JP2018191301A5 - - Google Patents

Description

Communication system and communication method

  The present invention relates to the invention of managing first and second communication terminals that transmit and receive predetermined communication data.

  2. Description of the Related Art In recent years, in response to a request for reducing business trip expenses and business trip time, a call system for conducting a video conference etc. via a communication network such as the Internet has become widespread. In such a call system, a video conference can be realized by transmitting and receiving image data and sound data between a plurality of call terminals.

  Also, in addition to a type of communication system in which image data and sound data are directly transmitted and received between call terminals, a video conference using a plurality of relay devices for relaying image data and sound data between a plurality of call terminals. A system has appeared (see Patent Document 1).

  However, in the conventional video conference call system, it is not possible to realize a call between call terminals using different call methods. In other words, at least among the call control method (call control protocol) for connecting or disconnecting the call destination and the coding method for converting the image data and the sound data into IP packets, as the case where the communication methods are different. If one of the two terminals is different, a problem arises that a call between the call terminals can not be realized.

The first aspect of the present invention relates to a first communication terminal for transmitting or receiving communication data using a first communication method indicating either a call control method or a communication data encoding method, and a first communication terminal. And a management system that manages a destination for transmitting or receiving communication data using a method in association with a first communication terminal, wherein the first communication terminal receives the destination received from the management system. A communication terminal capable of receiving display control means to be displayed on a display screen and a first operation for selecting a destination displayed on the display screen, and using a second communication method different from the first communication method Communication data between the second communication terminal capable of communicating with the conversion system that enables mutual use between the first communication method and the second communication method by converting the communication data. To get started And an operation accepting unit capable of accepting the second operation, and when the first operation is accepted by the operation accepting unit, the first communication terminal relays communication data between the relay apparatus and the first communication terminal. When the selected destination establishes a session with the relay device by establishing a session, the first communication terminal makes it possible to transmit and receive communication data using the first session with the destination, and the operation acceptance When a second operation different from the first operation is accepted by the means, a second operation corresponding to the address information input in the conversion system and the first communication terminal in response to acceptance of the second operation. By establishing a second session with the second communication terminal, the second communication terminal can add to the relay apparatus capable of communicating with the conversion system with the first communication terminal, and the second communication terminal can communicate with the first communication terminal via the conversion system. The second Deployment is a communication system characterized by the communication data transmitting and receiving state capable using.

  As described above, according to the present invention, destination information of the first communication terminal, the conversion system, and the second communication terminal is transmitted from the communication management system to the relay device. Thus, the relay device establishes a first communication session with the first communication terminal, and further establishes a second communication session with the conversion system for converting the communication method of the communication data. It can be done. Furthermore, the relay apparatus transmits the destination information of the second communication terminal received from the communication management system to the conversion system, whereby the conversion system establishes a third communication session with the second communication terminal. can do.

  Therefore, transmission and reception of call data can be performed between the first communication terminal and the second communication terminal using the first to third communication sessions. As a result, even when the first and second communication terminals use different communication methods, the communication system of communication data is mutually converted by the conversion system, so that communication can be realized. .

FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a call system according to an embodiment of the present invention. It is a conceptual diagram which shows the communication condition in the case of implement | achieving a telephone call between the communication terminals of the same communication system. FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram showing the image quality of image data transmitted and received according to the SVC standard in FIG. 2 and FIG. 4. It is the conceptual diagram which showed the communication condition in the case of implement | achieving a telephone call between the communication terminals of a different communication system. FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram showing the image quality of image data transmitted and received according to the AVC standard in FIG. 4; It is an external view of the telephone terminal concerning this embodiment. It is a hardware block diagram of the call terminal which concerns on this embodiment. It is a hardware block diagram of the call management system which concerns on this embodiment, a relay apparatus, a conversion system, a program provision system, or a maintenance system. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS It is a functional block diagram of the telephone terminal which comprises a part of telephone system of embodiment, a relay apparatus, a telephone call management system, and a conversion system. It is a conceptual diagram which shows a change quality management table. It is a conceptual diagram which shows a relay apparatus management table. It is a conceptual diagram which shows a terminal information management table. It is a conceptual diagram which shows a terminal state management table. It is a conceptual diagram which shows a destination list management table. It is a conceptual diagram which shows a session management table. It is a conceptual diagram which shows a conversion management table. It is a conceptual diagram which shows a quality control table. It is a sequence diagram which shows the process of the preparation phase which starts a telephone call between terminals. FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram showing a call start request. It is a flowchart which shows judgment of a communication system. It is a sequence diagram which shows the process which establishes a communication session, before calling between two special purpose terminals. FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram showing a process of transmitting and receiving call data between two dedicated terminals. It is a sequence diagram which shows the process which establishes a communication session, before making a telephone call between a dedicated terminal and a non-dedicated terminal. FIG. 6 is a sequence diagram showing a process of transmitting and receiving call data between a dedicated terminal and a non-dedicated terminal. It is a conceptual diagram which shows the image quality of the image data after being converted by the conversion system.

  Hereinafter, one embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS.

<< Whole Configuration of Embodiment >>
FIG. 1 is a schematic view of a call system according to an embodiment of the present invention. As shown in FIG. 1, the call system 1 includes a plurality of call terminals (10aa, 10ab,...), Displays (120aa, 120ab,...) For each call terminal (10aa, 10ab,. The relay apparatus (30a, 30b, 30c), the call management system 50, the conversion system 80, the program providing system 90, and the maintenance system 100 are constructed. Communication of image data and sound data as an example of call data is performed by the call system 1, whereby a video conference or the like between remote places can be realized. The plurality of routers (70a, 70b, 70c, 70d, 70ab, 70cd) select the optimum route of the call data.

  The call terminals (10aa, 10ab, 10ac,...), The relay device 30a, and the router 70a are communicably connected by the LAN 2a. The call terminals (10ba, 10bb, 10bc,...), The relay device 30b, and the router 70b are communicably connected by the LAN 2b. The LAN 2a and the LAN 2b are communicably connected by a dedicated line 2ab including a router 70ab. Furthermore, the LAN 2a, the LAN 2b, and the dedicated line 2ab are constructed in a predetermined area X. For example, the region X is Japan, the LAN 2a is built in an office in Tokyo, and the LAN 2b is built in an office in Osaka.

  On the other hand, the call terminals (10ca, 10cb, 10cc,...), The relay device 30c, and the router 70c are communicably connected by the LAN 2c. The call terminals (10da, 10db, 10dc,...), The conversion system 80, and the router 70d are communicably connected by the LAN 2d. The LAN 2 c and the LAN 2 d are communicably connected by a dedicated line 2 cd including a router 70 cd. Furthermore, the LAN 2c, the LAN 2d, and the dedicated line 2cd are constructed in a predetermined area Y. For example, Region Y is the United States, LAN2c is built in a New York office, and LAN2d is Washington D.W. C. It is built in the office of The area X and the area Y are communicably connected from the routers (70ab and 70cd) via the Internet 2i.

  In the following, the “call terminal” is simply represented as a “terminal”, and the “call management system” is simply represented as a “management system”. Further, any of the plurality of terminals (10aa, 10ab, ...) is represented as "terminal 10", and any of the plurality of displays (120aa, 120ab, ...) is represented as "display 120" Among the plurality of relay devices (30a, 30b, 30c), any relay device is represented as "the relay device 30". Furthermore, a terminal as a request source requesting the start of a video conference is represented as a "request source terminal", and a terminal as a request destination (relay destination) is represented as a "destination terminal". Further, any of the routers (70a, 70b, 70c, 70d, 70ab, 70cd) is represented as "router 70".

  Further, the management system 50, the program providing system 90, and the maintenance system 100 are connected to the Internet 2i. The conversion system 80 is connected to the router 70 d in the LAN 2 d of the area Y in this embodiment. The management system 50, the program providing system 90, and the maintenance system 100 may be installed in the area X or the area Y, or may be installed in areas other than these.

  Further, in the present embodiment, the communication network 2 of the present embodiment is constructed by the LAN 2a, the LAN 2b, the dedicated line 2ab, the Internet 2i, the dedicated line 2cd, the LAN 2c, and the LAN 2d. The communication network 2 may have a portion where wireless communication such as WiFi (Wireless Fidelity) or Bluetooth (registered trademark) is performed as well as wired communication.

  Also, in FIG. 1, four sets of numbers shown under each terminal 10, each relay device 30, management system 50, each router 70, conversion system 80, program providing system 90, and maintenance system 100 are general IP address in simple IPv4 is shown. For example, the IP address of the terminal 10aa is "1.2.1.3". Although IPv6 may be used instead of IPv4, IPv4 is used to simplify the description.

  Each terminal 10 is not only a call between a plurality of business establishments or a call between different rooms within the same business establishment, but also a call within the same room or a conversation between outdoor and indoor or outdoor and outdoor. It may be used. When each terminal 10 is used outdoors, wireless communication such as a cellular phone communication network is performed.

  Each terminal 10 shown in FIG. 1 is a terminal for realizing a user's call by transmitting and receiving call data, and is, for example, a video conference terminal. Furthermore, the terminal 10 transmits and receives call data using a predetermined communication method (a call control method for connecting or disconnecting a call destination and an IP packetizing call data). Do.

  Note that as this call control method, (1) SIP (Session Initiation Protocol), (2) H.323, (3) protocol extended SIP, (4) instant messenger protocol, (5) SIP MESSAGE method (6) Internet relay chat protocol (IRC (Internet Relay Chat)), (7) a protocol which is an extension of the instant messenger protocol, and the like. Among them, (4) the protocol of instant messenger is, for example, (4-1) Extensible Messaging and Presence Protocol (XMPP), or (4-2) ICQ (registered trademark), AIM (registered trademark), or Skype (registered trademark) It is a protocol used by (trademark) etc. Also, (7) a protocol that is an extension of the instant messenger protocol is, for example, Jingle.

