JP4487801B2 - CONFERENCE SYSTEM AND CONFERENCE MANAGEMENT METHOD - Google Patents

Description

Conference system to which the present invention relates to a conference system and conference management how, a conference in particular exchanging predetermined communication data including audio information among the conference terminal devices are distributed over the network, and manages the conference about the conference management how to be.

  2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, as represented by a video conference system, a conference system has been constructed that enables a conference to be performed by transmitting and receiving audio and video through a plurality of conference terminals installed between remote locations. ing.

  In the conference system, when a document file or the like is to be shared during the conference, it is necessary to create a group that can access the common file in advance before the conference. Then, define what kind of attributes the person has access rights to, and determine whether to allow access for each access request during group operation. Manage access rights. At this time, in many cases, complicated management processing using a “certificate” or the like is performed in order to determine whether the access request is from an authorized right holder. In addition, in order to create a group in advance, group management according to many factors, such as management of administrator accounts (ID, password, etc.) that can create / change / delete groups, and grant / removal of administrator rights A function is also required.

As an access authority management technique, a group attribute certificate with an electronic signature including group identification information is set in advance for each group that is a set of specific users and associated with service provision conditions, and an access request is received from a user. In some cases, there is a method of acquiring a group attribute certificate and confirming the access authority, and allowing only authorized users or groups to access (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 2004-15507 A (paragraph numbers [0186] to [0190], FIG. 26)

  However, the conventional conference system has a problem that complicated procedures and processes are required when managing a conference such as group creation and group management in advance.

  In the conventional conference system, it is necessary to make complicated preparations such that a specific user who participates in the conference must be registered as a group in advance. For this reason, even if you want to change the members of the conference due to the progress of the conference or the circumstances of the participants, you must wait until the administrator completes the group registration change determination. There was a problem that members could not be changed. Such a setting change such as creation / change / deletion of a group also has a problem that it becomes a burden on the administrator side.

  Furthermore, a plurality of settings must be made for managing the access authority to the common file in the group, and complicated setting work is required for the user and the administrator. Files such as materials used in a conference are often made available for viewing by members of the conference, and there are few cases in which access authority must be set in detail. However, in the conventional conference system, complicated setting work is required for such a common file.

  Further, even when a group attribute certificate is issued for each group to check access authority, complicated setting work such as access authority is required.

  As described above, in the conventional conference system, the complicated setting work for performing the conference is a burden on the administrator or the members of the conference. In an actual meeting, a common file such as a document is often freely accessible if it is a member of the meeting. However, even in such a case, it is necessary to set complicated access rights for common files in advance for all participating members.

  The present invention has been made in view of these points, and an object thereof is to provide a conference system, a conference management method, and a conference management device that can manage a conference without performing complicated setting work. .

In the present invention, in order to solve the above-mentioned problem, in a conference system for performing a conference by exchanging predetermined communication data including audio information between conference terminal devices distributed and arranged via a network , Proximity communication means for controlling communication performed with the conference terminal device when in the vicinity range, and instruction information input by a user participating in the conference via the proximity communication means, the conference terminal device An instruction input means for transmitting to the mobile terminal device, a proximity communication means for controlling communication between the mobile terminal device within a predetermined proximity range, and another device connected via the network When a connection request is received from the mobile terminal device via the network communication means for controlling the communication of the mobile terminal and the proximity communication means, the mobile terminal device is authenticated and allowed to connect, and the mobile Notifying the conference management device that the terminal device has been authenticated via the network communication means, and when receiving a connection release request from the already connected mobile terminal device, the connection with the mobile terminal device is released. Authentication notifying means for notifying the conference terminal apparatus of deauthorization of the portable terminal apparatus, and instruction information transmitting means for transmitting the instruction information acquired from the portable terminal apparatus to the related apparatus by the network communication means. When the conference terminal device is notified of the authentication of the portable terminal device from the conference terminal device by the network communication unit for controlling communication between the conference terminal device and another device connected via the network. The mobile terminal device notified to the group formed by the mobile terminal devices connected to the conference terminal device is registered and authenticated. When cancellation is notified, group registration means for deleting the mobile terminal device from the group in which the mobile terminal device is registered, and management of the group based on the instruction information acquired by the network communication means, the instruction If the information is an instruction to start a conference specifying the conference terminal device to hold the conference, a conference group is created by combining the groups corresponding to the conference terminal device corresponding to the instruction, and the end of the conference is instructed A conference system comprising: a group management unit that divides the conference group into the groups corresponding to the conference terminal devices. To do.

According to such a conference system, an arbitrary user who participates in the conference makes a connection request to a nearby conference terminal device using the portable terminal device that is held. In the conference terminal device, when a connection request is received from the portable terminal device via the proximity communication unit, the authentication notification unit authenticates the portable terminal device and permits the connection. And it notifies a meeting management apparatus via a network communication means that the portable terminal device was authenticated . When the conference management apparatus acquires the notification of the authentication of the mobile terminal device via the network communication means, the group registration means displays the mobile terminal device authenticated by the group formed by the mobile terminal devices connected to the conference terminal apparatus. sign up. Thereby, the user of this portable terminal device can become a group member. On the other hand, when a connection release request is received from an already connected mobile terminal device, the authentication notification means of the conference terminal device cancels authentication of this mobile terminal device . Then , the conference management apparatus is notified of the authentication cancellation through the same route. The group registration unit of the conference management apparatus deletes the registration of the mobile terminal apparatus notified from the group corresponding to the conference terminal apparatus. Moreover, the user setting the thus instruction information to the instruction input means of the portable terminal apparatus, instruction information is transmitted to the conference terminal device via the proximity communication means. The instruction information transmission unit of the conference terminal apparatus transmits the acquired instruction information to the conference management apparatus via the network communication unit. When the conference management apparatus acquires the instruction information via the network communication means, the group management means performs group management based on the instruction information. When the instruction information is an instruction to start a conference specifying a conference terminal device that performs a conference, a group corresponding to the conference terminal device corresponding to the instruction is combined to create a conference group. When the end of the conference is instructed, the conference group is divided into groups corresponding to the respective conference terminal devices.

