Television – Two-way video and voice communication – Conferencing
Reexamination Certificate
1998-06-10
2001-04-10
Woo, Stella (Department: 2643)
Television
Two-way video and voice communication
Conferencing
C379S093170, C379S093210, C379S093260, C379S102010, C379S102020
Reexamination Certificate
active
06215515
ABSTRACT:
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
The present invention relates to video communication systems, and more particularly, to a user interface for a programmable videocommunicator architecture for videoconferencing over a conventional communications channel.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Video communication systems span a variety of applications. One such application is videoconferencing. Videoconferencing typically involves the real-time sharing of video along with audio, graphics and/or data information between two or more terminals over a communications channel. A videoconferencing session may involve merely a video-enabled telephone call between two friends or, in a more complex application, a multi-way call among corporate boardrooms with advanced camera control and with sharing of data applications such as word processors and spreadsheets and using ISDN digital lines or T1 lines for communication.
Videoconferencing technology has been evolving very rapidly. The evolution began with a number of proprietary products, offered by various vendors and communicatively incompatible with each other. As the demand for equipment compatibility grew, vendors and scientific experts began to cooperate and, through a standards body such as the International Telecommunications Union (ITU), industry standards have been and are being adopted. This has typically involved the effort of an industry-wide consortium, such as the International Multimedia Teleconferencing Consortium (IMTC), to iron out implementation details of the standards, agree on the interpretation of sections of the standards that are unclear, and test each of the vendor's products against those provided by other vendors.
Once a baseline level of interoperability has been established, the vendors proceed to bring their standards-compliant products to market, and continue to add their own features to gain competitive advantage. While preserving standards compliance, the vendors differentiate their products from those of other vendors based on price, video/audio quality, and ease-of-use. The mass consumer market demands that such products provide audio/video quality with insubstantial communication-related delays and at extremely low costs. Accordingly, such demands have been difficult to meet.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
The present invention is directed to a videophone apparatus having an on-screen telephone keypad user-interface method and arrangement. In a first embodiment, the videophone comprises: a video source configured and arranged to capture images and to generate video data representing the images; a POTS interface circuit, configured and arranged to transmit and receive video and audio data over the POTS line; a programmable processor circuit coupled to the video source and to the interface circuit and having a first section, including a DSP-type processor, configured and arranged to encode and decode video data, including the video data generated by the video source, and having a controller section, including a RISC-type processor, communicatively coupled to the first section, the controller section configured and arranged to execute a stored program for user controlled operation of the videophone apparatus, display a first menu on the display, the first menu referencing a first plurality of options for operating the videophone apparatus and having associated therewith respective indicators of telephone keypad buttons, receive from the telephone keypad a first selection signal indicative of a pressed button, and initiate an operation to control the videophone apparatus in response to the first selection signal; an EEPROM circuit coupled to the programmable processor circuit and arranged for storing the program for controlling operation of the videophone apparatus; and a display driver circuit responsive to the programmable processor circuit and configured and arranged to generate video data for a display.
In another embodiment a videophone apparatus with an on-screen infrared remote control keypad user-interface is provided. The apparatus comprises: a video source configured and arranged to capture images and to generate video data representing the images; a POTS interface circuit, configured and arranged to transmit and receive video and audio data over the POTS line; a programmable processor circuit having a first section, including a DSP-type processor, configured and arranged to encode and decode video data, including the video data generated by the video source, and having a controller section, including a RISC-type processor, communicatively coupled to the first section, the controller section configured and arranged to execute a stored program for user controlled operation of the videophone apparatus, display a first menu on the display, the first menu referencing a first plurality of options for operating the videophone apparatus and having associated therewith respective indicators of keypad buttons of the infrared remote control, receive from the remote control keypad a first selection signal indicative of a pressed button, and initiate an operation to control the videophone apparatus in response to the first selection signal; an EEPROM circuit coupled to the programmable processor circuit and arranged for storing the program for controlling operation of the videophone apparatus; and a display driver circuit responsive to the programmable processor circuit and configured and arranged to generate video data for a display.
An on-screen telephone keypad user interface method for a videophone apparatus is provided in another embodiment. The videophone apparatus includes a video source and a video display coupled to a processor circuit, the processor circuit configured and arranged to execute a program for user controlled operation of the videophone with a telephone keypad coupled to the processor circuit. The method comprises displaying a first menu on the display, the first menu referencing a first plurality of options for operating the videophone apparatus and having associated therewith respective indicators of telephone keypad buttons; receiving from a telephone keypad a first selection signal indicative of a pressed button; and initiating an operation to control the videophone apparatus in response to the first selection signal.
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Barraclough Keith
Bednarz Philip
Joe Truman
Martin Bryan R.
Voois Paul A.
Crawford PLLC
Netergy Networks, Inc.
Woo Stella
LandOfFree
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