Alternating communication over two different communication networks

Abstract

Examples illustrate a method of alternating communication between at least four communication terminals. Other examples also illustrate a terminal adapted for connection to a communication accessory and a communication accessory adapted for connection to two terminals on two different communication networks. Figure from the abstract: [Fig. 5]

Description

Title of the invention: Alternating communication on two different communication networks Technical field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to the field of push-to-talk (PTT) communications. Prior art

[0002] Push-to-talk or press-to-transmit communications are bidirectional (non-simultaneous) communications based on the user pressing a physical or virtual button to switch from a receive mode to a transmit mode and vice versa. These communications use half-duplex communication channels.

[0003] Alternate communications are widely used, particularly by emergency services or law enforcement agencies as part of their operations.

[0004] These communications can be improved. Summary

[0005] In this regard, a method of alternate communication between at least four communication terminals is proposed; at least one first terminal and one second communication terminal being adapted to exchange data streams between them, corresponding to alternate communications, on a first communication network using the internet protocol; at least one third terminal and one fourth communication terminal being adapted to exchange data streams between them, corresponding to alternate communications, on a second communication network using a protocol different from the internet protocol; the second terminal and the third terminal being furthermore connected to the same communication accessory; the method comprising: - a transmission, by the fourth terminal, to the third terminal, of a data stream of an alternating communication, on a specific alternating broadcast channel of the second network; - a transmission, by the third terminal, to the accessory, of an audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the alternate communication; - a transmission, by the accessory, to the second terminal, of a signal indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the alternate broadcast channel specific to the second network; - an identification, by the second terminal, of a specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network associated with the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, based on the identifier of this channel; - a transmission, by the accessory, to the second terminal, of the audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the alternate communication; - a transmission, by the second terminal, to the first terminal, of a data stream of an alternating communication corresponding to the audio signal received from the accessory, on the specific alternating transmission channel of the first network.

[0006] Optionally, the accessory comprises a microphone and a loudspeaker, and prior to the transmission, by the accessory, to the second terminal, of the audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the half-duplex communication, the method further comprises: - a conversion of the audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the communication to the alternation into a sound signal broadcast by the loudspeaker of the accessory; then - a conversion of the sound signal broadcast by the speaker and picked up by the accessory's microphone into an audio signal.

[0007] Optionally, the identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network corresponds to a frequency of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel.

[0008] Optionally, the identification, by the second terminal, of the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network associated with the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, comprises: - a selection of a specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network associated with the identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network in a pre-established correspondence table

[0009] The present disclosure further relates to another method of alternate communication between at least four communication terminals; at least one first terminal and one second communication terminal being configured to exchange data streams between them, corresponding to alternate communications, on a first communication network using the internet protocol; at least one third terminal and one fourth communication terminal being configured to exchange data streams between them, corresponding to alternate communications, on a second communications network using a protocol different from the Internet protocol; the second terminal and the third terminal being furthermore connected to the same communication accessory; the method comprising: - a transmission, by the first terminal, to the second terminal, of a data stream of an alternating communication on a specific alternating transmission channel of the first network; - an identification, by the second terminal, of a specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network associated with the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network; - a transmission, by the second terminal, to the accessory, of a signal indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network; - a transmission, by the second terminal, to the accessory, of an audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the alternate communication; - a transmission, by the accessory, to the third terminal, of a signal indicating the start of data transmission on the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network; - a transmission, by the accessory, to the third terminal, of the audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the alternate communication; and - a transmission, by the third terminal, to the fourth terminal, of a data stream of an alternating communication corresponding to the audio signal received from the accessory, on the specific alternating broadcast channel of the second network.

[0010] The present disclosure further relates to an alternating communication terminal adapted to be connected to a communication accessory.

[0011] In first examples, the terminal is configured to perform first operations comprising:

[0012] after receiving a data transmission start signal, from the accessory, indicating a start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of a specific half-duplex broadcast channel of a second network; - identify a specific half-duplex transmission channel of a first network associated with the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, from the broadcast channel identifier;

[0013]

[0014]

[0015]

[0016]

[0017]

[0018] and after receiving an audio signal, from the accessory, corresponding to an alternating communication transmitted on the second network: - send a data stream on the transmission channel to the specific alternation of the first identified network, the data stream corresponding to the audio signal received from the accessory. Optionally, the first operations may further include at least one of the following operations: - select a specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network associated with the identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network in a pre-established correspondence table; - send a signal indicating the start of transmission on the transmission channel at the specific alternation of the first determined network; or - send a signal indicating an end of transmission on the specific half-duplex transmission channel, when the audio signal of the half-duplex communication is finished; In second examples, the terminal is configured to perform second operations including: after receiving a data stream of an alternating communication on a specific transmission channel of a first network: - identify a specific alternate broadcast channel of the second network associated with the specific alternate transmission channel of the first network; - send, to the accessory, a signal indicating the start of data transmission and including an identifier of the broadcast channel to the specific alternation of the second network; and send, to the accessory, an audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the half-duplex communication received on the specific transmission channel of the first network. Optionally, the second operations may further include the following operation: - select a specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network associated with the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network in a pre-established correspondence table. Optionally, the terminal is configured to perform the first and second operations. The present disclosure also relates to a communication accessory adapted to be connected to a communication terminal of a first communication network and to a communication terminal of a second communication network, the communication terminal of the first network being configured to exchange data flow, corresponding to alternate communications, on a first communication network using the Internet protocol.

