U.S. patent application number 15/687716 was filed with the patent office on 2018-05-10 for gesture-based control and usage of video relay systems.
The applicant listed for this patent is Purple Communications, Inc.. Invention is credited to Dennis Episkopos, Francis Kurupacheril, Cliff Pearce.
Application Number | 20180129295 15/687716 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 61159554 |
Filed Date | 2018-05-10 |
United States Patent
Application |
20180129295 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Episkopos; Dennis ; et
al. |
May 10, 2018 |
GESTURE-BASED CONTROL AND USAGE OF VIDEO RELAY SYSTEMS
Abstract
A system comprising a web-enabled video camera, at least one
microphone, a remote server, and a command processing unit, which
allow users to communicate remotely with video and audio. The
system further is controlled by either gestures from a user, or a
remote control, and can have gestures customized by the user for
specific inputs. The system contains a menu the user may navigate,
and multiple system states which provide different functionality
and recognize different gesture commands.
Inventors: |
Episkopos; Dennis;
(Westminster, CO) ; Pearce; Cliff; (Rocklin,
CA) ; Kurupacheril; Francis; (Cupertino, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Purple Communications, Inc. |
Rocklin |
CA |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
61159554 |
Appl. No.: |
15/687716 |
Filed: |
August 28, 2017 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
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15677877 |
Aug 15, 2017 |
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15687716 |
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62375243 |
Aug 15, 2016 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06K 9/4604 20130101;
G06K 9/78 20130101; H04M 1/72583 20130101; G06F 3/04886 20130101;
H04N 7/15 20130101; H04N 7/147 20130101; G06F 3/017 20130101; G09B
21/009 20130101; G06K 9/00355 20130101; G06F 3/0482 20130101; H04N
7/142 20130101; G06K 9/4652 20130101 |
International
Class: |
G06F 3/01 20060101
G06F003/01; G06K 9/00 20060101 G06K009/00; H04N 7/14 20060101
H04N007/14; G06F 3/0482 20060101 G06F003/0482; G09B 21/00 20060101
G09B021/00 |
Claims
1. A system for gesture-based control and usage of video relay
systems, comprising: a command processing unit comprising at least
a processor, a memory, and a plurality of programming instructions
stored in the memory and operating on the processor, wherein the
programmable instructions, when operating on the processor, cause
the processor to: receive a first video stream from a connected
camera hardware device; analyze at least a portion of the first
video stream to identify a plurality of hand gestures; correlate at
least a portion of the identified hand gestures with a plurality of
electronic commands; transmit at least a portion of the first video
stream via a network; receive a second video stream via a network;
and direct the navigation of at least a software-based menu
interface, the navigation being based at least in part on at least
a portion of the electronic commands.
2. The system of claim 1, wherein the command processing unit is
further configured to navigate multiple system states based at
least in part on at least a portion of the electronic commands.
3. The system of claim 1, wherein the command processing unit is
further configured to direct the operation of a phone dialer based
at least in part on at least a portion of the electronic
commands.
4. The system of claim 1, wherein the electronic commands may be
configured by a user and stored for future use.
5. A method for gesture based control and usage of video relay
systems, comprising the steps of: (a) receiving, at a command
processing unit, a first video stream captured from a camera
hardware device; (b) analyzing at least a portion of the first
video stream to identify a plurality of hand gestures; (c)
processing at least a portion of the hand gestures to produce a
plurality of electronic commands; (d) transmitting at least a
portion of the first video stream via a network; (e) directing the
navigation of a software-based menu interface, the navigation being
based at least in part on at least a portion of the electronic
commands;
6. The method of claim 5, further comprising the step of navigating
multiple system states based at least in part on at least a portion
of the electronic commands.
7. The method of claim 5, wherein the command processing unit is
further configured to direct the operation of a phone dialer based
at least in part on at least a portion of the electronic
commands.
8. The method of claim 5, wherein the electronic commands may be
configured by a user and stored for future use.
Description
CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS
[0001] This application is a continuation of U.S. patent
application Ser. No. 15/677,877 titled "GESTURE-BASED CONTROL AND
USAGE OF VIDEO RELAY SYSTEMS", filed on Aug. 15, 2017, which claims
the benefit of, and priority to, U.S. provisional patent
application Ser. No. 62/375,243, titled "GESTURE BASED CONTROL AND
USAGE OF VIDEO RELAY SYSTEMS" and filed on Aug. 15, 2016, the
entire specification of which is herein incorporated by reference
in its entirety.