  Also, among the plurality of terminals 10, for example, a communication method in which the call control method is an instant messenger protocol (or a protocol obtained by extending the instant messenger protocol) and the encoding method is SVC (Scalable Video Coding) is used Terminal 10 is represented as "dedicated terminal A". Further, among the plurality of terminals 10, the terminal 10 using a communication scheme different from the dedicated terminal A in at least one of the call control scheme and the coding scheme is represented as "non-dedicated terminal D". Furthermore, in the present embodiment, as an example of two terminals having different communication methods, “dedicated terminal A” is described as a terminal manufactured, sold, or managed by a specific company, and “non-dedicated terminal D” is It will be described as a terminal manufactured, sold or managed outside the above specific company. In this embodiment, the terminals manufactured, sold, or managed by different companies in this way often have different communication methods, and thus will be described using an example as described above. Among the terminals manufactured or sold by the same company, as an example of two terminals having different communication methods, a terminal whose manufacturing time or sales time is new is designated as “dedicated terminal A”, and a terminal whose manufacturing time or sales time is older is used. It may be a "non-dedicated terminal D".

  Each relay device 30 is a computer system that relays call data between a plurality of terminals 10. The management system 50 is a computer system that centrally manages login authentication from the terminal 10, management of the call status of the terminal 10, management of a destination list, etc., and communication status etc. of the relay device 30. The image of the image data may be a moving image or a still image, or may be both a moving image and a still image.

  In addition, the conversion system 80 plays the roles of a Signaling Gateway that converts call control signals and a Video / Audio Gateway that encodes call data. That is, the conversion system 80 is a gateway that mutually converts the communication method of the call data transmitted from the request source terminal and the communication method (call control method, coding method) of the call data transmitted from the destination terminal, At least one of the call control scheme and the coding scheme is converted.

  The program providing system 90 is a computer system that provides the terminal 10, the relay device 30, the management system 50, the conversion system 80, and the maintenance system 100 with the programs used therein via the communication network 2.

  The maintenance system 100 is a computer system for maintaining, managing, or maintaining at least one of the terminal 10, the relay device 30, the management system 50, the conversion system 80, and the program providing system 90. For example, when the maintenance system 100 is installed in the country and the terminal 10, the relay apparatus 30, the management system 50, the conversion system 80, or the program providing system 90 is installed outside the country, the maintenance system 100 can communicate via the communication network 2. Maintenance of at least one of the terminal 10, the relay device 30, the management system 50, the conversion system 80, and the program providing system 90 is performed remotely. In addition, the maintenance system 100 does not use the communication network 2, and the model number, the serial number, and the sales destination in at least one of the terminal 10, the relay device 30, the management system 50, the conversion system 80, and the program providing system 90. Perform maintenance such as maintenance and inspection, or management of failure history.

  Subsequently, a first communication pattern for realizing a call between two dedicated terminals A will be described using FIGS. 2 and 3. In addition, FIG. 2 is a conceptual diagram which shows the communication condition in the case of implement | achieving a telephone call between the communication terminals of the same communication system.

  As shown in FIG. 2, in the first communication pattern, the call system 1 communicates call data using the H.264 / SVC video coding standard. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 2, in the call system 1, various types of communication may be performed between the request source terminal as the dedicated terminal A and the destination terminal as the dedicated terminal A via the management system 50. A management communication session sei for transmitting and receiving management information is established. Also, between the request source terminal and the destination terminal, four data of high resolution image data, medium resolution image data, low resolution image data, and sound data are transmitted and received through the relay device 30. Four communication sessions are established.

  In FIG. 2, four communication sessions established between the request source terminal and the relay device 30 are shown as a first communication session sed1 for call data. Also, four communication sessions established between the relay device 30 and the destination terminal are shown as a second communication session sed2 for call data.

  Here, the resolution of the image of the image data handled in the first communication pattern shown in FIG. 2 will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a conceptual diagram showing the image quality of image data transmitted and received according to the SVC standard in FIG.

  As shown in FIG. 3A, the low resolution image, which is 160 pixels wide and 120 pixels high and is a base image, and as shown in FIG. 3B, is horizontal As shown in FIG. 3C, there are a medium resolution image consisting of 320 pixels and 240 vertical pixels, and a high resolution image consisting of 640 horizontal pixels and 480 vertical pixels. Among these, when passing through a narrow band path, low-quality image data consisting only of low-resolution image data to be a base image is relayed by the relay device 30. If the bandwidth is relatively wide, the relay device 30 relays medium-quality image data consisting of low-resolution image data to be a base image and medium-resolution image data. When the bandwidth is very wide, the relay device 30 relays high-quality image data composed of low-resolution image data serving as a base image, medium-resolution image data, and high-resolution image data.

  Subsequently, a second communication pattern for realizing a call between the dedicated terminal A and the non-dedicated terminal D will be described using FIGS. 4 and 5. FIG. 4 is a conceptual diagram showing a communication situation in the case of realizing a call between call terminals of different communication methods.

  As shown in FIG. 4, in the second communication pattern, the call system 1 includes the H.264 / SVC video coding standard and the H.264 / AVC (Advanced Video Coding) video coding standard. Communication of call data is performed using the standards. Specifically, as shown in FIG. 4, between the request source terminal as the dedicated terminal A and the destination terminal as the non-dedicated terminal D in the call system 1 via the management system 50, A management communication session sei for transmitting and receiving various management information has been established.

  Also, between the request source terminal (an example of the first communication terminal) and the conversion system 80, high resolution image data, medium resolution image data, low resolution by H.264 / SVC via the relay device 30 Four communication sessions have been established to transmit and receive each of the four resolution data and sound data. In FIG. 4, the four communication sessions established between the request source terminal and the relay device 30 are shown as a first communication session sed11 for call data. Also, four communication sessions established between the relay device 30 and the conversion system 80 are shown as a second communication session sed12 for call data.

  Furthermore, between the conversion system 80 and the destination terminal (an example of the second communication terminal), two communications for transmitting and receiving each of two data of medium resolution image data and sound data by H.264 / AVC A session has been established. In FIG. 4, two communication sessions established between the conversion system 80 and the destination terminal are shown as a third communication session sed13 for call data.

  Here, the resolution of the image of the image data handled in the second communication pattern shown in FIG. 4 will be described using FIGS. 3 and 5. FIG. 5 is a conceptual diagram showing the image quality of image data transmitted and received according to the AVC standard in FIG.

  In the first communication session sed11 and the second communication session sed12 shown in FIG. 4, as in the first communication session sed1 and the second communication session sed2 shown in FIG. Image data of the three resolutions shown in a), (b), and (c) are transmitted and received. On the other hand, in the third communication session sed13 shown in FIG. 4, medium-resolution image data shown in FIG. 5 is transmitted and received.

<< Hardware Configuration of Embodiment >>
Next, the hardware configuration of the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 6 is an external view of the call terminal according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 6, the terminal 10 includes a housing 1100, an arm 1200, and a camera housing 1300. Among them, the front wall surface 1110 of the housing 1100 is provided with a suction surface (not shown) formed by a plurality of suction holes, and the rear wall surface 1120 of the housing 1100 is formed with a plurality of exhaust holes. An exhaust surface 1121 is provided. As a result, by driving the cooling fan incorporated in the housing 1100, the outside air at the rear of the terminal 10 can be taken in via the air intake surface (not shown) and exhausted to the rear of the terminal 10 via the exhaust surface 1121. A sound collection hole 1131 is formed on the right side wall surface 1130 of the housing 1100, and a sound such as voice, object sound, and noise can be collected by a built-in microphone 114 described later.

  An operation panel 1150 is formed on the right wall surface 1130 side of the housing 1100. The operation panel 1150 is provided with a plurality of operation buttons (108a to 108e) which will be described later, a power switch 109 which will be described later, and an alarm lamp 119 which will be described later. A sound emitting surface 1151 formed by a plurality of sound output holes for passing therethrough is formed. Further, on the side of the left side wall surface 1140 of the housing 1100, a housing portion 1160 as a concave portion for housing the arm 1200 and the camera housing 1300 is formed. The right side wall surface 1130 of the housing 1100 is provided with a plurality of connection ports (1132 a to 1132 c) for electrically connecting a cable to a display I / F 117 described later. On the other hand, the left wall surface 1140 of the housing 1100 is provided with a connection port (not shown) for electrically connecting a cable 120 c for the display 120 to an external device connection I / F 118 described later.

  In the following, the "operation button 108" is used to indicate any of the operation buttons (108a to 108e), and "if any connection port of the connection ports (1132a to 1132c) is indicated. Description will be made using the connection port 1132 ".

  Next, the arm 1200 is attached to the housing 1100 via the torque hinge 1210, and the arm 1200 is configured to be vertically rotatable with respect to the housing 1100 within the range of the tilt angle θ1 of 135 degrees. ing. FIG. 6 shows a state in which the tilt angle θ1 is 90 degrees. The camera housing 1300 is provided with a built-in camera 112 described later, and can image a user, a document, a room, and the like. Further, a torque hinge 1310 is formed in the camera housing 1300. The camera housing 1300 is attached to the arm 1200 via a torque hinge 1310. Then, the camera housing 1300 is in the range of ± 180 degrees pan angle θ2 with respect to the arm 1200 with the state shown in FIG. 6 as 0 degree, and in the range of ± 45 degrees tilt angle θ3, It is configured to be rotatable in the direction.

  The relay apparatus 30, the management system 50, the conversion system 80, the program providing system 90, and the maintenance system 100 are the same as the appearance of a general server computer, and thus the description of the appearance is omitted.

  FIG. 7 is a hardware configuration diagram of a terminal according to the present embodiment. As illustrated in FIG. 7, the terminal 10 according to the present embodiment includes a program used to drive the CPU 101 such as a central processing unit (CPU) 101 that controls the entire operation of the terminal 10 and an initial program loader (IPL). A stored ROM (Read Only Memory) 102, a RAM (Random Access Memory) 103 used as a work area for the CPU 101, a program for the terminal 10, a flash memory 104 for storing various data such as image data and sound data, the CPU 101 The solid state drive (SSD) 105 controls reading and writing of various data to the flash memory 104 according to the control of the media drive 107, and the media drive 107 controls data reading or writing (storage) to the recording medium 106 such as the flash memory. Operation when selecting the destination of And a network I / F (Interface) 111 for transmitting data using the communication network 2.

  The terminal 10 also has a built-in camera 112 that captures an object and obtains image data according to the control of the CPU 101, an imaging element I / F 113 that controls driving of the camera 112, a built-in microphone 114 that inputs sound, and sound A built-in speaker 115 for outputting the sound, a sound input / output I / F 116 for processing input / output of sound signals between the microphone 114 and the speaker 115 under the control of the CPU 101, and image data on the external display 120 under the control of the CPU 101 As shown in FIG. 5, the display I / F 117 for transmission, the external device connection I / F 118 for connecting various external devices, the alarm lamp 119 for notifying abnormality of various functions of the terminal 10, and the above respective components are shown. Bus lines 110 such as an address bus and a data bus for electrically connecting to

  The display 120 is a display unit configured of a liquid crystal or an organic EL that displays an image of a subject, an operation icon, and the like. The display 120 is also connected to the display I / F 117 by a cable 120c. The cable 120c may be a cable for analog RGB (VGA) signals or a cable for component video, or may be a High-Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI) (registered trademark) or DVI (Digital Video). Interface) It may be a cable for signals.

