VOICE CONFERENCE CALL USING PSTN AND INTERNET NETWORKS

• US 20130163480A1
• 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 9,253,332 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 370/260
• 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 system and method for supporting a multi-participant voice conference call using PSTN and Internet networks is described. The method for supporting a multi-participant voice conference call includes receiving voice from a PSTN client. The method also includes receiving voice data from a moderator and from at least one remote client connected to the Internet. The method then proceeds to mix the voice data from the PSTN client with the voice data from the moderator into a first mixed voice data that is transmitted to the remote client that is connected to the Internet. The method also mixes the voice data from the moderator with the voice data from the remote client connected to the Internet into a second mixed voice data that is transmitted to the PSTN client.

Claims

1-11. -11. (canceled)

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

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

receiving voice data from a moderator;

receiving voice data from at least one remote client connected to the Internet;

mixing the voice data from the PSTN client with the voice data from the moderator into a first mixed voice data;

transmitting the first mixed voice data to the remote client connected to the Internet; and

mixing the voice data from the moderator with the voice data from the remote client connected to the Internet into a second mixed voice data;

transmitting the second mixed voice data to the PSTN client.

13. The method of claim 12 further comprising:

mixing the voice data from the PSTN client with the voice data from the remote client into a third mixed voice data; and

playing the third mixed voice data to the moderator.

14. The method of claim 12 wherein receiving voice data from the PSTN client includes receiving IP packets and decoding the IP packets containing the voice data of the PSTN client at a moderator computer system.

15. The method of claim 12 wherein receiving voice data from the remote client connected to the Internet includes receiving IP packets containing the voice data corresponding to the remote client and at a moderator computer system decoding the IP packets containing the voice data of the remote client.

16. The method of claim 12 wherein data between the moderator and the PSTN client is transported through a virtual private network tunnel.

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

18. The method of claim 12 further comprising a moderator computer system configured to encode the first mixed voice data before transmitting the first mixed voice data to the remote client.

19. The method of claim 12 further comprising a moderator computer system configured to enable VOIP encoding the second mixed voice data before transmitting the second mixed voice data to the PSTN client.

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

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

an audio mixer configured to mix voice data from a Public Switched Telephone Network (PSTN) client with voice data from a moderator into a first mixed voice data;

a first transport output configured to transmit the first mixed voice data to at least one remote client;

a VOIP mixer configured to mix voice data from the moderator with voice data from the remote client connected to the Internet into a second mixed voice data; and

a second transport output configured to transmit the second mixed voice data to the PSTN client.

21. The system of claim 20 further comprising:

a second VOIP mixer configured to mix the voice data from the PSTN client with the voice data from the remote client into a third mixed voice data; and

a speaker configured to play the third mixed voice data to the moderator.

22. The system of claim 20 further comprising a VOIP decoder configured to receive IP packets containing the voice data of the PSTN client, and further configured to decode the IP packets containing the voice data of the PSTN client.

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

24. The system of claim 20 wherein data between the moderator and the PSTN client is transported across a virtual private network tunnel.

25. The system of claim 20 wherein data between the moderator and the remote client is transported through a virtual private network tunnel.

26. The system of claim 20 further comprising an audio encoder configured to encode the first mixed voice data before transmitting the first mixed voice data to the remote client.

27. The system of claim 20 further comprising a VOIP encoder configured to encode the second mixed voice data before transmitting the second mixed voice data to the PSTN client.

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

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

at least one remote client connected to the Internet configured to receive audio; and

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

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

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

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

a second audio mixer that mixes the audio from the first participant with the audio 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.

29. The system of claim 28 further comprising a third audio mixer that mixes the audi from the PSTN client with the audio from the at least one remote client into a third mixed audio, wherein the third mixed audio is transmitted to the first participant.

30. The system of claim 28 wherein data between the first participant and the PSTN client is transported through a virtual private network tunnel.