JPH03289255A - Communication terminal equipment - Google Patents

Abstract

PURPOSE:To secure the privacy of the user by storing a capability of its own terminal equipment to be informed to an opposite party terminal equipment corresponding to the number of the opposite terminal equipment and informing the capability of its own terminal equipment to the opposite terminal equipment in response to the opposite terminal equipment number and the storage content at incoming or outgoing call. CONSTITUTION:A storage means storing the capability of its own terminal equipment to be informed to an opposite terminal equipment corresponding to the number of the opposite terminal equipment and a notice means informing the capability of its own terminal equipment to the opposite terminal equipment in response to the storage content of the storage means and the opposite terminal equipment number at incoming or outgoing call are provided to the terminal equipment to revise the capability of its own terminal equipment to be informed to the opposite terminal equipment in response to the communication opposite party. Thus, in the case of the arrival of a call in the AV communication mode, based on the opposite number or on the tentative setting mode at that time, its terminal capability to be returned to the opposite party is revised. Thus, AV communication with video image provision to every party unnecessarily is prevented and the privacy of the user is secured.

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention (Field of Industrial Application) The present invention is applicable to AV (Audio Visual) communication, typified by a videophone device that can simultaneously communicate at least audio information and video information such as moving images or still images. terminal,
Regarding multimedia communication terminals.

(Prior Art) In recent years, the practical application of communication services using 15DN lines has been delayed, and AV (Audio Visual) systems such as video telephones and video conference systems using such digital lines have been developed.
Services are attracting attention, and service specifications, protocol specifications, and multimedia multiplexing frame configuration specifications for AV services have been published by CCITT (International Telegraph and Telephone Consultative Committee).
Draft Recommendation H9320, H.

242, H, 221, etc. Draft H,
221, 64. BAS (Bit A11ocaLin) used for frame configuration, terminal function exchange, terminal mode switching, bit allocation instruction, etc. in AV support on kbps to 1,920 kbps channels.
A coding assignment for ``Signal'' is defined. Draft H8242 defines protocol procedures between AV terminals, and Draft H.320 defines system aspects of AV services in general. A G C (Audio G
Draft recommendations related to the RAPHIC Conference are also being considered one by one.

In the above draft, after establishing an end-to-end physical connection and synchronization, in-channel BAS
A procedure is defined for selecting the mutual communication with the highest capability between terminals using procedures such as a terminal capability exchange sequence and a mode switching sequence using .

However, procedures for making each terminal's own terminal capability variable depending on the situation or changing it midway through are outside the scope and are not specified.

By the way, as this type of videophone becomes more popular in the future, the protection of the privacy of the terminal users will become an issue because, unlike the conventional audio-only communication, it includes a function to mutually communicate the user's video. It is thought that this will happen.

However, at present, there is no way to sufficiently and easily deal with this point when accepting a response when a call arrives.

In addition, AV communication terminals are required to communicate with conventional telephones, but AV communication and telephone communication require 15
Since the service parameters used differ at the stage of Dch call setup of the DN, the processing method is left to the terminal.

(Problem to be Solved by the Invention) However, since conventional terminals automatically respond when receiving an incoming call according to their terminal capabilities, it is difficult for the terminal to transmit video to a partner terminal that does not want to perform mutual video communication. It will notify your communication ability. In this case, even if mode switching is possible during communication, notifying the other party's terminal in this way may itself become a problem. In addition, there are times when you do not want to perform video communication with any other party, and you may want to temporarily switch the terminal's own terminal capabilities instead of simply switching by the other party, but conventional terminals do not have sufficient support for this. . For example, there is a method of resetting the functions of the terminal using a parameter setting screen, but this method is too complicated to be a temporary change.

Furthermore, it is thought that it will become extremely difficult for the user to constantly select and instruct whether the other party is an AV terminal or a regular telephone for any number of the other party. Also, a method is being considered in which, for example, after making a call using AV communication, it is recognized that the other party is not an AV terminal due to the reason for the disconnection, and the next call is automatically made by telephone.
It would be extremely foolish to go through this procedure every time even if you have communicated with someone before.

The present invention has been made in view of the above points, and is a communication terminal capable of AV communication, which appropriately protects the user's privacy and communicates in an optimal communication mode according to the capabilities of the other party's terminal. The purpose is to provide a communication terminal that can.