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
Field of the Art
[0002] The disclosure relates to the field of video relay systems
for hearing-impaired users, and more particularly to the field of
gesture-controlled video relay systems.
Discussion of the State of the Art
[0003] It is currently available for deaf individuals to
communicate with other individuals across distances with computer
systems (by which it is meant a computing device which contains a
central processing unit, memory, and interface elements such as a
keyboard) that include a remote control, and allow them to input
commands and information so that the deaf individual may
communicate with other users and even with translators. Currently,
the systems in place are cumbersome to their users in that the
remote may be lost easily, which makes the system unusable.
Further, the systems take several steps with a time-consuming
interface in order for the user to communicate, and typing in
letters on a QWERTY keypad on a small device can be painful for
some users. Remotes in this field also only possess the capability
to execute a certain set of commands, and cannot be programmed for
new commands or capabilities by the user, and require an
independent energy source such as batteries.
[0004] In these cases, the user is inconvenienced and encumbered in
such a way as to make communication take more time and energy from
the user of the system. Communication can be time-sensitive and
being required to use a system which may be disabled due to loss of
a remote or lack of batteries, or which causes discomfort from
small keypads, can hinder communication.
[0005] Therefore, what is clearly needed is a system that does not
rely on a small, easily misplaced remote or keypad, does not
require separate batteries, and does not cause the user physical
discomfort or difficulty in using the system.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0006] Accordingly, the inventor has conceived and reduced to
practice, in a preferred embodiment of the invention, a system and
various methods for gesture-based control and usage of video relay
systems, which allow a deaf and possibly mute user to communicate
to other users across the Internet, with a system possessing
several modes of interaction and requiring no tactile interaction
from the user. The following non-limiting summary of the invention
is provided for clarity, and should be construed consistently with
embodiments described in the detailed description below.
[0007] To address the problem of the remote described above for
communication systems, American Sign Language (ASL) gesture
recognition is provided in a novel system that provides clear
program flow for a user to initiate communications at a distance
with another user. Instead of being required to solely use a
remote, the system is capable of recognizing hand gestures as well
as ASL-specific commands that the user makes in front of a
connected web-enabled camera (colloquially known as a "webcam"),
allowing the user to use the software with easily learned motions
if they do not wish to use the remote control. Common examples of
motions that a user may take advantage of are pointing their thumb
to their left while facing the webcam, which takes them back to a
previous menu option in the system, or being able to define certain
gestures that may be used to hang up a call. Use of these and more
gestures allows users to naturally and easily use the system,
without the need for a small, battery-enabled remote, however such
a remote is still supplied with the system in case users may desire
to use the remote anyway.
[0008] According to an aspect of the invention, a system for
gesture-based control and usage of video relay systems, comprising:
a command processing unit comprising at least a processor, a
memory, and a plurality of programming instructions stored in the
memory and operating on the processor, wherein the programmable
instructions, when operating on the processor, cause the processor
to: receive a first video stream from a connected camera hardware
device; analyze at least a portion of the first video stream to
identify a plurality of hand gestures; correlate at least a portion
of the identified hand gestures with a plurality of electronic
commands; transmit at least a portion of the first video stream via
a network; receive a second video stream via a network; and direct
the navigation of at least a software-based menu interface, the
navigation being based at least in part on at least a portion of
the electronic commands, is disclosed.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING FIGURES
[0009] The accompanying drawings illustrate several aspects and,
together with the description, serve to explain the principles of
the invention according to the aspects. It will be appreciated by
one skilled in the art that the particular arrangements illustrated
in the drawings are merely exemplary, and are not to be considered
as limiting of the scope of the invention or the claims herein in
any way.
[0010] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary system
architecture for gesture recognition and communication, according
to an aspect of the invention.
[0011] FIG. 2 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary
embodiment of system states for the software, according to an
aspect of the invention.
[0012] FIG. 3 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary method
for turning on the system using gesture recognition, according to
an aspect of the invention.
[0013] FIG. 4 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary method
for the main menu of the system, according to an aspect of the
invention.
[0014] FIG. 5 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary
architecture for the Main Menu, showing the various items it may
have available for the user, according to an aspect of the
invention.
[0015] FIG. 6 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary method
for the QWERTY Mode of the system, according to an aspect of the
invention.