  The camera 112 includes a lens and a solid-state imaging device that converts light into electric charge to digitize an image (image) of a subject, and as a solid-state imaging device, a complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) or a charge coupled device (CCD) Etc. are used.

  An external camera, an external microphone, an external speaker, etc. are connected to the external device connection I / F 118 by a USB (Universal Serial Bus) cable or the like inserted into the connection port 1132 of the housing 1100 shown in FIG. The external devices of are connectable electrically. When an external camera is connected, the external camera is driven prior to the built-in camera 112 according to the control of the CPU 101. Similarly, when an external microphone is connected or an external speaker is connected, the external microphone or the external speaker 115 is given priority over the built-in microphone 114 or the built-in speaker 115 according to the control of the CPU 101. External speakers drive.

  The recording medium 106 is configured to be removable from the terminal 10. Further, as long as the nonvolatile memory performs reading or writing of data according to the control of the CPU 101, not only the flash memory 104 but also EEPROM (Electrically Erasable and Programmable ROM) or the like may be used.

  FIG. 8 is a hardware configuration diagram of a management system according to the present embodiment of the present invention. The management system 50 includes a CPU 201 that controls the overall operation of the management system 50, a ROM 202 that stores programs used to drive the CPU 201, such as IPL, a RAM 203 that is used as a work area of the CPU 201, and various programs for the management system 50. HD 204 for storing data, HDD (Hard Disk Drive) 205 for controlling reading and writing of various data to HD 204 according to control of CPU 201, and media for controlling reading and writing (storage) of data to recording media 206 such as flash memory. A drive 207, a display 208 for displaying various information such as a cursor, a menu, a window, characters, or an image, a network I / F 209 for performing data communication using the communication network 2, characters A keyboard 211 having a plurality of keys for inputting numerical values and various instructions, a mouse 212 for selecting and executing various instructions, selecting an object to be processed, moving a cursor, etc. CD as an example of a removable recording medium -A CD-ROM drive 214 for controlling reading and writing of various data to a ROM (Compact Disc Read Only Memory) 213, and an address for electrically connecting the above-described respective components as shown in FIG. A bus line 210 such as a bus or a data bus is provided.

  On the other hand, since the relay apparatus 30, the conversion system 80, the program providing system 90, and the maintenance system 100 have the same hardware configuration as the management system 50, the description will be omitted. However, various data such as programs for controlling the relay device 30, the conversion system 80, the program providing system 90, and the maintenance system 100 are stored in each HD 204.

  Note that each program for the terminal 10, the relay device 30, the conversion system 80, the program providing system 90, and the maintenance system 100 is a computer readable recording medium (file) of an installable format or an executable format. It may be made to be recorded and distributed on media 106 etc.). Further, as another example of the above recording medium, a CD (Compact Disc Recordable), a DVD (Digital Versatile Disk), a Blu-ray Disc, etc. may be mentioned.

<< Functional Configuration of Embodiment >>
Next, the functional configuration of the present embodiment will be described. FIG. 9 is a functional block diagram of the terminal 10, the relay device 30, the management system 50, and the conversion system 80 which constitute a part of the call system 1 of the present embodiment. In FIG. 9, the terminal 10, the relay device 30, the management system 50, and the conversion system 80 are connected so as to be able to perform data communication via the communication network 2.

<Functional configuration of terminal>
The terminal 10 includes a transmission / reception unit 11, an operation input reception unit 12, a login request unit 13, an imaging unit 14, a sound input unit 15 a, a sound output unit 15 b, a display control unit 16, a delay detection unit 17, and a storage and readout processing unit 19. have. These functions are realized by any one of the components shown in FIG. 7 being operated by an instruction from the CPU 101 according to a program for the terminal 10 expanded on the RAM 103 from the flash memory 104. Or means. The terminal 10 further includes a storage unit 1000 configured by the RAM 103 illustrated in FIG. 7 and the flash memory 104 illustrated in FIG. 7.

(Each functional configuration of the terminal)
Next, each functional configuration of the terminal 10 will be described in detail using FIGS. 7 and 9. In the following, in describing each functional configuration of the terminal 10, among the components shown in FIG. 7, the relationship with the main components for realizing each functional configuration of the terminal 10 will also be described. .

  The transmission / reception unit 11 of the terminal 10 shown in FIG. 9 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 101 shown in FIG. 7 and the network I / F 111 shown in FIG. To transmit and receive various data (or information) with the terminal, device or system of The transmitting / receiving unit 11 starts reception of each state information indicating the state of each terminal as a destination candidate from the management system 50 before starting a call with a desired destination terminal. This state information is not only the operating state of each terminal 10 (on-line or off-line state), but whether it is possible to make a call even if it is on-line, whether it is in a call or not. Show the detailed status. This state information is not only the operating state of each terminal 10, but the cable 120c is disconnected from the terminal 10 at the terminal 10, outputs a sound but does not output an image, or does not output a sound. (MUTE) etc. show various states. Hereinafter, as an example, a case where the state information indicates the operating state will be described.

  The operation input reception unit 12 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 101 shown in FIG. 7 and the operation button 108 and the power switch 109 shown in FIG. 7, and receives various inputs from the user. For example, when the user turns on the power switch 109 shown in FIG. 7, the operation input receiving unit 12 shown in FIG. 9 receives power on and turns on the power.

  The login request unit 13 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 101 shown in FIG. 7, and requests the management system 50 to log in via the communication network 2 from the transmission / reception unit 11 when receiving the power on. And automatically transmits the current IP address of the request source terminal. In addition, when the user turns the power switch 109 from the ON state to the OFF state, the operation input reception unit 12 completely turns the power OFF after the transmitting / receiving unit 11 transmits the status information to the management system 50 to the effect that the power is turned OFF. Do. As a result, the management system 50 can recognize that the terminal 10 has been powered off after being powered on.

  The imaging unit 14 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 101 shown in FIG. 7 and the camera 112 and the imaging device I / F 113 shown in FIG. Output data.

  The sound input unit 15a is realized by an instruction from the CPU 101 shown in FIG. 7 and the sound input / output I / F 116 shown in FIG. 7, and the user's sound is converted into a sound signal by the microphone 114. After that, sound data relating to this sound signal is input. The sound output unit 15b is realized by an instruction from the CPU 101 shown in FIG. 7 and the sound input / output I / F 116 shown in FIG. 7, and outputs a sound signal related to sound data to the speaker 115 The sound is output from 115.

  The display control unit 16 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 101 shown in FIG. 7 and the display I / F 117 shown in FIG. 7 and combines the received image data with different resolutions, as described later, Control for transmitting the combined image data to the display 120 is performed. In addition, the display control unit 16 can transmit the information on the destination list received from the management system 50 to the display 120 and can cause the display 120 to display the destination list.

  The delay detection unit 17 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 101 shown in FIG. 7 and detects a delay time (ms) of image data or sound data sent from another terminal 10 via the relay device 30. .

  Storage / read processing unit 19 is implemented by an instruction from CPU 101 shown in FIG. 7 and SSD 105 shown in FIG. 7 or realized by an instruction from CPU 101, and stores various data in storage unit 1000 or stores it. A process of reading various data stored in the unit 1000 is performed. The storage unit 1000 stores a terminal ID (Identification) for identifying the terminal 10, a password, and the like. Furthermore, the storage unit 1000 overwrites and stores image data and sound data received when making a call with the destination terminal. Among these, the image is displayed on the display 120 by the image data before being overwritten, and the sound is output from the speaker 115 by the sound data before being overwritten.

  The terminal ID of the present embodiment and a relay device ID described later indicate identification information such as a language, characters, symbols, or various marks used to uniquely identify the terminal 10 and the relay device 30, respectively. The terminal ID and the relay device ID may be identification information in which at least two of the language, characters, symbols, and various marks are combined.

<Functional configuration of relay device>
The relay device 30 includes a transmission / reception unit 31, a state detection unit 32, a data quality check unit 33, a change quality management unit 34, a data quality change unit 35, and a storage / read processing unit 39. These units are functions implemented by any of the components shown in FIG. 8 being operated by an instruction from the CPU 201 according to a program for the relay device 30 developed on the RAM 203 from the HD 204 or It is a means. The relay device 30 further includes a storage unit 3000 constructed by the RAM 203 shown in FIG. 8 and / or the HD 204 shown in FIG.

(Change Quality Management Table)
FIG. 10 is a conceptual diagram showing a change quality management table. In the storage unit 3000, a change quality management DB (Data Base) 3001 configured of a change quality management table as shown in FIG. 10 is constructed. In the change quality management table, the IP address of the terminal 10 as a relay destination (destination) of the image data and the image quality of the image data relayed by the relay device 30 are managed in association with the relay destination.

(Each functional configuration of relay device)
Next, each functional configuration of the relay device 30 will be described in detail. In the following, in describing each functional configuration of relay device 30, among the components shown in FIG. 8, the relationship with the main components for realizing each functional configuration of relay device 30 is also included. explain.

  The transmission / reception unit 31 of the relay device 30 shown in FIG. 9 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 201 shown in FIG. 8 and the network I / F 209 shown in FIG. It exchanges various data (or information) with other terminals, devices, or systems. In addition, the transmission and reception unit 31 initializes a communication session in its own device.

  Furthermore, the transmission / reception unit 31 instructs the destination indicated by the IP address of the request source terminal among the IP addresses received by the transmission / reception unit 31 to start the communication session (first communication session). To send session start instruction information. In addition, the transmission / reception unit 31 instructs the destination indicated by the IP address of the conversion system 80 among the IP addresses received by the transmission / reception unit 31 to start a communication session (second communication session). Session start instruction information and the IP address of the destination terminal.

  The state detection unit 32 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 201 shown in FIG. 8, and detects the operation state of the relay device 30 having the state detection unit 32. As the operating state, there is a state of "online", "offline", "in a call" or "suspended".

