WO2019151866A2 - A communication system and meeting tool for communicating media content from a user, a storage container and a connection unit - Google Patents

A communication system and meeting tool for communicating media content from a user, a storage container and a connection unit Download PDF

Info

Publication number
WO2019151866A2
WO2019151866A2 PCT/NL2019/050074 NL2019050074W WO2019151866A2 WO 2019151866 A2 WO2019151866 A2 WO 2019151866A2 NL 2019050074 W NL2019050074 W NL 2019050074W WO 2019151866 A2 WO2019151866 A2 WO 2019151866A2
Authority
WO
WIPO (PCT)
Prior art keywords
processing device
peripheral
central
program
display
Prior art date
Application number
PCT/NL2019/050074
Other languages
French (fr)
Other versions
WO2019151866A3 (en
Inventor
Ricardo DEVRIES
Original Assignee
Blue And Red B.V.
Priority date (The priority date is an assumption and is not a legal conclusion. Google has not performed a legal analysis and makes no representation as to the accuracy of the date listed.)
Filing date
Publication date
Application filed by Blue And Red B.V. filed Critical Blue And Red B.V.
Publication of WO2019151866A2 publication Critical patent/WO2019151866A2/en
Publication of WO2019151866A3 publication Critical patent/WO2019151866A3/en

Links

Classifications

    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N7/00—Television systems
    • H04N7/14—Systems for two-way working
    • H04N7/15—Conference systems
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04L—TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04L12/00—Data switching networks
    • H04L12/02—Details
    • H04L12/16—Arrangements for providing special services to substations
    • H04L12/18—Arrangements for providing special services to substations for broadcast or conference, e.g. multicast
    • H04L12/1813—Arrangements for providing special services to substations for broadcast or conference, e.g. multicast for computer conferences, e.g. chat rooms
    • H04L12/1818—Conference organisation arrangements, e.g. handling schedules, setting up parameters needed by nodes to attend a conference, booking network resources, notifying involved parties
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04L—TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04L65/00—Network arrangements, protocols or services for supporting real-time applications in data packet communication
    • H04L65/1066—Session management
    • H04L65/1069—Session establishment or de-establishment
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04L—TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION
    • H04L65/00—Network arrangements, protocols or services for supporting real-time applications in data packet communication
    • H04L65/80—Responding to QoS
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
    • H04N21/40—Client devices specifically adapted for the reception of or interaction with content, e.g. set-top-box [STB]; Operations thereof
    • H04N21/41—Structure of client; Structure of client peripherals
    • H04N21/4104—Peripherals receiving signals from specially adapted client devices
    • H04N21/4122—Peripherals receiving signals from specially adapted client devices additional display device, e.g. video projector
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
    • H04N21/40—Client devices specifically adapted for the reception of or interaction with content, e.g. set-top-box [STB]; Operations thereof
    • H04N21/43—Processing of content or additional data, e.g. demultiplexing additional data from a digital video stream; Elementary client operations, e.g. monitoring of home network or synchronising decoder's clock; Client middleware
    • H04N21/436—Interfacing a local distribution network, e.g. communicating with another STB or one or more peripheral devices inside the home
    • H04N21/43615—Interfacing a Home Network, e.g. for connecting the client to a plurality of peripherals
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N21/00—Selective content distribution, e.g. interactive television or video on demand [VOD]
    • H04N21/40—Client devices specifically adapted for the reception of or interaction with content, e.g. set-top-box [STB]; Operations thereof
    • H04N21/43—Processing of content or additional data, e.g. demultiplexing additional data from a digital video stream; Elementary client operations, e.g. monitoring of home network or synchronising decoder's clock; Client middleware
    • H04N21/436—Interfacing a local distribution network, e.g. communicating with another STB or one or more peripheral devices inside the home
    • H04N21/4363—Adapting the video stream to a specific local network, e.g. a Bluetooth® network
    • H04N21/43637—Adapting the video stream to a specific local network, e.g. a Bluetooth® network involving a wireless protocol, e.g. Bluetooth, RF or wireless LAN [IEEE 802.11]
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N7/00—Television systems
    • H04N7/14—Systems for two-way working
    • H04N7/141—Systems for two-way working between two video terminals, e.g. videophone
    • H04N7/142—Constructional details of the terminal equipment, e.g. arrangements of the camera and the display
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H04—ELECTRIC COMMUNICATION TECHNIQUE
    • H04N—PICTORIAL COMMUNICATION, e.g. TELEVISION
    • H04N7/00—Television systems
    • H04N7/14—Systems for two-way working
    • H04N7/141—Systems for two-way working between two video terminals, e.g. videophone
    • H04N7/142—Constructional details of the terminal equipment, e.g. arrangements of the camera and the display
    • H04N2007/145—Handheld terminals