[0016] FIG. 7 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary method
for the Dial Mode of the system, according to an aspect of the
invention.
[0017] FIG. 8 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary method
for the Connection Mode of the system, according to an aspect of
the invention.
[0018] FIG. 9 is a flow diagram illustrating an exemplary method
for the Privacy Mode of the system, according to an aspect of the
invention.
[0019] FIG. 10 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary
hardware architecture of a computing device used in various aspects
of the invention.
[0020] FIG. 11 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary logical
architecture for a client device, according to an aspect of the
invention.
[0021] FIG. 12 is a block diagram showing an exemplary
architectural arrangement of clients, servers, and external
services, according to an aspect of the invention.
[0022] FIG. 13 is another block diagram illustrating an exemplary
hardware architecture of a computing device used in various aspect
of the invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0023] The inventor has conceived, and reduced to practice, in a
preferred embodiment of the invention, a system and various methods
for gesture-based control and usage of video relay systems.
[0024] One or more different aspects may be described in the
present application. Further, for one or more of the aspects
described herein, numerous alternative arrangements may be
described; it should be appreciated that these are presented for
illustrative purposes only and are not limiting of the aspects
contained herein or the claims presented herein in any way. One or
more of the arrangements may be widely applicable to numerous
aspects, as may be readily apparent from the disclosure. In
general, arrangements are described in sufficient detail to enable
those skilled in the art to practice one or more of the aspects,
and it should be appreciated that other arrangements may be
utilized and that structural, logical, software, electrical and
other changes may be made without departing from the scope of the
particular aspects. Particular features of one or more of the
aspects described herein may be described with reference to one or
more particular aspects or figures that form a part of the present
disclosure, and in which are shown, by way of illustration,
specific arrangements of one or more of the aspects. It should be
appreciated, however, that such features are not limited to usage
in the one or more particular aspects or figures with reference to
which they are described. The present disclosure is neither a
literal description of all arrangements of one or more of the
aspects nor a listing of features of one or more of the aspects
that must be present in all arrangements.
[0025] Headings of sections provided in this patent application and
the title of this patent application are for convenience only, and
are not to be taken as limiting the disclosure in any way.
[0026] Devices that are in communication with each other need not
be in continuous communication with each other, unless expressly
specified otherwise. In addition, devices that are in communication
with each other may communicate directly or indirectly through one
or more communication means or intermediaries, logical or
physical.
[0027] A description of an aspect with several components in
communication with each other does not imply that all such
components are required. To the contrary, a variety of optional
components may be described to illustrate a wide variety of
possible aspects and in order to more fully illustrate one or more
aspects. Similarly, although process steps, method steps,
algorithms or the like may be described in a sequential order, such
processes, methods and algorithms may generally be configured to
work in alternate orders, unless specifically stated to the
contrary. In other words, any sequence or order of steps that may
be described in this patent application does not, in and of itself,
indicate a requirement that the steps be performed in that order.
The steps of described processes may be performed in any order
practical. Further, some steps may be performed simultaneously
despite being described or implied as occurring non-simultaneously
(e.g., because one step is described after the other step).
Moreover, the illustration of a process by its depiction in a
drawing does not imply that the illustrated process is exclusive of
other variations and modifications thereto, does not imply that the
illustrated process or any of its steps are necessary to one or
more of the aspects, and does not imply that the illustrated
process is preferred. Also, steps are generally described once per
aspect, but this does not mean they must occur once, or that they
may only occur once each time a process, method, or algorithm is
carried out or executed. Some steps may be omitted in some aspects
or some occurrences, or some steps may be executed more than once
in a given aspect or occurrence.
[0028] When a single device or article is described herein, it will
be readily apparent that more than one device or article may be
used in place of a single device or article. Similarly, where more
than one device or article is described herein, it will be readily
apparent that a single device or article may be used in place of
the more than one device or article.
[0029] The functionality or the features of a device may be
alternatively embodied by one or more other devices that are not
explicitly described as having such functionality or features.
Thus, other aspects need not include the device itself.
[0030] Techniques and mechanisms described or referenced herein
will sometimes be described in singular form for clarity. However,
it should be appreciated that particular aspects may include
multiple iterations of a technique or multiple instantiations of a
mechanism unless noted otherwise. Process descriptions or blocks in
figures should be understood as representing modules, segments, or
portions of code which include one or more executable instructions
for implementing specific logical functions or steps in the
process. Alternate implementations are included within the scope of
various aspects in which, for example, functions may be executed
out of order from that shown or discussed, including substantially
concurrently or in reverse order, depending on the functionality
involved, as would be understood by those having ordinary skill in
the art.