Moreover, in order to solve the said subject, the conference management method which performs the process similar to said conference system is provided.

  As described above, in the present invention, when a mobile terminal device held by a predetermined user is authenticated by the conference terminal device, the mobile terminal device is automatically registered in the corresponding conference terminal device group. If the authentication is canceled, it is automatically deleted from the group. Since the conference is performed in groups of conference terminal devices set in this way, it is not necessary to register conference members in advance. In other words, if the portable terminal device is authenticated by the conference terminal device, it is possible to participate in the conference, so that the conference can be managed without performing complicated setting work.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. First, the concept of the invention applied to the embodiment will be described, and then the specific contents of the embodiment will be described.

  FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram of the invention applied to the embodiment.

  The video conference system according to the present invention includes a conference terminal (device) 1 distributed in a predetermined place, a portable terminal (device) 2 carried by a user, and a conference management device 3 for managing a conference. The conference terminal 1 is installed in a plurality of conference rooms and the like, and is connected to the portable terminal 2 by proximity communication as necessary, and is connected to the conference management apparatus 3 via a predetermined network.

  The conference terminal 1 includes a proximity communication unit 1a, a network communication unit 1b, an authentication notification unit 1c, and an instruction information transmission unit 1d. In addition, it has a conference processing function (not shown), and performs exchange processing of video data and audio data of the conference via the network. The proximity communication unit 1a is a wireless communication unit that controls communication with a nearby mobile terminal 2. The proximity communication is communication performed between devices that are close to each other at a narrow distance, and for example, Felica (registered trademark) or NFC (Near Field Communication) is used. These realize communication within the vicinity of an interval between devices of about 10 cm.

  The network communication unit 1b controls communication with the conference management apparatus 3 or other conference terminals connected via the network. When the authentication notification unit 1c acquires a connection request for the portable terminal 2 via the proximity communication unit 1a, the authentication notification unit 1c authenticates the portable terminal 2, and notifies the conference management apparatus 3 of information related to the authenticated portable terminal 2 via the network communication unit 1b. To do. Similarly, when the mobile terminal 2 is deauthenticated, the conference management apparatus 3 is notified of information related to the deauthenticated mobile terminal 2. The instruction information transmission unit 1d registers the instruction information set by the user acquired from the mobile terminal 2 in the conference management device 3 via the network communication unit 1b.

  Note that a file terminal 1 f that holds a common file or the like that is referred to during a conference may be used together with the conference terminal 1. Similar to the conference terminal 1, the file terminal 1f includes a proximity communication unit 1g and a network communication unit 1h, and further includes a file storage unit 1i. The file storage means 1i is a memory for storing files shared by other groups or conference groups. When the predetermined file stored in the file storage unit 1i is a common file, instruction information for transferring the predetermined file as a common file is generated by the portable terminal 2 and input via the proximity communication unit 1g. The network communication unit 1h transfers the instructed predetermined file to the conference management apparatus 3 via the network.

  The portable terminal 2 includes an instruction input unit 2a and a proximity communication unit 2b.

  The instruction input means 2a transmits the instruction information set by the user via the input interface of the portable terminal 2 to the conference terminal 1 or the file terminal 1f via the proximity communication means 2b. The instructions related to the group include, for example, a connection request to join the group, a connection release request to leave the group, a meeting start request to instruct the start of the meeting, a meeting end request to instruct the end of the meeting, An instruction to transfer the file stored in the file storage unit 1i of the file terminal 1f as a common file to the file storage unit 3d of the conference management device 3, and conversely, the common file stored in the file storage unit 3d of the conference management device 3 is a file There is an instruction to transfer to the file storage means 1i of the terminal 1f. The instruction information is transmitted to the conference terminal 1 connected to the mobile terminal 2 or the file terminal 1f via the proximity communication means 2b.

  The conference management device 3 includes network communication means 3a, group registration means 3b, group management means 3c, file storage means 3d for storing group information 3e and a common file 3f.

  The network communication unit 3a controls communication with the conference terminals 1 distributed over the network. The group registration unit 3b adds the authenticated mobile terminal 2 to the group formed by the mobile terminals 2 connected to the conference terminal 1, and deletes the mobile terminal 2 from the group when the mobile terminal 2 is deauthenticated. The group management means 3c acquires instruction information generated by the mobile terminal 2, and manages groups based on the instruction information. The file storage means 3d is a memory for storing group information 3e relating to the group and a common file 3f shared within the group.

  The operation of the conference system having such a configuration will be described.

  The conference terminals 1 are distributed in each conference room and connected to the conference management device 3 via a network. The conference management device 3 manages a conference held between the conference terminals 1 connected to the network. The portable terminal 2 is held by a user and used when making a connection request to a nearby conference terminal 1 when starting a conference. A conference by the conference terminal 1 is performed with a user group identified by the mobile terminal 2 authenticated by each conference terminal 1 as a participating member. In the following description, a group of mobile terminals 2 connected to each conference terminal 1 is a group. That is, the user who holds the portable terminal 2 belonging to the group becomes a participating member of the conference.

  The portable terminal 2 and the conference terminal 1 can exchange data via their respective proximity communication means 2b and proximity communication means 1a within a predetermined proximity range. When the user uses the portable terminal 2 to instruct a connection request with the instruction input unit 2a, the proximity communication unit 2b transmits the connection request to the conference terminal 1. When the conference terminal 1 receives the connection request by the proximity communication unit 1a, the authentication is performed by the authentication notification unit 1c. When the mobile terminal 2 is authenticated, the conference terminal 1 transmits this to the conference management device 3 from the network communication unit 1b. When the conference management device 3 receives the authentication notification of the portable terminal 2 from the conference terminal 1, the group registration unit 3b searches the file storage unit 3d and stores the portable information in the group information 3e of the group formed by the corresponding conference terminal 1. Terminal 2 is added. At this time, when the group information of the conference terminal 1 is not searched, the group information of the conference terminal 1 is newly created, and the authenticated mobile terminal 2 is registered there. Thus, the group information 3e registers the group of portable terminals 2 connected to the conference terminal 1.