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to an electronic meeting tool and a communication system for communicating media content from a user to a central display, comprising: a central communication node in a communications network, at least one peripheral communication node in said communications network, at least one peripheral processing device, having a memory, an operating system and a user display, the peripheral processing device being provided with peripheral communication control means that comprise one of said at least one peripheral communication node and is configured and adapted to communicate user selected arbitrary media content from said peripheral processing device over the communications network, a central processing device, having a central display, the central processing device being provided with central communication control means that comprise said central communication node and are configured and adapted to receive user selected arbitrary media content and to control display of said media content on said central display, wherein the peripheral communication control means comprise a first program adapted to be loaded onto the peripheral processing device and to run on the operation system of the peripheral processing device, said program being adapted to obtain said user selected arbitrary media content by screen scraping said media content from the user display of said peripheral processing device, and wherein the peripheral processing device
  • a communication system and meeting tool as described in the opening paragraph is known from European patent 2.756.668.
  • This known system utilizes a connection unit that is to be connected to the user device that is equipped with a user display.
  • the system allows the user to narrow cast arbitrary user selected media content from his peripheral device to a central display by screen scraping the media content from the user display.
  • a central unit containing a node configuration means is connected to the central display to receive said media content over e communications network and to operate a display node that is coupled to said central display.
  • the known system Although a number of simultaneous narrow casting connection may be set up by the known system in this manner by equipping each user device with such a connection unit, the known system has a drawback that it needs dedicated equipment, both at the user side and as well as at the central display end of the system. In practice it turns out that this renders the known system relatively expensive and less versatile.
  • a communication system of the type as described in the opening paragraph is characterized in that in that the central processing device comprises a memory and an operating system, in that the central communication control means comprise a second program that is loaded on the central processing device and runs on the operation system of the central processing device, said second program being adapted to receive said user selected arbitrary media content and to display said media content on the central display of said central processing device, and in that the first program is stored by the central processing device and is loaded by the peripheral processing device from said central processing device over the communications network.
  • the communication system and meeting tool according to the invention accordingly requires no more that the peripheral processing device and central processing device to be able to narrow cast user selected arbitrary media content from a user device to a central screen.
  • a preferred embodiment of the system according to the invention is thereby characterized in that said first program leaves at least substantially no footprint on the peripheral processing device upon termination. In that case the system leaves no or hardly no traces on the peripheral device once it is disconnected.
  • peripheral communication control means comprise a peripheral program that is loaded on the peripheral processing device and runs on the operation system of the peripheral processing device, particularly a computer app, said peripheral program being adapted and configured to also provide said input means on said peripheral processing device.
  • the input means are emulated by the peripheral program and may comprise a screen button or the like.
  • the peripheral device may run on an appropriate operating system and the peripheral device will be compatible with such operating system.
  • the peripheral device may comprises a personal computer device, particularly a laptop computer, running on a common personal computer operating system like Windows, Linux or Apple MAC OS, or a (smart) phone device, running on a common operating system for smart phones or tablet computer like IOS, Windows Mobile or Android.
  • the central processing device particularly comprises a wall mountable screen, preferably of considerable larger size than that of any of the user displays, and more specifically comprises a smart television running on a common operating system, like Android, Windows or Linux, or a proprietary operating system.
  • peripheral communication control means comprise a connection unit that comprises a connector which is adapted and configured to connect to a communications port of the peripheral processing device, a transmitter for communication with the communications network and said input means.
  • the connection unit provides additional hardware in terms of a transmitter, particularly a wireless transmitter or transceiver, and said input means that may conveniently be connected to an existing communications port of the peripheral processing device.
  • said input means comprise a physical actuator, particularly a push button, on said connection unit.
  • connection unit takes away at least part of the processing power from the peripheral that is need to set up and maintain the communication between the peripheral processing device and the central communication node.
  • system according to the invention is further characterized in that said connection unit holds at least a link that allows the peripheral processing device to retrieve, load and run said first program from said central processing device. By holding at least a link to the location of the software for the first program, the connection unit enables the peripheral processing device to trace and retrieve the required software for it to operate smoothly within the system without requiring any specific input by the user.
  • connection unit holds a third program to be loaded onto the peripheral processing device and to run on the operating system of the peripheral processing device, said third program allowing the peripheral processing device to retrieve and load said first program from said central processing device and to run said first program on the operating system of the peripheral processing device.
  • the connection unit not only contains a link to the software of the first program but moreover allows or initiates the peripheral processing device to run a third program that retrieves and executes said software without special interference by the user.
  • connection unit is a plug-and-play device, particularly one connecting to a universal serial bus port of the peripheral processing device.
  • a further preferred embodiment of the system according to the invention is characterized in that said third program leaves at least substantially no footprint on the peripheral processing device upon termination. This means that the system leaves no or hardly no traces of the third program on the peripheral device once it is disconnected.
  • the invention particularly also relates to an electronic meeting tool for communicating arbitrary media content from users at a meeting, characterized in that said media content is
  • connection units that plug into a communication port of a user device in order to set up and maintain a (unique) connection between the peripheral device and the central screen.
  • connection unit is typically shared by several attendants to a common meeting which in that case stick such a connection unit in their own device for the duration of the meeting. This, however, introduces the risk that a connection unit is inadvertently taken away from the meeting room by a user together with his/her user device and, hence, gets lost.
  • the present invention provides a storage container for holding one or more connection units, particularly one or more that are used in the aforementioned meeting tool according to the invention, which is characterized in that said storage container comprises a first proximity detector circuit and a power supply for feeding said proximity detector circuit, wherein said connection unit comprises a second proximity detector circuit and a power supply for feeding said second proximity detector circuit, wherein said first and second proximity detector circuit are adapted and configured to establish and maintain a wireless connection and wherein at least one of said first and second proximity detector circuit is coupled to alarm means to trigger an alarm after said wireless connection is terminated.
  • the storage container according to the invention is capable of monitoring and guarding the presence of said connection units in its vicinity, particularly to within the meeting room. Once that distance is exceeded the alarm will be triggered, which may be a visible signal, e.g. a flash light, an audible alarm in the form of sound, a vibration or a combination of any of these. This will warn the user to leave the connection unit in the meeting room, particularly to place the connection unit in the storage container which will deactivate the alarm.
  • a preferred embodiment of the storage container according to the invention is thereby characterized in that a delay is provided between said termination of said wireless connection and said trigger of said alarm.