Conceptual Architecture
[0031] FIG. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an exemplary system
100 interacting with a user 110 to capture hand gestures for
long-range communication, according to an aspect of the invention.
According to the aspect, a web-enabled camera 120 may capture video
of a user 110, and images captured from the webcam may be sent to
command processing unit 130 that may be configured to transmit
video and audio to another remote user 150. According to the
aspect, a computing device 100 typically comprises at least a
memory 11 and a processor 12 (as described below, referring to FIG.
10), configured to operate a software operating system (OS), for
example including (but not limited to) ANDROID.TM., APPLE IOS.TM.,
WINDOWS.TM., or various forms of LINUX.TM..
[0032] Command processing unit 130 may then recognize gestures from
the images provided by the webcam 120, recognizing commands from a
user, using image recognition. Various implementations of image
recognition software may be used according to various use cases or
arrangements. These gestures can provide, according to a preferred
aspect of the invention, different functionality depending on the
state of the system, as shown below. When the system is in
Connection Mode 240 as in FIG. 2, which can be activated according
to methods described in aspects detailed below, the images captured
by the webcam 120 of a user 110 may be sent to a remote server 140.
This remote server can run various kinds of Session Initiation
Protocol (SIP) software operating with call routing rules according
to various arrangements, as is common in the art. A user may then,
through such a server, communicate visually and audibly with
another remote user 110, and every user involved in a communication
will see each other's captured video displayed through video output
160, such as a TV through an HDMI connection, an embedded laptop
monitor, or other video output devices in use today and the future
with computing devices that may run the system described
herein.
Detailed Description of Exemplary Aspects
[0033] The system may begin in a listening state 220 as shown in
FIG. 2 and, according to an aspect shown in FIG. 3, an
implementation of the system may await a repetition of gestures 310
that may be defined or configured by a user. Such gestures may be
determined upon installation of the software as in an initial
configuration as is common with some types of software, or may be
configured in a main menu, as a configuration application 561 as in
FIG. 5, as one of several applications capable of being run by the
system. When a user produces these gestures 310 with a short delay
between each repetition 320, the system initializes and turns on
all other components 330 as shown in FIG. 3. When initialized, the
system enters 340 a main menu 210 as shown in FIG. 3 and FIG. 2.
According to an aspect, the system may use at least one web-enabled
camera 120 to detect these gestures as shown in FIG. 1. Upon
entering main menu 210, a user is given a list of menu items to
choose from according to an aspect in FIG. 5. Users may use many
different gestures when on the Main Menu 210, listed on FIG. 4, to
either produce functionality on their own, or to navigate the menu
items available to users. According to an aspect of the invention,
a user may produce gestures 410 which may be repeated 420, defined
either in a configuration utility on installing the system as is
common with many software applications and systems, or with a
configuration utility which may be available as an application 561
as shown in FIG. 5. According to a preferred aspect of the
invention, the system may enter QWERTY Mode 230, 421 if the delay
between these gestures is decidedly short, or it may enter dial
mode 422, as shown in FIG. 4.
[0034] Alternatively, according to an aspect, a user may make a
thumb gesture 430 or substitute a different ASL sign depending on
system configuration, and this will cause the menu cursor to move
in the specified direction by the hand sign 431 according to a
preferred aspect as shown in FIG. 4. A user may also, according to
an aspect of the invention described in FIG. 4, point forward to
the screen with their finger 440, and the generated action would
select the highlighted menu item 441 and execute the selected item
(for example, if an application were highlighted, the application
would start running on the computer system). A user may also,
according to an aspect of the invention described in FIG. 4, point
their thumb straight out to the left 450, and the generated action
would be to go back to the previous item in the menu 451, and this
motion has further functionality in further system states as well,
according to preferred aspects, in that it may return the user to a
previous screen 451.
[0035] Further according to the aspect, a user may, as described in
FIG. 4, point their thumb to themselves or away from themselves
460, and the generated action would be to adjust the focus of the
web camera 461, either closer or farther away based on the
direction of the thumb. A user may also, according to an aspect of
the invention described in FIG. 4, produce a gesture configured in
the system 470, either during system installation, or by running a
configuration utility 561, and the gesture can perform three
different functions 471. If a user is being called by another user,
the gesture will answer the call 471. If a user is currently
speaking to another user, it will hang up the call 471. Lastly, if
neither a call is taking place nor a user is being called, the
gesture may allow a user to place a call instead, directly from
main menu 471.