[0019] In first examples, the accessory is configured to perform the following operation:

[0020] after receiving an audio signal corresponding to a data stream of an alternating communication transmitted on a specific broadcast channel of the second network, from the communication terminal of the second network: send, to the communication terminal of the first network, a signal indicating the start of data transmission and including an identifier of the broadcast channel specific to the second network.

[0021] In second examples, the accessory is configured to perform the following operation:

[0022] after receiving a signal indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, from the communication terminal of the first network: send, to the communication terminal of the second network, a signal indicating the start of data transmission and including an identifier of the alternate broadcast channel specific to the second network.

[0023] Optionally, the accessory is configured to perform the following operation:

[0024] after receiving an audio signal corresponding to a data stream of an alternating communication transmitted on a specific broadcast channel of the second network, from the communication terminal of the second network: sending, to the communication terminal of the first network, a signal indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the broadcast channel specific to the second network; and the accessory is configured to also perform the following operation:

[0025] after receiving a signal indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, from the communication terminal of the first network: send, to the communication terminal of the second network, a signal indicating the start of data transmission and including an identifier of the alternate broadcast channel specific to the second network.

[0026] The application further relates to a computer program product comprising instructions for implementing any of the methods presented by the present disclosure when this program is executed by at least one processor.

[0027] Finally, the application relates to a non-transitory recording medium readable by a computer on which is recorded a program for implementing any of the methods presented by the present disclosure when this program is executed by at least one processor.

[0028] The present disclosure, according to its various embodiments, thus allows two groups of alternate communication terminals, belonging to different communication networks, to communicate together, so that from the point of view of the users of the terminals of the two communication groups, a single communication group exists. In particular, the electronic and network architectures of the terminals have not been modified to allow the implementation of this solution. The configurations of a terminal and of a communication accessory of the communication system 1 can be modified and suffice to allow this operation, so that the proposed solution is inexpensive and not very complex to implement. In particular, existing terminals can be used without it being necessary to adapt them, either structurally or functionally. Brief description of the drawings

[0029] Other characteristics, details and advantages will appear on reading the detailed description below, and on analyzing the attached drawings, in which:

[0030] [Fig.l] schematically represents an example of a communication system.

[0031] [Fig.2] schematically represents an example of an accessory according to the present di popularization.

[0032] [Fig.3] schematically represents an example of a terminal according to the present di popularization.

[0033] [Fig.4] schematically represents an example of a communication method at the alternation between at least four communication terminals.

[0034] [Fig.5] schematically represents a communication diagram of the example of a method of alternate communication between at least four communication terminals illustrated in [Fig.4].

[0035] [Fig.6] schematically represents another example of a communication method to alternate between at least four communication terminals.

[0036] [Fig.7] schematically represents a communication diagram of the example of a method of alternate communication between at least four communication terminals illustrated in [Fig.6]. Description of the embodiments

[0037] An example of a communication system 1 is now described with reference to [Fig. 1] in which a method of alternate communication, a first example of which is described with reference to [Fig. 4] and a second example of which is described with reference to [Fig. 6], can be implemented. The system 1 allows the exchange of data streams, corresponding to alternate communications, between communication terminals using in particular a communication accessory.

[0038] By "communication terminal" or "terminal", the present disclosure refers to a communication device configured to communicate with other communication terminals over a communication network. A "half-duplex communication terminal" therefore refers to a communication terminal configured to implement half-duplex communications.

[0039] A communication terminal may, for example, correspond to a computer, a telephone, a walkie-talkie. A communication terminal may thus correspond to a fixed device, such as a desktop computer, or to a mobile device, such as a cell phone.

[0040] By "communication network" or "network", the present disclosure means an interconnected system allowing the exchange of data between different devices belonging to the network.

[0041] By "data stream", or "stream", the present disclosure designates at least two successive data packets.

[0042] By "alternate communication", the present application designates non-simultaneous bidirectional communications based on the actuation of a physical or virtual button by a user, or an equivalent computer command, to switch from a reception mode to a transmission mode. These alternate communications, more generally known under the English name Push-To-Talk or Press-to-transmit (hereinafter PTT) use half-duplex communication channels. These half-duplex communication channels are called alternate transmission channels, alternate broadcast channels or alternate communication channels.In particular, in the present disclosure, reference will be made to an alternate transmission channel when it is a communication channel using a first communication network while reference will be made to an alternate broadcast channel when it is a communication channel using a second communication network. The first and second communication networks will be detailed in the following.

[0043] It was noted by the inventors that operational personnel who had to use alternate communication channels to communicate and coordinate did not always have access to communication terminals allowing them to communicate on the network on which the alternate communication channels are open. Thus, an operational personnel in question may have access to a specific terminal allowing them to communicate on a first communication network, while the communication channel on which they wish to communicate is open on a second communication network, different from the first. Consequently, the operational personnel's specific communication terminal does not allow them to communicate on this communication channel.

[0044] The system 1 according to the present disclosure provides a solution to this problem. blematic by creating a communication gateway between two half-duplex communication channels belonging to two different communications networks. In this way, a user of a communication terminal communicating on a communication channel open on a first communication network, also communicates on a communication channel open on a second communication network. As detailed below, the system 1 proposes to use a communication accessory, connected both to a communication terminal of the first network, and to a communication terminal of the second network, to transmit half-duplex communications from one network to the other. The accessory acts as a relay between the two communication channels and also transfers various signals relating to speech management between the participating communication terminals of the two communication channels.

[0045] The system 1 comprises at least four communication terminals, referenced 10a to 10d in [Fig.l].