  • the second power supply is a rechargeable power source that is provided within the connection unit. More particularly said power source may comprise a capacitor, particularly an ultra-capacitor. Once the connection unit is disconnected and displaced, said power source will no longer be charged but will have sufficient capacity left to set and maintain the alarm once a certain predetermined distance to the storage container is exceeded.
  • the connection unit is thereby characterized in that said rechargeable power source is rechargeable over said wireless connection with said first proximity detector circuit and/or over a connector that connects to a peripheral processing device.
  • connection unit comprises said alarm means, said alarm means being capable of setting an audible and/or visual alarm signal, preferably at least an audible alarm signal.
  • the present invention moreover relates to a connection unit as applied with the storage container according to the invention and will now be elucidated in further detail with reference to a drawing.
  • a connection unit as applied with the storage container according to the invention and will now be elucidated in further detail with reference to a drawing.
  • figure 1 schematically represents the configuration of an embodiment of an electronic meeting tool in a communication system according to the invention
  • figure 2 gives an isometric view of an embodiment of a connection device according to the invention as used in the system of figure 1;
  • figure 3 shows a top view of the internal circuitry of the connection device of figure 2
  • figure 4A shows a perspective view of an electronic storage container according to the invention to be used with the connection unit of figure 2, in an empty condition
  • figure 4B shows a perspective view of the electronic storage container of figure 4A, in a filled condition.
  • FIG. 1 shows a schematic setup of a communication system according to the invention in the form of an electronic meeting tool.
  • the system comprises a central processing device 10 which in this case comprises a large smart TV having a large screen 11 as a central display with typically a diagonal screen size of 46, 55, 65 inches or more with a form factor of 16:9.
  • the central processing device 10 comprises a central processor unit running an Android or similar common operating system and is equipped with memory and a central communication control means.
  • These central communication control means comprise a central communication node in the form of a WiFi network adapter 15 that connects to a local wireless network 20 together with software that runs on the operating of the device and that is configured and adapted to receive user selected arbitrary media content from a user device and to display said media content on said central screen 11.
  • the system further comprises one or more peripheral processing devices 30, 40, 50, each having a memory, an operating system and a user display, 33,44,55.
  • Each of the peripheral processing devices comprises an individual peripheral communication node in said wireless network 20 that may reside in a generic WiFi network adapter 35,45 or a dedicated connection unit 60 with a WiFi radio 65.
  • Each of the peripheral processing devices is loaded with a first program that runs on the particular operating system. This program is configured and adapted to obtain user selected arbitrary media content by screen scraping said media content from the particular user display 33,44,55 of the device 30,40,50.
  • This program might be a dedicated applet for a smart phone 40 or tablet computer, running for instance on an IOS, Android or Windows Mobile operating system or it might be a dedicated software program for a laptop or similar personal computer device running for instance on an MAC OS, Windows or Linux operating system.
  • Said software is stored on the central processing device and may be retrieved therefrom over the network 20 to be loaded onto the peripheral user device 30,40,50.
  • the connection unit 60 is shown in further detail in figure 2 and consists of a dongle with a connector 63 that connects to a standard communication port of the peripheral device.
  • the connector is a standard USB (Universal Serial Bus) connecter that mates with a similar USB slot in the device 50 to establish a communication and power connection.
  • USB Universal Serial Bus
  • Inside the dongle is a printed circuit board as shown in figure 3. On the outside, the dongle is equipped with a push button 61 and a LED illuminated ring 62.
  • a central processor unit 64 that controls the communication between the serial bus 63 and the network 20.
  • the firmware on the dongle is based upon a Linux distribution.
  • the dongle is routing traffic from the connected computer 50 to the display/television 10 and uses USB Gadget and IPTABLES.
  • To control the duplication of the users display 55 the dongle uses a TCP/IP Socket in which it will communicate with the software running on the connected computer 50 and to the dedicated program running on the display/television 10.
  • the software that is needed to duplicate the display 50 is stored on the central processing device 10 that contains the central display 11 and can be downloaded from that spot to the computer.
  • the unit 60 comprises a BlueTooth interface module 66 together with a WiFi adapter and antenna 65. On the board there are also a RF module 67.
  • the RF module 67 is receiving data in a certain sequence from an electronic storage container 80 that is shown in figure 4A and 4B. As soon as the RF module 67 of the connection unit 60 has no connection anymore to the storage container 80 it will trigger an alarm, in ths case by starting to beep.
  • the alarm is powered by a super capacitor 69 or other rechargeable power source within the connection unit 60 that will be charged by the USB Power 63 of the computer 50 once the unit 60 is connected.
  • the storage container 80 contains a transmitter and can hold a number of dongles 60. As soon as a connected dongle 60 will leave the area in which the storage container 80 has signal, the dongle 60 will start to beep. This avoids that the user would accidentally take a dongle 60 with him without being warned.
  • the storage container 80 is connected to a 12v power supply 85 and will send a RF radio sequence that the dongle 60 understands. As soon as the dongle 60 leaves the safe area it will start to beep so the user is reminded that he took the dongle 60 by accident.
  • the depicted system provides a wireless display duplication system which allows users to duplicate the display 33,44,55 of their device 30,40,50 to a bigger display 11 without the need of using additional receiver hardware.
  • This system works natively on an Android operated display/television as a receiver but may likewise be rolled out for a different common or proprietary operating system that runs on the central processing device.
  • a peripheral device needs to be paired to the display/television.
  • To pair a new dongle 60 it must be set in pairing mode.
  • To enable pairing mode the dongle's button 61 must be pressed for a few seconds. After these seconds the LED ring 62 of the dongle 60 starts blinking blue and it is ready to pair.
  • On the central display 11 a message will appear providing a unique code that the user must enter. After that, the "Pair" button will appear on his screen and the button 61 needs to be pressed to effectively pair the dongle with the screen 11.
  • the LED ring 62 will light up blue and the display/television 11 will show the message "Pairing Successful”.
  • the LED ring 62 can signal several status modes of the dongle 60
  • Constant Blue the dongle is connected to the display and is waiting for the user to start the duplication of his display.
  • the system is capable of supporting multiple simultaneous users duplicating there display 33,44,55 to the central display/television 11.
  • the order of duplicating is also the order of the duplications on the display/television.
  • the display/television screen 11 will be divided into a number of separate windows, one for every active user duplicating his display each.
  • a touch display or television 10 it is possible to control a mouse and a keyboard of the user's computer 50.
  • the input of the display will be transmitted through TCP/IP to the user's computer.
  • the dongle 60 will boot up and announces itself to the computer as a RNDIS Network adapter, a CD-ROM player containing a shortcut to a we server running on the central processing device 10 (http) from where the software program may be retrieved and loaded to the computer 50, and a virtual loudspeaker. All these devices can be run in user space without requiring administrator rights to use the dongle 60.
  • the computer 50 installs the necessary drivers:
  • RNDIS Network driver (generic & WHQ.L)
  • CD-Rom driver (generic & WHQL)
  • a. Presentation mode is a mode which sends jpeg screenshots from the peripheral device
  • the presentation mode is a low latency mode.
  • the audio of the computer 50 will also be grabbed and sent to the display/television 10.
  • Video mode is a mode which will send H264 video from the peripheral device 50 to the display/television 10 directly.
  • the video mode has a little more latency than the presentation mode but the quality is better and the frame rate is higher.
  • the audio of the computer 50 will also be grabbed and sent to the display/television.
  • the hardware device 60 Once the user has selected the appropriate mode he can press the button 61 on the hardware device 60 and the hardware device will send an IP Controlled message to the display/television 10 to start up the software on the central processing device 10. After that, the central display/television 10 will show a duplicate of the peripheral display 55 combined with sound. When the user wants to stop duplication of his display he presses the button 61 again to stop. The display/television will return to its former state. In the presentation mode system can support up to 8 users at once, while in the video mode the system can support two users at once.

