Abstract:
A conferencing system includes a conferencing module that includes a digital signal processor to mix audio signals received from conference participants, and a messaging manager module coupled with the conferencing module. the messaging manager module allocating a memory space for each conference participant, the memory space for storing a message, the conferencing module delivering the message as either speech or text, notification and receipt of the message occurring without disturbance to a remaining group of the conference participants. It is emphasized that this abstract is provided to comply with the rules requiring an abstract that will allow a searcher or other reader to quickly ascertain the subject matter of the technical disclosure. It is submitted with the understanding that it will not be used to interpret or limit the scope or meaning of the claims.

Description:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION  
       [0001]     The present invention relates generally to the fields of data networks and communication systems; more specifically, to systems and methods aimed at managing conference sessions for groups of individuals communicating over a telephony network.  
       BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION  
       [0002]     Conferencing systems and methods, in which participants communicate in a conference session or meeting over existing voice and data networks, have been in existence for some time. Recent examples of conference calling systems include U.S. Pat. No. 6,865,540, which teaches a method and apparatus for providing group calls via the Internet; U.S. Pat. No. 6,876,734, which teaches an Internet-enabled conferencing system accommodating public switched telephone network (PSTN) and Internet Protocol (IP) traffic; U.S. Pat. No. 6,931,001, which discloses a system for interconnecting packet-switched and circuit-switched voice communications; and U.S. Pat. No. 6,671,262, which teaches a system with conference servers for combining IP packet streams in a conference call into combined packet streams, such that the combined IP packet stream utilizes no more bandwidth than each of the original packet streams.  
         [0003]     A variety of different features and approaches for scheduling, control, and management of conference call sessions are also known. For instance, a conferencing system that facilitates a conference call by enabling a participant in the call session to determine and categorize the identities of the other participants is taught in U.S. Pat. No. 6,931,113. A conference calling system in which each participant may individually control incoming audio streams from other participants, and in which participants may communicate privately with each other in the context of the conference call, is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,501,739. U.S. Pat. No. 6,816,469 teaches an IP telephony network and PSTN network that allows one or more call waiting callers to dynamically join in an existing multiple party conference call session.  
         [0004]     In addition, commercially-available IP communication system products such as Cisco&#39;s MeetingPlace™ conferencing application allow users to schedule meeting conferences in advance or, alternatively, to set up conferences immediately by dialing out to participant parties. Cisco MeetingPlace™ is typically deployed on a corporate network behind the firewall, and facilitates scheduling of business conferences from a touch-tone or voice over IP (VOIP) telephone, or a computer, using various software clients, such as Microsoft® Outlook, or a web browser.  
         [0005]     Often times during a meeting or conference session certain participants want to exchange messages or engage in discussions without disturbing the other participants of the conference session. For instance, in the middle of a conference session several participants may want to have a sidebar conversation to discuss some important topic. Existing conferencing systems such as Cisco&#39;s MeetingPlace software product allow a subset of meeting participants to enter a “breakout” session or “room” in which individuals can establish their own private communication group session apart from the main conference session by simply pressing a predetermined keypad code or sequence (e.g., by pressing #1(1-9)). In the case where conference participants are in front of a PC, then they can communicate using an instant messaging (IM) client or similar tool to invite selected participants to enter a breakout session.  
         [0006]     One problem that arises in prior art conferencing systems, however, is that often time participants have dialed into the conference session using a telephone device, such as a voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) phone, rather than from a PC. In such cases, an invitation sent to a telephone participant to join a breakout session typically produces an audible signal or tone (e.g., voice interruption, ringing, beeping, etc.) that disturbs the other meeting participants.  
         [0007]     Some conferencing systems support question and answer (Q&amp;A) sessions, wherein participants (usually in listen-mode only) may send questions to a queue without interrupting the conference flow. But in these systems the questions are commonly submitted via a non-telephony interface from a computer (e.g., Web, email, IM, etc.). Additionally, in conference systems with Q&amp;A session capabilities the questions and answers are typically heard by all participants in the meeting, which is different from sending and receiving offline messages between specified participants without disturbing the other participants to the conference session.  
