Patent ID: 7468738
Filing Date: 2008-12-23
Classification: H04N

Abstract:
1. A method of allowing parents to video conference with their children when the children are at a childcare facility and the parents are at other remote locations, wherein one parent of a child at the childcare facility is at a first one of the remote locations and the other parent of the child is at a second one of the remote locations, the method comprising: receiving, by a video conferencing unit via a first network, videos of the children recorded by childcare video cameras at the childcare facility; receiving, by the video conferencing unit via a second network, videos of the parents recorded by parent video cameras respectively located at the remote locations; outputting the videos of the parents from the video conferencing unit on a childcare display at the childcare facility via the first network so that the parents are displayed on respective portions of a childcare display at the childcare facility for viewing by the children; outputting one of the videos of the children from the video conferencing unit to parent displays respectively at the remote locations via the second network so that the children are displayed on one portion of each parent display for viewing by the parents; outputting the video of the one parent from the video conferencing unit to the parent display at the second one of the remote locations via the second network such that the one parent is displayed on another portion of the parent display at the second one of the remote locations for viewing by the other parent; and outputting the video of the other parent from the video conferencing unit to the parent display at the first one of the remote locations via the second network such that the other parent is displayed on another portion of the parent display at the first one of the remote locations for viewing by the one parent.