Patent Application
20180191885
The present invention relates to video conferencing and more specifically to a speakerphone with built-in sensors.
Video conferencing allows groups of people separated by large distances to have conferences and meetings. In some examples, two parties will each use a teleconferencing system that includes endpoint devices. An example of an endpoint device is a speakerphone used to enable telephonic communication between the two parties. The speakerphone may include a dial-pad for one party to call the other party at a given time. One party may initiate the call by pressing a call button on the dial-pad. At the conclusion of the meeting, one party may end the call by manually pushing the hang up or end button on the dial-pad. As such, the speakerphone turns on and off in response to the manual initiation and end of the call. However, at the end of the meeting, one party may accidentally not end the call and walk out of the conference room. Given current concerns about energy costs, there is a need to improve power consumption. Additionally, a traditional speakerphone is not able to recognize the parties at the meeting including the meeting organizer. As such, the parties have to introduce themselves on the call. Sensors are an important component in overcoming the deficiencies of traditional speakerphones.
Sensors are a common component in many buildings. Typically mounted on ceilings, for example, occupancy sensors detect the presence of occupants within an area. They are most commonly used to control the power delivered to electrical loads, specifically lights, depending on the occupancy of the monitored area. For example, an occupancy sensor may be used to turn off a light in an office when occupancy has not been sensed for a period of time, thereby conserving electricity. Conversely, the occupancy sensor may conveniently turn on the light upon sensing occupancy after a period of vacancy.
Accordingly, there is now a need for an improved speakerphone device with sensors to continuously detect, monitor, and identify occupants in a conference room. There also is a need for a speakerphone device that can automatically initiate and end a call based on the detection of the occupants.
It is an object of the embodiments to substantially solve at least the problems and/or disadvantages discussed above, and to provide at least one or more of the advantages described below.
It is therefore a general aspect of the embodiments to provide a speakerphone that can continuously detect, monitor, and recognize occupants in a conference.
It is therefore a general aspect of the embodiments to provide a speakerphone that can automatically initiate and end a call based on the detection of occupants.
This Summary is provided to introduce a selection of concepts in a simplified form that are further described below in the Detailed Description. This Summary is not intended to identify key or essential features of the claimed subject matter, nor is it intended to be used to limit the scope of the claimed subject matter.
Further features and advantages of the aspects of the embodiments, as well as the structure and operation of the various embodiments, are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings. It is noted that the aspects of the embodiments are not limited to the specific embodiments described herein. Such embodiments are presented herein for illustrative purposes only. Additional embodiments will be apparent to persons skilled in the relevant art(s) based on the teachings contained herein.
According to one aspect of the embodiments, a speakerphone device comprises at least one passive infrared sensor to generate a first signal based on sensed infrared radiation. The speakerphone device further comprises at least one audio sensor to generate a second signal based on detecting sound in a conference room. A processor is coupled to the at least one passive infrared sensor and the at least one audio sensor to detect the presence of the first signal. In response to receiving the first signal by the processor, the processor is configured to activate the speakerphone device to a powered state, the powered state is a state whereby the speakerphone device is fully functioning. However, in response to not receiving the first signal by the processor, the processor is configured to activate the speakerphone device to a sleep state, the sleep state is a state whereby the speakerphone device is not fully functioning and thereby is saving energy.
According to another aspect of the embodiments, a method is provided for generating a first signal based on sensed infrared radiation by at least one passive infrared sensor; generating a second signal based on detecting sound in a conference room by at least one audio sensor; coupling a processor to the at least one passive infrared sensor and the at least one audio sensor; and detecting by the processor the presence of the first signal. In response to receiving the first signal, activating a speakerphone device to a powered state, the powered state is a state whereby the speakerphone device is fully functioning. However, in response to not receiving the first signal, activating the speakerphone device to a sleep state, the sleep state is a state whereby the speakerphone device is not fully functioning and thereby is saving energy.