(Means and Effects for Solving the Problems) In order to achieve the above object, the present invention provides communication terminals capable of mutually communicating with each other by multiplexing at least audio information and video information via a communication line. storage means for storing capabilities of the own terminal to be notified to in correspondence with the number of the other terminal;
By providing a notification means for notifying the capability of the own terminal to the other party's terminal according to the other party's terminal number and the storage contents of the storage means when receiving or making a call, the ability of the own terminal to be notified to the other party's terminal according to the communication partner. It is possible to change the .

Further, a change storage means is provided for temporarily changing and storing contents of the own terminal capability stored in the storage means to be notified to the other terminal according to a change instruction from a user of the terminal, and the notification means When the change instruction is received, the capability of the terminal to be notified to the terminal is notified to the terminal according to the terminal number of the terminal and the contents stored in the change storage means at the time of incoming or outgoing calls. This allows the user to make temporary changes.

In addition, when a call is received from a terminal whose terminal number is not stored (unregistered) in the storage means, the terminal capability to be notified and/or when a call is made to a terminal whose terminal number is not stored. By storing the capability of the own terminal to be notified to the terminal, the predetermined capability of the own terminal is notified to an unregistered partner terminal.

Furthermore, by providing a learning means for updating the storage contents of the storage means for the other party terminal or additionally registering new information about the other party terminal in the storage means when communicating with the other party terminal, the registered information can be updated. After updating the information about the other party's terminal or communicating with an unregistered other party's terminal, the information about the other party's terminal is stored in the storage means.

Furthermore, the present invention provides a communication terminal that is capable of multiplexing at least audio information and video information and communicating with each other via a communication line. means, and re-notification means for notifying the other party's terminal capabilities again, other than the ability to transmit and receive voice information, in accordance with a change instruction from the user of the terminal after starting communication in the voice communication mode; By providing a communication mode changing means for changing the communication to a communication mode corresponding to the re-notified own terminal function, when a call is received, communication is first performed in the voice communication mode, and after confirming the communication partner and the other party's terminal capabilities, According to the user's wishes, communication can be performed in a communication mode other than the voice communication mode.

(Example) Embodiments of the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a video telephone device that is an embodiment of the present invention. In the figure, reference numeral 1 denotes a control information input unit (e.g. keyboard, numeric keypad, etc.) used to input control information for general control of this device, and a control information input/output interface unit 8 that controls input and output of control information.
It is connected to the overall control section 21 via. A control information output unit 2 such as a monitor for displaying control information is connected to the control information input/output interface unit 8 .

Audio input section 3 such as a microphone and audio output section 4 such as a speaker
is connected to the first audio switch j2 via the first audio input/output interface unit 9 that controls the audio signal turnout knob, and the first audio switch 12 is connected to the second audio input/output interface unit 10. An audio input/output unit 5 such as a handset is connected via the terminal. 1st audio switch 1
2 is a 64kbps A-1awPCM audio codec (encoding/decoding device) 13 and a 64kbps μm]
awPCM audio codec 14, 16kbps audio codec 15, and 7KHz audio compatible SB-ADPC
These audio codecs 13 to 16 are connected to the multiplexing/demultiplexing section 19 via the second audio switch 17. Audio codec 1
3 to 16 encode and decode audio signals according to the respective encoding and decoding rules, and the present apparatus is compatible with four methods. First and second audio switch 1
2.17 is a switch for selecting any one of these codecs.

On the other hand, a video input section 6 such as a camera and a video output section 7 such as a monitor are connected to a video codec 18 via a video input/output interface section 11 that controls input and output of video signals, and the video codec 18 is connected to a multiplexing and demultiplexing section. ]9 is connected. The video codec 18 encodes and decodes video information according to predetermined rules.

The multiplexing and demultiplexing section 19 connects the lines 23-1, 23- to
2, . . . , 23-n, and multiplexes various media in units of transmitted information frames, and separates received information frames into constituent units of various media. The line interface control unit 20 is connected to the overall control 21 and controls the connection between the device and the line. Overall control section 2
1 is connected to a storage unit 22, and the storage unit 22 is
It stores various control information for the entire device, an information table for each partner number, the capabilities of the other party's terminal, the terminal capabilities of the own terminal that should be exchanged with the other party's terminal, etc. The overall control section 21 operates according to the control information from the control section knob section 1 and the storage section 22.
Controls the entire device.