[0046] Among these at least four communication terminals, at least one first terminal 10a and one second terminal 10b are configured to exchange data streams with each other, corresponding to alternate communications, on a first network using the Internet protocol. The Internet protocol is notably defined in the RFC 791 standard. A network using the Internet protocol is generally referred to as an “IP network”, well known to those skilled in the art. The at least one first terminal 10a and one second terminal 10b form a first group of communication terminals configured to exchange alternate communications with each other on the first network.

[0047] Among these at least four communication terminals, at least a third terminal 10c and a fourth terminal 10d are configured to exchange data streams with each other, corresponding to alternate communications, on a second network using a protocol different from the internet protocol. In examples, the second network may correspond to a network using a radio protocol. The radio protocol may for example correspond to a digital mobile radio protocol, generally designated by the English terminology “Digital Mobile Radio” (DMR). The digital mobile radio protocol is notably defined in the standard TS 102 361 of the ETSI (European Telecommunications Standards Institute), in particular in parts 1 to 4. In the same way as for the internet protocol, the mobile radio protocol (DMR) is well known to those skilled in the art.The at least one third terminal 10c and a fourth terminal 10d form a second group of communication terminals configured to exchange alternate communications between them on the second network, distinct from the first.

[0048] Thus, the communication system 1 presented comprises at least four terminals, broken down into two groups of terminals, each including at least two different terminals. Each of the groups of terminals is configured to exchange data streams, corresponding to half-duplex communications, on a respective network. In the example of [Fig.l], each of the groups of communication terminals includes two terminals, but it is understood that each of these groups can include more.

[0049] The communication system 1 further comprises a communication accessory 20. The communication accessory 20 is connected, on the one hand to a terminal adapted to exchange data streams on the first network, and on the other hand to another terminal adapted to exchange data streams on the second network. In the example of [Fig.l], the communication accessory 20 is connected both to the second terminal 10b and to the third terminal 10c.

[0050] A communication accessory designates, in the present application, a device distinct from the communication terminals and adapted to exchange audio signals, analog or digital, with at least one communication terminal to which it is connected.

[0051] Therefore, a shared communication protocol is established between a specific terminal and the communication accessory 20 when the specific terminal and the communication accessory 20 are connected.

[0052] The communication accessory 20 can also be adapted for: 1. convert an audio signal into an analog or digital audio signal; and 2. convert an analog or digital audio signal into a sound signal.

[0053] In examples, a communication accessory 20 may, for example, correspond to a combination of a remote microphone and speaker. Visually, the communication accessory may resemble a “pear-type speaker microphone,” i.e., a small, lightweight box generally worn at the user’s chest or shoulder and connected by a cable to a terminal that is generally bulkier, heavier, and worn on the belt.

[0054] In examples, the communication accessory 20 may include a microphone 21 adapted to convert a sound signal into an analog or digital audio signal.

[0055] In examples, the accessory 20 may include a speaker 22 adapted to convert an analog or digital audio signal into a sound signal.

[0056] In examples, the communication accessory 20 may comprise a connection interface 23 allowing it to connect to at least one communication terminal 10.

[0057] In examples, the connection interface 23 may for example comprise a wireless interface configured to support a communication protocol wireless, for example a Bluetooth communication protocol, or a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) communication protocol. Bluetooth and Bluetooth Low Energy communication protocols are notably defined in the IEEE 802.15.4 standard.

[0058] In examples, the connection interface 23 may for example comprise a wired interface configured to support a wired communication protocol, for example a universal serial bus communication protocol, generally referred to as the USB protocol.

[0059] An example of an accessory comprising a microphone 21, a loudspeaker 22 and a connection interface 23 is shown schematically in [Fig.2].

[0060] In the examples shown in [Fig.l] in which the accessory 20 is connected to one or more terminals, for example when it is connected to the second 10b and to the third 10c terminals, the terminal or terminals concerned may also comprise a connection interface 13 making it possible to establish a connection with the connection interface 23 of the accessory and thus connect to the accessory 20. In these examples, a shared communication protocol is implemented between the accessory 20 and a terminal 10 to which it is connected.

[0061] In examples, the connection interface 13 of a terminal may comprise a wireless interface configured to support a wireless communication protocol, for example a Bluetooth communication protocol, or a Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) communication protocol.

[0062] In examples, the connection interface 13 of a terminal may comprise a wired interface configured to support a wired communication protocol, for example a universal serial bus communication protocol.

[0063] In examples, a terminal 10, and in particular the second terminal 10b, may comprise a memory 11 configured to store a correspondence table between half-duplex transmission channels of the first network, and half-duplex broadcast channels of a second network. These examples will be detailed below.

[0064] An example of a communication terminal 10 comprising a memory 11 and a connection interface 13 is shown schematically in [Fig.3].

[0065] The system 1 described allows the communication of two groups of terminals in alternation belonging to two different networks in a simple manner, without requiring modification of the electronic architecture of the terminals, i.e. without modification of the hardware part of the terminals. More precisely, the system 1 described makes it possible to associate two communication groups in alternation belonging to two different, and a priori incompatible, networks to form a single communication group, in a transparent manner for the users while resolving the specific problems linked to the speech management of the communications in alternation. In particular, when a user of a communication terminal belonging to a communication group on a first network speaks, the users of the communication terminals belonging to the other communication group on the second network cannot speak. The transmission of the data stream to the two groups of terminals is thus reserved for the user of the first group until the end of his data transmission. This is made possible by the clever use of the communication accessory, connected both to a terminal of the first network, and to a terminal of the second network, which acts as a relay by transmitting signals indicating the start of data transmission (i.e. signals indicating the start of speaking) from one network to the other.