The above and other objects and features of the embodiments will become apparent and more readily appreciated from the following description of the embodiments with reference to the following figures. Different aspects of the embodiments are illustrated in reference figures of the drawings. It is intended that the embodiments and figures disclosed herein are to be considered to be illustrative rather than limiting. The components in the drawings are not necessarily drawn to scale, emphasis instead being placed upon clearly illustrating the principles of the aspects of the embodiments. In the drawings, like reference numerals designate corresponding parts throughout the several views.
The embodiments are described more fully hereinafter with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which embodiments of the inventive concept are shown. In the drawings, the relative size of layers and regions may be exaggerated for clarity. Like numbers refer to like elements throughout. The embodiments may, however, be embodied in many different forms and should not be construed as limited to the embodiments set forth herein. Rather, these embodiments are provided so that this disclosure will be thorough and complete, and will fully convey the scope of the inventive concept to those skilled in the art. The scope of the embodiments is therefore defined by the appended claims. The detailed description that follows is written from the point of view of a control systems company, so it is to be understood that generally the concepts discussed herein are applicable to various subsystems and not limited to only a particular controlled device or class of devices disclosed herein.
Reference throughout the specification to “one embodiment” or “an embodiment” means that a particular feature, structure, or characteristic described in connection with an embodiment is included in at least one embodiment of the embodiments. Thus, the appearance of the phrases “in one embodiment” on “in an embodiment” in various places throughout the specification is not necessarily referring to the same embodiment. Further, the particular feature, structures, or characteristics may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments.
The following is a list of the major elements in the drawings in numerical order.
The following is a list of the acronyms used in the specification in alphabetical order.
PoE Power over Ethernet
The present embodiments provide devices and methods to continuously detect, monitor, and identify occupants in a conference room. More specifically, the present invention provides a speakerphone with built-in sensors to enable the speakerphone device to switch in-between a powered state and a sleep state in response to detecting and monitoring occupants in a conference room.
Referring to
The CPU 200 may be communicably coupled to a main memory 206, which may store data and executable code. The main memory 206 may be implemented using one or more types of machine-readable media capable of storing data. The main memory 206 may represent volatile memory such as RAM, and also may include nonvolatile memory, such as read-only memory (ROM) or Flash memory. In buffering or caching data related to operations of the CPU 200, the main memory 206 may store data associated with applications running on the speakerphone device 106.
In an embodiment, the speakerphone device 106 includes nonvolatile storage 208. The nonvolatile storage 208 may represent any suitable nonvolatile storage medium, such as a hard disk drive or nonvolatile memory, such as Flash memory. Being well-suited to long-term storage, the nonvolatile storage may store data files and software (e.g., for implementing functions on the speakerphone device 106).
The speakerphone device 106 further may include at least one PIR sensor 204 coupled to the CPU 200. The PIR sensor 204 measures infrared light radiating from objects such as a participant 102 in its field of view. The field of view generally is in front of a touch panel 212 of the speakerphone device 106. The PIR sensor 204 generates a first signal 220 based on sensed infrared radiation.
The speakerphone device 106 further may include at least one audio sensor 202, such as a microphone, coupled to the CPU 200 for sensing audio in a conference room 103. The at least one audio sensor 202 detects sound in the conference room 103. The sound may come from a participant 102 or the speakerphone device 106. A person on the other line may come through on the speakerphone device 106. In response to the audio sensor 202 detecting sound in the conference room (either from a participant 102 in the conference room 103 or another participant 102 coming through on the speakerphone device 106), the audio sensor 202 may generate a second signal 222. The audio sensor 202 coupled with the processor 200 may be set to generate a second signal 222 upon the audio sensor 202 detecting sound at a certain threshold. The processor 200 and audio sensor 202 determine whether the second signal 222 meets a minimum threshold as a requirement to maintaining the speakerphone device 106 in a powered stated. Such minimum threshold may be 60-70 decibel level (db) in the conference room 103. Further the threshold may involve not only the db level but also a timing threshold, which measures how long the audio has been above the db level. For example, the timing threshold may be 0.5 seconds. For example, the speakerphone device is in the powered state when (1) the sound level is at least, for example, 60 db and (2) the timing threshold is at least half a seconds. In an embodiment of the invention, the audio sensor 202, such as a microphone, provides a measure of audible sound in the conference room 103 and may be employed to qualify PIR detection. For example, in certain applications, detection of sounds in the conference room 103 may be required before the occupancy state is determined. Additionally, the second signal 222 can be used to prolong the occupancy state once it is established.