[0036] According to an aspect of the invention, a main menu 210 may
have several different items listed for a user to choose from. As
shown in FIG. 5, a user may choose from contacts 520, in which the
event generated will list on the screen all the contacts 521 that
are saved by the user. Further, the same user may then add another
contact 522, according to a preferred aspect of the invention. A
user could also, according to a preferred aspect of the invention
specified in FIG. 5, choose history 530, from the main menu, which
will allow a user to view their call connection history 531,
listing both incoming and outbound calls made. A user could also,
according to a preferred aspect of the invention specified in FIG.
5, choose mail 540, which will initiate a mail interface 541 for
users. A user could also, according to a preferred aspect of the
invention specified in FIG. 5, choose a search option 550, which,
if executed, can search a user's contacts, or their mail, or search
online 551 such as via a service such as YELP.TM.. Lastly, a user
may also, according to an aspect of the invention described in FIG.
5, choose apps 560, which will bring up many different applications
that a user may choose from 561, which may include such things as a
configuration utility or other applications as decided by the
vendor.
[0037] According to further aspects of the invention, when a user
may enter QWERTY Mode 610 from the main menu 421, a user may then
produce two gestures for additional functionality.
[0038] A user may, according to a preferred aspect of the invention
as specified in FIG. 6, produce ASL gestures 630, 631, to produce
commands to the system 632 without the use of a remote. A user may
further motion to the left with their thumb 620, and, as mentioned
earlier in the disclosure, this will return a user to the main menu
621.
[0039] According to further aspects of the invention, when a user
may enter dial mode 710 from main menu 422, a user may then produce
two gestures for additional functionality. A user may, according to
a preferred aspect of the invention as specified in FIG. 7, produce
ASL numeric gestures 730, 731, to dial numbers and call others 732
without the use of a remote or number pad. A user may further
motion to the left with their thumb 720, and, as mentioned earlier
in the disclosure, this will return a user to main menu 721.
[0040] According to further aspects of the invention, when a user
may enter a connection mode 240 from main menu 470, 732, as shown
in FIG. 4 and FIG. 7 when a user desire to place a call or dials a
number to call, they may further use two gestures to produce
further functionality 810 as shown in FIG. 8. If a user snaps their
fingers 830, the user may enter a privacy mode 831, as illustrated
in FIG. 2 in the state diagram of the system, 250. If, instead, a
user executes a repeated configured gesture 820, with a short delay
between the repetitions 821, any call the user is currently in
hangs up and the user returns to the initial listening mode
822.
[0041] Further aspects of the invention illustrated in FIG. 9 show
privacy mode 250. In privacy mode a user may snap their fingers 830
only once 910, to turn video on and off 911, thereby preserving
privacy. Further, a user may snap their fingers twice 921 with a
small delay between each snap 920, to mute and unmute their audio
922. Privacy mode is an extension of connection mode, and hanging
up a call is the same as in connection mode as shown in FIG. 8,
820, 821, 822.
Hardware Architecture
[0042] Generally, the techniques disclosed herein may be
implemented on hardware or a combination of software and hardware.
For example, they may be implemented in an operating system kernel,
in a separate user process, in a library package bound into network
applications, on a specially constructed machine, on an
application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC), or on a network
interface card.
[0043] Referring now to FIG. 10, there is shown a block diagram
depicting an exemplary computing device 10 suitable for
implementing at least a portion of the features or functionalities
disclosed herein. Computing device 10 may be, for example, any one
of the computing machines listed in the previous paragraph, or
indeed any other electronic device capable of executing software-
or hardware-based instructions according to one or more programs
stored in memory. Computing device 10 may be configured to
communicate with a plurality of other computing devices, such as
clients or servers, over communications networks such as a wide
area network a metropolitan area network, a local area network, a
wireless network, the Internet, or any other network, using known
protocols for such communication, whether wireless or wired.