Landscapes

  • Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Multimedia (AREA)
  • Signal Processing (AREA)
  • Computer Networks & Wireless Communication (AREA)
  • Business, Economics & Management (AREA)
  • General Business, Economics & Management (AREA)
  • General Engineering & Computer Science (AREA)
  • Telephonic Communication Services (AREA)
  • Transceivers (AREA)

Abstract

A communication system and meeting tool for communicating media content from a user may use a storage container and a connection unit. The communication system comprises a central processing device having a central display and one or more peripheral processing devices having a peripheral display. The system allows a user to duplicate his peripheral display onto the central display, particularly using a connection unit that connects to a communication port of his device. The software that runs on the operating system of a peripheral device is stored on the central processing device and may be retrieved therefrom by the peripheral device. In order to avoid an inadvertent loss of a connection unit, an electronic storage container contains a proximity circuit that triggers an alarm once a connection is lost.

Description

A communication system and meeting tool for communicating media content from a user, a storage container and a connection unit.
The present invention relates to an electronic meeting tool and a communication system for communicating media content from a user to a central display, comprising: a central communication node in a communications network, at least one peripheral communication node in said communications network, at least one peripheral processing device, having a memory, an operating system and a user display, the peripheral processing device being provided with peripheral communication control means that comprise one of said at least one peripheral communication node and is configured and adapted to communicate user selected arbitrary media content from said peripheral processing device over the communications network, a central processing device, having a central display, the central processing device being provided with central communication control means that comprise said central communication node and are configured and adapted to receive user selected arbitrary media content and to control display of said media content on said central display, wherein the peripheral communication control means comprise a first program adapted to be loaded onto the peripheral processing device and to run on the operation system of the peripheral processing device, said program being adapted to obtain said user selected arbitrary media content by screen scraping said media content from the user display of said peripheral processing device, and wherein the peripheral processing device is provided with input means to allow the user to carry out a user action that triggers transfer of said user selected arbitrary media content from said peripheral processing device over the communication network to the central communication control means for display on the central display. The invention moreover relates to a storage container and a connection unit, particularly for use in the aforementioned system.
A communication system and meeting tool as described in the opening paragraph is known from European patent 2.756.668. This known system utilizes a connection unit that is to be connected to the user device that is equipped with a user display. The system allows the user to narrow cast arbitrary user selected media content from his peripheral device to a central display by screen scraping the media content from the user display. To this end, a central unit containing a node configuration means is connected to the central display to receive said media content over e communications network and to operate a display node that is coupled to said central display. Although a number of simultaneous narrow casting connection may be set up by the known system in this manner by equipping each user device with such a connection unit, the known system has a drawback that it needs dedicated equipment, both at the user side and as well as at the central display end of the system. In practice it turns out that this renders the known system relatively expensive and less versatile.
It is inter alia an object of the present invention to provide a meeting tool and communication system that may be rolled out more easily and at less cost.
In order to attain said object a communication system of the type as described in the opening paragraph is characterized in that in that the central processing device comprises a memory and an operating system, in that the central communication control means comprise a second program that is loaded on the central processing device and runs on the operation system of the central processing device, said second program being adapted to receive said user selected arbitrary media content and to display said media content on the central display of said central processing device, and in that the first program is stored by the central processing device and is loaded by the peripheral processing device from said central processing device over the communications network. The communication system and meeting tool according to the invention, accordingly requires no more that the peripheral processing device and central processing device to be able to narrow cast user selected arbitrary media content from a user device to a central screen. By requiring no dedicated equipment the system and meeting tool according to the invention may be rolled out seemingly over several peripheral devices at considerably lower cost and effort than the known system. A preferred embodiment of the system according to the invention is thereby characterized in that said first program leaves at least substantially no footprint on the peripheral processing device upon termination. In that case the system leaves no or hardly no traces on the peripheral device once it is disconnected.
In order to provide a convenient user interface to the user, a specific embodiment of the system according to the invention is characterized in that said peripheral communication control means comprise a peripheral program that is loaded on the peripheral processing device and runs on the operation system of the peripheral processing device, particularly a computer app, said peripheral program being adapted and configured to also provide said input means on said peripheral processing device. In this case the input means are emulated by the peripheral program and may comprise a screen button or the like.
The peripheral device may run on an appropriate operating system and the peripheral device will be compatible with such operating system. As such the peripheral device may comprises a personal computer device, particularly a laptop computer, running on a common personal computer operating system like Windows, Linux or Apple MAC OS, or a (smart) phone device, running on a common operating system for smart phones or tablet computer like IOS, Windows Mobile or Android. The central processing device particularly comprises a wall mountable screen, preferably of considerable larger size than that of any of the user displays, and more specifically comprises a smart television running on a common operating system, like Android, Windows or Linux, or a proprietary operating system.
From a practical point of view it may turn out to be desirous to equip each peripheral device or selected peripheral devices with a separate communication control means for communication over the network, for instance in order to reduce the work load on the processor unit of the peripheral processing device and/or to provide proprietary data protection to the media content that is being communicated. To that end a further preferred embodiment of the system according to the invention is characterized in that said peripheral communication control means comprise a connection unit that comprises a connector which is adapted and configured to connect to a communications port of the peripheral processing device, a transmitter for communication with the communications network and said input means. In that case the connection unit provides additional hardware in terms of a transmitter, particularly a wireless transmitter or transceiver, and said input means that may conveniently be connected to an existing communications port of the peripheral processing device. A particularly favourable embodiment of the system according to the invention is thereby characterized in that said input means comprise a physical actuator, particularly a push button, on said connection unit.