[0066] With reference to [Fig. 4], an example of a method 100 for alternate communication between at least four communication terminals is now presented. This is a method of communication between the communication terminals 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d of the example system 1 presented above and divided into two groups. The accessory 20 is thus connected to both the second terminal 10b and the third terminal 10c. A communication diagram representing different operations of the method 100 is also schematically illustrated in [Fig. 5] in order to facilitate understanding of the method 100 described with reference to [Fig. 4].

[0067] It should also be noted that [Fig. 4] is only an illustration of the example of the method 100 representing, by blocks, the different operations possibly included in the method and described below. As such, and unless otherwise stated, this illustration does not reflect any sequentiality between the operations. In other words, the operations described with reference to [Fig. 4] are not necessarily implemented one after the other and may be implemented in a different order from that shown in [Fig. 4]. Furthermore, an operation of the method 100 may be implemented several times before the implementation of another operation of the method 100. Thus, unless otherwise stated, the frequency of implementation of each operation of the method 100 is specific to it and is not necessarily linked to the implementation of the other operations.

[0068] As illustrated in [Fig. 3], the method 100 comprises an operation 110 of transmission, by the fourth terminal 10d, to the third terminal 10c, of a data stream of an alternating communication. This alternating communication is carried out on a specific broadcast channel of the second communication network.

[0069] As illustrated in [Fig. 3], the method 100 comprises an operation 120 of transmission, by the third terminal 10c, to the accessory 20, of an audio signal. The audio signal corresponds to the data stream of the half-duplex communication sent by the fourth terminal 10d to the third terminal 10c formatted for be able to be read by the communication accessory 20. The audio signal is sent in accordance with the connection protocol shared between the third terminal 10c and the accessory 20 for their connection.

[0070] As illustrated in [Fig. 3], the method 100 comprises an operation 130 of transmission, by the accessory 20, to the second terminal 10b, of a signal indicating a start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network. In this operation 130, the accessory 20 indicates to the second terminal 10b that there is a communication on a specific broadcast channel of the second network.

[0071] In examples, the identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network corresponds to a frequency of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel. In particular, when the second network uses a radio protocol, the identifier may correspond to a frequency of the radio protocol of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel, for example to the carrier frequency of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel.

[0072] As illustrated in [Fig. 3], the method 100 comprises an operation 140 of identification, by the second terminal 10b, of a specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network associated with the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, from the identifier of this channel. In this operation 140, the second terminal 10b makes the link between the specific broadcast channel of the second network and a corresponding specific transmission channel of the first network.

[0073] As illustrated in [Fig. 3], the method 100 comprises an operation 150 of transmission, by the accessory 20, to the second terminal 10b, of the audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the half-duplex communication transmitted on the second network. Thus, the accessory 20 transmits an audio signal corresponding to the half-duplex communication sent by the fourth terminal 10d to the third terminal 10c using the second network, to the second terminal 10b using the first network.

[0074] As illustrated in [Fig.3], the method 100 comprises an operation 160 of transmission, by the second terminal 10b, to the first terminal 10a, of a data stream of an alternating communication corresponding to the audio signal received from the accessory 20. This data stream is transmitted on the specific alternating transmission channel of the first network.

[0075] Consequently, the method 100 according to the present disclosure allows a user transmitting an alternating communication on a communication channel of a communication network other than the IP network to communicate with communication terminals connected to a corresponding communication channel of the IP network, while ensuring the management of speech between the users specific to the alternating communications. It is recalled that in alternate communications, when a terminal communicates on a specific channel, the other terminals connected to the specific channel cannot transmit.

[0076] Other operations may optionally be integrated into the method 100 and are presented in the remainder of this disclosure. Unless otherwise indicated, these operations may be integrated into the method 100 in combination with each other.

[0077] In examples, the identification operation 140, by the second terminal 10b, of the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network associated with the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, may comprise: - a selection 141 of a specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network associated with the identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network in a pre-established correspondence table.

[0078] In these examples, the second terminal 10b may have the memory 11 configured to store the correspondence table associating half-duplex transmission channels of the first network with identifiers of half-duplex broadcast channels of the second network. Thus, after receiving an identifier of a half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, the second terminal 10b can identify to which transmission channel of the first network this identifier corresponds. It will therefore be capable of transmitting the audio signal of the half-duplex communication, received from the accessory 20, on the corresponding channel of the first network.

[0079] In examples, subsequent to the identification operation 140 of the specific half-duplex transmission channel, the method may further comprise: - an operation 142 of transmission, by the second terminal 10b, of a signal indicating a start of transmission on the transmission channel at the specific alternate identified by the first network.

[0080] Operation 142 makes it possible to reserve the specific channel of the first network in transmission for the second terminal 2b. This signal, insofar as it is sent on the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network, is in particular transmitted to the first terminal 10a, as shown in [Fig.5].

[0081] In examples in which the accessory 20 comprises a microphone 21 and a loudspeaker 22, prior to the operation 150 of transmitting the audio signal from the accessory 20 to the second terminal 10b, the method 100 may further comprise: - an operation 148 of converting the audio signal corresponding to the data stream of the half-duplex communication into a sound signal broadcast by the loudspeaker of the accessory 20; then - an operation 149 of converting the sound signal broadcast by the loudspeaker 22 and picked up by the microphone 21 of the accessory 20 into an audio signal.