[0044] In one embodiment, computing device 10 includes one or more
central processing units (CPU) 12, one or more interfaces 15, and
one or more busses 14 (such as a peripheral component interconnect
(PCI) bus). When acting under the control of appropriate software
or firmware, CPU 12 may be responsible for implementing specific
functions associated with the functions of a specifically
configured computing device or machine. For example, in at least
one embodiment, a computing device 10 may be configured or designed
to function as a server system utilizing CPU 12, local memory 11
and/or remote memory 16, and interface(s) 15. In at least one
embodiment, CPU 12 may be caused to perform one or more of the
different types of functions and/or operations under the control of
software modules or components, which for example, may include an
operating system and any appropriate applications software,
drivers, and the like.
[0045] CPU 12 may include one or more processors 13 such as, for
example, a processor from one of the Intel, ARM, Qualcomm, and AMD
families of microprocessors. In some embodiments, processors 13 may
include specially designed hardware such as application-specific
integrated circuits (ASICs), electrically erasable programmable
read-only memories (EEPROMs), field-programmable gate arrays
(FPGAs), and so forth, for controlling operations of computing
device 10. In a specific embodiment, a local memory 11 (such as
non-volatile random access memory (RAM) and/or read-only memory
(ROM), including for example one or more levels of cached memory)
may also form part of CPU 12. However, there are many different
ways in which memory may be coupled to system 10. Memory 11 may be
used for a variety of purposes such as, for example, caching and/or
storing data, programming instructions, and the like. It should be
further appreciated that CPU 12 may be one of a variety of
system-on-a-chip (SOC) type hardware that may include additional
hardware such as memory or graphics processing chips, such as a
QUALCOMM SNAPDRAGON.TM. or SAMSUNG EXYNOS.TM. CPU as are becoming
increasingly common in the art, such as for use in mobile devices
or integrated devices.
[0046] As used herein, the term "processor" is not limited merely
to those integrated circuits referred to in the art as a processor,
a mobile processor, or a microprocessor, but broadly refers to a
microcontroller, a microcomputer, a programmable logic controller,
an application-specific integrated circuit, and any other
programmable circuit.
[0047] In one embodiment, interfaces 15 are provided as network
interface cards (NICs). Generally, NICs control the sending and
receiving of data packets over a computer network; other types of
interfaces 15 may for example support other peripherals used with
computing device 10. Among the interfaces that may be provided are
Ethernet interfaces, frame relay interfaces, cable interfaces, DSL
interfaces, token ring interfaces, graphics interfaces, and the
like. In addition, various types of interfaces may be provided such
as, for example, universal serial bus (USB), Serial, Ethernet,
FIREWIRE.TM., THUNDERBOLT.TM., PCI, parallel, radio frequency (RF),
BLUETOOTH.TM., near-field communications (e.g., using near-field
magnetics), 802.11 (Wi-Fi), frame relay, TCP/IP, ISDN, fast
Ethernet interfaces, Gigabit Ethernet interfaces, Serial ATA (SATA)
or external SATA (ESATA) interfaces, high-definition multimedia
interface (HDMI), digital visual interface (DVI), analog or digital
audio interfaces, asynchronous transfer mode (ATM) interfaces,
high-speed serial interface (HSSI) interfaces, Point of Sale (POS)
interfaces, fiber data distributed interfaces (FDDIs), and the
like. Generally, such interfaces 15 may include physical ports
appropriate for communication with appropriate media. In some
cases, they may also include an independent processor (such as a
dedicated audio or video processor, as is common in the art for
high-fidelity A/V hardware interfaces) and, in some instances,
volatile and/or non-volatile memory (e.g., RAM).
[0048] Although the system shown in FIG. 10 illustrates one
specific architecture for a computing device 10 for implementing
one or more of the inventions described herein, it is by no means
the only device architecture on which at least a portion of the
features and techniques described herein may be implemented. For
example, architectures having one or any number of processors 13
may be used, and such processors 13 may be present in a single
device or distributed among any number of devices. In one
embodiment, a single processor 13 handles communications as well as
routing computations, while in other embodiments a separate
dedicated communications processor may be provided. In various
embodiments, different types of features or functionalities may be
implemented in a system according to the invention that includes a
client device (such as a tablet device or smartphone running client
software) and server systems (such as a server system described in
more detail below).
[0049] Regardless of network device configuration, the system of
the present invention may employ one or more memories or memory
modules (such as, for example, remote memory block 16 and local
memory 11) configured to store data, program instructions for the
general-purpose network operations, or other information relating
to the functionality of the embodiments described herein (or any
combinations of the above). Program instructions may control
execution of or comprise an operating system and/or one or more
applications, for example. Memory 16 or memories 11, 16 may also be
configured to store data structures, configuration data, encryption
data, historical system operations information, or any other
specific or generic non-program information described herein.