  The data quality check unit 33 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 201 shown in FIG. 8, searches the change quality management table (see FIG. 10) using the IP address of the destination terminal as a search key, and is relayed correspondingly. The image quality of the image data to be relayed is confirmed by extracting the image quality of the image data.

  The change quality management unit 34 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 201 shown in FIG. 8 and the contents of the change quality management table (see FIG. 10) based on the later-described quality information sent from the management system 50. Change For example, by transmitting and receiving high-quality image data between the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) whose terminal ID is "01aa" and the destination terminal (terminal 10ba) whose terminal ID is "01ba" In the middle of the meeting, the request source terminal (terminal 10bb) and the destination terminal (terminal 10ca) performing another video conference start the video conference via the communication network 2, etc. When a delay in reception of image data occurs, the relay device 30 reduces the image quality of the image data relayed so far from high image quality to medium image quality. In such a case, the contents of the change quality management table (see FIG. 10) are changed so that the image quality of the image data relayed by the relay device 30 is lowered from high image quality to medium image quality based on the quality information indicating medium image quality. Be done.

  The data quality changing unit 35 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 201 shown in FIG. 8, and the image quality of the image data sent from the transmission source terminal is changed to the changed quality management table (see FIG. 10). Change based on the content of.

  Storage / read processing unit 39 is realized by an instruction from CPU 201 shown in FIG. 8 and HDD 205 shown in FIG. 8 and stores various data in storage unit 3000 or stores in storage unit 3000. Perform processing to read out various data.

<Functional configuration of management system>
The management system 50 includes a transmission / reception unit 51, a terminal authentication unit 52, a state management unit 53, an extraction unit 54, a determination unit 55, a session management unit 56, a quality determination unit 57, a delay time management unit 58, and a storage / read processing unit 59. have. These units are functions implemented by any one of the components shown in FIG. 8 being operated by an instruction from the CPU 201 according to a program for the management system 50 developed on the RAM 203 from the HD 204 or It is a means. The management system 50 also includes a storage unit 5000 constructed by the HD 204 shown in FIG.

(Relay device management table)
FIG. 11 is a conceptual diagram showing the relay device management table. In the storage unit 5000, a relay device management DB 5001 configured by the relay device management table as shown in FIG. 11 is constructed. In this relay device management table, for each relay device ID of each relay device 30, the operation state of each relay device 30 and the reception date and time when the state information indicating the operation state is received by the management system 50, IP address of the relay device 30 And the maximum data call rate (Mbps) in the relay device 30 are managed in association with each other. For example, in the relay device management table shown in FIG. 11, the relay device 30a having the relay device ID "111a" has an operation status of "online" and the date and time when the status information was received by the management system 50 is "2011". At 13:00 on November 10, the IP address of this relay device 30a is "1.2.1.2", and it is indicated that the maximum data communication speed in this relay device 30a is 100 Mbps. There is.

(Terminal information management table)
FIG. 12 is a conceptual diagram showing a terminal information management table. In the storage unit 5000, a terminal information management DB 5002 configured of a terminal information management table as shown in FIG. 12 is constructed. In this terminal information management table, the authentication password, the model number of the terminal 10, the serial number of the terminal 10, and the communication method of the terminal 10 are associated with each terminal ID of all the terminals 10 managed by the management system 50. Managed and managed. For example, in the terminal information management table shown in FIG. 12, the terminal ID of the terminal 10aa is "01aa", the password is "aaaa", the model number is "9001", the serial number is "2001", and the communication method is It is shown to be "dedicated".

  The "dedicated" communication scheme indicates the communication scheme used by the dedicated terminal A shown in FIGS. 2 and 4. The communication method "non-dedicated 1" indicates the communication method used by the non-dedicated terminal D shown in FIG. Furthermore, the communication method “non-dedicated 2” indicates a communication method other than the communication method used by the dedicated terminal A and the non-dedicated terminal D, respectively.

(Terminal status management table)
FIG. 13 is a conceptual diagram showing a terminal state management table. In the storage unit 5000, a terminal state management DB 5003 configured of a terminal state management table as shown in FIG. 13 is constructed. In this terminal state management table, for each terminal ID of each terminal 10, the terminal name when each terminal 10 is the destination, the operating state of each terminal 10, and the date and time when the login request information described later was received by the management system 50 , And the IP address of the terminal 10 are associated and managed. For example, in the terminal state management table shown in FIG. 13, the terminal 10aa having the terminal ID "01aa" has the terminal name "Japan Tokyo Business Office AA terminal" and the operating state is "on-line (callable)" The date when the login request information was received by the management system 50 is "13:40 on November 10, 2011", and the IP address of this terminal 10aa is "1.2.1.3". It is done.

  However, in the terminal state management table, the IP addresses of the terminals 10 other than the dedicated terminal A, that is, the non-dedicated terminal D, etc. are not managed because they are not managed.

(Destination list management table)
FIG. 14 is a conceptual diagram showing a destination list management table. In the storage unit 5000, a destination list management DB 5004 configured by a destination list management table as shown in FIG. 14 is constructed. In the destination list management table, all terminal IDs of destination terminals registered as candidates of destination terminals are managed in association with the terminal ID of a request source terminal that requests start of a call. For example, in the destination list management table shown in FIG. 14, the candidate of the destination terminal which can request the start of a call from the request source terminal (terminal 10 aa) whose terminal ID is “01 aa” has the terminal ID “ It is shown that the terminal 10ab of “01ab”, the terminal 10ba of which the terminal ID is “01ba”, and the terminal 10bb of which the terminal ID is “01bb”. The candidate of the destination terminal is updated by being added or deleted by a request for addition or deletion from any request source terminal to the management system 50. In the terminal status management table (see FIG. 13), the IP addresses of the terminals 10 other than the dedicated terminal A were not managed, but in the destination list management table (see FIG. 14), the terminals 10 other than the dedicated terminal A The terminal ID of is being managed.

(Session management table)
FIG. 15 is a conceptual diagram showing a session management table. In the storage unit 5000, a session management DB 5005 configured of a session management table as shown in FIG. 15 is constructed. In this session management table, the relay apparatus ID of the relay apparatus 30 used for relaying image data and sound data, the terminal ID of the request source terminal, the terminal ID of the destination terminal, reception when image data is received at the destination terminal The delay time (ms) and the delay time information indicating this delay time are sent from the destination terminal and the reception date and time received by the management system 50 are managed in association with each other. For example, in the session management table shown in FIG. 15, the relay device 30a (relay device ID "111a") has a requester terminal (terminal 10aa) whose terminal ID is "01aa" and a terminal ID "01ca". Image data and sound data are relayed with the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca), and the delay time of the image data at "14:00 on November 10, 2011" at the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca) It is shown to be 200 (ms). When a call is made between two terminals 10, the reception date and time of the delay time information may be managed based on the delay time information transmitted from the request source terminal instead of the destination terminal. However, when making a call between three or more terminals 10, the reception date and time of the delay time information is managed based on the delay time information transmitted from the terminal 10 on the image data and sound data receiving side. .

(Conversion management table)
FIG. 16 is a conceptual diagram showing a conversion management table. In the storage unit 5000, a conversion management DB 5006 configured of a conversion management table as shown in FIG. 16 is constructed. In the conversion management table, terminal IDs of non-dedicated terminals (including non-dedicated 1 and non-dedicated 2 terminals), IP addresses of the conversion system 80, and IP addresses of non-dedicated terminals are managed in association with each other.

(Quality control table)
FIG. 17 is a conceptual diagram showing a quality management table. In the storage unit 5000, a quality management DB 5007 configured of a quality management table as shown in FIG. 17 is constructed. In this quality management table, delay time information indicating the delay time of image data so that the image quality of the image data relayed by the relay device 30 decreases as the delay time (ms) of the image data in the request source terminal or the destination terminal increases. And the image quality information indicating the image quality of the image data (image quality) are managed in association with each other.

(Each functional configuration of management system)
Next, each functional configuration of the management system 50 will be described in detail. In the following, in describing each functional configuration of the management system 50, among the components shown in FIG. 8, the relationship with the main components for realizing each functional configuration of the management system 50 is also included. explain.

  The transmission / reception unit 51 is executed by an instruction from the CPU 201 shown in FIG. 8 and the network I / F 209 shown in FIG. 8, and transmits various terminals (devices or systems) and various data via the communication network 2 Or send and receive information).

  The terminal authentication unit 52 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 201 shown in FIG. 8 and manages the terminal information using the terminal ID and the password included in the login request information received via the transmission / reception unit 51 as a search key. Terminal authentication is performed by searching a table (see FIG. 12) and determining whether the same terminal ID and password are managed in the terminal information management table.

  The state management unit 53 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 201 shown in FIG. 8, and the terminal state management table (see FIG. 13) is used to manage the operation state of the request source terminal that has made the login request. The terminal ID of the terminal, the operation state of the request source terminal, the date and time when the login request information was received by the management system 50, and the IP address of the request source terminal are associated and stored and managed. Further, the state management unit 53 determines the terminal state based on the state information indicating that the power is turned off, which is sent from the terminal 10 by the user turning the state of the power switch 109 of the terminal 10 from ON to OFF. The operation state indicating online of the management table (see FIG. 13) is changed to offline.

  The extraction unit 54 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 201 shown in FIG. 8 and searches each management DB constructed in the storage unit 5000 with various search keys, and data (information) corresponding to the search key is obtained. Extract as search results.

  For example, the extraction unit 54 searches the destination list management table (see FIG. 14) using the terminal ID of the request source terminal that made the login request as a key, and the terminal IDs of candidate destination terminals that can talk with the request source terminal Extract. The extraction unit 54 searches the terminal state table (see FIG. 13) using the terminal ID of the destination terminal candidate as a search key, and extracts the operating state for each terminal ID. As a result, the extraction unit 54 can acquire the operating state of the candidate of the destination terminal that can make a call with the request source terminal that has made the login request.

  Furthermore, the extraction unit 54 searches the destination list management table (see FIG. 14) using the terminal ID of the request source terminal that has made the login request as a key, and registers the terminal ID of the request source terminal as a destination terminal candidate. The terminal IDs of other request source terminals are also extracted. The extraction unit 54 also searches the terminal state management table (see FIG. 13) using the terminal ID as a search key, and acquires the operation state of the request source terminal that has made the login request.

