical elements in the graphical user interface representing the conference call.

3. The method of claim 1, wherein the second communication session with the at least a second user communication device comprises a plurality of users.

4. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

presenting, by the processor, a dynamically generated set of options comprising fields for receiving inputs.

5. The method of claim 4, wherein the dynamically generated set of options specifically presents different options according to whether the incoming conference call is the voice or video communication session.

6. The method of claim 4, wherein the set of options comprises an option to have a separate communication session between the first user and the third user in a different communication modality.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising, sending, by the processor, the request for the conference communication device to initiate the conference call with the third user via the different communication modality.

8. The method of claim 7, wherein the different communication modality is a different one of the voice or video communication session.

9. The method of claim 1, wherein the instruction comprises the first user recording a message for the conference call.

10. The method of claim 1, wherein the instruction comprises one of presenting a caller-specific greeting, playing a first user-recorded message, recording a first user call message, or a first-user-entered message.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the instruction comprises the instruction of the first-user-entered message, wherein the first user-entered message is based on the incoming request from the first user communication device.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein the conference call is scheduled on a calendar of the first user.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein the instruction comprises an instruction to send a message to the conference communication device from a library of pre-generated messages based on the incoming request to join the conference call.

14. The method of claim 1, wherein the instruction comprises a menu option to reschedule the conference call and further comprising:

displaying, by the processor, a calendar, wherein the calendar comprises schedules from the list of participants currently in the conference call.

15. The method of claim 1, wherein the instruction comprises predefined option that also allows the first user to fill in additional desired information.

16. The method of claim 1, wherein the incoming call request from the conferencing communication device is in a calendar of the first user and in response to the incoming call request being in the calendar of the first user, displaying a menu of options for the first user.

17. A system comprising:

a processor; and

a computer-readable storage medium having stored therein instructions which, when executed by the processor, cause the processor to perform operations comprising;

displaying, via a graphical user interface, a notification associated with an incoming request from a conferencing communication device for a first user, at a first user communication device, to join a conference call, wherein the notification associated with the incoming request comprises a text request from a third user, currently in the conference call, for the first user to join the conference call and a list of a plurality of participants currently in the conference call, wherein the first user is notified of the incoming request via a set of graphical elements, in the graphical user interface, representing a structure of the conference call that shows avatars connected together for the plurality of participants in the conference call, wherein the conference call comprises one of a voice or a video communication session, and wherein the first user is currently involved in a second communication session with at least a second user communication device;

in response to receiving the incoming request and the first user communication device being currently involved in the second communication session, presenting, to the first user, an interface to receive an instruction from the first user; and

receiving, via the graphical user interface, the instruction for handling the incoming request to join the conference call.

18. The system of claim 17, wherein the second communication session has a plurality of participants.

19. The system of claim 17, wherein the instruction for handling the incoming request is based on one of a drag and drop gesture, keyboard input, mouse input, touch screen input, voice input, multi-touch input, and gesture input.

20. The system of claim 17, wherein the instruction comprises a menu option to reschedule the conference call and further comprising:

displaying, via the graphical user interface, a calendar, wherein the calendar comprises schedules from the list of participants currently in the conference call.