[0050] Because such information and program instructions may be
employed to implement one or more systems or methods described
herein, at least some network device embodiments may include
nontransitory machine-readable storage media, which, for example,
may be configured or designed to store program instructions, state
information, and the like for performing various operations
described herein. Examples of such nontransitory machine-readable
storage media include, but are not limited to, magnetic media such
as hard disks, floppy disks, and magnetic tape; optical media such
as CD-ROM disks; magneto-optical media such as optical disks, and
hardware devices that are specially configured to store and perform
program instructions, such as read-only memory devices (ROM), flash
memory (as is common in mobile devices and integrated systems),
solid state drives (SSD) and "hybrid SSD" storage drives that may
combine physical components of solid state and hard disk drives in
a single hardware device (as are becoming increasingly common in
the art with regard to personal computers), memristor memory,
random access memory (RAM), and the like. It should be appreciated
that such storage means may be integral and non-removable (such as
RAM hardware modules that may be soldered onto a motherboard or
otherwise integrated into an electronic device), or they may be
removable such as swappable flash memory modules (such as "thumb
drives" or other removable media designed for rapidly exchanging
physical storage devices), "hot-swappable" hard disk drives or
solid state drives, removable optical storage discs, or other such
removable media, and that such integral and removable storage media
may be utilized interchangeably. Examples of program instructions
include both object code, such as may be produced by a compiler,
machine code, such as may be produced by an assembler or a linker,
byte code, such as may be generated by for example a JAVA.TM.
compiler and may be executed using a Java virtual machine or
equivalent, or files containing higher level code that may be
executed by the computer using an interpreter (for example, scripts
written in Python, Perl, Ruby, Groovy, or any other scripting
language).
[0051] In some embodiments, systems according to the present
invention may be implemented on a standalone computing system.
Referring now to FIG. 11, there is shown a block diagram depicting
a typical exemplary architecture of one or more embodiments or
components thereof on a standalone computing system. Computing
device 20 includes processors 21 that may run software that carry
out one or more functions or applications of embodiments of the
invention, such as for example a client application 24. Processors
21 may carry out computing instructions under control of an
operating system 22 such as, for example, a version of MICROSOFT
WINDOWS.TM. operating system, APPLE OSX.TM. or iOS.TM. operating
systems, some variety of the Linux operating system, ANDROID.TM.
operating system, or the like. In many cases, one or more shared
services 23 may be operable in system 20, and may be useful for
providing common services to client applications 24. Services 23
may for example be WINDOWS.TM. services, user-space common services
in a Linux environment, or any other type of common service
architecture used with operating system 21. Input devices 28 may be
of any type suitable for receiving user input, including for
example a keyboard, touchscreen, microphone (for example, for voice
input), mouse, touchpad, trackball, or any combination thereof.
Output devices 27 may be of any type suitable for providing output
to one or more users, whether remote or local to system 20, and may
include for example one or more screens for visual output,
speakers, printers, or any combination thereof. Memory 25 may be
random-access memory having any structure and architecture known in
the art, for use by processors 21, for example to run software.
Storage devices 26 may be any magnetic, optical, mechanical,
memristor, or electrical storage device for storage of data in
digital form (such as those described above, referring to FIG. 10).
Examples of storage devices 26 include flash memory, magnetic hard
drive, CD-ROM, and/or the like.
[0052] In some embodiments, systems of the present invention may be
implemented on a distributed computing network, such as one having
any number of clients and/or servers. Referring now to FIG. 12,
there is shown a block diagram depicting an exemplary architecture
30 for implementing at least a portion of a system according to an
embodiment of the invention on a distributed computing network.
According to the embodiment, any number of clients 33 may be
provided. Each client 33 may run software for implementing
client-side portions of the present invention; clients may comprise
a system 20 such as that illustrated in FIG. 11. In addition, any
number of servers 32 may be provided for handling requests received
from one or more clients 33. Clients 33 and servers 32 may
communicate with one another via one or more electronic networks
31, which may be in various embodiments any of the Internet, a wide
area network, a mobile telephony network (such as CDMA or GSM
cellular networks), a wireless network (such as Wi-Fi, WiMAX, LTE,
and so forth), or a local area network (or indeed any network
topology known in the art; the invention does not prefer any one
network topology over any other). Networks 31 may be implemented
using any known network protocols, including for example wired
and/or wireless protocols.