The connection unit takes away at least part of the processing power from the peripheral that is need to set up and maintain the communication between the peripheral processing device and the central communication node. In a further preferred embodiment the system according to the invention is further characterized in that said connection unit holds at least a link that allows the peripheral processing device to retrieve, load and run said first program from said central processing device. By holding at least a link to the location of the software for the first program, the connection unit enables the peripheral processing device to trace and retrieve the required software for it to operate smoothly within the system without requiring any specific input by the user.
A further preferred embodiment of the system is thereby characterized in that said connection unit holds a third program to be loaded onto the peripheral processing device and to run on the operating system of the peripheral processing device, said third program allowing the peripheral processing device to retrieve and load said first program from said central processing device and to run said first program on the operating system of the peripheral processing device. In that case the connection unit not only contains a link to the software of the first program but moreover allows or initiates the peripheral processing device to run a third program that retrieves and executes said software without special interference by the user.
This renders the system according to the invention particularly user friendly. The latter is even more the case in a further specific embodiment of the system according to the invention which is characterized in that said connection unit is a plug-and-play device, particularly one connecting to a universal serial bus port of the peripheral processing device.
As far as this third program is concerned, a further preferred embodiment of the system according to the invention is characterized in that said third program leaves at least substantially no footprint on the peripheral processing device upon termination. This means that the system leaves no or hardly no traces of the third program on the peripheral device once it is disconnected.
The invention particularly also relates to an electronic meeting tool for communicating arbitrary media content from users at a meeting, characterized in that said media content is
communicated by means of the communication system according to the invention as described hereinbefore. Such system may conveniently utilize one or more connection units that plug into a communication port of a user device in order to set up and maintain a (unique) connection between the peripheral device and the central screen. Such meeting tool is typically shared by several attendants to a common meeting which in that case stick such a connection unit in their own device for the duration of the meeting. This, however, introduces the risk that a connection unit is inadvertently taken away from the meeting room by a user together with his/her user device and, hence, gets lost.
It is a further object of the present invention to counteract such inadvertent loss of any connection unit. To that end, the present invention provides a storage container for holding one or more connection units, particularly one or more that are used in the aforementioned meeting tool according to the invention, which is characterized in that said storage container comprises a first proximity detector circuit and a power supply for feeding said proximity detector circuit, wherein said connection unit comprises a second proximity detector circuit and a power supply for feeding said second proximity detector circuit, wherein said first and second proximity detector circuit are adapted and configured to establish and maintain a wireless connection and wherein at least one of said first and second proximity detector circuit is coupled to alarm means to trigger an alarm after said wireless connection is terminated. The storage container according to the invention is capable of monitoring and guarding the presence of said connection units in its vicinity, particularly to within the meeting room. Once that distance is exceeded the alarm will be triggered, which may be a visible signal, e.g. a flash light, an audible alarm in the form of sound, a vibration or a combination of any of these. This will warn the user to leave the connection unit in the meeting room, particularly to place the connection unit in the storage container which will deactivate the alarm. In order to avoid a false alarm or an alarm that is triggered too soon, a preferred embodiment of the storage container according to the invention is thereby characterized in that a delay is provided between said termination of said wireless connection and said trigger of said alarm.
In a specific embodiment of the storage container according to the invention the second power supply is a rechargeable power source that is provided within the connection unit. More particularly said power source may comprise a capacitor, particularly an ultra-capacitor. Once the connection unit is disconnected and displaced, said power source will no longer be charged but will have sufficient capacity left to set and maintain the alarm once a certain predetermined distance to the storage container is exceeded. In a special embodiment the connection unit is thereby characterized in that said rechargeable power source is rechargeable over said wireless connection with said first proximity detector circuit and/or over a connector that connects to a peripheral processing device. Although the storage container itself may provide the alarm means, a preferred embodiment of the storage container and connection unit according to the invention are characterized in that said connection unit comprises said alarm means, said alarm means being capable of setting an audible and/or visual alarm signal, preferably at least an audible alarm signal. This has the advantage that upon triggering of the alarm the connection units itself will automatically identify itself to its user of the fact that its is inadvertently being taken away. The other participants to the same meeting need not worry.
The present invention moreover relates to a connection unit as applied with the storage container according to the invention and will now be elucidated in further detail with reference to a drawing. In the drawing:
figure 1 schematically represents the configuration of an embodiment of an electronic meeting tool in a communication system according to the invention;
figure 2 gives an isometric view of an embodiment of a connection device according to the invention as used in the system of figure 1;
figure 3 shows a top view of the internal circuitry of the connection device of figure 2; figure 4A shows a perspective view of an electronic storage container according to the invention to be used with the connection unit of figure 2, in an empty condition; and
figure 4B shows a perspective view of the electronic storage container of figure 4A, in a filled condition.
It should be noted that the drawings are drafted purely schematically and not to the same scale. Particularly some dimensions may be exaggerated to a greater or lesser extent for sake of clarity. Same parts are designated by same reference numerals throughout the drawing.
Figure 1 shows a schematic setup of a communication system according to the invention in the form of an electronic meeting tool. The system comprises a central processing device 10 which in this case comprises a large smart TV having a large screen 11 as a central display with typically a diagonal screen size of 46, 55, 65 inches or more with a form factor of 16:9. The central processing device 10 comprises a central processor unit running an Android or similar common operating system and is equipped with memory and a central communication control means. These central communication control means comprise a central communication node in the form of a WiFi network adapter 15 that connects to a local wireless network 20 together with software that runs on the operating of the device and that is configured and adapted to receive user selected arbitrary media content from a user device and to display said media content on said central screen 11.