  When the start of the conference is requested from the portable terminal 2, the instruction information transmission unit 1d of the conference terminal 1 notifies the conference management device 3 via the network communication unit 1b. The group management means 3c of the conference management device 3 combines a group of a plurality of conference terminals 1 where a conference is held to form a conference group. Thereby, the user of the portable terminal 2 registered in the conference group becomes a conference participant.

  At this time, similarly, when the file stored in the file storage means 1i of the file terminal 1f is designated as a common file by the portable terminal 2, the file designated via the network communication means 1h is transferred from the file terminal 1f to the conference management apparatus. 3 is transferred. In the conference management device 3, the group management unit 3c stores the transferred file in the file storage unit 3d as a common file 3f of the conference group. The common file 3f can be requested to access only from the mobile terminals 2 registered in the conference group. For example, if there is a request for access to a common file from another portable terminal registered in this conference group, the common file 3f stored in the file storage means 3d is transferred to the file terminal designated by the portable terminal.

  The end of the conference is similarly set from the portable terminal 2 and notified to the conference management device 3. The group management means 3c divides the conference group and returns it to the group for each conference terminal. As a result, the access right to the common file is lost for the files of other divided groups.

  Further, leaving the group is performed by canceling the authentication of the mobile terminal 2. The authentication notification unit 1c notifies the conference management device 3 that the mobile terminal 2 has been deauthenticated. The group registration means 3b deletes the registration of the portable terminal 2 from the group information 3e of the corresponding conference terminal 1 and deletes it from the group. At this time, the number of mobile terminals 2 registered in this group is calculated, and if there is no mobile terminal 2 registered, the group itself is deleted.

  In such a conference system, groups are created on the spot of the conference and volatilize automatically after the conference ends. This eliminates the need for advance preparation for group creation. In addition, since a simple operation is performed in which a user who is authenticated to a conference terminal by a mobile terminal is a group member and is removed from the group member when the authentication is canceled, a management screen for managing the group member is not required.

  Also, regarding access control, while the group is formed, since only the group members are allowed to access the common file, it is possible to ensure clear security that “only the conference participants”. This eliminates the need for complicated settings and eliminates the need for providing a complicated management processing mechanism as software for realizing the functions.

  As described above, the conference can be managed without performing complicated setting work. In addition, setting work and complicated management processing are not required, and the software structure can be simplified, thereby reducing bugs and improving program code maintenance.

  Hereinafter, embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the drawings, taking as an example the case of application to a video conference system. FIG. 2 is a configuration diagram of the video conference system according to the embodiment of this invention.

  In the video conference system according to the embodiment, the electronic conference terminals 110 and 210 that are conference terminals, portable terminals (hereinafter referred to as controllers) 160 and 260, and PCs 120 and 220 that are file terminals are connected to an IP network line (hereinafter referred to as an IP network line). And a server 300 that is a conference management apparatus via the network 10. The electronic conference terminal 110 and the PC 120 are distributed in the conference room A (100), and the electronic conference terminal 210 and the PC 220 are distributed in the conference room B (200).

  Here, the extension BOXs 140 and 240 connected to the electronic conference terminals 110 and 210 control the near field communication between the electronic conference terminals 110 and 210 and the controllers 160 and 260, and control the operations of the electronic conference terminals 110 and 210. Device. Similarly, the expansion boxes 150 and 250 connected to the PCs 120 and 220 are devices that control the near field communication between the PCs 120 and 220 and the controllers 160 and 260 and control the operations of the PCs 120 and 220. Note that the expansion boxes 140, 150, 240, and 250, and the devices such as the electronic conference terminals 110 and 210 and the PCs 120 and 220 may be integrally formed.

  The wireless LANAP (130, 230) is a device for causing the controllers 160, 260 to communicate directly via the IP network 10.

  In this way, the controllers 160 and 260 are connected to the electronic conference terminals 110 and 210 via the extension BOXs 140 and 240 and are connected to the PCs 120 and 220 via the extension BOXs 150 and 250. Further, it is possible to connect to the server 300 or the electronic conference terminals 110 and 210 and the PCs 120 and 220 via the IP network 10 by the wireless LANAP (130, 230).

  Here, the hardware configuration of the server 300 will be described. FIG. 3 is a block diagram illustrating a hardware configuration example of the server according to the present embodiment.

  The entire server 300 is controlled by a CPU (Central Processing Unit) 301. A random access memory (RAM) 302, a hard disk drive (HDD) 303, a graphic processing device 304, an input interface 305, and a communication interface 306 are connected to the CPU 301 via a bus 307.

  The RAM 302 temporarily stores at least part of an OS (Operating System) program and application programs to be executed by the CPU 301. The RAM 302 stores various data necessary for processing by the CPU 301. The HDD 303 stores the OS and application programs. A monitor 308 is connected to the graphic processing device 304, and an image is displayed on the screen of the monitor 308 in accordance with a command from the CPU 301. A keyboard 309 a and a mouse 309 b are connected to the input interface 305, and signals sent from the keyboard 309 a and the mouse 309 b are transmitted to the CPU 301 via the bus 307. The communication interface 306 is connected to the IP network 10 and transmits / receives data to / from the terminal device via the IP network 10. The monitor 308, the keyboard 309a, and the mouse 309b may be connected via the communication interface 306 instead of being directly connected to the server 300.

  With such a hardware configuration, the processing functions of the present embodiment can be realized. 3 shows the hardware configuration of the server, the hardware configuration of the mobile terminal device excluding the proximity communication function is the same. The conference terminal apparatus also has the same hardware configuration except for the proximity communication function and the conference processing function (such as an imaging unit, a microphone unit, and a voice synthesis unit).