[0082] In these examples, the aim is to transmit the sound signal of the alternate communication broadcast first on the second network to the first network by cleverly using the accessory 20 connected to the two networks as a broadcaster of the alternate communication via its loudspeaker 22, for the user of the accessory 20, and as a recorder of the alternate communication broadcast by the loudspeaker 22 via the microphone 21 for the users of the first network.Thus, from the point of view of a user of the first terminal 10a, when a user of the fourth terminal 10d speaks on the specific broadcast channel of the second network, he hears the speech of the user of the fourth terminal 10d on the corresponding specific transmission channel of the first network, but this speech is transmitted to him via the second terminal 10b also connected to the specific transmission channel, and this in a completely transparent manner. More generally, each user of a terminal connected to the specific broadcast channel of the first network or to the specific transmission channel of the second network hears the user of the fourth terminal 10d in a transparent manner and cannot speak since each of these channels is reserved for him according to the principle of alternating communication.

[0083] In the examples comprising operations 148 and 149, prior to the conversion operation 149, and subsequent to the identification operation 140 of the transmission channel at the specific alternation, the method may further comprise the following operation: - an operation 143 of transmission, by the second terminal 10b, to the accessory, of a command to activate the microphone 21. Operation 143 makes it possible to indicate to the accessory 20 that the microphone 21 must be used to pick up and then transmit the sound on the specific transmission channel of the first network.

[0084] In examples in which the method 100 comprises the operation 142, the operation 143 is advantageously implemented after the step 142 so that a message that the microphone 21 of the accessory 20 begins to record, i.e. from the half-duplex communication transmitted on the second network and broadcast by the loudspeaker 22, can be directly transmitted on the half-duplex transmission channel specific to the first network.

[0085] In examples, the method 100 may further comprise an operation 170 of transmitting, by the second terminal 10b, a signal indicating an end of transmission on the specific half-duplex transmission channel, when the audio signal of the half-duplex communication is finished. This signal, to the extent that it is sent on the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network, is in particular transmitted to the first terminal 10a, as shown in [Fig. 5]. The operation 170 releases the specific half-duplex transmission channel to allow other users of the specific half-duplex transmission channel, including the user of the first terminal 1a in System Example 1, to speak on that channel.

[0086] Of course, the operations of the method 100 presented are designed to be executed in real time so that as soon as the user of the fourth terminal 10d speaks on the specific broadcast channel of the second network, the transmission start signal can be transmitted almost instantaneously from the accessory 20 to the second terminal 10b which can reserve the specific transmission channel of the first network for the speech of the user of the fourth terminal 10d.

[0087] With reference to [Fig. 6], another example of a method 200 for half-duplex communication between at least four communication terminals is now presented. This is a mirror method of that presented with reference to [Fig. 4], the half-duplex communication this time being transmitted from the first IP communication network to the second communication network. Consequently, this is also a method for communication between the communication terminals 10a, 10b, 10c, 10d of the example system 1 with the accessory 20 connected to both the second terminal 10b and the third terminal 10c. For the sake of brevity, the elements that were presented with reference to the method 100 of [Fig. 3], and which are reused in the method 200 of [Fig. 6] will not be redeveloped again. A communication diagram representing the various operations of the method 200 is schematically illustrated in [Fig.7] in order to facilitate the understanding of the process illustrated schematically in [Fig.6].

[0088] It should also be noted that [Fig. 6] is only an illustration of the example of the method 200 representing, by blocks, the different operations possibly included in the method and described in the remainder of the document. As such, this illustration does not reflect any sequentiality between the operations except when such sequentiality is expressly explained by the present disclosure. In other words, the operations described with reference to [Fig. 6] are not necessarily implemented one after the other and may be implemented in a different order from that shown in [Fig. 6]. Furthermore, an operation of the method 200 may be implemented several times before the implementation of another operation of the method 200. Thus, unless otherwise indicated, the frequency of implementation of each operation of the method 200 is specific to it and is not necessarily linked to the implementation of the other operations.

[0089] As illustrated in [Fig.6], the method 200 comprises an operation 210 of transmission, by the first terminal 10a, to the second terminal 10b, of a data stream of an alternating communication on a transmission channel at the specific alternation of the first network.

[0090] As illustrated in [Fig.6], the method 200 comprises an operation 220 of identification, by the second terminal 10b, of a specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network associated with the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network. The second terminal 2b knows on which specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network the half-duplex communication from the first terminal 10a is transmitted. Consequently, it is capable, for example from a pre-established correspondence table, examples of which have already been presented above, of identifying the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network corresponding to the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the first network.

[0091] As illustrated in [Fig.6], the method 200 comprises an operation 230 of transmission, by the second terminal 10b, to the accessory 20, of a signal indicating a start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the broadcast channel for the specific alternation of the second network. In this way, the accessory 20 can reserve the broadcast channel for the specific alternation in transmission.

[0092] As illustrated in [Fig.6], the method 200 comprises an operation 240 of transmission, by the second terminal 10b, to the accessory 20, of an audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the half-duplex communication received from the first terminal 10a.

[0093] As illustrated in [Fig.6], the method 200 comprises an operation 250 of transmission, by the accessory 20, to the third terminal 10c, of a signal indicating a start of data transmission on the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network. This operation makes it possible to indicate to the third terminal 10c that there will be a data stream of an audio signal, corresponding to half-duplex communication, to be transmitted on the specific half-duplex communication channel of the second network so that the third terminal 10c can reserve this transmission channel for the future transmission of this signal.

[0094] As illustrated in [Fig.6], the method 200 comprises an operation 260 of transmission, by the accessory 20, to the third terminal 10c, of the audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the half-duplex communication transmitted on the first network. Thus, the accessory 20 transmits an audio signal corresponding to the half-duplex communication sent by the first terminal 10a to the second terminal 10b using the first network, to the third terminal 10c using the second network.

