SYSTEM AND METHOD FOR GRAPHICALLY MANAGING COMMUNICATION SESSIONS

• US 20100251158A1
• Filed: 03/29/2010
• Published: 09/30/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 03/30/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Avaya Incorporated
• Inventors: Roessler, Frank, GEPPERT, Birgit
• Application Number:
  US12/749,028
• Publication Number:
  US 20100251158A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/771
• 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 conducting a computer conference, e.g. admission detection H04L12/1822
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2250/22 including a touch pad, a touch sensor or a touch detector digitizers for touch screens G06F3/041
• 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 managing a communication session via a graphical user interface (GUI). The method causes a communication device to present a set of connected graphical elements representing a structure of the communication session via the GUI, the communication session comprising at least two communicating users, receive user input associated with the set of connected graphical elements, the user input having an action associated with the communication session, and perform the action based on the received user input. The graphical elements can include images, text, caricatures, and avatars, and can change based on a contacted party context, persona, and presence. Active connections to the communication session can be visually represented as overlapping graphical elements, a line connecting graphical elements, a shape connecting graphical elements, a shape with radiating lines connecting graphical elements, and a common augmented appearance of graphical elements.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method of managing a communication session via a graphical user interface (GUI), the method causing a communication device to perform steps comprising:

presenting a set of connected graphical elements representing a structure of a communication session via the GUI, the communication session comprising at least two communicating users;

receiving user input associated with the set of connected graphical elements, the user input having an action associated with the communication session; and

performing the action based on the received user input.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the graphical elements comprise one or more of images, text, caricatures, and avatars.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the graphical elements change based on at least one of a contacted party context, persona, presence, and connectivity status.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the graphical elements comprise text of related information comprising one or more of a name, a title, a position, a bio, a telephone number, email address, local time, biological time, presence information, and location.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 3, wherein at least one of the graphical elements includes at least a hyperlink to related information.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 5, wherein the additional related information relates to the user associated with the at least one of the graphical elements.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein within the set of connected graphical elements, active connections to the communication session are visually represented as a graphical connection metaphor including one or more of overlapping graphical elements, a line connecting graphical elements, a shape connecting graphical elements, a shape with radiating lines connecting graphical elements, and a common augmented appearance of graphical elements.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 7, wherein active connections are visually represented as overlapping graphical elements, the overlapping graphical elements representing individuals at one location.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 7, wherein the graphical connection metaphor indicates a communication session relationship between connected graphical elements by changing one or more color, thickness, animation, texture, and length.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 9, wherein the communication session relationship includes one or more of an active, a held, a pending, a sidebar, a monitored transfer, an unmonitored transfer, selective forwarding, and selective breakup of the communication session into multiple communication sessions.

11. The computer-implemented method of claim 7, wherein graphical elements corresponding to individuals at a same location are one of (1) grouped close together, (2) overlapped, and (3) connected by a shape.

12. The computer-implemented method of claim 7, wherein a communication session moderator graphical element is placed in a central location in relation to other graphical elements.

13. The computer-implemented method of claim 7, wherein graphical elements are arranged based on at least one of an organizational hierarchy, role, location, and seniority.

14. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the communication session includes one or more communication modalities.

15. The computer-implemented method of claim 14, wherein the communication modalities include telephone, cellular phone, voice over IP (VoIP), instant messaging, e-mail, text messaging, web conferencing, screen sharing, file sharing, and video conferencing.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the action is one or more of adding a party to the communication session, inviting a party to the communication session, dropping a party from the communication session, splitting a communication session, initiating the communication session, ending the communication session, transferring a party to a different mode of communication, and forming a sidebar communication session.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the action is one or more of merging the communication session with a second communication session and moving one or more parties of the communication session to a second communication session.

21. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein if the action is removing a participant from the communication session, the method further causing the communication device to perform steps comprising:

dropping the participant from the communications session; and

updating the set of connected graphical elements to remove graphical elements associated with the dropped participant.

22. The computer-implemented method of claim 21, the method further causing the communications device to terminate the communication session if only one user remains in the communication session.

23. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein if the action is adding a new participant to the communication session, the method further causing the communication device to perform steps comprising:

bridging the new participant into the communication session; and

updating the set of connected graphical elements to include a new graphical element for the new participant.

24. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the communication session is created in response to a drag and drop action in the GUI of a first icon associated with a first user to a second icon associated with a second user.

18. A system for managing a communication session via a graphical user interface (GUI), the system comprising:

a processor;

a module controlling the processor to present a set of connected graphical elements representing a structure of the communication session via the GUI, the communication session comprising at least two communicating users;

a module controlling the processor to receive user input associated with the set of connected graphical elements, the user input having an action associated with the communication session; and

a module controlling the processor to perform the action based on the received user input.

19. The system of claim 18, wherein within the set of connected graphical elements, active connections to the communication session are visually represented as a graphical connection metaphor including one or more of overlapping graphical elements, a line connecting graphical elements, a shape connecting graphical elements, a shape with radiating lines connecting graphical elements, and a common augmented appearance of graphical elements.

20. A non-transitory computer-readable storage medium storing instructions which, when executed by a computing device, cause the computing device to manage a communication session via a graphical user interface (GUI), the instructions comprising:

presenting a set of connected graphical elements representing a structure of the communication session via the GUI, the communication session comprising at least two communicating users;

receiving user input associated with the set of connected graphical elements, the user input having an action associated with the communication session; and

performing the action based on the received user input.