[0053] In addition, in some embodiments, servers 32 may call
external services 37 when needed to obtain additional information,
or to refer to additional data concerning a particular call.
Communications with external services 37 may take place, for
example, via one or more networks 31. In various embodiments,
external services 37 may comprise web-enabled services or
functionality related to or installed on the hardware device
itself. For example, in an embodiment where client applications 24
are implemented on a smartphone or other electronic device, client
applications 24 may obtain information stored in a server system 32
in the cloud or on an external service 37 deployed on one or more
of a particular enterprise's or user's premises.
[0054] In some embodiments of the invention, clients 33 or servers
32 (or both) may make use of one or more specialized services or
appliances that may be deployed locally or remotely across one or
more networks 31. For example, one or more databases 34 may be used
or referred to by one or more embodiments of the invention. It
should be understood by one having ordinary skill in the art that
databases 34 may be arranged in a wide variety of architectures and
using a wide variety of data access and manipulation means. For
example, in various embodiments one or more databases 34 may
comprise a relational database system using a structured query
language (SQL), while others may comprise an alternative data
storage technology such as those referred to in the art as "NoSQL"
(for example, HADOOP CASSANDRA.TM., GOOGLE BIGTABLE.TM., and so
forth). In some embodiments, variant database architectures such as
column-oriented databases, in-memory databases, clustered
databases, distributed databases, or even flat file data
repositories may be used according to the invention. It will be
appreciated by one having ordinary skill in the art that any
combination of known or future database technologies may be used as
appropriate, unless a specific database technology or a specific
arrangement of components is specified for a particular embodiment
herein. Moreover, it should be appreciated that the term "database"
as used herein may refer to a physical database machine, a cluster
of machines acting as a single database system, or a logical
database within an overall database management system. Unless a
specific meaning is specified for a given use of the term
"database", it should be construed to mean any of these senses of
the word, all of which are understood as a plain meaning of the
term "database" by those having ordinary skill in the art.
[0055] Similarly, most embodiments of the invention may make use of
one or more security systems 36 and configuration systems 35.
Security and configuration management are common information
technology (IT) and web functions, and some amount of each are
generally associated with any IT or web systems. It should be
understood by one having ordinary skill in the art that any
configuration or security subsystems known in the art now or in the
future may be used in conjunction with embodiments of the invention
without limitation, unless a specific security 36 or configuration
system 35 or approach is specifically required by the description
of any specific embodiment.
[0056] FIG. 13 shows an exemplary overview of a computer system 40
as may be used in any of the various locations throughout the
system. It is exemplary of any computer that may execute code to
process data. Various modifications and changes may be made to
computer system 40 without departing from the broader scope of the
system and method disclosed herein. Central processor unit (CPU) 41
is connected to bus 42, to which bus is also connected memory 43,
nonvolatile memory 44, display 47, input/output (I/O) unit 48, and
network interface card (NIC) 53. I/O unit 48 may, typically, be
connected to keyboard 49, pointing device 50, hard disk 52, and
real-time clock 51. NIC 53 connects to network 54, which may be the
Internet or a local network, which local network may or may not
have connections to the Internet. Also shown as part of system 40
is power supply unit 45 connected, in this example, to a main
alternating current (AC) supply 46. Not shown are batteries that
could be present, and many other devices and modifications that are
well known but are not applicable to the specific novel functions
of the current system and method disclosed herein. It should be
appreciated that some or all components illustrated may be
combined, such as in various integrated applications, for example
Qualcomm or Samsung system-on-a-chip (SOC) devices, or whenever it
may be appropriate to combine multiple capabilities or functions
into a single hardware device (for instance, in mobile devices such
as smartphones, video game consoles, in-vehicle computer systems
such as navigation or multimedia systems in automobiles, or other
integrated hardware devices).
[0057] In various embodiments, functionality for implementing
systems or methods of the present invention may be distributed
among any number of client and/or server components. For example,
various software modules may be implemented for performing various
functions in connection with the present invention, and such
modules may be variously implemented to run on server and/or client
components.
[0058] The skilled person will be aware of a range of possible
modifications of the various embodiments described above.
Accordingly, the present invention is defined by the claims and
their equivalents.
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