Patent ID: 8270584

Claim:
A speakerphone for use by a call recipient that performs automatic activation of its audio or video or combined audio/video communications functions without intervention by said call recipient in response to a caller providing an authorized password communicated using DTMF signaling from any communications device capable of said DTMF signaling, and the ability for the authorized caller to remotely control the speakerphone operating parameters or mode during a call, using DTMF signaling, without intervention by the call recipient, comprising: circuitry that interfaces the speakerphone to an analog or digital wireline or wireless communications network, including signal conditioning and modulation and demodulation or encoding and decoding of incoming signaling, and audio or video or combined audio/video signals; signaling detection circuitry that detects ring tones, or other call initiation requests, DTMF signaling, dial tone, or busy, or fast-busy, or other call connection status signals, and is interconnected with the microcontroller so that said detected signals are available to the embedded control software; a main microcontroller with attached or embedded memory; an internally stored list of authorized passwords, configuration data, and control codes; embedded control software running on the main microcontroller that: answers an incoming call upon detection of a designated number of ring signals or call initiation request signals, and requires, and optionally prompts the caller for, a password which may include an optionally appended control code, and validates that the password matches an internally stored authorized password, and activates some or all of the audio or video or combined audio/video transmit or receive functions based on the password and optionally appended control code and pre-stored configuration data, visually or audibly notifying the call recipient of the automatic device activation; embedded control software running on the main microcontroller that: automatically hangs up or terminates a call if the caller has been disconnected for any reason, and that responds to authorized caller-transmitted control codes optionally sent during a call that enable the caller to change one or more operating parameters or mode, or enabling the caller to terminate the call; if multiple speakerphones are sharing a common or simultaneous network connection with the caller, embedded control software running on the main microcontroller that provides the caller with control of said multiple units individually or collectively as a group; and circuitry interconnected with the microcontroller that enables the embedded control software to answer an incoming call and end a call.