Patent ID: 6466250
Filing Date: 2002-10-15
Classification: H04M,H04N

Abstract:
An electronically-mediated collaboration system, comprising:at least two modular systems communicating with each other, each one of said modular systems usable by a participant and including: a graphical user interface (GUI) module for communicating non-audio data to a said other one of said modular systems; an audio subsystem for receiving audio from and transmitting audio to an audio subsystem in said other one of said modular systems; a display for presenting non-audio data to said participant; wherein the non-audio data includes a representation of each said participant and a shared cursor visually associated with the representation of a current cursor user; and a session manager module for synchronizing and coordinating communication of non-audio data between said modular systems wherein each one of said modular systems usable by each said participant further includes an eye contact collaboratory subsystem, the eye contact collaboratory system comprising: at least two GUI submodules communicating with each other, each one of said GUI submodules usable by the participant and including: a camera suite having at least one camera for recording video input of discrete images of said participant representing at least two perspectives of said participant; an image synthesizer for synthesizing first virtual camera images from said discrete images of said participant and transmitting said first virtual camera images to said other said GUI submodules; and an eye position generator for generating first eye position data of said participant from said virtual camera images of said participant and transmitting to said other said GUI submodules; and a display output generator for generating display output of other participants for said participant using second virtual camera images from said other said GUI submodules, second eye position data from said other said GUI submodules and control inputs from said participant.