[0095] As illustrated in [Fig.7], the method 200 comprises an operation 270 of transmission, by the third terminal 10c, to the fourth terminal 10d, of a data stream of an alternating communication corresponding to the audio signal received from the accessory 20, on the alternating broadcast channel specific to the second network.

[0096] Consequently, the method 200 according to the present disclosure allows a user transmitting an alternating communication on a communication channel of an IP network to communicate with communication terminals connected to a corresponding communication channel belonging to a network different from the IP network, while ensuring the management of speech between the users specific to the alternating communications.

[0097] Other operations may optionally be integrated into the method 200 and are presented in the remainder of this disclosure. Unless otherwise indicated, these operations may be integrated into the method 200 in combination with each other.

[0098] In examples, the identification operation 220, by the second terminal 10b, of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network associated with the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network, may comprise: - a selection 221 of a specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network associated with the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network in a pre-established correspondence table.

[0099] In these examples, the second terminal 10b may have the memory 11 configured to store a correspondence table associating half-duplex transmission channels of the first network with half-duplex broadcast channels of the second network. Thus, upon receiving a data stream on a half-duplex transmission channel of the first network, the second terminal 10b may identify to which broadcast channel of the second network this data stream must be transmitted. The second terminal 10b will therefore be capable of transmitting to the accessory 20 a start of transmission signal associated with an identifier of the half-duplex broadcast channel specific to the second network.

[0100] In examples, the method 200 may comprise an operation 252 of transmitting, by the third terminal 10c, a signal indicating a start of data transmission on the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network. The operation 252 makes it possible to reserve the specific channel of the second network for transmission for the third terminal 2b. This signal, insofar as it is sent on the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, is in particular transmitted to the fourth terminal 10d, as shown in [Fig.7].

[0101] In examples in which the accessory 20 comprises a microphone 21 and a loudspeaker 22, prior to the operation 260 of transmitting the audio signal from the accessory 20 to the third terminal 10c, the method 200 may further comprise: - an operation 258 of converting the audio signal corresponding to the data stream of the half-duplex communication into a sound signal broadcast by the loudspeaker speaker of accessory 20; then - an operation 259 of converting the sound signal broadcast by the loudspeaker 22 and picked up by the microphone 21 of the accessory 20 into an audio signal.

[0102] In these examples, the aim is to transmit the sound signal of the alternate communication broadcast first on the first network to the second network using the accessory 20 connected to the two networks as a broadcaster of the alternate communication via its loudspeaker 22, for the user of the accessory 20, and as a recorder of the alternate communication broadcast by the loudspeaker 22 via the microphone 21 for the users of the second network.

[0103] In the examples comprising operations 258 and 259, prior to conversion operation 259, and subsequent to transmission operation 250, by the accessory 20, to the third terminal 10c, of a signal indicating the start of data transmission, the method may further comprise: - an operation 253 of transmission, by the third terminal 10c, to the accessory 20, of a command to activate the microphone 21.

[0104] Operation 253 makes it possible to indicate to the accessory 20 that the microphone 21 must be used to capture and then transmit the sound that it records on the specific broadcast channel of the second network.

[0105] In examples in which the method 200 comprises the operation 252, the operation 253 is advantageously implemented after the step 252 so that a message that the microphone 21 of the accessory 20 begins to record, i.e. from the half-duplex communication transmitted on the first network and broadcast by the loudspeaker 22, can be directly transmitted on the half-duplex broadcast channel specific to the second network.

[0106] In examples, the method 200 may further comprise a transmission operation 280, from the third terminal 10c, of a signal indicating an end of transmission on the specific half-duplex broadcast channel, when the audio signal of the half-duplex communication is finished. This signal, to the extent that it is sent on the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, is notably transmitted to the fourth terminal 10d, as shown in [Fig.7]. The operation 280 therefore makes it possible to release the specific half-duplex broadcast channel to allow other users of the channel, notably the user of the fourth terminal 10d in the example system 1, to speak on this channel.

[0107] Just as for the method 100, the operations of the method 200 presented are designed to be executed in real time so that as soon as the user of the first terminal 10a speaks on the specific transmission channel, the transmission start signal can be almost instantly transmitted from the accessory 20 to the third terminal 10c which can reserve the specific broadcast channel of the second network. for the speech of the user of the first terminal 10a.

[0108] The present disclosure further relates to a half-duplex communication terminal 10 adapted to be connected to a communication accessory 20. The half-duplex communication terminal which will be described below corresponds to the second terminal 10b, in the methods 100 and 200 presented above. Consequently, the operations carried out by the terminal 10 presented below will have the same references as the corresponding operations presented with reference to the methods 100 and 200 of FIGS. 3 and 6.

[0109] The half-duplex communication terminal 10 may comprise the memory 11 configured to store a correspondence table between half-duplex transmission channels of the first network using the Internet protocol, and half-duplex broadcast channels of a second network using a protocol different from the Internet protocol.

[0110] In first examples, the terminal 10 can be configured to perform the following first operations:

[0111] after receiving a signal, from the accessory 20, indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of a specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network: - determining 140 a specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network associated with the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, from the broadcast channel identifier; and after receiving an audio signal, from the accessory 20, corresponding to an alternating communication transmitted on the second network; - sending 160 a data stream of a half-duplex communication on the half-duplex transmission channel specific to the first determined network, the data stream of the half-duplex communication corresponding to the audio signal received from the accessory.