  As described above, each device according to the embodiment of the present invention has a hardware configuration as described above, and realizes its processing function when the CPU executes the program.

  In the following, a detailed description will be given of processing procedures from the generation of a group to the management of access authority for a common file and the volatilization of the group after the conference ends. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing a configuration example for explaining the operation of the present embodiment. The same components as those in FIG. 2 are denoted by the same reference numerals, and description thereof is omitted.

  In the conference room A (100), a conference terminal A (111), a PC1 (121), and a PC2 (122) are arranged and connected to the server 300 via the IP network 10. The controller (red) 161 is held by the administrator of the PC 1 (121), and communicates with the PC 1 (121) and the conference terminal A (111) by proximity communication. The PC1 (121) stores a file bar used as a common file. Similarly, a controller (green) 162 is held by the administrator of the PC 2 (122), and communicates with the PC 2 (122) and the conference terminal A (111) by proximity communication.

  On the other hand, in the conference room B (200), a conference terminal B (211) and a PC 3 (221) are arranged and connected to the server 300 via the IP network 10. The controller (blue) 261 is held by the administrator of the PC 3 (121), and can communicate with the PC 3 (221) and the conference terminal B (211) by proximity communication. The PC 3 (221) stores a file foo used as a common file.

  In the conference system having such a configuration, a group A and a group B are formed for each conference terminal A (111) and B (211), and a conference request is made between the conference terminal A (111) and the conference terminal B (211). Is performed, the conference group A + B is formed and the conference is started. When the conference ends, the conference group is divided and returns to group A and group B.

  Hereinafter, group generation and access authority management in the conference system shown in FIG. 4 will be described in order with reference to the drawings.

  First, the case where the controller (red) 161 on the conference room A (100) side is authenticated by the conference terminal A (111) and the group A is created will be described. FIG. 5 is a diagram showing a new group A creation operation in the present embodiment.

  The server 300 starts processing in an initial state without group registration. In the conference room A (100), a user holding the controller (red) 161 places the controller (red) 161 in the vicinity of the conference terminal A (111) and makes a connection request 501. The conference terminal A (111) that has acquired the connection request 501 by proximity communication authenticates the controller (red) 161 and notifies the server 300 by the authentication notification 502 that the controller (red) 161 has been authenticated. The server 300 that has acquired the authentication notification 502 searches for a group formed by the controllers connected to the conference terminal A (111). Since it is not found here, a new group A is created, and a controller (red) 161 is set in the controller item indicating the group member of the group information. Although not shown, group A is added as attribute information at the time of registration in the controller item. In the illustrated example, “red” is set in the controller column 311a. In this state, nothing is set in the file item indicating the common file. Therefore, the file column 311b is blank.

  In this way, group A information 311 relating to the conference terminal A (111) in which the controller (red) 161 is set as a member is created in the server.

  Next, the case where the group B on the conference room B (200) side is created will be described. FIG. 6 is a diagram showing a new group B creation operation in the present embodiment.

  On the conference room B (200) side, the user of the controller (blue) 261 places the controller (blue) 261 in the vicinity of the conference terminal B (211) and makes a connection request 503. The conference terminal B (211) that has acquired the connection request 503 by the near field communication authenticates the controller (blue) 261 and transmits the authentication notification 504 to the server 300. The server 300 that has acquired the authentication notification 504 searches for a group formed by the controllers connected to the conference terminal B (211). Since it is not found here, a new group B is created, and a controller (blue) 261 is registered in the group member field of the group information. Also here, group B is added as attribute information at the time of registration in the controller item. Note that there is no file set as a common file in the processing so far.

  In this way, the group A information 311 related to the group A of which the controller (red) 161 is a member and the group B information 312 related to the group B of which the controller (blue) 261 is a member are set in the server 300.

  Next, the operation when a common file is specified will be described. FIG. 7 is a diagram showing a common file setting operation in the present embodiment.

  On the conference room B (200) side, the controller (blue) 261 issues an instruction to set the file foo stored in the PC 3 (221) that can be controlled by proximity communication as a common file. The controller (blue) 261 transmits the instruction information 505 using the file foo as a common file to the conference terminal B (211) or both the conference terminal B (211) and the PC 3 (221) using proximity communication. A common file designation 506 is transmitted from the conference terminal B (211) to the server 300 using the file foo held by the PC 3 (221) as a common file. The server 300 that has acquired the instruction transfers the data foo from the PC 3 (221) to the data transfer 507, and stores the downloaded file as a common file foo 321 in the file storage means. At the same time, foo is added to the file item of the group B information 312 to set that the common file foo is set in the server 300. The file data transfer may be started from the PC 3 (221) side or may be performed via the conference terminal B 211. At the time of registration in the file item, the attribute (group B) of the file foo is added as attribute information.

  Thus, the group A information 311 of which the controller (red) 161 is a member and the group B information 312 of which the controller (blue) 261 is a member are generated, and the file foo stored in the PC 3 (221) of the group B is the common file. It is stored in the server 300 as foo321. This common file can be accessed only by controllers in the same group. That is, only the controller (controller blue in the example shown) registered in the group B information 312 can be accessed.

  Next, the operation when the conference terminal A (111) and the conference terminal B (211) are interconnected and a conference is started will be described. FIG. 8 is a diagram showing a conference group creation operation in the present embodiment.