  Furthermore, the extraction unit 54 extracts the IP address of the corresponding terminal 10 by searching the terminal state management table (see FIG. 13) using the terminal ID of the terminal 10 received by the transmission / reception unit 51 as a search key. Further, the extraction unit 54 extracts the corresponding communication method information by searching the terminal information management table (see FIG. 12) using the terminal ID of the terminal 10 received by the transmission / reception unit 51 as a search key. Further, the extraction unit 54 searches the conversion management table (see FIG. 16) using the terminal ID of the terminal 10 received by the transmission / reception unit 51 as a search key, thereby receiving the IP address of the corresponding conversion system 80 and the above reception. The IP address of the terminal 10 related to the terminal ID is extracted.

  Furthermore, the extraction unit 54 extracts the image quality information of the corresponding image data by searching the quality management table (see FIG. 17) using the delay time information received by the transmission / reception unit 51 as a search key.

  Furthermore, the extraction unit 54 extracts the corresponding terminal ID by searching the terminal state management table (see FIG. 13) using the IP address of the destination terminal as a search key.

  Subsequently, determination unit 55 is realized by an instruction from CPU 201 shown in FIG. 8 and determines whether the communication method used by terminal 10 is the communication method used by dedicated terminal A. .

  The session management unit 56 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 201 shown in FIG. 8, and in the session management table (see FIG. 15) of the storage unit 5000, the relay device ID of the relay device 30 used for relaying call data. The destination terminal transmits the terminal ID of the request source terminal, the terminal ID of the destination terminal, the delay time (ms) of reception when the image data is received at the destination terminal, and the delay time information indicating this delay time from the destination terminal And the received date and time received by the management system 50 are associated and stored and managed. Further, the session management unit 56 creates a session ID used to establish a communication session.

  The quality determination unit 57 determines the image quality of the image data to be relayed to the relay device 30 based on the image quality information of the image data extracted by the extraction unit 54.

  The delay time management unit 58 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 201 shown in FIG. 8 and is a record including the terminal ID extracted by the extraction unit 54 in the session management table of the session management DB 5005 (see FIG. 15). The delay time indicated by the delay time information is stored and managed in the field portion of the delay time in.

  Storage / read processing unit 59 is executed by an instruction from CPU 201 shown in FIG. 8 and HDD 205 shown in FIG. 8 to store various data in storage unit 5000 or stored in storage unit 5000. Perform processing to read out various data.

<Functional configuration of conversion system>
The conversion system 80 includes a transmission / reception unit 81, a communication scheme conversion unit 82, and a storage / read processing unit 89. These units are functions implemented by any of the components shown in FIG. 8 being operated by an instruction from the CPU 201 according to a program for the conversion system 80 developed on the RAM 203 from the HD 204 or It is a means. The conversion system 80 also has a storage unit 8000 constructed by the RAM 203 shown in FIG. 8 and / or the HD 204 shown in FIG. The storage unit 8000 stores conversion rule data used to convert communication data.

(Each function configuration of conversion system)
Next, each functional configuration of the conversion system 80 will be described in detail using FIGS. 8 and 9. In the following, in describing each functional configuration of conversion system 80, among the components shown in FIG. 8, the relationship with the main components for realizing each functional configuration of conversion system 80 is also used. explain.

  The transmission / reception unit 81 of the conversion system 80 shown in FIG. 9 is realized by an instruction from the CPU 201 shown in FIG. 8 and the network I / F 209 shown in FIG. It exchanges various data (or information) with other terminals, devices or systems. In addition, the transmission / reception unit 81 transmits session start instruction information for instructing the start of a communication session (third communication session) to the destination indicated by the destination information transmitted by the relay device 30. Note that the destination information is an IP address, a URI (Uniform Resource Identifier), or the like.

  Communication method conversion unit 82 mutually transmits the communication method of the call data transmitted from the request source terminal and the communication method of the call data transmitted from the destination terminal in accordance with the conversion rule data of the communication method stored in storage unit 8000. Convert.

  Storage / read processing unit 89 is executed by an instruction from CPU 201 shown in FIG. 8 and HDD 205 shown in FIG. 8 to store various data in storage unit 8000 or stored in storage unit 8000. Perform processing to read out various data.

<< Process or Operation of Embodiment >>
Next, a first communication pattern in which a call is made between two dedicated terminals A will be described using FIG. 18 to FIG. Specifically, the case where a call is made between the terminal 10aa as the dedicated terminal A and the terminal 10ca as the dedicated terminal A will be described. FIG. 18 is a sequence diagram showing processing of a preparation stage for starting a call between terminals. Further, in FIG. 18, various management information is transmitted and received by the management communication session sei illustrated in FIG. 2.

  First, when the user turns on the power switch 109 shown in FIGS. 6 and 7, the operation input receiving unit 12 shown in FIG. 9 receives power on and is shown in FIG. Thus, the power is turned on (step S21). Then, the log-in request unit 13 automatically transmits log-in request information indicating a log-in request to the management system 50 from the transmission / reception unit 11 via the communication network 2 when receiving the power on (step S22). The login request information includes a terminal ID and a password for identifying the own terminal as the request source terminal (terminal 10 aa). The terminal ID and the password are data read from the storage unit 1000 via the storage / read processing unit 19 and sent to the transmission / reception unit 11. When login request information is transmitted from the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) to the management system 50, the management system 50 on the receiving side grasps the IP address of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) on the transmission side. be able to.

  Next, the terminal authentication unit 52 of the management system 50 searches the terminal information management table (see FIG. 12) using the terminal ID and the password included in the login request information received via the transmission / reception unit 51 as a search key. The terminal authentication is performed by determining whether the same terminal ID and password are managed in the terminal information management DB 5002 (step S23). Since the same terminal ID and password are managed by the terminal authentication unit 52, the state management unit 53 determines the state of the terminal when it is determined that the request is a login request from the terminal 10 having a valid usage right. The management table (see FIG. 13) stores the terminal ID of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa), the operating status, the date and time when the above login request information was received, and the IP address of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) in association with each other. (Step S24). As a result, in the terminal state management table (see FIG. 13), in the terminal ID "01aa", the operation state "online", the reception date and time "2011.11.10.13:40" and the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) The IP address "1.2.1.3" will be associated and managed.

  Then, the transmission / reception unit 51 of the management system 50 requests authentication result information indicating the authentication result obtained by the terminal authentication unit 52 via the communication network 2 as the request source terminal (terminal 10 aa). (Step S25). In the present embodiment, the case where it is determined by the terminal authentication unit 52 that the terminal 10 has a valid usage right will be described continuously.

  The extraction unit 54 of the management system 50 searches the destination list management table (see FIG. 14) using the terminal ID "01aa" of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) that made the login request as a search key, and the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) The terminal ID of the candidate of the destination terminal that can communicate with is extracted (step S26). Here, each terminal ID ("01ab", "01ba", ...) of the destination terminal (terminal 10ab, 10ba, ...) corresponding to the terminal ID "01aa" of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) is It will be extracted.

  Next, the extraction unit 54 searches the terminal state management table (see FIG. 13) using the terminal IDs (“01ab”, “01ba”,...) Of the destination terminal candidates extracted in step S26 as search keys. The respective operating states of the terminals (10ab, 10ba,...) Are acquired by reading out the operating states (“offline”, “online”,...) For each terminal ID (step S27).

  Next, the transmitting / receiving unit 51 determines the terminal ID (“01ab”, “01ba”,...) As the search key used in step S27 and the corresponding destination terminal (terminal 10ab, 10ba,...). Send destination state information including the respective operation states ("offline", "online", ...) of-) to the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) via the communication network 2 (step S28) . As a result, the request source terminal (terminal 10 aa) is in the current operating state (10 ab, 10 ba,...) That is the candidate of the destination terminal that can communicate with the request source terminal (terminal 10 aa) "Offline", "Online", ...) can be grasped.

  Further, the extraction unit 54 searches the destination list management table (see FIG. 14) using the terminal ID "01aa" of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) that has made the login request as a search key, and the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) The terminal IDs of the other request source terminals in which the terminal ID "01aa" of the second terminal ID is registered as the destination terminal candidate are extracted (step S29). In the destination list management table shown in FIG. 14, the terminal IDs of the other request source terminals to be extracted are "01ba", "01ca", "01da", and the like. In the following, in order to simplify the description, the terminal IDs of the other request source terminals to be extracted will be described as “01 ba”, “01 ca”, and “01 da”.

  Next, the extraction unit 54 searches the terminal state management table (see FIG. 13) using the terminal ID "01aa" of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) that has made the login request as a search key, and makes a login request. The operation state of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) is acquired (step S30). Then, the transmitting / receiving unit 51 displays the terminal state management table (of the terminals (10ba, 10ca, 10da) related to the terminal ID (“01ba”, “01ca”, and “01da”) extracted in step S29. In the terminal (10ba, 10ca) whose operation status is "online" in FIG. 13), the terminal ID "01aa" of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) acquired in step S30 and the operation status "online" are The destination status information included is transmitted (steps S31-1 and 2). When transmitting / receiving unit 51 transmits destination state information to the terminal (10ba, 10ca), it is managed in the terminal state management table (see FIG. 13) based on each terminal ID ("01ba", "01ca"). Refer to the IP address of the terminal you are using. Thus, the terminal ID of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) that made the login request to each of the other destination terminals (terminals 10ba and 10ca) that can communicate with the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) that made the login request as the destination "01aa" and the operating status "online" can be communicated.

  Note that the terminal 10 da as the non-dedicated terminal D does not have its operation status managed in the terminal status management table (see FIG. 13), so the terminal ID of the request source terminal (terminal 10 aa) that made the login request to the terminal 10 da It can not convey "01aa" and the operating status "online". That is, the non-dedicated terminal D can not receive a service for acquiring the operating state of the dedicated terminal A.

  On the other hand, even in the other terminal 10, when the user turns on the power switch 109 shown in FIGS. 6 and 7 as in step S21, the operation input accepting unit 12 shown in FIG. Since the on state is received and the same processing as the processing of the steps S22 to S31-1, 2 described above is performed, the description thereof is omitted.

  Subsequently, a case where a call is made between two dedicated terminals A will be described with reference to FIGS. 6, 9, and 19 to 22. FIG. 19 is a sequence diagram showing a call start request.

  As shown in FIG. 19, first, the user of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) as the dedicated terminal A presses the operation button 108 shown in FIG. When the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca) as A is selected, the operation input receiving unit 12 shown in FIG. 9 receives a request to start a call with the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca) (step S 41). Then, the transmission / reception unit 11 of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) transmits start request information indicating that the user wishes to start a call to the management system 50 (step S42). The start request information includes the terminal ID "01aa" of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) and the terminal ID "01ca" of the destination terminal (terminal 10ca).