FIG. 2 shows the number of the partner terminal (partner number) stored in the storage unit 22 as a capability management table by partner number, the corresponding partner terminal capability, and the own terminal capability to be notified in capability exchange with the partner terminal. FIG. In the same figure, for example, the partner terminal with number A is capable of AV communication, and can communicate video at a maximum transmission rate of 108.8 kbps, and A-1awPCM for audio.
, p-1awPGM, and SB-ADPCM, and indicates that the own terminal's capabilities to be notified to the other terminal are full functions.

Also, the terminal number B has a maximum of 62.
Although communication is possible at a transmission rate of 4 kbps and PCM support is possible for audio, this device indicates that only audio PCM should be reported as the own terminal capability. That is, since it is not desired to send video to the other party with number B, this setting is made.

Additionally, when a call is received from a terminal with a number that is not registered in the management table (hereinafter referred to as unregistered terminal All functions or voice PCM (A rule, μ rule) depending on the communication mode that the terminal can support.
or telephone mode is notified as the capability of the own terminal.

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation of this device when receiving a call.

First, in step 5100, a setup message is received as an incoming call in Dch call control. This Set
up message B C (Bearer Capab
ity), HL C (tight Layer C)
At step 51ot, it is determined whether the incoming call is a telephone call or not based on parameters such as ompaLability). If it is a telephone call (step 5 IOI answer is affirmative)
If Yes), proceed to step 5110, return a call setup acceptance response and start communication, and if the call is from a party that is not registered in the capability management table by party number, data about the party's terminal is registered. and updates the table contents. If the incoming call is not a telephone call (if the answer to the IOI in step 5 is negative), the process advances to step 5102, and it is determined whether or not 0 is received in the AV communication mode. This determination may not be possible in this phase at present, and in that case, it is determined in the in-channel procedure after the call setup reception response connection is established in step 5103. When not AV communication (step 5IO
If the answer to question 2 is negative), there is a possibility that it can be received within the range supported by the terminal, and the process moves to another process. If it is the AV communication mode (when the answer to step S1.02 is affirmative), in step 5JO3, after establishing a call setting reception response connection, connection synchronization is established. At step 5104, the management table shown in FIG. 2 is searched for the corresponding party number, and it is determined whether the party is a registered party. If the corresponding party number is registered (
When the answer to step 5104 is affirmative (Yes),
Referring to the own terminal capability to be returned (notified) in the management table, the self terminal capability display for the other party is picked up, and the capability is returned in the capability exchange sequence (step 5105).

Also, refer to the other party's terminal capabilities sent from the other party at this time, and update the management table shown in Figure 2 as necessary.
Or add new information to the management table. Next, in step 5106, after executing the mode switching sequence, mutual communication within the predetermined mode is started. For example, in response to an incoming call in AV communication mode from party number B in the management table, since communication mode with video is not desired, only PCM audio is notified to the other party as the own terminal capability, and as a result, only PCM audio is available. The mutual communication mode is selected. If the corresponding partner number is not in the management table in step 5104 (when the answer to step 5104 is negative), proceed to step 5IO7 and set the own terminal capability to be returned registered in the management table as default. After the exchange, communication in a predetermined mode is started in step 5108. In this case, in this embodiment, the mode is set to PCM audio only. In step 5109, the ability of the other party sent from the other party is newly added to the management table, and at the same time, the own ability to be returned as the communication mode with the other party is also registered.

In all of the embodiments described above, the ability of the own terminal to return to the other party is changed based on the management table shown in FIG. It may be temporarily set to return only the In this case, for example, a management table to be used only for temporary changes is stored in the storage unit 22 separately from the management table shown in FIG. 2, and the management table to be used can be changed according to the user's instructions. good.

Next, the operation of this device when making a call will be described in detail according to the flowchart shown in FIG.

First, in step 5200, the caller's number is entered to instruct the caller to make a call. In step 3201, the management table is searched for the corresponding number. At step 5202, it is determined whether or not there is a corresponding number, and if there is a corresponding number (when the answer to step 5202 is affirmative (Yes)), the process proceeds to step 5203. In step 5203, it is determined whether the corresponding destination is capable of using the AV communication mode, and if it is possible (if the answer to step 5203 is affirmative), the call is made in the AV communication mode in step 5204, and the management table is The device notifies the other party of its own terminal capabilities in the AV communication mode set to , and performs mutual communication within the predetermined mode. If the other party does not have the AV communication mode (when the answer to step 5203 is negative), a telephone call is automatically made and telephone mode communication is performed (step S205). If there is no corresponding number in step 5202 (if the answer to step 5202 is negative), the process advances to step 3206 and a call is made in the AV communication mode set as the default. In step 5207, A from this device is sent.
It is determined whether or not the call has been accepted in the V communication mode (step 5207 is affirmative (Yes)).
), in step 3208 default ability exchange is performed and the ability sent from the other party is newly added to the management table. Thereafter, if necessary, the AV communication mode with the current user is changed and the capability of the own terminal to be returned is updated.