  The controller (red) 161 instructs the conference terminal A (111) to interconnect with the conference terminal B (211) to start the conference. Alternatively, an instruction is issued from the controller (blue) 261 to the conference terminal B (211) to start a conference by interconnecting with the conference terminal A (111). The instruction may be issued from both sides. Thereby, the conference terminal A (111) and the conference terminal B (211) are interconnected to start a conference, and either the conference terminal A (111) or the conference terminal B (211) or both are Instruction information (conference start 508) for connecting and starting the conference is transmitted to the server 300. When the server 300 acquires the conference start 508, the server 300 searches the corresponding group information, integrates the corresponding group A information 311 and group B information 312 and creates one conference group (group A + B). As described above, the group A + B information 313 obtained by combining the group A information 311 and the group B information 312 includes the controller (red) 161 of the group A and the controller (blue) 261 of the group B registered in the controller item as group members. A common file foo 321 is registered as a common file of group A + B. In the figure, the added attribute information is shown next to the controller name. Further, together with the creation of the group A + B information 313, the group A information 311 and the group B information 312 which are the respective group information are deleted. By such processing, the conference group A + B is created and the common file foo 321 can be accessed by the controller (red) 161 and the controller (blue) 261 registered in the group A + B information 313. As a result, the controller (red) 161 originally belonging to another group can access the common file foo 321 by belonging to the same group.

  Next, an operation for adding the common file bar in a state where the conference by the group A + B is being performed will be described. FIG. 9 is a diagram showing an operation for adding a common file in the present embodiment.

  Conference terminal A (111) and conference terminal B (211) are interconnected and the conference continues. The controller (red) 161 on the conference room A (100) side sets the instruction information for setting the file bar stored in the PC 1 (121) that can be controlled by proximity communication as a common file to the conference terminal A (111) or the conference It transmits to both terminal A (111) and PC1 (121). A common file designation 509 is transmitted from the conference terminal A (111) to the server 300 with the file bar held by the PC1 (121) as a common file. The server 300 having acquired the instruction transfers the file bar from the PC 1 (121) to the data transfer 510, and stores the downloaded file as a common file bar 322 in the file storage unit. At the same time, bar is added to the item of the file of the group A + B information 313 of the conference group A + B in which the controller (red) 161 currently participates, indicating that the common file bar 322 is set in the server 300. The file data transfer may be started from the PC 1 (121) side or may be performed via the conference terminal A (111).

  Thus, the common file bar 322 of the conference group A + B is stored in the server 300. This common file can be accessed only by controllers in the same group. That is, in the example of the figure, the group A + B information (313) enables access from all the controllers (controller (red) 161 and controller (blue) 261) of the conference group A + B having the common file bar 322 as a common file. .

  Next, an operation when a member further participates in a conference held between the conference terminal A (111) and the conference terminal B (211) will be described. FIG. 10 is a diagram showing an operation of adding a group member in the present embodiment.

  The conference terminal A (111) and the conference terminal B (211) are interconnected, and a conference is performed between the users of the controller (red) 161 of the conference room A (100) and the controller (blue) 261 of the conference room B (200). Has been continued. In this state, the controller (green) 162 on the conference room A (100) side makes a connection request 511 to the conference terminal A (111) by proximity communication. The conference terminal A (111) that has acquired the connection request 511 by the near field communication authenticates the controller (green) 162 and notifies the server 300 by the authentication notification 512 that the controller (green) 162 has been authenticated. The server 300 that has acquired the authentication notification 512 searches for a group formed by the controllers connected to the conference terminal A (111). Here, since the conference group A + B is searched, the controller (green) 162 and its attribute information (group A) are set in the controller item of the group information A + B (313).

  In this way, the group A + B information 313 in which the controller (green) 162 is set as a member is set in the server. In this way, if a connection request is made to the conference terminal and authenticated, an arbitrary user can participate in the conference without requiring complicated setting work. A user who newly participates in the conference (in the example shown in the figure, who owns the controller green) can use a common file (file foo and file bar in the example shown in the figure).

  Next, a case where the controller (green) 162 acquires the common file foo will be described. The acquired common file foo is stored in the PC 2 (122) under the control of the controller (green) 162. FIG. 11 is a diagram showing a common file acquisition operation according to the present embodiment.

  The controller (green) 162 on the conference room A (100) side transmits an acquisition request 513 for the common file foo321 held by the server 300 to the conference terminal A (111) by proximity communication. Then, the conference terminal A (111) makes an acquisition request 522 for the common file foo to the server 300. In response to this, the server 300 transfers 514 the common file foo 321 stored in the file storage means as a common file to the PC 2 (122). Thus, the common file foo is stored in the PC2 (122). The data transfer of the file foo may be performed by receiving the file foo at the conference terminal A (111) and then transferring it to the PC 2 (122). Alternatively, the PC 2 (122) may read directly from the server 300.

  In this way, users who participate in the group can use the common file without performing complicated setting work.

  Next, a case where the conference is ended will be described. FIG. 12 is a diagram showing a conference group dividing operation according to the present embodiment.

  The conference terminal A (111) and the conference terminal B (211) are interconnected, and the controller (red) 161 and controller (green) 162 of the conference room A (100) and the controller (blue) 261 of the conference room B (200) are connected. The conference continues between users. The conference ends from this state, and the conference ends from the controller (red) 161 or the controller (green) 162 to the conference terminal A (111) or from the controller (blue) 261 to the conference terminal B (211). Is transmitted by proximity communication. The conference terminal A (111) and the conference terminal B (211) stop the mutual communication and end the conference. At the same time, the conference end instruction information 515 is transmitted to the server 300. Upon obtaining the conference end instruction information 515, the server 300 divides the conference group A + B and returns it to the group for each conference terminal. In actual processing, the group A + B information 313 of the conference group A + B is divided for each conference terminal according to the attribute information, and group A information 314 and group B information 315 are newly created. Of the controllers set in the group A + B information 313, a controller connected to the conference terminal A (111) is registered in the group A information 314. In the illustrated example, a controller (red) 161 and a controller (green) 162 are registered as controllers. In addition, among the common files set in the group A + B information 313, foo and bar, the file bar held by the PC 1 (121) on the conference room A (100) side is registered as the common file. Similarly, in the group B information 315 of the conference terminal B (211), the controller (blue) 261 connected to the conference terminal B (211) and the file foo held by the PC 3 (221) are registered. The group A + B information 313 is deleted because the conference group A + B has disappeared.

