Multi-site screen interactions

• US 9,998,508 B2
• Filed: 03/24/2016
• Issued: 06/12/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 09/22/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Cisco Technology, Inc. (Cisco Systems, Inc.)
• Inventors: Sun, Qibin, Zhang, Zhishou, Wee, Susie, Chen, Kai, Zhang, Yajun, You, Yi, Zhu, Zhongping
• Primary Examiner(s): El-Zoobi, Maria
• Application Number:
  US15/080,109
• Publication Number:
  US 20160277461A1
• Time in Patent Office: 810 Days
• Field of Search: None
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/011 Arrangements for interaction with the human body, e.g. for user immersion in virtual reality blind teaching G09B21/00
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0486 Drag-and-drop
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/1446 display composed of modules, e.g. video walls
• 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 12/1827 Network arrangements for conference optimisation or adaptation
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 65/4015 where at least one of the additional parallel sessions is real time or time sensitive, e.g. white board sharing, collaboration or spawning of a subconference
• 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: H04N 7/142 Constructional details of the terminal equipment, e.g. arrangements of the camera and the display
• CPC Class Codes: H04N 7/152 Multipoint control units therefor
• CPC Class Codes: H04W 4/80 Services using short range communication, e.g. near-field communication [NFC], radio-frequency identification [RFID] or low energy communication

Abstract

A technology for interacting with a collaborative videoconferencing environment is disclosed. A display having a substantially “L-shaped” configuration allows for display of collaborative materials and video of remote participants simultaneously, which provides for a more natural interaction for a meeting participant interacting with the collaborative materials. Meeting participants in the collaborative videoconferencing environment, both locally and remote, can simultaneously interact with the same content as if they were in the same location.

Claims

1. An integrated conferencing-collaboration system comprising:

a touch sensitive display configured to (i) display a video conference between a local-site meeting participant and a remote-site meeting participant, and (ii) display an interactive and collaborative workspace;

a conferencing client configured to (i) manage a local-site of the video conference, and (ii) communicate with a video conference server;

a collaboration system controller configured to (i) manage the local-site of the interactive and collaborative workspace, and (ii) communicate with a collaboration system server to send commands to update a remote-site of the interactive and collaborative workspace in response to inputs received the collaboration system controller through the touch sensitive display; and

an interface adapted to (i) instruct addition of video content to the collaborative workspace, and (ii) provide an output command to (a) instruct a second computing device at the remote site to modify the collaborative workspace presented at the remote site with the added video content and (b) designate the added video content as either active content or inactive content;

wherein the second computer device is programmed to display the added video content;

wherein the second computer device is programmed to permit modification of the added video content when designated active, and to prevent modification of the added video content when designated inactive.

2. The integrated conference-collaboration system of claim 1 comprising:

a computing device connected to the touch sensitive display, the computing device configured to execute the conferencing client and the collaboration system controller, an output of the computing device configured to be displayed on the touch sensitive display.

3. The integrated conference-collaboration system of claim 2, wherein the video conference is configured to be launched through inputs entered into the touch sensitive display.

4. The integrated conference-collaboration system of claim 2, wherein the collaboration system controller includes a workspace sync module and a document sync module, the workspace sync module is configured to synchronize the collaborative workspace with a displayed version of the collaborative workspace at a remote site, the document sync module is configured to synchronize changes made to a document shared through the collaborative workspace.

5. The integrated conference-collaboration system of claim 1, wherein the input data further can describe an input method used to enter the input, and the output command is configured to instruct the second computing device to present meeting participant content representing the input method described by the input data.

6. The integrated conference-collaboration system of claim 5, wherein the input method is a touch received on a touchscreen, and the meeting participant content is a virtual representation of at least a portion of a human body.

7. The integrated conference-collaboration system of claim 2, wherein the computing device includes a meeting layer configured to display meeting details, or to record portions of the collaborative workspace or video conference.

8. A non-transitory computer-readable medium comprising instructions stored on the computer-readable medium, the instructions, when executed being effective to cause a computing device to:

display, on a touch sensitive display, a video conference between a local-site meeting participant and a remote-site meeting participant, and to display an interactive and collaborative workspace;

execute a conferencing client configured to (i) manage a local-site of the video conference, and (ii) communicate with a video conference server;

execute a collaboration system controller configured to (i) manage the local-site of the interactive and collaborative workspace, and (ii) communicate with a collaboration systems server to send commands to update a remote-site of the interactive and collaborative workspace in response to inputs received by the collaboration system controller through the touch sensitive display;

instruct addition of video content to the collaborative workspace;

instruct a second computing device at the remote site to modify the collaborative workspace presented at the remote site with the added video content; and

designate the added video content as either active content or inactive content;

wherein the second computer device is programmed to display the added video content;

wherein the second computer device is programmed to permit modification of the added video content when designated active, and to prevent modification of the added video content when designated inactive.

9. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the instructions are effective to launch the video conference in response to inputs entered into the touch sensitive display.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the instructions are effective to synchronize the collaborative workspace with a displayed version of the collaborative workspace at a remote site, and to synchronize changes made to a document shared through the collaborative workspace.

11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein the input data further can describe an input method used to enter the input, and the output command is configured to instruct the second computing device to present meeting participant content representing the input method described by the input data.

12. A method comprising:

displaying, on a touch sensitive display, a video conference between a local-site meeting participant and a remote-site meeting participant, and displaying an interactive and collaborative workspace;

managing, by conferencing client, a local-site of the video conference, and communicating with a video conference server;

managing, by a collaboration system controller, the local-site of the interactive and collaborative workspace, and communicating with a collaboration systems server to send commands to update a remote-site of the interactive and collaborative workspace in response to inputs received by the collaboration system controller through the touch sensitive display

instructing addition of video content to the collaborative workspace;

instructing a second computing device at the remote site to modify the collaborative workspace presented at the remote site with the added video content; and

designating the added video content as either active content or inactive content;

wherein the second computer device is programmed to display the added video content;

wherein the second computer device is programmed to permit modification of the added video content when designated active, and to prevent modification of the added video content when designated inactive.

13. The method of claim 12, comprising:

synchronizing the collaborative workspace with a displayed version of the collaborative workspace at a remote site; and

synchronizing changes made to a document shared through the collaborative workspace.

14. The method of claim 12, comprising:

receiving input data describing an input received through the touch sensitive display, the input instructing a computing device to modify the collaborative workspace presented on the touch sensitive display; and

determining an output command based on the received input data, the output command configured to instruct a second computing device at the remote site to modify the collaborative workspace presented at the remote site.

15. The method of claim 14, wherein an input method is a touch received on a touchscreen, and meeting participant content is a virtual representation of at least a portion of a human body.

16. The method of claim 12, comprising:

displaying meeting details, or

recording portions of the collaborative workspace or video conference.