When the call in A or V communication mode is not accepted in step 5207 (the answer to step 5207 is negative (NO))
), the process advances to step 5209 and the reason is "
Attribute mismatch", that is, the terminal does not have an AV communication mode, is determined.
If the answer to step 5209 is negative (No), the reason is displayed and the communication is terminated. When "attributes do not match" (when the answer to step 5209 is affirmative), the process advances to step 5210, and a call in telephone mode is automatically made. When it is accepted in step 5211 (when the answer to step 5211 is affirmative (Yes)), the process proceeds to step 5212, and a new registration is made in the management table that the current user has a terminal attribute that allows only telephone mode.

When the request is not accepted (when the answer to step 5211 is negative (NO)), the reason is displayed and the communication is terminated.

As described above, according to the videophone device of this embodiment, the AV
When receiving a call in the communication mode, the ability of the own terminal to return to the other party is changed based on the other party's number or the temporary setting mode at that time, so it is unnecessary to perform AV communication of video materials with anyone. In addition, it is possible to protect the user's privacy by flexibly responding to times when the user does not want to send the video.

Furthermore, by referring to the management table when making a call to any other party's terminal, the user can efficiently communicate with the other party's terminal in the optimal mode without having to consciously instruct each other whether or not the other party is capable of AV communication. connection is possible. This point is particularly effective in periods or systems where regular telephones and videophones coexist.

Also, when receiving a call from a terminal that is not registered in the management table,
Alternatively, when making a call to an unregistered terminal, a predetermined capability of the own terminal is notified, so that the user's privacy can be protected even when communicating with an unregistered partner terminal.

In addition, the content of the management table for the other terminal is updated or new information is added during communication with the other terminal, so it is possible to quickly respond to changes in the capabilities of the other terminal, and it is possible to communicate with the other terminal more frequently. It becomes possible to efficiently connect to the other party's terminal in the optimal mode during subsequent communication.

In the above-described embodiment, basically, the capability of the own terminal to be notified to the other party is determined based on the management table shown in FIG. However, it is of course possible to temporarily switch the communication mode with the other party during communication, or to switch to update the return capability. Furthermore, it is also possible to determine the AV communication mode based not only on the other party's number but also on the basis of the exchange of special information using subaddresses, in-channel BAS extension modes, and the like.

FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of another embodiment when a call is received.

Steps 5300-3303 and 5310 are similar to steps 5100-3103 and 5ilo of FIG. 3 described above.

After step 5303 is executed, that is, after the synchronization of the connection in AV communication mode is established, the capability of the own terminal is set to be only capable of PCM voice communication, and the capability exchange sequence is performed according to the procedure of the above-mentioned CCITT Recommendation Draft H, 242, and the communication is received from the other terminal. The capabilities of the other party's terminal are temporarily stored in the storage unit 22 (step 5304). At the same time, the management table shown in FIG. 2 is referred to and the contents of the management table are updated or added as necessary. Next, in step 5305, mutual communication using only PCM audio is started, thereby making it possible to truly know who the other party is.

When the user of the terminal determines in step 5306 that the user of the terminal may or desires to conduct video communication with the other party (the answer to step 5306 is affirmative (Yes)
s)), the process proceeds to step 5307, and the capabilities of the other party are displayed on the control information output unit 2, as shown in FIG. 6(a), for example.

At this point, in order to select the optimal mode by considering the capabilities of the other terminal and the capabilities of the own terminal, the user of this device switches to the selection screen as shown in Figure 6(b), and selects the communication mode. (Selections may be made on the same screen.) Next, in step 5309, the capability exchange sequence is executed again according to the procedure of H1242, and after switching to the desired communication mode by the mode switching sequence, mutual communication is performed.

When video communication is not performed in step 5306 (when the answer to step 5306 is negative (NO)), communication is performed in the same state.