The system further comprises one or more peripheral processing devices 30, 40, 50, each having a memory, an operating system and a user display, 33,44,55. Each of the peripheral processing devices comprises an individual peripheral communication node in said wireless network 20 that may reside in a generic WiFi network adapter 35,45 or a dedicated connection unit 60 with a WiFi radio 65. Each of the peripheral processing devices is loaded with a first program that runs on the particular operating system. This program is configured and adapted to obtain user selected arbitrary media content by screen scraping said media content from the particular user display 33,44,55 of the device 30,40,50. This program might be a dedicated applet for a smart phone 40 or tablet computer, running for instance on an IOS, Android or Windows Mobile operating system or it might be a dedicated software program for a laptop or similar personal computer device running for instance on an MAC OS, Windows or Linux operating system. Said software is stored on the central processing device and may be retrieved therefrom over the network 20 to be loaded onto the peripheral user device 30,40,50.
The connection unit 60 is shown in further detail in figure 2 and consists of a dongle with a connector 63 that connects to a standard communication port of the peripheral device. In this case the connector is a standard USB (Universal Serial Bus) connecter that mates with a similar USB slot in the device 50 to establish a communication and power connection. Inside the dongle is a printed circuit board as shown in figure 3. On the outside, the dongle is equipped with a push button 61 and a LED illuminated ring 62.
At the hart of the printed circuit board is a central processor unit 64 that controls the communication between the serial bus 63 and the network 20. The firmware on the dongle is based upon a Linux distribution. The dongle is routing traffic from the connected computer 50 to the display/television 10 and uses USB Gadget and IPTABLES. To control the duplication of the users display 55 the dongle uses a TCP/IP Socket in which it will communicate with the software running on the connected computer 50 and to the dedicated program running on the display/television 10. The software that is needed to duplicate the display 50 is stored on the central processing device 10 that contains the central display 11 and can be downloaded from that spot to the computer.
For communication, the unit 60 comprises a BlueTooth interface module 66 together with a WiFi adapter and antenna 65. On the board there are also a RF module 67. The RF module 67 is receiving data in a certain sequence from an electronic storage container 80 that is shown in figure 4A and 4B. As soon as the RF module 67 of the connection unit 60 has no connection anymore to the storage container 80 it will trigger an alarm, in ths case by starting to beep. The alarm is powered by a super capacitor 69 or other rechargeable power source within the connection unit 60 that will be charged by the USB Power 63 of the computer 50 once the unit 60 is connected.
The storage container 80 contains a transmitter and can hold a number of dongles 60. As soon as a connected dongle 60 will leave the area in which the storage container 80 has signal, the dongle 60 will start to beep. This avoids that the user would accidentally take a dongle 60 with him without being warned. The storage container 80 is connected to a 12v power supply 85 and will send a RF radio sequence that the dongle 60 understands. As soon as the dongle 60 leaves the safe area it will start to beep so the user is reminded that he took the dongle 60 by accident.
The depicted system provides a wireless display duplication system which allows users to duplicate the display 33,44,55 of their device 30,40,50 to a bigger display 11 without the need of using additional receiver hardware. This system works natively on an Android operated display/television as a receiver but may likewise be rolled out for a different common or proprietary operating system that runs on the central processing device.
To start the system, a peripheral device needs to be paired to the display/television. To pair a new dongle 60 it must be set in pairing mode. To enable pairing mode the dongle's button 61 must be pressed for a few seconds. After these seconds the LED ring 62 of the dongle 60 starts blinking blue and it is ready to pair. On the central display 11 a message will appear providing a unique code that the user must enter. After that, the "Pair" button will appear on his screen and the button 61 needs to be pressed to effectively pair the dongle with the screen 11. When the pairing is successful the LED ring 62 will light up blue and the display/television 11 will show the message "Pairing Successful".
The LED ring 62 can signal several status modes of the dongle 60
1. Just connected to the USB port of the computer 50, it will light up white;
2. Blinking Purple: the dongle cannot connect with the display/television;
3. Blinking Blue: the dongle is in pairing mode
4. Constant Blue: the dongle is connected to the display and is waiting for the user to start the duplication of his display.
5. Constant Green: the dongle is duplicating the display of the user
The system is capable of supporting multiple simultaneous users duplicating there display 33,44,55 to the central display/television 11. The order of duplicating is also the order of the duplications on the display/television. When a user is connected and duplicating his display another user can start duplicating also. The display/television screen 11 will be divided into a number of separate windows, one for every active user duplicating his display each. With the use of a touch display or television 10 it is possible to control a mouse and a keyboard of the user's computer 50. The input of the display will be transmitted through TCP/IP to the user's computer.
Once connected to the computer 50, the dongle 60 will boot up and announces itself to the computer as a RNDIS Network adapter, a CD-ROM player containing a shortcut to a we server running on the central processing device 10 (http) from where the software program may be retrieved and loaded to the computer 50, and a virtual loudspeaker. All these devices can be run in user space without requiring administrator rights to use the dongle 60. On the first use of the dongle the computer 50 installs the necessary drivers:
1. RNDIS Network driver (generic & WHQ.L)
2. Default speaker driver (generic & WHQL)
3. CD-Rom driver (generic & WHQL)
Those drivers are embedded in the operating system and are not stored on the dongle 60. After downloading and installing the software from the http server of the display/television 10 to his computer, the software is executed and a tray icon will appear with the following options: 1. Presentation mode
a. Presentation mode is a mode which sends jpeg screenshots from the peripheral device
50 to the display/television 10 directly. The presentation mode is a low latency mode. The audio of the computer 50 will also be grabbed and sent to the display/television 10.
2. Video mode
a. Video mode is a mode which will send H264 video from the peripheral device 50 to the display/television 10 directly. The video mode has a little more latency than the presentation mode but the quality is better and the frame rate is higher. The audio of the computer 50 will also be grabbed and sent to the display/television.
3. Exit
a. This option will exit the software
Once the user has selected the appropriate mode he can press the button 61 on the hardware device 60 and the hardware device will send an IP Controlled message to the display/television 10 to start up the software on the central processing device 10. After that, the central display/television 10 will show a duplicate of the peripheral display 55 combined with sound. When the user wants to stop duplication of his display he presses the button 61 again to stop. The display/television will return to its former state. In the presentation mode system can support up to 8 users at once, while in the video mode the system can support two users at once.
Although the invention has been described in greater detail to merely a single embodiment it will be clear that the invention is by no means limited to that embodiment. On the contrary a great number of variations and alternative embodiments are feasible to a skilled person without requiring him to depart from the true scope and spirit of the invention as will emanate from the following claims.