         [0008]     Various mechanisms also exist for leaving an offline message to notify the other attendees that a certain participant will be absent from a scheduled meeting or conference session. In Cisco&#39;s MeetingPlace™ software product, for example, this type of offline message is heard by every participant as they join the conference session. What is missing from the prior art, however, is a mechanism for sending an offline message to participants who have already dialed in using a telephone device while the conference session is in progress and without disturbing the other participants.  
         [0009]     What is needed therefore is a conferencing system and method that overcomes the drawbacks of the prior art and which facilitates the sending of offline messages to one or more participants during a conference session without disturbing the other participants, regardless of device used to dial into the session.  
     
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS  
       [0010]     The present invention will be understood more fully from the detailed description that follows and from the accompanying drawings, which however, should not be taken to limit the invention to the specific embodiments shown, but are for explanation and understanding only.  
         [0011]      FIG. 1  is a conceptual diagram of a conferencing system in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0012]      FIG. 2  is a flowchart diagram that illustrates a method of operation according to one embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0013]      FIG. 3  illustrates a user interface window associated with an application running on a PC of a user in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0014]      FIG. 4  is an Internet Protocol (IP) telephone device with a display window that may be utilized to send/receive messages during a conference session in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.  
         [0015]      FIG. 5  is a flowchart diagram that illustrates a decision algorithm for sending a message to a participant during a conference session in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention.  
     
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION  
       [0016]     A conferencing system and method that allows a meeting participant to send/receive offline messages to/from any other meeting participant during a conference session without disturbing the other participants to the session is described. In the following description specific details are set forth, such as device types, system configurations, protocols, methods, etc., in order to provide a thorough understanding of the present invention. However, persons having ordinary skill in the relevant arts will appreciate that these specific details may not be needed to practice the present invention.  
         [0017]     According to one embodiment of the present invention, a conferencing system and method is provided in which a user interface (e.g., graphical, touch, or voice) is utilized by participants for sending and receiving messages during a conference session. When a participant (i.e., user) is logged into the system, a conferencing module or application adds a special “invite to breakout” soft key to the user&#39;s telephone device. When the user presses this softkey on his telephone device the user is presented with a conference participant list. The user may then select desired recipients and then send an offline message inviting those recipients to join a breakout session. The invitation may be in the form of a pre-configured request. Each recipient can either accept or reject the invitation by pressing an appropriate key, e.g., by pressing an “accept” or “reject” soft key or by sending a corresponding Dual-Tone Multi-Frequency (DTMF) signal via the keypad. Message recipients that accept the invitation are automatically transferred or moved into the specified breakout room or session. In a specific implementation, the breakout room specified in the invitation message is automatically selected by a messaging manager program or module based on availability.  
         [0018]     It is appreciated that the media path for the conference participants may include audio (voice) and video transmissions across a variety of different networks (e.g., Internet, intranet, PSTN, etc.), protocols (e.g., IP, Asynchronous Transfer Mode (ATM), Point-to-Point Protocol (PPP)), with connections that span across multiple services, systems, and devices (e.g., private branch exchange (PBX) systems, VoIP gateways, etc.). In a specific embodiment, the present invention may be implemented by software or hardware (firmware) installed in an IP communications system that includes components such as Cisco System&#39;s IP Communicator, Call Manager, MeetingPlace, Softphone (a PC that has phone capabilities installed), and other IP phone/communication products. Alternative embodiments of the present invention may be implemented in PBX, telephony, telephone, and other telecommunications systems.  
         [0019]     Referring to  FIG. 1 , an exemplary conferencing system  10  in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention is shown including a conference module  16  (e.g., a server) coupled with an corporate intranet network/PBX system  15 . PBX system  15  may comprise either a time division multiplexing (TDM)-based or packet-network (e.g., VoIP)-based system. Conference module  16  may include a digital signal processor (DSP)  17  that mixes audio signals received from each of the conference or meeting participants, e.g., individual conference participants  11 - 13 , and possibly from an interactive voice response (IVR) system  19 . Participants  11 - 13  are shown connected with corporate intranet/PBX system  15  via various communication devices. For example, participant  11  is shown connected via a PC and an IP telephone device that has a display window with softkey functionality; participant  12 . is shown connected via an IP telephone device that has a display window with softkeys; and participant  13  is shown connected via a non-IP telephone device without display window or softkey functionality.  