The speakerphone device 106a further comprises a network interface 210. The network interface 210 communicates to another speakerphone device 106b. In one embodiment, the network interface 210 is an RS485 wired connection. In a further embodiment, the network interface 210 is a power over Ethernet (PoE) interface for receiving electric power as well as for sending and receiving signals over an Internet Protocol (IP) based network to another speakerphone device 106.
The speakerphone device 106 further includes a touch panel controller 218 that is coupled to a touch panel 212 and CPU 200. The speakerphone device 106 uses the touch panel 212 to display various features such as a dial-pad and a room schedule. The touch panel 212 provides easier methods to dial into conference call by providing access into the room's calendar (e.g., room 103) for dialing as well as access to a company's directory directly on the speakerphone device 106. The speakerphone communicates with a database 226 via a network interface 210 to obtain room schedule and room reservation information such as the organizer's name, meeting calendar, and time and date of the meeting. Another feature of the speakerphone device 106 that is displayed on the touch panel 212 is the ability to view upcoming calendars and room connectivity information. The touch panel 212 can accept input in different ways. For example, capacitive touchscreens detect touch input when an object (e.g., a fingertip or stylus) distorts or interrupts an electrical current running across the surface. Touch panel 212 also could detect using optical sensors.
The CPU 200 may be coupled to a connector 216. The connector 216 can be comprised of one or more physical ports or connectors, such as HDMI (input and output), DisplayPort, USB, Bluetooth, and Ethernet. The connector 216 also can support various accessories such as microphone accessory pod (not shown).
In an embodiment, the speakerphone device 106 may use facial recognition techniques to identify or verify the participants 102 including the meeting organizer. The speakerphone device 106 captures participant's facial image 224 using a camera 214. The captured image 224 is then compared to a database of facial images stored in a database such as main memory 206 or another database 226 via the network interface 210 to determine a match and identification of the participant 102 including the meeting organizer.
Continuing on in
In step 312, if the PIR sensor 204 of the speakerphone 106 does not detect the presence of the first signal 220 (e.g., there is no participant 102 in front of the speakerphone device 106), the processor 200 of the speakerphone device 106 stays in the sleep state or if the speakerphone device 106 is in a powered state, the processor 200 deactivates the speakerphone device 106 from the powered state to a sleep state. In one embodiment, the speakerphone device 106 stays in the powered state for a period of time, for example, five minutes, after the speakerphone device 106 no longer receives the first or second signal 220, 222. Upon the expiration of the time period, the speakerphone device 106 may automatically switch to a sleep state to conserve power. The speakerphone device 106 utilizes the PIR sensor 204 and audio sensor 202 to continuously detect and monitor participants 102 in a conference room 103.
However, if the audio sensor 202 does not detect the presence of the second signal 222 in the conference room 103, in step 312 the speakerphone device 106 switches from a powered state to a sleep state. In alternative embodiments, the speakerphone device 106 stays in the enabled state for a period of time, for example, five minutes after the speakerphone device 106 no longer receives the second signal 222. This could occur, for example, when participants 102 in the conference room 103 are silence. Upon the expiration of the time period, the speakerphone device 106 switches to a sleep state.