Claims

A communication system for communicating media content from a user to a central display, comprising: a central communication node in a communications network, at least one peripheral communication node in said communications network, at least one peripheral processing device, having a memory, an operating system and a user display, the peripheral processing device being provided with peripheral communication control means that comprise one of said at least one peripheral communication node and is configured and adapted to communicate user selected arbitrary media content from said peripheral processing device over the communications network, a central processing device, having a central display, the central processing device being provided with central communication control means that comprise said central communication node and are configured and adapted to receive user selected arbitrary media content and to control display of said media content on said central display, wherein the peripheral communication control means comprise a first program adapted to be loaded onto the peripheral processing device and to run on the operation system of the peripheral processing device, said program being adapted to obtain said user selected arbitrary media content by screen scraping said media content from the user display of said peripheral processing device, and wherein the peripheral processing device is provided with input means to allow the user to carry out a user action that triggers transfer of said user selected arbitrary media content from said peripheral processing device over the communication network to the central communication control means for display on the central display, characterized in that the central processing device comprises a memory and an operating system, in that the central communication control means comprise a second program that is loaded on the central processing device and runs on the operation system of the central processing device, said second program being adapted to receive said user selected arbitrary media content and to display said media content on the central display of said central processing device, and in that the first program is stored by the central processing device and is loaded by the peripheral processing device from said central processing device over the communications network.
2. A communication system as claimed in claim 1, characterized in that said first program leaves at least substantially no footprint on the peripheral processing device upon termination.
3. A communication system as claimed in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said
peripheral communication control means comprise a peripheral program that is loaded on the peripheral processing device and runs on the operation system of the peripheral processing device, particularly a computer app, said peripheral program being adapted and configured to also provide said input means on said peripheral processing device.
4. A communication system as claimed in claim 1 or 2, characterized in that said
peripheral communication control means comprise a connection unit that comprises a connector which is adapted and configured to connect to a communications port of the peripheral processing device, a transmitter for communication with the
communications network and said input means.
5. A communication system as claimed in claim 4, characterized in that said input means comprise a physical actuator, particularly a push button, on said connection unit.
6. A communication system as claimed in claim 4 or 5, characterized in that said
connection unit holds at least a link that allows the peripheral processing device to retrieve, load and run said first program from said central processing device.
7. A communication system as claimed in claim 6, characterized in that said connection unit holds a third program to be loaded onto the peripheral processing device and to run on the operating system of the peripheral processing device, said third program allowing the peripheral processing device to retrieve and load said first program from said central processing device and to run said first program on the operating system of the peripheral processing device.
8. A communication system as claimed in claim 7, characterized in that said third program leaves at least substantially no footprint on the peripheral processing device upon termination.
9. A communication system as claimed in any of claims 4 to 8, characterized in that said connection unit is a plug-and-play device, particularly one connecting to a universal serial bus port of the peripheral processing device.
10. A communication system as claimed in any of claims 4 to 9, characterized in that said transmitter is a wireless transmitter or transceiver.
11. A communication system as claimen in anyone of the preceding claims, characterized in that the peripheral processing device is a personal computer device, particularly a laptop computer, a tablet computer or a smart phone, of a user.
12. A communication system as claimed in anyone of the preceding claims characterized in that the central processing device comprises a wall mountable screen, particularly a smart television.
13. An electronic meeting tool for communicating arbitrary media content from users at a meeting, characterized in that said media content is communicated by means of the communication systems as claimed in anyone of the preceding claims.
14. A storage container for holding at least one connection unit, particularly one as used in the communication system according to any one of claims 4 to 12, said storage container comprising a first proximity detector circuit and a power supply for feeding said proximity detector circuit, wherein said connection unit comprises a second proximity detector circuit and a power supply for feeding said second proximity detector circuit, wherein said first and second proximity detector circuit are adapted and configured to establish and maintain a wireless connection and wherein at least one of said first and second proximity detector circuit is coupled to alarm means to trigger an alarm after said wireless connection is terminated.
15. A storage container as claimed in claim 14, characterized in that a delay is provided between said termination of said wireless connection and said trigger of said alarm.
16. A storage container as claimed in claim 14 or 15, characterized in that said second power supply is a rechargeable power source within said connection unit.
17. A storage container as claimed in claim 16, characterized in that said rechargeable power source comprises a capacitor, particularly an ultra-capacitor.
18. A storage container as claimed in claim 16 or 17, characterized in that said
rechargeable power source is rechargeable over said wireless connection with said first proximity detector circuit and/or over a connector that connects to a peripheral processing device.
19. A storage container as claimed in any of claims 14 to 18, characterized in that said connection unit comprises said alarm means, said alarm means being capable of setting an audible and/or visual alarm signal, preferably at least an audible alarm signal.
20 A connection unit as applied with the storage container according to anyone of claims
14 to 19.
PCT/NL2019/050074 2018-02-05 2019-02-05 A communication system and meeting tool for communicating media content from a user, a storage container and a connection unit WO2019151866A2 (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
NL2020379 2018-02-05
NL2020379A NL2020379B1 (en) 2018-02-05 2018-02-05 A communication system and meeting tool for communicating media content from a user, a storage container and a connection unit.

