AUDIO-VIDEO MULTI-PARTICIPANT CONFERENCE SYSTEMS USING PSTN AND INTERNET NETWORKS

• US 20130162754A1
• Filed: 11/12/2012
• Published: 06/27/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 03/10/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Meetrix IP, LLC (Anixa Biosciences, Inc. (f/k/a ITUS Corporation))
• Original Assignee: MEETRIX COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
• Inventors: Dye, Thomas, Dundon, Thomas
• Granted Patent: US 9,094,525 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 348/14.08
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/1818 Conference organisation arrangements, e.g. handling schedules, setting up parameters needed by nodes to attend a conference, booking network resources, notifying involved parties
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 12/4641 Virtual LANs, VLANs, e.g. virtual private networks [VPN] LAN interconnection over a bridge based backbone H04L12/462; encapsulation techniques H04L12/4633; routing of packets H04L45/00; packet switches H04L49/00; virtual private networks for security H04L63/0272
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1101 Session protocols
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/1106 Call signalling protocols; H.323 and related
• 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: H04L 65/4038 with floor control
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 2207/35 virtual private networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 3/567 Multimedia conference systems
• 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: H04M 7/009 in systems involving PBX or KTS networks
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 7/1225 Details of core network interconnection arrangements
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/15 Conference systems

Abstract

A multi-participant conference system and method is described. The multi-participant system includes a PSTN client, at least one remote client and a first participant client. The PSTN client communicates audio data and the remote clients communicate audio-video data. The first participant client includes a voice over IP (VoIP) encoder, a VoIP decoder, a first audio mixer, and a second audio mixer. The VoIP encoder compresses audio data transported to the PSTN client. The VoIP decoder then decodes audio data from the PSTN client. The first audio mixer mixes the decoded audio data from the PSTN client with the audio-video data from the first participant into a first mixed audio-video data stream transmitted to the remote client. The second audio mixer mixes the audio-video data stream from the first participant with the audio-video data stream from each remote client into a second mixed audio transmitted to the PSTN client.

Claims

1-11. -11. (canceled)

12. A multi-participant conference system comprising:

a public switched telephone network (PSTN) client configured to communicate audio data;

at least one remote client connected to the Internet configured to receive audio-video data;

a first participant client configured to receive audio-video data, wherein the first participant client includes,

a voice over IP encoder that compresses audio data transported to the PSTN client,

a voice over IP decoder that decodes audio data from the PSTN client,

a first audio mixer that mixes the decoded audio data from the PSTN client with the audio-video data from the first participant into a first mixed audio-video data stream, wherein the first mixed audio-video data stream is transmitted to the at least one remote client connected to the Internet;

a second audio mixer that mixes the audio-video data stream from the first participant with the audio-video data stream from the at least one remote client connected to the Internet into a second mixed audio, wherein the second mixed audio is compressed by the voice over IP encoder, which is then transmitted to the PSTN client.

13. The system of claim 12 further comprising a third audio mixer that mixes the audio data from the PSTN client with the audio-video data stream from the at least one remote client into a third mixed audio, wherein the third mixed audio stream and audio-video data stream is transmitted to the first participant.

14. The system of claim 12 wherein data between the first participant and the PSTN client is transported through a virtual private network tunnel.

15. The system of claim 12 wherein data between the moderator and the remote client is transported through a virtual private network tunnel.

16. The system of claim 12 further comprising a first message communicated to each of a plurality of multicast appliances over the Internet, wherein the first message comprises a group address which identifies participants.

17. The system of claim 16 further comprising each of the multicast appliances configured to receive the first message.

18. The system of claim 17 further comprising a plurality of virtual private networks across the Internet that are established between the multicast appliances.

19. The system of claim 18 wherein the PSTN client is configured to communicate with a PSTN gateway that communicates with a VoIP server, which is communicatively coupled to the plurality of virtual private networks.

20. A system for supporting a multi-participant conference call comprising:

a first mixer configured to mix a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) client audio data stream with a moderator audio-video data stream into a first mixed data stream;

a first transport output configured to transmit the first mixed data stream to at least one remote client configured to receive the first mixed data stream, the at least one remote client connected to the Internet and configured to generate a remote client audio-video data stream;

a second mixer configured to mix the moderator audio-video data stream with the remote client audio-video data stream into a second mixed data stream; and

a second transport output configured to transmit a mixed audio data stream, corresponding to the second mixed data stream, to the PSTN client.

21. The system of claim 20 further comprising a third mixer configured to mix the audio data from the PSTN client with the audio-video data stream from the remote client into a third mixed data stream and communicating the third mixed data stream to the moderator.

22. The system of claim 20 further comprising a VoIP decoder configured to receive IP packets containing the audio data stream generated by the PSTN client, and further configured to decode the IP packets containing the audio data from the PSTN client.

23. The system of claim 20 further comprising at least one audio decompressor configured to decode IP packets containing the audio-video data stream generated by the remote client.

24. The system of claim 20 wherein the PSTN client audio data stream and the moderator audio-video data stream are configured to be transported across a virtual private network tunnel.

25. The system of claim 20 wherein the moderator audio-video data stream and the remote client audio-video data stream are configured to be transported across a virtual private network tunnel.

26. The system of claim 25 further comprising an encoder configured to receive the first mixed data stream and encode the first mixed voice data before transmitting the first mixed data stream to the remote client.

27. The system of claim 24 further comprising a VoIP encoder configured to encode the second mixed data stream and encode the second mixed voice data before transmitting the second mixed data stream to the PSTN client.

35. The method of claim 22 further comprising encoding the second mixed data stream and encoding the second mixed voice data before transmitting the second mixed data stream to the PSTN client.

28. A method for supporting a multi-participant conference call, the method comprising:

receiving a PSTN audio data stream from a public switched telephone network (PSTN) client;

receiving a moderator audio-video data stream from a moderator;

receiving a remote client audio-video data stream from at least one remote client connected to the Internet;

mixing the PSTN audio data stream with the moderator audio-video data stream into a first mixed data stream;

transmitting the first mixed data stream to the remote client;

mixing the moderator audio-video data stream with the remote client audio-video data stream into a second mixed data stream;

transmitting a mixed audio data stream, corresponding to the second mixed data stream, to the PSTN client.

29. The method of claim 28 further comprising mixing the PSTN audio data stream with the remote client audio-video data stream into a third mixed data stream.

30. The method of claim 28 wherein receiving the PSTN audio data stream from the PSTN client at a moderator client includes receiving IP packets and decoding the IP packets containing the PSTN audio data stream.

31. The method of claim 28 wherein receiving the remote client audio-video data at a moderator computer client includes decoding the IP packets containing the audio-video data generated by the remote client.

32. The method of claim 28 further comprising transporting through a virtual private network the PSTN client audio stream and the moderator audio-video data stream.

33. The method of claim 28 further comprising transporting the moderator audio-video data stream and the remote client audio-video data stream through a virtual private network.

34. The method of claim 33 further comprising receiving the first mixed data stream and encoding the first mixed voice data before transmitting the first mixed data stream to the remote client.