  Then, the state management unit 53 of the management system 50 illustrated in FIG. 9 performs the terminal ID "01aa" of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) and the terminal ID "01ca" of the destination terminal (terminal 10ca) included in the start request information. Based on the above, in the terminal state management table (refer to FIG. 13), both the field part of the operating state of the record including the terminal ID "01aa" and the terminal ID "01ca" are both changed to "online (in call)" (Step S43). In this state, although the request source terminal (terminal 10 aa) and the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca) have not started a call, they are in a talking state, and the other terminals 10 are the request source terminal (terminal 10 aa) or the destination terminal When attempting to make a call with (terminal 10 ca), a so-called notification sound or display indicating that it is in the middle of a call is output.

  Next, the session management unit 56 of the management system 50 creates a session ID used to establish a communication session (step S44). Then, the management system 50 determines what communication method the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca) uses (step S45).

  Here, step S45 will be described in detail with reference to FIG. FIG. 20 is a flowchart showing the determination of the communication method.

  As illustrated in FIG. 20, the extraction unit 54 searches the terminal information management table (see FIG. 12) based on the terminal ID "01ca" of the destination terminal (terminal 10ca) received by the transmission / reception unit 51. Thus, the corresponding communication method information is extracted (step S45-1).

  Next, the determination unit 55 determines whether the communication method indicated by the extracted communication method information is a communication method used by the request source terminal (terminal 10 aa) as the dedicated terminal A (step S45-2). Specifically, determination unit 55 determines whether the communication method indicated by the communication method information extracted by extraction unit 54 is the same as the communication method used by the request source terminal (terminal 10 aa). . The case where the communication scheme is the same is the case where both the call control scheme and the coding scheme are the same, and the case where the communication scheme is not the same (different) is at least one of the call control scheme and the coding scheme. Are different.

  When the determining unit 55 determines that the communication methods are the same (YES) in step S45-2, the process proceeds to step S61 shown in FIG. 21 described later. Here, since the destination terminal (the terminal 10 ca) is the same dedicated terminal A as the request source terminal (the terminal 10 aa), next, description will be given from step S 61. FIG. 21 is a sequence diagram showing a process of establishing a communication session before making a call between two dedicated terminals A. In the present embodiment, a case will be described where, among the plurality of relay devices 30, the relay device 30a connected to the same LAN 2a as the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) is used.

  As illustrated in FIG. 21, the management system 50 transmits session initialization request information indicating that the communication session established by the relay device 30 a is to be initialized from the transmission / reception unit 51 to the relay device 30 a. (Step S61). The session initialization request information includes the session ID created in step S44, the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) managed by the terminal state management table (see FIG. 13), and the destination terminal (terminal 10ca). Each IP address of) is included. Further, when transmitting the session initialization request information to the relay device 30a, the management system 50 also transmits the IP address of the management system 50. As a result, the transmission / reception unit 31 of the relay device 30a receives the session initialization request information and the IP address of the management system 50.

  Next, the transmission / reception unit 31 of the relay device 30a initializes the communication session (step S62). Then, the transmission / reception unit 31 transmits session start instruction information indicating that the start of the communication session is instructed to the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) (step S63). The session start instruction information includes the session ID sent from the management system 50. Further, when transmitting the session start instruction information to the request source terminal (terminal 10aa), the relay device 30a also transmits the IP address of the relay device 30a. Thereby, the transmission / reception unit 11 of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) receives the session start instruction information and the IP address of the relay device 30a.

  Similarly, the transmission / reception unit 31 transmits session start instruction information indicating that the start of the communication session is instructed to the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca) (step S 64). The session start instruction information includes the session ID sent from the management system 50. Also, when transmitting the session start instruction information to the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca), the relay device 30 a also transmits the IP address of the relay device 30 a. As a result, the transmission / reception unit 11 of the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca) receives the session start instruction information and the IP address of the relay device 30 a.

  From the above, based on the above step S63, a communication session (first communication session sed1 shown in FIG. 2) for transmitting and receiving telephone call data is established between the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) and the relay device 30a. (Step S65-1). Further, based on the above step S64, a communication session (second communication session sed2 shown in FIG. 2) for transmitting and receiving call data is established between the relay device 30a and the destination terminal (terminal 10ca) (a second communication session sed2 shown in FIG. 2). Step S65-2).

  Subsequently, processing for transmitting and receiving call data to make a call such as a video conference between the request source terminal and the destination terminal will be described using FIG. FIG. 22 is a sequence diagram showing a process of transmitting and receiving call data between two dedicated terminals A. Note that transmission and reception of call data and detection of a delay time, which will be described later, are performed by one-way processing of transmitting call data from terminal 10aa to terminal 10ca and reverse processing of transmitting call data from terminal 10ca to terminal 10aa. Since the process is the same, the one-way communication will be described, and the reverse communication will be omitted.

  First, the request source terminal (terminal 10 aa) transmits the image data of the subject imaged by the imaging unit 14 and the sound data of the sound input by the sound input unit 15 a from the transmitting and receiving unit 11 using the communication session sed 1 It transmits to the relay device 30a via the communication network 2 (step S81). In the present embodiment, high-quality image data consisting of three components, low resolution, medium resolution, and high resolution shown in FIG. 3, and sound data are transmitted. Thus, in the relay device 30a, the transmitting and receiving unit 31 receives the image data and the sound data of the three resolutions. Then, the data quality check unit 33 searches the change quality management table (see FIG. 10) using the IP address “1.3.1.3” of the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca) as a search key, and the corresponding relayed image By extracting the image quality of the data, the quality of the image of the image data to be relayed is confirmed (step S82). In the present embodiment, since the image quality of the confirmed image data is “high image quality” and is the same as the image quality of the image data received by the transmission / reception unit 31, the relay device 30a uses the communication session sed2 as it is. The image data of the image quality and the sound data of the original sound quality are transferred to the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca) (step S 83). As a result, the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca) receives the high-quality image data and the sound data, which are composed of the low resolution, the medium resolution, and the high resolution, in the transmission / reception unit 11. Then, the display control unit 16 can combine the image data of the three image qualities to display an image on the display 120, and the sound output unit 15b can output a sound based on the sound data.

  Next, the delay detection unit 17 of the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca) detects the delay time of reception of the image data received by the transmission / reception unit 11 every constant time (for example, every one second) (step S 84). In the present embodiment, the description will be continued for the case where the delay time is 200 (ms).

  The transmission / reception unit 11 of the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca) transmits the delay time "200 (ms)" to the management system 50 via the communication network 2 by the management communication session sei shown in FIG. The information is transmitted (step S85). Thus, the management system 50 can grasp the delay time and grasp the IP address “1.3.1.3” of the terminal 10 ca which is the transmission source of the delay time information.

  Next, the delay time management unit 58 of the management system 50 searches the terminal state management table (see FIG. 13) using the IP address “1.3.1.3” of the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca) as a search key. Then, the corresponding terminal ID "01ca" is extracted, and further, in the session management table (see FIG. 15), the delay time field portion in the record of the terminal ID "01ca" is indicated by the above delay time information The delay time "200 (ms)" is stored and managed (step S86).

  Next, the quality determination unit 57 searches the quality management table (see FIG. 17) using the delay time “200 (ms)” as a search key, and extracts the image quality “medium image quality” of the corresponding image data. The image quality is determined to be "medium image quality" (step S87).

  Next, the transmitting / receiving unit 51 searches the relay device management table (see FIG. 11) using the relay device ID "111a" associated with the terminal ID "01ca" in the session management table (see FIG. 15) as a search key. Then, the IP address "1.2.1.2" of the corresponding relay device 30a is extracted (step S88). Then, the transmitting / receiving unit 51 transmits the quality information indicating the image quality "medium image quality" of the image data determined in step 87 to the relay device 30a via the communication network 2 by the communication session sei for management (step S89). This quality information includes the IP address "1.3.1.3" of the destination terminal (terminal 10ca) used as the search key in step S86. Thus, in the relay device 30a, the change quality management unit 34 causes the change quality management table (see FIG. 10) to receive the IP address "1.3.1.3" of the terminal 10 (here, the terminal 10ca) of the transmission destination. , And the image quality "medium image quality" of the image data to be relayed in association with each other and stored (step S90).

  Next, the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) continues to the relay device 30a in the first communication session sed1 in the same manner as in step S81 described above to obtain a high-quality image consisting of three of low resolution, medium resolution and high resolution. Data and sound data are transmitted (step S91). As a result, in the relay device 30a, the data quality check unit 33 uses the IP address "1.3.1.3" of the destination terminal (terminal 10ca) as a search key as in the case of step S82. The image quality of the image data to be relayed is confirmed (step S92) by searching (refer to FIG. 10) and extracting the image quality "medium image quality" of the corresponding image data to be relayed (step S92). In the present embodiment, since the image quality of the confirmed image data is “medium image quality” and is lower than the image quality “high image quality” of the image data received by the transmission / reception unit 31, the data quality change unit 35 The image quality of the image data is changed by suppressing the image quality of “image quality” from “high image quality” to “medium image quality” (step S 93).

  Then, the transmitting / receiving unit 31 transmits the image data of which the image quality of the image data has been changed to “medium image quality” to the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca) via the communication network 2 by the second communication session sed 2 and the sound quality of the sound. Transmits the sound data not changed (step S94). As a result, the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca) receives, at the transmission / reception unit 11, medium-image-quality image data and sound data consisting of two, low resolution and medium resolution. Then, the display control unit 16 can combine the image data of the two resolutions to display an image on the display 120 ca, and the sound output unit 15 b can output a sound based on the sound data.

  As described above, when a delay occurs in the reception at the destination terminal (terminal 10 ca) that receives the image data, the relay device 30 a changes the quality of the image, and a user who participates in a call such as a video conference. It is possible not to give a sense of incongruity. That is, between the two dedicated terminals A, it is possible to receive a service that copes with the delay of reception of the image data.

  Subsequently, a second communication is performed between the dedicated terminal A (an example of the first communication terminal) and the non-dedicated terminal D (an example of the second communication terminal) using FIGS. The communication pattern will be described. Specifically, a call is made between the terminal 10 aa as the dedicated terminal A and the terminal 10 da as the non-dedicated terminal D. Further, in this embodiment, the communication system used by the terminal 10aa is a protocol of the instant messenger (or a protocol obtained by extending the protocol of the instant messenger) as the call control system, the SVC coding system, and the terminal 10da. As a communication method to be used, the case where the call control method is SIP and the encoding method is AVC will be described.