In this way, according to this embodiment, when a call is received from the other party's terminal, mutual communication is first performed using only PCM audio, and
After confirming the communication partner and the capabilities of the other party's terminal, mutual video communication is performed only when the user of this device wishes to communicate video materials, so it is not necessary for the own terminal to be capable of AV communication. The user's privacy can be protected by preventing the other party from being notified. In particular, according to this embodiment, the communication mode can be selected after confirming who the user of the other party's terminal is through voice communication. This is effective when you do not want to perform video communication with other users.

In the embodiment described above, when receiving a call, PCM is always sent once.
Although voice communication is performed and the communication mode is reset after confirming the other party, it is of course possible to start AV communication with video unconditionally if no particular communication is specified with the other party. . Also, when switching the communication mode during communication, the communication mode stored in the management table can be instructed with a single touch using a special key, etc., without redisplaying the other party's ability each time. It's okay.

(Effects of the Invention) As detailed above, the present invention provides the following effects.

According to the communication terminal of claim 1, since it is possible to change the capability of the own terminal to be notified to the other party terminal depending on the communication partner, it is possible to perform video (image-based AV communication) with all the other party terminals. It is possible to prevent this and protect the user's privacy.

According to the communication terminal of claim 2, since the user can easily temporarily change the capability of the own terminal to be notified to the other party's terminal, for example: It is possible to improve the operability of the terminal when communication is not desired.

According to the communication terminal of claim 3 or 4, since a predetermined own terminal capability is notified to an unregistered partner terminal, the user's privacy can be protected even when communicating with an unregistered terminal. .

According to the communication terminal of claim 5, the information about the registered partner terminal is updated to the latest one or the information about the unregistered partner terminal is added during communication, so that the capability of the partner terminal changes. It is possible to quickly respond to requests, and to efficiently connect to a partner terminal that has been communicated with in an optimal mode for subsequent communication.

According to the communication terminal of claim 6, when a call is received, communication is first performed using the voice communication mode, and after confirming the communication partner and the capabilities of the other party's terminal, communication can be performed in a communication mode other than the voice communication mode according to the user's wishes. Therefore, the own terminal is A
It is possible to prevent the other party from being unnecessarily notified that V communication is possible, and to protect the user's privacy.

This is particularly effective when, for example, one partner terminal is assumed to have a plurality of users, and it is not desired to perform video communication with some of the users.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of a video telephone device that is an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a capability management table for each party number, and FIG. 3 is an operation of the device shown in FIG. 1 when a call is received. FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the operation of the device in FIG. 1 when making a call, FIG. 5 is a flowchart 1-1 showing the operation of another embodiment when receiving a call, and FIG. 6 is a control information output unit. FIG. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a screen display. 1...Control information input section, 3--Audio horn section, 4...
Audio output section, 6...Video input section, 7.Video output section, 19
- Multiplexing and demultiplexing unit, 20 - Line interface control unit, 2] - Overall control unit, 22... Storage unit.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. In communication terminals capable of mutually communicating by multiplexing at least audio information and video information via a communication line, the ability of the own terminal to be notified to the other terminal is notified to the other terminal. Communication characterized by being provided with a storage means for storing information corresponding to a number, and a notification means for notifying the capability of the own terminal to the other party terminal according to the other party's terminal number and the stored contents of the storage means when receiving or making an incoming call. terminal. 2. Providing a change storage means for temporarily changing and storing the contents of the own terminal capability stored in the storage means to be notified to the other terminal according to a change instruction from a user of the terminal;
2. The notification means, when receiving the change instruction, notifies the other party terminal of its own terminal capability according to the other party's terminal number and the contents stored in the change storage means at the time of incoming or outgoing calls. communication terminal. 3. The communication terminal according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the storage means stores the capability of the own terminal to be notified when there is an incoming call from a partner terminal whose terminal number is not stored. 4. The communication terminal according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the storage means stores the capability of the own terminal to be notified when making a call to a partner terminal whose terminal number is not stored. 5. Learning means is provided for updating the storage contents of the storage means for the other party terminal or additionally registering new information about the other party terminal in the storage means when communicating with the other party terminal. A communication terminal according to any one of claims 1 to 4. 6. In a communication terminal capable of mutually communicating by multiplexing at least audio information and video information via a communication line, a notification means for notifying the other terminal of the ability to transmit and receive audio information as the own terminal ability when receiving a call; After starting communication in the voice communication mode, a re-notification means for notifying the other terminal again of the own terminal capability other than the voice information transmission and reception capability according to a change instruction from the user of the terminal, and communication in the voice communication mode; A communication terminal comprising a communication mode changing means for changing the communication mode to a communication mode according to the re-notified own terminal capability.