[0112] In the first examples, the terminal 10 may also be configured to perform at least one of the following first operations: - select 141 a specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network associated with the identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network in a pre-established correspondence table; - send 142 a signal indicating the start of transmission on the transmission channel to the specific alternation of the first determined network; - send 143 to the accessory 20, a recording command from the microphone 21 of the accessory 20; or - send 170 a signal indicating an end of transmission on the specific half-duplex transmission channel, when the audio signal of the half-duplex communication is finished.

[0113] It is understood that the first examples correspond to the operations carried out by the terminal 10 within the framework of the method 100.

[0114] In second examples, possibly combinable with the first examples, the terminal 10 can be configured to perform the following second operations:

[0115] after receiving a data stream of an alternating communication on a specific transmission channel of the first network: - determining 220 a specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network associated with the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network; - send 230 to the accessory 20, a signal indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network; and - send 240 to the accessory 20, an audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the alternate communication received on the specific transmission channel of the first network.

[0116] In the second examples, the terminal 10 may also be configured to perform the following second operation: - select 221 a specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network associated with the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network in a pre-established correspondence table.

[0117] It is understood that the second examples correspond to the operations carried out by the terminal 10 within the framework of the method 200.

[0118] To the extent that the second examples are possibly combinable with the first examples, the terminal 10 can therefore implement operations presented only in the first examples, operations presented only in the second examples, or operations presented in both the first and second examples.

[0119] The particular configuration of the terminal 10 according to the present disclosure therefore makes it possible to exchange alternate communications between two communication networks using different protocols.

[0120] The present disclosure further relates to a communication accessory 20, adapted to be connected to a communication terminal of a first communication network and to a communication terminal of a second communication network, the communication terminal of the first network being configured to exchange data streams, corresponding to alternate communications, on the first network using the internet protocol; the communication terminal of the second network being configured to exchange data flow, corresponding to alternate communications, on the second network using a protocol different from the Internet protocol.

[0121] The communication accessory 20 that will be described below corresponds to the communication accessory 20 used in the methods 100 and 200 presented above. Therefore, the operations performed by the accessory 20 presented below will have the same references as the corresponding operations presented with reference to the methods 100 and 200 of FIGS. 3 and 6. It should also be noted that the communication terminal of the first network discussed in connection with the accessory 20 presented below corresponds to the second terminal 10b of the methods 100 and 200 while the communication terminal of the second network discussed below in connection with the accessory corresponds to the third terminal 10c of the methods 100 and 200.The terminologies "first terminal" and "second terminal" have not been reused to avoid confusion with the first terminal 10a and the second terminal 10b forming part of the communication system of [Fig. 1]. However, such terminologies could have been used instead of "communication terminal of a first network" and "communication terminal of a second network".

[0122] In first examples, the accessory 20 can be configured to perform the following operation:

[0123] after receiving an audio signal corresponding to a data stream of an alternating communication transmitted on a specific broadcast channel of the second network, from the communication terminal of the second network: - send 130, to the communication terminal of the first network, a signal indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network.

[0124] In first examples, the accessory 20 can also be configured to perform the following operation: - send 150, to the communication terminal of the first network, an audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the alternate communication received from the communication terminal of the second network;

[0125] In second examples, possibly combinable with the first examples, the accessory 20 can be configured to perform the following operation:

[0126] after receiving a signal indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, from the communication terminal of the first network: - send 250, to the communication terminal of the second network, a signal indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network.

[0127] In second examples, the accessory 20 may also be configured to perform the following operation:

[0128] after receiving an audio signal of an alternating communication transmitted on a specific transmission channel of the first network, from the communication terminal of the first network: - send 260, to the communication terminal of the second network, an audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the alternate communication received from the communication terminal of the first network.

[0129] To the extent that the second examples are possibly combinable with the first examples, the accessory 20 can therefore implement operations presented only in the first examples, operations presented only in the second examples, or operations presented in both the first and second examples.

[0130] The particular configuration of the accessory 20 according to the present disclosure therefore makes it possible to exchange alternate communications between two communication networks using different protocols.

[0131] The present disclosure, according to its various embodiments, thus allows two groups of alternate communication terminals, belonging to different communication networks, to communicate together, so that from the point of view of the users of the terminals of the two communication groups, a single communication group exists. In particular, the electronic and network architectures of the terminals have not been modified to allow the implementation of this solution. The configurations of a terminal and of a communication accessory of the communication system 1 can be modified and suffice to allow this operation, so that the proposed solution is inexpensive and not very complex to implement. In particular, existing terminals can be used without it being necessary to adapt them, either structurally or functionally.

Claims

1. Claims Method (100) for alternate communication between at least four communication terminals; at least one first communication terminal (10a) and one second communication terminal (10b) being adapted to exchange between them data streams, corresponding to alternate communications, on a first communication network using the internet protocol; at least one third communication terminal (10c) and one fourth communication terminal (10d) being adapted to exchange between them data streams, corresponding to alternate communications, on a second communication network using a protocol different from the internet protocol; the second terminal (10b) and the third terminal (10c) being furthermore connected to the same communication accessory (20); the method comprising: - a transmission (110), by the fourth terminal (10d), to the third terminal (10c), of a data stream of an alternating communication, on a specific alternating broadcast channel of the second network; - a transmission (120), by the third terminal (10c), to the accessory (20), of an audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the alternate communication; - a transmission (130), by the accessory (20), to the second terminal (10b), of a signal indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network; - an identification (140), by the second terminal (10b), of a specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network associated with the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, from the identifier of this channel; - a transmission (150), by the accessory (20), to the second terminal (10b), of the audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the alternate communication; - a transmission (160), by the second terminal (10b), to the first terminal (10a), of a data stream of an alternating communication corresponding to the audio signal received from the accessory (20), on the alternating transmission channel specific to the first network.