  Thus, the conference group A + B is divided into groups for each original conference terminal by the end of the conference. As a result, for example, the file foo cannot be accessed from the conference room A (100) side. Similarly, the file bar cannot be accessed from the conference room B (200) side. As described above, since the access right is lost at the end of the conference, it is possible to ensure the security of “conference participants only”.

  Next, a case where a group member cancels authentication will be described. FIG. 13 is a diagram showing an operation for deauthenticating group members in the present embodiment.

  The figure shows a case where the controller (red) 161, which is a member of the group A on the conference room A (100) side, cancels the authentication. The controller (red) 161 transmits the authentication cancellation instruction information 516 to the conference terminal A (111) using the proximity communication. Receiving the deauthentication instruction information 516, the conference terminal A (111) deauthorizes the controller (red) 161 and transmits a deauthentication notification 517 to the server 300. The server 300 acquires the authentication cancellation notification 517 and deletes the registration of the controller (red) 161 from the group A information 314 created corresponding to the conference terminal A (111). In the illustrated example, “red” representing the controller (red) is deleted from the controller item of the group A information 314. Here, since the common file bar 322 originally held by the PC 1 (121) managed by the controller (red) 161 is once taken up by the server 300, it remains on the server 300 and is made available for use by the group A. If necessary, it can be deleted.

  Next, a case where the remaining controllers connected to the conference terminal are deauthenticated will be described. When all the controllers belonging to the group are not registered, the group disappears (volatilizes). FIG. 14 is a diagram showing a group volatilization operation in the present embodiment.

  In group A, the controller (green) 162 connected to the conference terminal A (111) is registered, and in group B, the controller (blue) 261 connected to the conference terminal B (211) is registered. Be started.

  The controller (green) 162 on the conference room A (100) side transmits authentication cancellation instruction information 518 to the conference terminal A (111) using the proximity communication. Receiving the deauthentication instruction information 518, the conference terminal A (111) deauthorizes the controller (green) 162 and transmits a deauthentication notification 519 to the server 300. The server 300 acquires the authentication cancellation notice 519 and deletes the registration of the controller (green) 162 from the group A information 314 created corresponding to the conference terminal A (111). As a result, since there are no members constituting the group A, the group A is volatilized and the group A information 314 is deleted. Here, the common file bar 322 of group A is also deleted. In addition, it can also be made to leave as needed. Similarly, the controller (blue) 261 on the conference room B (200) side transmits authentication cancellation instruction information 520 to the conference terminal B (211) using the proximity communication. Upon receiving the authentication cancellation instruction information 520, the conference terminal B (211) cancels the authentication of the controller (blue) 261 and transmits an authentication cancellation notification 521 to the server 300. The server 300 acquires the authentication cancellation notification 521 and deletes the registration of the controller (blue) 261 from the group B information 315 created corresponding to the conference terminal B (211). As a result, since there are no members constituting the group B, the group B is volatilized and the group B information 315 and the common file foo are deleted.

  In this way, the deauthenticated member is removed from the group and the group with no members is volatilized.

  As described above, according to the present embodiment, the controller is added to the group by being authenticated by the conference terminal, and is deleted from the group by being deauthenticated. A group is created by registering a new member and volatilizes when all members are deleted. As described above, since the group is automatically created and volatilized, it is not necessary to perform complicated settings in advance. In addition, it is easy to increase the number of participants in the conference as necessary, and the usability of the conference system is improved.

  In addition, with respect to the control of the access right, it is possible to perform clear security control “only the conference participant” without requiring complicated setting work.

  Next, a conference management method by the conference management apparatus will be described. In the conference management device, each process of group registration processing when a notification of authentication and de-authentication is received from the conference terminal, common file setting processing, conference group creation processing by conference start request, and conference group division processing by conference end request I do. Each process will be described in turn.

  First, a processing procedure when the controller is authenticated by the conference terminal will be described. FIG. 15 is a flowchart showing a procedure of group registration processing in the conference management method of the present embodiment.

  When the controller makes a connection request to the conference terminal and is authenticated, the conference terminal notifies the conference management apparatus of the authentication of the controller and starts processing.

  [Step S01] Since the controller authentication notification is acquired from the conference terminal, it is determined whether there is a group formed by the controllers connected to the conference terminal. The conference terminal holds unique identification information, searches the group information stored in the file storage means, and checks whether there is a group that matches the conference terminal identification information. Here, there are cases where a group is combined with a group of other conference terminals due to the start of a conference or the like, but only one group is created for one conference terminal. If a group exists, the process proceeds to step S03.

  [Step S02] Since there is no group of conference terminals whose identification information matches, a new group is created.

  [Step S03] A controller that has been notified of authentication is added to the corresponding group or a newly created group. At this time, identification information of the conference terminal is added to the controller as an attribute.

  [Step S04] The controller number information for storing the number of controllers in the group is incremented by 1, and the controller number is updated.

  The group information of the conference management apparatus is updated by executing the above processing procedure. The group is formed with a controller connected to the conference terminal as a member, and is configured for one or a plurality of conference terminals. Note that a group composed of a plurality of conference terminals is in a state where a plurality of conference terminals are interconnected and in a conference. In the group information, the controller that is a member of the group registers the identification information of the conference terminal to be connected as attribute information. In addition, the file name set as a common file of the group and the number of controllers to which the file belongs are also set.

  Next, a processing procedure when the controller is deauthenticated by the conference terminal will be described. FIG. 16 is a flowchart showing a procedure of group registration cancellation processing in the conference management method of the present embodiment.

  When the controller issues a deauthentication request to the conference terminal and is deauthenticated, the conference terminal notifies the conference management device of deauthentication of the controller and starts processing. Note that the conference terminal may be deauthenticated by detecting that the controller is no longer within the possible proximity communication range.

  [Step S11] Since the controller deauthentication notification has been acquired from the conference terminal, the registration of the controller that has been notified of deauthentication is deleted from the group corresponding to the conference terminal.

  [Step S12] The controller number information for storing the number of controllers in the group is decremented by 1, and the controller number is updated.