         [0020]     In the embodiment shown, conference module  16  is also shown connected with a natural language automatic speech recognition (ASR) module  18  for interpreting and parsing speech of the participants, and a messaging manager module or server  20  that includes a set of memory spaces or message queues  21  for storing/holding messages sent by a participant and awaiting retrieval by the intended recipients. In one embodiment, messaging manager module  20  may use the speech recognition system to collect the list of names of message recipients. For instance, the messaging manager unit may automatically generate the speech-recognition-grammar based on the list of participants present in the meeting. Messaging manager  20  may also utilize or incorporate standard speech-to-text (STT) and text-to-speech (TTS) converter modules. It is appreciated that ASR module  18 , messaging manager  20 , IVR unit  19 , and other modules/units may be incorporated into conferencing module  16 , or included in other components of system  10 . (Whether integrated together or implemented as separate components, module  16 , ASR  18 , IVR  19  and messaging manager  20  may be collectively referred to as a conferencing subsystem.)  
         [0021]     Practitioners in the arts will understand that each of the component modules and units shown in  FIG. 1  may be implemented by hardware, firmware, or software component elements that implement the various functions described herein.  
         [0022]     In one embodiment, messaging manager  20 , upon starting a meeting or conference session, creates or allocates a temporary message queue for each participant that joins the meeting. In  FIG. 1 , three message queues (MQ A , MQ B , and MQ c ) are shown for holding messages sent to participants  11 - 13 , respectively. For instance, once participants  11 - 13  have joined the conference session and participant  12  wants to send a message to both participants  11  and  13 , participant  12  sends an offline message to the message queue of participants  11  and  13 , i.e., MQ A  and MQ c , respectively. After the message has been sent and stored in message queues  21 , participants  11  and  13  are notified via a message indicator. The message indicator may comprise an IM message to a recipient logged onto a PC, a special message tone (e.g., a “beep-beep” sound) mixed into the media stream sent from conferencing module  16  to the recipient(s), a text display message sent to the display window of the recipient&#39;s telephone device, some other visual indication (e.g., a flashing light) sent to the recipient&#39;s telephone device, a whisper tone alert (e.g., “You have a message”) mixed in the media stream sent to the recipient&#39;s phone device, or other sensory indicators.  
         [0023]     It is appreciated that more than one type of message indicator may be utilized at any time to notify a participant that a message is waiting for them. That is, in certain implementations, a combination of alerts or indicators may be utilized to notify the recipient(s) that a message is waiting for them. Furthermore, even though in this example the three conference participants shown in  FIG. 1  are involved in the message sending/retrieval process, it is appreciated that other persons (not shown) may participant in the conference session. These other participants, who may be referred to as a remaining group of participants, do not receive notifications or messages intended for other participants and therefore are not disturbed by the sending/receiving of messages to/from participants  11 - 13 .  
         [0024]     In the above-described embodiment, after the participant listens to their message, the message is deleted from message queue  21  by messaging manager  20 . Also, once a participant leaves the meeting application (i.e., drops out of the conference session) his or her message queue is deactivated or deleted.  
         [0025]      FIG. 2  is a flowchart diagram that illustrates an exemplary method of operation according to one embodiment of the present invention. The process starts (block  24 ) with the meeting attendees or participants dialing or logging into the conference session. Participants may dial-in from a variety of different devices, for example, from a touch-tone or IP telephone devices or from a computer with telephone functionality. Upon joining the conference session, a message queue is created for each individual participant (block  25 ).  