2. Method (100) according to the preceding claim, wherein the accessory (20) comprises a microphone (21) and a loudspeaker (22), and wherein, prior to the transmission (150), by the accessory (20), to the second terminal (10b), of the audio signal corresponding to the data stream of the half-duplex communication, the method further comprises: - a conversion (148) of the audio signal corresponding to the data stream of the half-duplex communication into a sound signal broadcast by the loudspeaker (22) of the accessory (20); then - a conversion (149) of the sound signal broadcast by the loudspeaker (22) and picked up by the microphone (21) of the accessory (20) into an audio signal.

3. The method (100) of any preceding claim, wherein the identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network corresponds to a frequency of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel.

4. Method (100) according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the identification, by the second terminal (10b), of the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network associated with the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, comprises: - a selection (141) of the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network associated with the identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network in a pre-established correspondence table.

5. Method (200) for alternate communication between at least four communication terminals; at least a first terminal (10a) and a second terminal (10b) of communication being adapted to exchange between them data flows, corresponding to alternate communications, on a first communication network using the internet protocol; at least a third terminal (10c) and a fourth terminal (10d) of communication being adapted to exchange between them data flows data, corresponding to alternate communications, on a second communications network using a protocol different from the Internet protocol; the second terminal (10b) and the third terminal (10c) being furthermore connected to the same communication accessory (20); the method (200) comprising: - a transmission (210), by the first terminal (10a), to the second terminal (10b), of a data stream of an alternating communication on a specific alternating transmission channel of the first network; - an identification (220), by the second terminal (10b), of a specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network associated with the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network; - a transmission (230), by the second terminal (10b), to the accessory (20), of a signal indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network; - a transmission (240), by the second terminal (10b), to the accessory (20), of an audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the alternate communication; - a transmission (250), by the accessory (20), to the third terminal (10c), of a signal indicating the start of data transmission on the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network; - a transmission, by the accessory (20), to the third terminal (10c), of the audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the alternate communication; and - a transmission, by the third terminal (10c), to the fourth terminal (10d), of a data stream of an alternating communication corresponding to the audio signal received from the accessory (20), on the specific alternating broadcast channel of the second network.

6. Alternating communication terminal (10) adapted to be connected to a communication accessory (20); the terminal (10) being configured to carry out first operations including: after receiving a data transmission start signal from the accessory indicating a start of data transmission and including an identifier of a specific half-duplex broadcast channel of a second network; - identifying (140) a specific half-duplex transmission channel of a first network associated with the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, from the broadcast channel identifier; and after receiving an audio signal, from the accessory (20), corresponding to an alternating communication transmitted on the second network: - sending (160) a data stream on the transmission channel to the specific alternation of the first identified network, the data stream corresponding to the audio signal received from the accessory; Or the terminal being configured to perform second operations including: after receiving a data stream of an alternating communication on a specific transmission channel of a first network: - identifying (220) a specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network associated with the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network; - sending (230), to the accessory, a signal indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network; and - sending (240), to the accessory, an audio signal corresponding to the data flow of the alternate communication received on the specific transmission channel of the first network.

7. Terminal (10) according to the preceding claim, wherein: the first operations further comprise at least one of

8.

9. following operations: - selecting (141) the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network associated with the identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network in a pre-established correspondence table; - sending (142) a signal indicating a start of transmission on the transmission channel to the specific alternation of the first determined network; or - sending (143) a signal indicating an end of transmission on the specific half-duplex transmission channel, when the audio signal of the half-duplex communication is finished; or the second operations further include: - selecting (221) the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network associated with the specific half-duplex transmission channel of the first network in a pre-established correspondence table. Terminal (10) according to any one of claims 6 to 7, wherein the terminal is configured to perform the first and second operations. Communication accessory (20) adapted to be connected to a communication terminal of a first communication network and to a communication terminal of a second communication network, the communication terminal of the first network being configured to exchange data streams, corresponding to alternate communications, on a first communication network using the internet protocol; the communication terminal of the second network being configured to exchange data streams, corresponding to alternate communications, on a second communication network using a protocol different from the internet protocol; the accessory (20) being configured to perform the following operation: after receiving an audio signal corresponding to a data stream of an alternating communication transmitted on a broadcast channel specific to the second network, coming from the communication terminal of the second network: - sending (130), to the communication terminal of the first network, a signal indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network; or the accessory being configured to perform the following operation: after receiving a signal indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, from the communication terminal of the first network: - sending (250), to the communication terminal of the second network, a signal indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the alternate broadcast channel specific to the second network.

10. Communication accessory according to the preceding claim, wherein the accessory is configured to perform the following operation: after receiving the audio signal corresponding to a data stream of an alternating communication transmitted on the specific broadcast channel of the second network, from the communication terminal of the second network: - sending (130), to the communication terminal of the first network, a signal indicating the start of data transmission and comprising an identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network; and wherein the accessory is further configured to perform the following operation: after receiving the signal indicating the start of data transmission and including an identifier of the specific half-duplex broadcast channel of the second network, from the communication terminal of the first network: - send (250), to the communication terminal of the second network, the signal indicating the start of data transmission and including an identifier of the alternate broadcast channel specific to the second network.

Images