  [Step S13] It is determined whether or not the number of updated controllers has become 0 (no group members left). If it is not 0, that is, if there is a controller registered in the group, the process ends.

  [Step S14] All the files registered in the common file of the group are deleted from the group. As a result, the common file cannot be used.

  [Step S15] Delete the group. That is, the registration of group information is deleted and the group is volatilized.

  By executing the above processing procedure, each time the controller is deauthenticated, it is deleted from the group member. And when the member disappears, the group itself is deleted.

  In this way, each time the controller is authenticated or de-authenticated with the conference terminal, it is registered or deleted as a member of the group, so that the conference member can be set without performing complicated registration work that must be set in advance. Not only will this be possible, but it will also be easier to manage the conference.

  Next, a processing procedure when a common file is designated will be described. Common files can be freely accessed only by members of the group. FIG. 17 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the common file setting process in the conference management method of the present embodiment.

  Processing is started when the controller transmits to the conference terminal instruction information for a file held in a managed PC or the like as a common file, and the conference terminal notifies the conference management apparatus of the instruction information.

  [Step S21] Since the instruction information of the common file is acquired from the conference terminal, it is determined whether there is a group formed by the controllers connected to the conference terminal. If the group does not exist, the process ends.

  [Step S22] If a group exists, the designated file is picked up and stored in the file storage means, and registered in the common file of the group information of this group. At this time, identification information of the conference terminal is added to the common file as an attribute.

  By executing the above processing procedure, the common file is sucked and stored in the conference terminal device and registered in the group information. This allows group members to freely access common files.

  Next, a processing procedure at the start of the conference will be described. FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing a procedure of conference start processing in the conference management method of the present embodiment.

  When the instruction information for instructing the controller to start the conference is acquired via the conference terminal, the process is started. In the example shown in the figure, an instruction is given to start a conference by interconnecting group x and group y.

  [Step S31] Group information is searched to determine whether group information of group x or group y exists. If neither exists, there is no group to be joined, and the process is terminated.

  [Step S32] The group x and the group y are combined, a new group x + y is created, and group x + y information is set. Even when either one of the groups does not exist, the group x + y is created.

  [Step S33] It is determined whether group x exists in the group information. If group x does not exist, the process proceeds to step S37.

  [Step S34] Since the group x exists, all the controllers of the group x registered in the group information are moved to the group x + y information corresponding to the group x + y created in step S32.

  [Step S35] All common file names of the group x registered in the group information x are moved to the group x + y information.

  [Step S36] The group x is deleted and the group x information is deleted.

  [Step S37] It is determined whether the group y exists in the group information. If the group y does not exist, the process ends.

  [Step S38] Since the group y exists, all the controllers of the group y registered in the group information are moved to the group x + y information corresponding to the group x + y created in step S32.

  [Step S39] All common file names of the group y registered in the group y information are moved to the group x + y information.

  [Step S40] The group y is deleted, and the group y information is deleted.

  With the above processing procedure, the controllers and common files belonging to the group x and group y where the conference is started are set in the group x + y information of the newly created conference group x + y. As a result, members belonging to each of the group x and the group y become a common group, and a conference by mutual communication is possible. In addition, each common file can be accessed under the condition of “conference participants only”. FIG. 19 is a flowchart showing the procedure of the conference end process in the conference management method of the present embodiment.

  Next, a processing procedure at the end of the conference will be described.

  When the instruction information for instructing the controller to end the conference is acquired via the conference terminal, the process is started. In the example shown in the figure, an instruction is given to end a conference that is held by mutual connection between the group x and the group y.

  [Step S51] The group information is searched to determine whether group information of group x + y exists. If it does not exist, the process ends.

  [Step S52] The controller section of the group x + y information is checked to determine whether there is a controller having a group attribute x. If not, the process proceeds to step S55.

  [Step S53] Of the controllers registered in the group x + y information, all the controllers having the attribute x are moved to the group x information of the group x.

  [Step S54] Of the files registered in the group x + y information, all files having the attribute x are moved to the group x information of the group x, and the process proceeds to step S56.

  [Step S55] If no controller with the attribute x is detected, all files with the attribute x are deleted. This is a process for deleting a remaining file when the controller becomes 0 and the group disappears.

  [Step S56] The controller section of the group x + y information is checked to determine whether there is a controller having a group attribute y. If not, the process proceeds to step S59.

  [Step S57] Of the controllers registered in the group x + y information, all the controllers having the attribute y are moved to the group y information of the group y.

  [Step S58] Of the files registered in the group x + y information, all files having the attribute y are moved to the group y information of the group y, and the process proceeds to step S60.

  [Step S59] If no controller with the attribute y is detected, all files with the attribute y are deleted. This is a process for deleting a remaining file when the controller becomes 0 and the group disappears.

  [Step S60] The group x + y is deleted, and the group x + y information is deleted.

  By executing the above processing procedure, the groups participating in the conference are combined with the start of the conference to create a new conference group. Members in the conference group can freely participate in the conference and can access the files set in the common file. Further, as the conference ends, the conference group is divided, and the group information moves to each group based on the attribute. At this time, it becomes impossible to access the common file set in another group.

  In this way, by making it possible to access only the common files of the same group, it is possible to easily realize access restriction such as “only members who participate in the conference”. Actually, since the majority of conferences are held with such access restrictions, the conference can be managed and managed without complicated settings.

  In addition, although the case where the meeting between two points was demonstrated above, the same process is performed also when a meeting is performed at three or more points.