Publications (2)

Publication Number Publication Date
WO2019151866A2 true WO2019151866A2 (en) 2019-08-08
WO2019151866A3 WO2019151866A3 (en) 2019-09-26

Family

ID=63207807

Family Applications (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
PCT/NL2019/050074 WO2019151866A2 (en) 2018-02-05 2019-02-05 A communication system and meeting tool for communicating media content from a user, a storage container and a connection unit

Country Status (2)

Country Link
NL (1) NL2020379B1 (en)
WO (1) WO2019151866A2 (en)

Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP2756668A1 (en) 2011-09-14 2014-07-23 Barco NV Electronic tool and methods for meetings

Family Cites Families (3)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US20080201751A1 (en) * 2006-04-18 2008-08-21 Sherjil Ahmed Wireless Media Transmission Systems and Methods
US9584846B2 (en) * 2011-12-16 2017-02-28 Thales Avionics, Inc. In-flight entertainment system with wireless handheld controller and cradle having controlled locking and status reporting to crew
GB2501471A (en) * 2012-04-18 2013-10-30 Barco Nv Electronic conference arrangement

Patent Citations (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
EP2756668A1 (en) 2011-09-14 2014-07-23 Barco NV Electronic tool and methods for meetings

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
WO2019151866A3 (en) 2019-09-26
NL2020379B1 (en) 2019-03-21

Similar Documents

Publication Publication Date Title
US9094949B2 (en) Multi-host wireless input device
US20110312272A1 (en) Remote control device, communication device, remote control method, and program
US8990438B2 (en) Receiver configured to pair to multiple wireless devices
US11607608B2 (en) Gaming controller for mobile device and method of operating a gaming controller
US9843360B2 (en) Method and system for use in configuring multiple near field antenna systems
WO2015009890A1 (en) Wireless communication usb dongle
EP4294111A1 (en) Bluetooth device pairing connection method, electronic device, bluetooth device and terminal system
JP2016502768A (en) Host device, client device and method for wireless docking in a dynamic environment for multiple clients
KR102518401B1 (en) Apparatus and method for managing operation mode for electronic device
KR20200045367A (en) Electronic device using a bluetooth communication and method of operating the same
RU2681378C1 (en) Wireless docking system
JP6941755B1 (en) Wireless charging adapter with game control keys for computer game controllers
US20140059361A1 (en) Information processing system, external apparatus, and method for supplying power from host apparatus to external apparatus
US9967687B2 (en) Audio reproduction apparatus and audio reproduction system
EP4099714A1 (en) Electronic device for audio, and method for managing power in electronic device for audio
US11449115B2 (en) Method for receiving power from other external device connected to electronic device, on basis of disconnection of external electronic device that is supplying power, and electronic device implementing same
EP3001278A1 (en) Wireless connection switching method, wireless terminal and system thereof
KR20210050403A (en) Method for transmitting data based on multiple communication and electronic device supporting the same
WO2019151866A2 (en) A communication system and meeting tool for communicating media content from a user, a storage container and a connection unit
CN114217701B (en) Electronic equipment connection method and electronic equipment
CN114143906B (en) Electronic equipment connection method and electronic equipment
KR20210027931A (en) Method for controlling power using socket and electronic device supporting the same
JP2004015511A (en) Data storage system and method therefor
CN216565438U (en) Data transmitting device and data transmission equipment
US20240207724A1 (en) Universal Mobile Game Controller

Legal Events

Date Code Title Description
121 Ep: the epo has been informed by wipo that ep was designated in this application

Ref document number: 19714868

Country of ref document: EP

Kind code of ref document: A2

NENP Non-entry into the national phase

Ref country code: DE

32PN Ep: public notification in the ep bulletin as address of the adressee cannot be established

Free format text: NOTING OF LOSS OF RIGHTS PURSUANT TO RULE 112(1) EPC (EPO FORM 1205 DATED 05/11/2020)

122 Ep: pct application non-entry in european phase

Ref document number: 19714868

Country of ref document: EP

Kind code of ref document: A2