  In FIGS. 18 and 19, in the first communication pattern and the second communication pattern, the selection of the destination in step S41 is changed from the destination terminal (terminal 10ca) to the destination terminal (terminal 10da), and this change is made. Since only the terminal IDs of destination terminals used for transmission / reception and search differ according to the above, their descriptions will be omitted. Then, the case will be described from the case where the determination unit 55 determines that the communication methods are not the same (different) (NO) in step S45-2 shown in FIG.

  In the case of this second communication pattern, the extraction unit 54 searches the conversion management table (see FIG. 16) based on the terminal ID "01da" of the destination terminal (terminal 10da) received by the transmission / reception unit 51. The IP address “1.3.2.2” of the corresponding conversion system 80 and the IP address “1.3.2.3” of the destination terminal (terminal 10 da) are extracted (step S45-3). Then, the process proceeds to the process of step S101 shown in FIG. 23 described later.

  FIG. 23 is a sequence diagram showing a process of establishing a communication session before making a call between the dedicated terminal A and the non-dedicated terminal D. As illustrated in FIG. 23, the management system 50 transmits session initialization request information indicating that the communication session established by the relay device 30a is to be initialized from the transmission / reception unit 51 to the relay device 30a. (Step S101). The session initialization request information includes the session ID, and the IP addresses of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa), the conversion system 80, and the destination terminal (terminal 10da). Among these, the session ID is the ID created in step S44. The IP address of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) is managed by the terminal state management table (see FIG. 13). Furthermore, each IP address of the conversion system 80 and the destination terminal (terminal 10 da) is the IP address extracted in step S45-3.

  Further, when transmitting the session initialization request information to the relay device 30a, the management system 50 also transmits the IP address of the management system 50. As a result, the transmission / reception unit 31 of the relay device 30a receives the session initialization request information and the IP address of the management system 50.

  Next, the transmission / reception unit 31 of the relay device 30a initializes the communication session (step S102). Then, the transmission / reception unit 31 transmits session start instruction information indicating that the start of the communication session is instructed to the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) (step S103). The session start instruction information includes the session ID sent from the management system 50. Further, when transmitting the session start instruction information to the request source terminal (terminal 10aa), the relay device 30a also transmits the IP address of the relay device 30a. Thereby, the transmission / reception unit 11 of the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) receives the session start instruction information and the IP address of the relay device 30a.

  Similarly, the transmitting / receiving unit 31 transmits session start instruction information indicating that the start of the communication session is instructed to the conversion system 80 (step S104). The session start instruction information includes the session ID and the destination terminal (terminal 10da) IP address sent from the management system 50. That is, the transmission / reception unit 31 transmits the session start instruction information and the IP address of the destination terminal (terminal 10 da). Further, when transmitting the session start instruction information to the conversion system 80, the relay device 30a also transmits the IP address of the relay device 30a. Thus, the transmitting and receiving unit 81 of the conversion system 80 receives the session start instruction information and the IP address of the relay device 30a.

  Furthermore, in the second communication pattern, the transmission / reception unit 81 of the conversion system 80 transmits, to the destination terminal (terminal 10 da), session start instruction information indicating that the start of the communication session is instructed (step S105). The session start instruction information includes the session ID sent from the management system 50. Further, when transmitting the session start instruction information to the destination terminal (terminal 10 da), the conversion system 80 also transmits the IP address of the conversion system 80. Thereby, the transmission / reception unit 11 of the destination terminal (terminal 10 da) receives the session start instruction information and the IP address of the conversion system 80.

  From the above, based on the above step S103, a communication session (first communication session sed11 shown in FIG. 4) for transmitting and receiving telephone call data is established between the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) and the relay device 30a. Step S106-1). In addition, based on the above step S104, a communication session (second communication session sed12 shown in FIG. 4) for transmitting and receiving the call data is established between the relay device 30a and the conversion system 80 (step S106- 2). Furthermore, based on the above step S105, a communication session (third communication session sed13 shown in FIG. 4) for transmitting and receiving call data is established between conversion system 80 and the destination terminal (terminal 10da). (Step S106-3).

  Next, processing for transmitting and receiving call data to make a call such as a video conference between the request source terminal and the destination terminal will be described using FIG. FIG. 24 is a sequence diagram showing a process of transmitting and receiving telephone call data between the dedicated terminal A and the non-dedicated terminal D.

  First, the request source terminal (terminal 10 aa) transmits the image data of the subject imaged by the imaging unit 14 and the sound data of the sound input by the sound input unit 15 a from the transmitting and receiving unit 11 using the communication session sed 11 It transmits to the relay apparatus 30a via the communication network 2 (step S121). In the second communication pattern, as in the first communication pattern, high-quality image data consisting of three components, low resolution, medium resolution, and high resolution shown in FIG. 3, and sound data are also included. It is sending. Thus, in the relay device 30a, the transmitting and receiving unit 31 receives the image data and the sound data of the three resolutions.

  Next, the relay device 30a uses the communication session sed12 to transmit high quality image data and sound data consisting of the above three from the transmission / reception unit 31 to the conversion system 80 via the communication network 2 (step S122) ). Thereby, in the conversion system 80, the transmitting and receiving unit 81 receives the image data and the sound data of the three resolutions.

  Next, based on the conversion rule data stored in advance in storage unit 8000, communication method conversion unit 82 of conversion system 80 uses the image data of the three resolutions in the request source terminal (terminal 10aa). The existing communication method is converted into the communication method used by the destination terminal (terminal 10 da) (step S123). Here, the image data of the three resolutions (high resolution, medium resolution, low resolution) shown in FIG. 3 is converted into one resolution (medium resolution) shown in FIG. Converted to image data.

  Next, the conversion system 80 transmits the sound data and the medium resolution image data to the terminal 10 da from the transmission / reception unit 81 via the communication network 2 using the communication session sed 13 (step S 124). Thereby, in the destination terminal (terminal 10 da), the transmitting and receiving unit 11 receives the sound data and the image data of the medium resolution.

  On the other hand, when image data and sound data are transmitted from the destination terminal (terminal 10da) to the request source terminal (terminal 10aa), as shown in FIG. 24, the destination terminal (terminal 10da) performs the communication session sed13. Sound data and medium resolution image data are transmitted from the transmission / reception unit 11 to the conversion system 80 via the communication network 2 (step S125). Thus, in the conversion system 80, the transmitting and receiving unit 81 receives the sound data and the image data of the medium resolution.

  Next, based on the conversion rule data stored in advance in storage unit 8000, communication method conversion unit 82 of conversion system 80 uses the sound data and the medium resolution image data in the destination terminal (terminal 10da). The communication method is converted to the communication method used by the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) (step S126).

  FIG. 25 is a conceptual diagram showing the image quality of the image data after conversion by the conversion system. In step S126, the image data of one resolution (medium resolution) shown in FIG. 5 corresponds to the image data of the medium resolution shown in FIG. The image data is converted into the low resolution image data shown in c) and the low intermediate resolution image data which is an intermediate resolution between the middle resolution and the low resolution as shown in FIG. 25 (b). That is, even if medium resolution image data is sent from the destination terminal (terminal 10 da) which is the non-dedicated terminal D, the conversion system 80 converts the image data into high resolution image data as sent in step S122. The medium resolution image data sent from the destination terminal (terminal 10 da) becomes the maximum resolution, and the medium resolution, the middle resolution between the medium resolution and the low resolution, and the low resolution three images Converted to data.

  Next, the conversion system 80 transmits the sound data and the image data of the three resolutions to the relay device 30a from the transmission / reception unit 81 via the communication network 2 using the communication session sed12 (step S127). Thereby, in the relay device 30a, the transmitting and receiving unit 31 receives the sound data and the image data of the three resolutions. Then, the relay device 30a transmits the sound data and the image data of the three resolutions to the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) from the transmission / reception unit 31 via the communication network 2 using the communication session sed11 (step S128). As a result, in the request source terminal (terminal 10 aa), the transmission / reception unit 11 receives sound data and image data of three resolutions.

<< Main effects of this embodiment >>
As described above, according to the present embodiment, the session initialization request information transmitted from the management system 50 to the relay device 30a includes the IP addresses of the request source terminal, the conversion system 80, and the destination terminal. . Thus, the relay device 30a transmits session start instruction information to the IP address of the request source terminal, and transmits session start instruction information including the IP address of the destination terminal to the IP address of the conversion system 80. be able to. Thereby, the conversion system 80 can further transmit session start instruction information to the IP address of the destination terminal.

  By transmitting the session initialization request information by the management system 50 as described above, the first communication session sed11 is established between the relay device 30 and the request source terminal, and between the relay device 30 and the conversion system 80. A second communication session sed12 may be established, and further, a third communication session sed13 may be established between the conversion system 80 and the destination terminal. Therefore, even when the request source terminal and the destination terminal use different call methods, the communication system of the call data is mutually converted by the conversion system 80, so that a call can be realized.

<< Supplement of embodiment >>
Although the request source terminal or the dedicated terminal A is described above as an example of the first communication terminal, and the destination terminal or the non-dedicated terminal D is described as an example of the second communication terminal, the present invention is not limited thereto. A destination terminal or a non-dedicated terminal D may be set as an example of one communication terminal, and a request source terminal or a dedicated terminal A may be set as an example of a second communication terminal.

  The call data is an example of communication data. This communication data also includes text and image file data. The call terminal 10 is an example of a communication terminal. The communication terminal includes, for example, an information processing terminal that transmits and receives the file data, in addition to a terminal that makes a call. Furthermore, the call management system 50 is an example of a communication management system. The communication management system includes, for example, a file management system that manages the processing of the file data, in addition to the system that manages calls. Furthermore, the call system 1 is an example of a communication system. This communication system is constructed by the above-mentioned communication terminal and communication management system.