It is a conceptual diagram of the invention applied to embodiment. It is a block diagram of the video conference system of embodiment of this invention. It is a block diagram which shows the hardware structural example of the server of this Embodiment. It is the figure which showed the structural example for demonstrating the operation | movement of this Embodiment. It is the figure which showed the new creation operation of the group A in this Embodiment. It is the figure which showed the new creation operation of the group B in this Embodiment. It is the figure which showed the setting operation | movement of the common file in this Embodiment. It is the figure which showed the production | generation operation | movement of the conference group in this Embodiment. It is the figure which showed the addition operation | movement of the common file in this Embodiment. It is the figure which showed the addition operation of the group member in this Embodiment. It is the figure which showed the acquisition operation of the common file in this Embodiment. It is the figure which showed the division | segmentation operation | movement of the meeting group in this Embodiment. It is the figure which showed the operation | movement of the authentication cancellation | release of the group member in this Embodiment. It is the figure which showed the volatilization operation of the group in this Embodiment. It is the flowchart which showed the procedure of the group registration process in the conference management method of this Embodiment. It is the flowchart which showed the procedure of the group registration cancellation | release process in the conference management method of this Embodiment. It is the flowchart which showed the procedure of the setting process of the common file in the conference management method of this Embodiment. It is the flowchart which showed the procedure of the meeting start process in the meeting management method of this Embodiment. It is the flowchart which showed the procedure of the meeting end process in the meeting management method of this Embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 ... Conference terminal (apparatus), 1a ... Neighborhood communication means, 1b ... Network communication means, 1c ... Authentication notification means, 1d ... Instruction information transmission means, 1f ... File terminal, 1g: Proximity communication means, 1h: Network communication means, 1i ... File storage means, 2 ... Mobile terminal (device), 2a ... Instruction input means, 2b ... Proximity communication means, 3 ... Conference management device, 3a ... Network communication means, 3b ... Group registration means, 3c ... Group management means, 3d ... File storage means, 3e ... Group information, 3f ...・ Common file

Claims (6)

  In a conference system for performing a conference by exchanging predetermined communication data including voice information between conference terminal devices distributed over a network,
  Proximity communication means for controlling communication performed with the conference terminal device when the conference terminal device is within a predetermined proximity range, and instruction information input by a user participating in the conference A portable terminal device comprising: instruction input means for transmitting to the conference terminal device via means;
  Proximity communication means for controlling communication with the portable terminal device within a predetermined proximity range, network communication means for controlling communication with other devices connected via the network, and via the proximity communication means When the connection request is received from the portable terminal device, the portable terminal device is authenticated and allowed to connect, and the conference management device is notified via the network communication means that the portable terminal device has been authenticated. An authentication notification means for releasing a connection with the mobile terminal device and notifying the conference terminal device of the authentication release of the mobile terminal device when receiving a connection release request from the already connected mobile terminal device; The conference terminal device comprising: instruction information transmission means for transmitting the instruction information acquired from the portable terminal device to a related device by the network communication means;
  Network communication means for controlling communication with other devices connected via the network, and connection to the conference terminal device when notified by the network communication means that the mobile terminal device has been authenticated by the conference terminal device Group registration means for registering the notified mobile terminal device to a group formed by the mobile terminal device and deleting the mobile terminal device from the group in which the mobile terminal device is registered when authentication cancellation is notified , Managing the group based on the instruction information acquired by the network communication means, and if the instruction information is an instruction to start a conference specifying the conference terminal device to hold a conference, the meeting corresponding to the instruction When the group corresponding to the terminal device is joined to create a conference group, and the end of the conference is instructed, the conference group Divided into the group corresponding to up to each of the conference terminals, said conference management device comprising a group management unit, and,
  A conference system.   The conference management apparatus further includes file storage means for storing a common file shared in the group or a conference group combined with the group,
  The group management means of the conference management apparatus transfers the predetermined file to the file storage means when the instruction information designates the predetermined file as the common file, and the common information of the file storage means Access to the file only allows devices in the group or the conference group,
  The conference system according to claim 1.   The group management means of the conference management device includes:
  If the group or the conference group has disappeared, delete the common file corresponding to the group or conference group that has disappeared,
  The conference system according to claim 2.   The group registration means of the conference management device includes:
  It searches whether the group formed by the mobile terminal device connected to the conference terminal device that has notified the authentication of the mobile terminal device exists, and if there is, the mobile device authenticated by the searched group Register the terminal device, and if it does not exist, create the group and register the authenticated mobile terminal device.
  The conference system according to claim 1.   The group registration means of the conference management device includes:
  While searching for the group formed by the mobile terminal device connected to the conference terminal device that has notified the cancellation of authentication of the mobile terminal device, delete the mobile terminal device that has been deauthenticated from the searched group, It is determined whether or not the other mobile terminal device exists in the group, and if not, the group is extinguished.
  The conference system according to claim 1.   In a conference management method for performing a conference by exchanging predetermined communication data including voice information between conference terminal devices distributed over a network,
  When the conference terminal device receives a connection request from the mobile terminal device via a proximity communication means for controlling communication with a mobile terminal device within a predetermined range of the conference terminal device, an authentication notification Means for authenticating the portable terminal device and allowing the connection, transmitting that the portable terminal device is authenticated to the conference management device via the network,
  When the conference management apparatus is notified by the group registration means that the mobile terminal apparatus has been authenticated from the conference terminal apparatus via the network, the mobile terminal apparatus connected to the conference terminal apparatus is formed. A group registration procedure for registering the mobile terminal device in a group;
  When the conference terminal device receives a connection release request from a mobile terminal device already connected via the proximity communication means, the authentication notification means releases the connection with the mobile terminal device and Notifying the conference terminal device of the terminal device deauthorization,
  A group registration deletion procedure for deleting the mobile terminal device from the group in which the mobile terminal device is registered when the conference management device is notified of the cancellation of authentication by the group registration means;
  When the conference management device acquires instruction information set by the portable terminal device via the conference terminal device by group management means, the group management unit performs management processing of the group based on the instruction information, and the instruction information is When the instruction to start the conference specifies the conference terminal device that performs the conference, the group corresponding to the conference terminal device corresponding to the instruction is combined to create a conference group, and the end of the conference is instructed A conference management procedure for dividing the conference group into the groups corresponding to the respective conference terminal devices;
  A conference management method.

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