         [0026]     Messages may be sent/received anytime during the conference session by any of the conference participants. By way of example, block  26  in  FIG. 2  shows participant “A” using an IVR send menu to record an offline message that he wants to send. A predefined selection key (e.g., #62) on the user&#39;s telephone device may be utilized to take the user to the IVR menu on or connected to the conferencing module. After recording the message, participant “A” is given a choice to select the intended recipient(s), which, in this example is participant “B”. After confirming the selected recipients, the message is placed in the message queue reserved for participant “B” (block  27 ). In other embodiments, the voice message may be recorded after the recipients have been selected and confirmed. In the event that participant “A” is near a PC, he may alternatively use a Web browser or other user interface to select the one or more intended message recipients.  
         [0027]     Regardless of how the message recipients are chosen, once selected, participant “A” may send the message using any one of a variety of mechanisms, including voice, keypad, softkey, or mouse button (“right-click”) commands. If the message is a text message and recipient is using a device incapable of presenting text (e.g., a non-IP telephone device without a display window) then the message manager unit may convert the message to a voice prompt using a text-to-speech converter. The message may be stored either as text or as digitally-recorded speech in the recipient&#39;s message queue (block  27 ).  
         [0028]     After the message has been sent and placed in the appropriate message queue(s), the message recipients are notified of the availability of the message using one or more of the different message indicators or alerts described above (block  28 ). At that point, the recipient(s) may receive the message in a variety of different ways, depending on the device(s) available to the recipient (block  29 ). For example, a participant who has access to a touch-tone telephone may, at any time, press #69 to receive the message. Pressing the appropriate keypad command which would take him to the message manager&#39;s receive IVR menu. The recipient would then interact with IVR menu script to play the message, after which time the message is deleted from his queue.  
         [0029]     In the case a message recipient who is logged onto a PC that is running an IM client or tool, the message notification may be an IM message that pops up in a window on the screen of their PC. By way of example,  FIG. 3  illustrates a pop-up window  32  on a display screen  31  of a PC with a text notification “You have a message waiting for you”; The recipient of this notification may read the message by clicking on the “Read” button  34 , or ignore the message by clicking on the “Ignore” button  35 . Alternatively, window  32  may include a Uniform Resource Locator (URL) hypertext link, or some other connection link, that allows the user to play (speech) or display (text) the message. Additional information, such as the time that the message was sent, who the message is from, etc., may also be included various fields of window  32 .  
         [0030]     In certain embodiments, a participant may send a message to invite another participant to enter a breakout session that includes a piece of explanatory text in a subject field that is typically communicated via IM. The conferencing system may detect that the receiving participant (i.e., invitee) is dialed into the conference session through a telephone device or connection (e.g., a voice (POTS) connection) that does not accommodate a subject field. In such a case, the conferencing module may utilize a text-to-speech (TTS) converter to transmit the subject field and text message to the POTS invitee as speech. The conferencing system may also accommodate an inviter participant who is dialed in via a voice-only connection, wherein the inviter records his invitation as speech and the system converts that speech to a text message that may be delivered to the invitee via IM or a display screen of an IP phone.  
         [0031]     The graphical user interface (GUI) shown in  FIG. 3  may be generated by software (i.e., code) running the user&#39;s PC. In other cases, the GUI may comprise a collaborative web-based application that is accessed by the browser software running on the user&#39;s PC. In other instances, GUI  13  may comprise a downloaded application, or other forms of computer-executable code that may be loaded or accessed by a participant&#39;s PC.  
         [0032]     As discussed previously, if the message recipient does not have a PC that he is logged into, or is not running an IM tool, message notification may occur via a whisper tone alert message, a periodic beeping tone, blinking light, and/or a text message displayed on a display screen or window of the recipient&#39;s telephone device. In another embodiment, the message manager may not wait for the recipient to retrieve the message; instead, the message manager may directly whisper the message to the recipient via their telephone in addition to placing the message into the message queue. In certain embodiments, the sender may also be provided with control over the type of notification or message delivery mechanism to be used. For instance, the sender may tag the offline message by marking it directly “whisperable” to the recipient, thereby obviating the need for retrieval by the recipient.  