  In the above embodiment, the management system 50 manages the communication method information in the terminal information management table (see FIG. 12), but the present invention is not limited to this, and the request source terminal manages the communication method information of the destination terminal. You may

  Thereby, in step S42 shown in FIG. 19, the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) includes the communication method information together with the terminal ID of the request source terminal and the terminal ID of the destination terminal in the start request information, and the management system 50 Can be sent to In this case, in step S41 of FIG. 19, the display control unit 16 causes the display 120 to display a selection screen for selecting a non-dedicated terminal that is the destination of the call, thereby prompting the user to make a selection. May be

  Then, when the destination is selected from this selection screen, the request source terminal (terminal 10aa) displays in the start request information that the destination terminal ID is a non-dedicated terminal in S42 of FIG. 19 (communication method information Send to the management system including). In this case, the management system 50 does not need to execute step S45-1 of FIG. 20, and determines that the communication method of the destination terminal is not dedicated based on the communication method information included in the start request information ( It progresses to step S45-3 of FIG. 20 and NO of step S45-2 of FIG.

  Also, the user does not necessarily have to select a destination from the selection screen. For example, when the user grasps the destination information of the destination terminal in advance, the operation input acceptance unit 12 may accept the input of the destination information (IP address etc.) of the destination terminal from the user. In this case, in step S42, the request source terminal does not have the terminal ID of the destination terminal but the destination information of the destination terminal and information (communication method information) indicating that the destination terminal is a non-dedicated terminal. The information is sent to the management system 50. Then, on the management system 50 side, in step S45-2, the determination unit 55 determines that the destination terminal indicated by the destination information is not a dedicated terminal, and the process proceeds to step S45-3. Furthermore, in step S45-3, the extraction unit 54 extracts destination information of the conversion system 80 based on the destination information of the non-dedicated terminal, and the process proceeds to step S101.

  Furthermore, the terminal ID may be stored in advance in the terminal 10 at the time of factory shipment or the like, or may be input by the user.

  Furthermore, the relay device 30, the management system 50, the conversion system 80, the program providing system 90, and the maintenance system 100 in the above embodiment may be constructed by a single computer, or each unit (function or means) is divided. It may be built by a plurality of computers assigned arbitrarily. Also, in the case where the program providing system 90 is constructed by a single computer, the program sent by the program providing system 90 may be divided into a plurality of modules and may be sent separately. It may be sent. Furthermore, when the program providing system 90 is constructed by a plurality of computers, the plurality of modules may be transmitted from each computer in a separated state.

  Furthermore, in the present embodiment, as an example in which the call control scheme differs between terminals, the instant messenger protocol (or the protocol that extends the instant messenger protocol) and SIP are described, but the call control scheme differs between terminals. For example, it is not limited to these combinations. For example, it may be a combination of an instant messenger protocol (or a protocol that extends the instant messenger protocol) and H.323. Also, it may be a combination of an instant messenger protocol and a protocol that extends the instant messenger protocol.

  In addition, recording media such as CD-ROMs storing the programs of the above-described embodiments, the HD 204 storing the programs, and the program providing system 90 including the HD 204 are all program products. Can be provided domestically or abroad.

  Furthermore, in the above embodiment, an image as an example of the image quality of the image data relayed by the relay device 30 is obtained by the change quality management table shown in FIG. 10 and the quality management table shown in FIG. Although management was focused on the resolution of the data image, it is not limited to this. As another example of quality, it may be managed focusing on the depth of the image quality of image data, the sampling frequency in the sound of sound data, the bit length in the sound of sound data, and the like. Further, sound data may be divided into data of three types of resolution (high resolution, medium resolution, low resolution) and transmitted / received.

  Further, although the reception date and time is managed in FIGS. 11, 13, and 15, the present invention is not limited to this, and at least the reception time of the reception date and time may be managed.

  Furthermore, in the above embodiment, although the IP address of the relay device 30 in FIG. 11 and the IP address of the terminal 10 in FIG. 13 are managed, the present invention is not limited to this, and the relay device 30 is specified on the communication network 2 In the case of destination information for identifying the terminal 10 or destination information for specifying the terminal 10 on the communication network 2, each FQDN (Fully Qualified Domain Name) may be managed. In this case, an IP address corresponding to the FQDN is acquired by a well-known DNS (Domain Name System) server.

  Further, in the above embodiment, the case of the video conference system has been described as an example of the call system 1. However, the present invention is not limited to this, and may be a telephone system such as an IP (Internet Protocol) telephone or an Internet telephone. . Further, the call system 1 may be a car navigation system. In this case, for example, one of the terminals 10 corresponds to a car navigation device mounted in a car, and the other of the terminals 10 is mounted in a management terminal or management server of a management center that manages car navigation, or in another car. Corresponds to a car navigation system. Further, the call system 1 may be a communication system of a mobile phone. In this case, for example, the terminal 10 corresponds to a mobile phone.

  Moreover, although the said embodiment demonstrated image data and sound data as an example of telephone call data, it does not restrict to this, You may be tactile (touch) data. In this case, the feeling that the user has touched on one of the terminals is called to the other terminal. Furthermore, the call data may be smell data. In this case, the smell on one terminal side is called to the other terminal side. Also, the call data may be at least one of image data, sound data, tactile data, and olfactory data.

  Further, in the above embodiment, although the case of making a video conference by the call system 1 has been described, the present invention is not limited to this, and general conversations such as meetings, family and friends, or information in one direction It may be used for presentation.

1 Call system (example of communication system)
10 call terminal (example of communication terminal)
11 Transmission / reception unit 30 Relay device 50 Call management system (an example of communication management system)
51 Transmission / reception unit (an example of transmission means, an example of reception means)
54 Extraction unit (an example of extraction means)
55 Judgment part (an example of judgment means)
80 conversion system 81 transmission / reception unit 82 communication system conversion unit (an example of conversion means)
90 Program Providing System 100 Maintenance System 1000 Storage Unit 3000 Storage Unit 3001 Change Quality Management DB
5000 storage unit (an example of storage means)
5001 Relay Device Management DB
5002 Terminal Information Management DB (an example of terminal information management means)
5003 Terminal state management DB (an example of terminal state management means)
5004 Destination List Management DB
5005 Session Management DB
5006 Conversion Management DB (an example of conversion management means)
5007 Quality Management DB
8000 storage unit

JP 2008-227577 A

Claims (14)

  A first communication terminal that transmits or receives communication data using a first communication scheme indicating either a call control scheme or a communication data encoding scheme;
  A management system that manages a destination for transmitting or receiving communication data using the first communication method in association with the first communication terminal;
A communication system having
  The first communication terminal is
  Display control means for displaying the destination received from the management system on a display screen;
  A communication terminal capable of receiving a first operation for selecting a destination displayed on the display screen and using a second communication method different from the first communication method, and converting communication data A second communication terminal for starting transmission and reception of communication data between a conversion system enabling interoperability between the first communication scheme and the second communication scheme according to Operation accepting means capable of accepting an operation;
Have
  When the first operation is accepted by the operation accepting means, the first session is established by establishing a first session between the relay device for relaying the communication data and the first communication terminal. When a destination establishes a session with the relay apparatus, the first communication terminal is enabled to transmit and receive communication data with the destination using the first session,
  When the second operation different from the first operation is received by the operation receiving unit, the conversion system and the first communication terminal are input according to the reception of the second operation. By establishing a second session with the second communication terminal corresponding to the address information, the second communication terminal can communicate with the conversion system with the first communication terminal. A state capable of transmitting and receiving communication data using the second session through the conversion system in addition to the relay device;
A communication system characterized by   The communication system according to claim 1, wherein the operation receiving unit receives an input of address information corresponding to the second communication terminal when receiving the second operation.   The display control means causes a display screen to display a selection screen for selecting a destination corresponding to the second communication terminal.
  The operation receiving means receives selection of a destination corresponding to the second communication terminal from the selection screen displayed by the display control means when receiving the second operation. Or the communication system as described in 2.   The first communication terminal has a first transmission unit that transmits communication method information indicating the second communication method when the second operation is received by the operation receiving unit.
  The communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the communication system includes a receiving unit that receives the transmitted communication scheme information.   Based on communication method information indicating the second communication method, a determination unit is used to determine whether the communication method used by the second communication terminal is the same as the communication method used by the first communication terminal And
A relay apparatus capable of communicating with the conversion system is established with the second communication terminal via the conversion system, when the determination means determines that they are not the same. The communication system according to any one of Items 1 to 4.   The communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the communication system is a video conference system, the communication terminal is a video conference terminal, and the communication data includes data or video data related to call control. The communication system described in the section.   The communication system according to claim 6, wherein the communication data includes the video data.   When the second operation is accepted by the operation accepting unit, the relay device communicates with the second communication terminal to the relay device capable of communicating with the conversion system via the conversion system. 8. A communication system according to any one of the preceding claims, further comprising second transmission means for transmitting a request to establish.   The first communication method is a call control method, and the second communication method is SIP or H.264. The communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 8, which is any one of H.323.   The first communication method is a coding method, and the coding method conforms to the H.264 / SVC video coding standard, and the second communication method is a H.264 / AVC video A communication system according to any one of the preceding claims, characterized in that it conforms to the coding standard.   A communication system according to any of the preceding claims, wherein the conversion system is built by one or more computers.   The communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 11, wherein the management system is constructed by one or more computers.   The communication system according to any one of claims 1 to 12, wherein the management system, the relay device, and the conversion system are constructed by one or more computers.   A first communication terminal that transmits or receives communication data using a first communication scheme indicating either a call control scheme or a communication data encoding scheme;
  A management system that manages a destination for transmitting or receiving communication data using the first communication method in association with the first communication terminal;
A communication method executed by the communication system having
  A display control means step of displaying the destination received from the management system on a display screen of the first communication terminal;
  A communication terminal capable of receiving a first operation for selecting a destination displayed on the display screen and using a second communication method different from the first communication method, and converting communication data A second communication terminal for starting transmission and reception of communication data between a conversion system enabling communication between the first communication scheme and the second communication scheme and a second communication terminal capable of communicating with each other Operation accepting means step capable of accepting the operation of
Have
  When the first operation is accepted in the operation accepting step, the first session is established by establishing a first session between the relay device for relaying the communication data and the first communication terminal. When a destination establishes a session with the relay apparatus, the first communication terminal is enabled to transmit and receive communication data with the destination using the first session,
  When the second operation different from the first operation is received in the operation receiving step, the conversion system and the first communication terminal are input in response to the reception of the second operation. By establishing a second session with the second communication terminal corresponding to the address information, the second communication terminal can communicate with the conversion system with the first communication terminal. A state capable of transmitting and receiving communication data using the second session through the conversion system in addition to the relay device;
A communication method characterized by:

Images