By using a combination of audio and PIR sensors 204, 206, the speakerphone device 106 is in a powered state only when it is being utilized. Sometimes, people in general may come into a conference room 103 and not utilize the speakerphone device 106. For example, two people may come into the conference 103 for a discussion. They may use a white board for the discussion. In this scenario, the speakerphone device 106 would be in a sleep state unless the person is in front of the touch panel 212; however, most people would not go in front of the speakerphone device 106 unless he/she has intention of using it. Further, the voice coming from the people would not switch the speakerphone device 106 from a sleep state to a powered state by the audio sensor 202 since, in this example, the audio sensor 202 waits until the PIR sensor 204 activates the speakerphone device 106 to a powered state first. In other embodiments, in step 402, the audio sensor 202 may detect sound coming from a participant 102 at another location coming through the speakerphone device 106. In this case, even though a participant 102 in the conference room 103 is not speaking, the speakerphone device 106 would remain in the powered state because sound is coming from another participant 102 in another conference room 103 coming through the speakerphone device 106. In other embodiments, in step 312, the speakerphone device 106 may automatically disconnect from a conference call when the speakerphone device 106 is in a sleep state. In another embodiment, the speakerphone device 106 may not disconnect from a conference call when it is in a sleep state but rather, the touch panel 212 may not be lit up thereby saving power.
In step 402, the speakerphone device 106 detects the presence of the second signal 222 in the conference room 103. In this step, the speakerphone device 106 detects if there is any sound in the conference room 103 such as from any of the participants. In step 404, if there is sound, the speakerphone device 106 stays in the powered state. If there is no sound, in step 312, the speakerphone device 106 switches to a sleep state. In alternative embodiments, before switching to the sleep state, the speakerphone device 106 may wait for a certain period of time, for example, five minutes, before the speakerphone device 106 switches to a sleep state.
The disclosed embodiments provide a device and a method for switching between a sleep state and a powered state. It should be understood that this description is not intended to limit the embodiments. On the contrary, the embodiments are intended to cover alternatives, modifications, and equivalents, which are included in the spirit and scope of the embodiments as defined by the appended claims. Further, in the detailed description of the embodiments, numerous specific details are set forth to provide a comprehensive understanding of the claimed embodiments. However, one skilled in the art would understand that various embodiments may be practiced without such specific details.
Although the features and elements of aspects of the embodiments are described being in particular combinations, each feature or element can be used alone, without the other features and elements of the embodiments, or in various combinations with or without other features and elements disclosed herein.
This written description uses examples of the subject matter disclosed to enable any person skilled in the art to practice the same, including making and using any devices or systems and performing any incorporated methods. The patentable scope of the subject matter is defined by the claims, and may include other examples that occur to those skilled in the art. Such other examples are intended to be within the scope of the claims.
The above-described embodiments are intended to be illustrative, rather than restrictive, in all respects of the embodiments. Thus the embodiments are capable of many variations in detailed implementation that can be derived from the description contained herein by a person skilled in the art. No element, act, or instruction used in the description of the present application should be construed as critical or essential to the embodiments unless explicitly described as such. Also, as used herein, the article “a” is intended to include one or more items.
In addition, the various methods described above are not meant to limit any aspect of the embodiments, or to suggest that aspect of the embodiments should be implemented following the described methods. The purpose of the described methods is to facilitate the understanding of one or more aspects of the embodiments and to provide the reader with one or many possible implementations of the processes discussed herein. The steps performed during the described methods are not intended to completely describe the entire process but only to illustrate some of the aspects discussed above. It should be understood by one of ordinary skill in the art that the steps may be performed in a different order and that some steps may be eliminated or substituted.
Although illustrative embodiments of the present invention have been described herein with reference to the accompanying drawings, it is to be understood that the invention is not limited to those precise embodiments, and that various other changes and modifications may be made therein by one skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the appended claims.
For example, any of the flow diagrams described herein may be modified or arranged in any manner to support operation in various configurations. The flow diagrams may include more or fewer blocks, combined or separated blocks, alternative flow arrangements, or the like. The flow diagrams also may be implemented in the form of hardware, firmware, or software. If implemented in software, the software may be written in any suitable code in accordance with the example embodiments herein or other embodiments. The software may be stored in any form of computer readable medium and loaded and executed by a general purpose or application specific processor suitable to perform the example embodiments described herein or other embodiments.
