Integration Of Videoconferencing With Interactive Electronic Whiteboard Appliances
Patent No. US10904487 (titled "Integration Of Videoconferencing With Interactive Electronic Whiteboard Appliances") was filed by Hiroshi Kitada on Jul 10, 2019.
What is this patent about?
’487 is related to the field of interactive whiteboard technology, specifically addressing the problem of integrating videoconferencing capabilities with interactive whiteboard applications. Traditionally, using both functionalities simultaneously on a single device has been cumbersome, requiring users to switch between separate applications or windows. The patent aims to provide a more seamless and user-friendly experience by allowing both whiteboard and videoconferencing sessions to run concurrently.
The underlying idea behind ’487 is to implement an application manager that intelligently handles the display and interaction between an interactive whiteboard application and a videoconferencing client. This manager ensures that a videoconferencing window can be overlaid on top of the whiteboard session, and provides a menu for users to easily switch between the two. The key insight is to treat the videoconference as an overlay, rather than a separate application, allowing for a more integrated experience.
The claims of ’487 focus on a whiteboard device (or a method or medium for operating such a device) that displays an interactive whiteboard session window with a selection menu overlaid on it. This menu allows the user to start a video conference. Upon receiving the instruction to start the video conference, a videoconference window is overlaid on the interactive whiteboard session window . This overlay functionality is the core of the independent claims.
In practice, the invention works by having an application manager monitor user input and manage the display of both the whiteboard and videoconferencing applications. When a user selects the 'Start Videoconferencing Session' option from the menu, the application manager launches the videoconferencing client and ensures its window is displayed on top of the whiteboard. The user can then interact with the videoconference while still having the whiteboard session visible in the background.
This approach differs from prior solutions by providing a more integrated experience. Instead of requiring users to manually switch between applications or resize windows, the application manager automatically handles the display and interaction between the whiteboard and videoconferencing sessions. This streamlines the workflow and makes it easier for users to collaborate and share information in real-time. The use of an overlay and a dedicated application manager are key differentiators.
How does this patent fit in bigger picture?
Technical landscape at the time
In the mid-2010s when ’487 was filed, interactive whiteboard systems were at a time when videoconferencing was typically implemented using dedicated hardware or software clients, when systems commonly relied on separate applications for whiteboard functionality and video communication rather than integrated solutions, and when hardware or software constraints made seamless switching between applications non-trivial.
Novelty and Inventive Step
Claims were amended during prosecution. Claim 15 was rejected under 35 U.S.C. 112. Claims 2-14 and 16-21 were allowed. The prosecution record describes the examiner's reasoning for allowance, citing prior art that teaches whiteboard displays and video conferencing but fails to teach a whiteboard session window with an overlaid menu to enable selection to start videoconferencing and then overlaying the videoconference window on the interactive whiteboard session window.
Claims
This patent contains 20 claims, with claims 1, 8, and 15 being independent. The independent claims are generally directed to a whiteboard device, computer-readable media, and a computer-implemented method, respectively, all relating to overlaying a video conference window on an interactive whiteboard session window. The dependent claims generally elaborate on the features and functionalities described in the independent claims, such as displaying content from a participant's device, displaying a second selection menu, maintaining the videoconference window on top, moving the whiteboard window on top after termination, sharing the whiteboard session, and updating the selection menu.
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Date
Description
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US10904487
- Application Number
- US16507952
- Filing Date
- Jul 10, 2019
- Status
- Granted
- Expiry Date
- May 9, 2035
- External Links
- Slate, USPTO, Google Patents