         [0033]      FIG. 4  is a perspective view of an IP phone that may be utilized by a participant who dials into a conference session in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. The IP telephone shown in  FIG. 4  includes a liquid crystal display (LCD) screen  41 , dynamic softkeys  42 , a handset  43 , and an alphanumerical keypad  44 . In one embodiment, softkeys  22  may be used for sending, receiving, or ignoring messages. For example, a text message on display screen  41  similar to that shown in  FIG. 3  may be used to notify the recipient that a message is waiting for them. Softkeys  42  may be configured as single-button inputs to allow the user to either accept (i.e., listen or read) or reject the message.  
         [0034]     The IP telephone shown in  FIG. 4  also includes message indicator lights  45  and  46  that may provide a visual notification (e.g., flash) when a message is waiting for the recipient. In certain implementations, a text message may be displayed on screen  41  in addition to flashing of lights  45  &amp;  46  when a message is waiting to be read or heard.  
         [0035]     In yet another embodiment, the conferencing application may be configured to obtain presence information from each of the conference participants in order to determine the appropriate mechanism or channel to present the message and/or notification to the recipient. For example, conferencing module  16  may determine that since participant  13  (see  FIG. 1 ) has dialed into the conference through a telephone device without display capabilities, the appropriate notification channel may be a visual message indicator or whisper message. On the other hand, participant  12  may be notified via a text message displayed on his IP telephone, with the phone&#39;s softkeys being configured for one or more appropriate responses. In the case of participant  11 , the message notification and delivery channels may include an IM pop-up message.  
         [0036]      FIG. 5  is a flowchart diagram that illustrates an intelligent decision algorithm for sending a message to a participant during a conference session in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. The algorithm of  FIG. 5  may be implemented in a software (or firmware) program running on a processor of the module associated with the conferencing application, and may be used in conjunction with user preference settings for selecting an appropriate channel, or hierarchy of channels, for message notification and delivery.  
         [0037]     The example of  FIG. 5  begins by with an inquiry whether the recipient is currently logged onto his PC (block  51 ). If the recipient is indeed logged on, the flow proceeds to inquire whether IM is currently enabled on the recipient&#39;s PC (block  52 ); if so, the message is sent as text via the IM client as described above. If the recipient is not logged into-his PC, or has IM disabled, the next inquiry in the process is whether the conference participant who is the intended recipient of the message has dialed into the session via a telephone device with display capabilities (block  54 ). If the answer is yes, the message is sent as text displayed on the telephone&#39;s display screen (block  55 ). If, on the other hand, the recipient called into the conference using a telephone device without a display screen, the message may be sent as a recorded speech that may be retrieved using the IVR menu associated with the conferencing system (block  56 ). In other embodiments, the message may be whispered directly to the recipient.  
         [0038]     In an alternative embodiment, where the message was created using an IM client and stored in the recipient&#39;s message queue as text, the conferencing system may convert the message into audible speech using a TTS converter for delivery to a receiving participant who is dialed into the conference session via a voice-only connection.  
         [0039]     It should be understood that elements of the present invention may also be provided as a computer program product which may include a machine-readable medium having stored thereon instructions which may be used to program a computer (e.g., a processor or other electronic device) to perform a sequence of operations. Alternatively, the operations may be performed by a combination of hardware and software. The machine-readable medium may include, but is not limited to, floppy diskettes, optical disks, CD-ROMs, and magneto-optical disks, ROMs, RAMs, EPROMs, EEPROMs, magnet or optical cards, propagation media or other type of media/machine-readable medium suitable for storing electronic instructions. For example, elements of the present invention may be downloaded as a computer program product, wherein the program may be transferred from a remote computer or telephonic device to a requesting process by way of data signals embodied in a carrier wave or other propagation medium via a communication link (e.g., a modem or network connection).  
         [0040]     Additionally, although the present invention has been described in conjunction with specific embodiments, numerous modifications and alterations are well within the scope of the present invention. For example, the conference messaging mechanism of the present invention is not limited to simply sending messages or invitations for the purpose of inviting participants into a breakout room; rather, the conference messaging system and method of the present invention may be used for sending any sort of message during a conference session. For example, a participant may want to tell another participant that he intends to drop out of the meeting shortly and to request that the other person meet him in his office after the conference session is over. Accordingly, the specification and drawings are to be regarded in an illustrative rather than a restrictive sense.