Electronic presentation system with multi-stream-transmission-capable peripheral device

Abstract

The present invention relates to a wireless presentation system which allows at least one presenting participant among the participants of a meeting or conference to have two or more video streams generated from image data from a corresponding number of image data sources displayed simultaneously by his data processing device on one or more shared screens and which for this purpose comprises at least one peripheral device which is connected to the data processing device via at least one video / data interface and generates the two or more video streams from input image data and sends them via a wireless interface to the network node which controls the shared screen(s). The data processing device preferably generates a multi-image data stream from the image data of the two or more image data sources and forwards this via the video / data interface to the peripheral device, which uses transcoding means to generate the output video data streams which are transmitted wirelessly to the network node and displayed by the latter on the main screen(s).

Description

[0001] Electronic Presentation System with Multi-Stream-Transmission-Capa- ble Peripheral Device

[0002] The present invention relates to a wireless presentation system with a peripheral device for transmitting data between a data processing device and a network node of the presentation system, wherein the peripheral device is connected or connectable to the data processing device via a downlink interface and to the network node via a wireless uplink interface and has up- transcoding means to generate an output video stream from input image or video data received via the downlink interface and to transmit it further to the network node via the uplink interface for display on a main display. The invention further relates to a method for transmitting image data by means of such a presentation system.

[0003] The previously common method for presenting content such as images, text, audio and / or video clips or a compilation of these - often also referred to as a ‘presentation’ like the process of introducing / presenting - at a meeting or conference consisted of connecting a single computer to a central or main or presentation screen that was visible to all participants using a video cable and the person presenting had to transfer their presentation to this computer and then stand next to the main screen and at or near the centrally located computer in order to be able to operate it. The disadvantage of this method is that switching between two presenters is comparatively long and cumbersome, so that the presentation of content in rapid succession is not possible. In addition, the use of a wired connection between the computer and the main screen reduces the flexibility with regard to the location of the computer.

[0004] To solve these problems, various improved presentation methods have been proposed in the prior art. In the publication US 2010 / 03326631 , a simple USB stick is used, which serves to store several software programs that are executed when the USB stick is connected to the data processing device of the presenter. This includes a network detection program that uses a wireless network interface of the data processing device to search for a network of the presentation device and connects to it. An image capture and analysis program is then executed, which reads the screen content of the data processing device and transmits it to a projector via the established network connection, which displays the screen content on the presentation screen.

[0005] Another approach is disclosed in the publication JP 2008 / 165007 A. It proposes a wireless presentation system consisting of a digital projector and a peripheral device that can be connected wirelessly to it. In addition to the wireless interface via which the peripheral device transmits the output image data stream to the projector, the former has a USB-A connector with which it can be connected to the data processing device of the presenter and from which it receives the input image data for further transmission to the projector. The presentation system also includes software which, when run on the data processing device of the presenter, generates this image data by copying the screen content (screen grabbing).

[0006] A similar solution is presented in the international publication WO 2013 / 037979 A1. The wireless presentation system therein can comprise several peripheral devices, each of which comprises an interface for connecting to a data processing device, preferably a USB interface, an internal memory, a transceiver for transmitting data to a network node connected to the projection screen and a screen grabbing program stored in the memory, as well as an input device. After connecting the peripheral device to the data processing device of the presenter, the peripheral device automatically connects to the wireless network of the network node using the transceiver and also executes the screen grabbing program (referred to there as a screen scraping program), which copies the screen content of the data processing device and transmits it as an output image data stream via the peripheral device to the network node for display on the presentation screen. One difference to the solutions described above is that the input device for triggering the transmission of the output video stream is an easy-to-use, large (touch) button. This makes it easier for the presenter to control the transmission and display of their own screen content.

[0007] WO 2013 / 037979 A1 also goes beyond previous solutions by envisaging a different presentation mode. Whereas the solutions described above provided for individual peripheral devices that were to be used one after the other by different presenters, i.e. passed on from one presenter to the next, WO 2013 / 037979A1 provides a peripheral device for each (potential) presenter, i.e. for each participant in a meeting with a data processing device, for example. All peripheral devices can connect to the network node at the same time and can even send image data to network nodes at the same time. The network node, which in particular takes the form of a dedicated base unit, can select one of the several video streams for display or display all or at least several simultaneously in a split-screen mode on the presentation screen.

[0008] In WO 2013 / 037979 A1 , the use of the screen grabbing program is necessary because the peripheral device is equipped with or for connection to a non-video-capable data interface, such as a USB-A or a USB-C interface that is not video-capable because of its wiring. This is avoided in the applicant's previous solutions by connecting the peripheral device to a video / data interface, i.e. a real / pure video interface or a video-capable data interface, which allows it to receive a native video stream from the data processing device. However, this stream is uncoded and therefore too broadband for direct transmission to the base unit of the presentation system. To allow transmission over the comparatively narrowband network connection between the peripheral device and the base unit, a video encoder is present on the peripheral device, which encodes the received video signal before transmission, i.e. compresses it, e.g. according to an MPEG standard. However, known presentation systems do not allow a single presenter to transmit several different image data streams to the network data node for display on the presentation screen or for other use, for example forwarding to another presentation participant connected remotely, especially not from the same data processing device.

[0009] The known systems described so far do not provide for the transmission of video data in the downward direction, i.e. from the network node or the base unit to the user's data processing device(s). However, this is proposed in the published patent application WO 2019 / 129696 A1. This document discloses a system and method with which a functional device connected to a base unit of the presentation device, for example a camera or a loudspeaker or microphone, or a combination thereof, can be made available to the other participants. For this purpose, the data generated by the functional devices is transmitted from the base unit via the peripheral device available to each presenter to the respective data processing device to which the respective peripheral device is connected. Here too, only one data stream, in particular a video data stream, can be transmitted from the base unit to the user's data processing device at a time.

[0010] Another application that previously known wireless presentation systems do not cover is the wireless transmission of multiple video contents to multiple network nodes, in particular multiple base units. Even the transmission of single video content to multiple network nodes is not possible with known wireless presentation systems using a peripheral device having its own wireless transceiver. Transmitting video content to multiple nodes can be useful in larger rooms, for example, when several screens are used to cover the room. In this case, it can be useful to have each screen operated by its own network node, rather than all screens being operated by just one network node, because the latter would require the use of long video signal cables. However, the known systems are not able to distribute the output video streams to several network nodes. To distribute video signals to several receivers, the state of the art uses so- called video matrix switches, as known for example from the documents CN 101729790 A, CN 201629800 U, KR 102012079255 A, CN 202217881 U, US 2015 / 042887 A1 , CN 204013845 U or WO 2016 / 081624 A1. These are equipped with a plurality of video interfaces, such as HDMI, DVI and / or VGA interfaces, and allow at least one, but typically several, video input signals to be fed to two or more video sinks. The problem described above of making the output video stream of a presenter available to several network nodes can therefore only be solved according to the current state of the art by connecting a known HDMI matrix switch in series with the network node or the base unit, which is cumbersome and complex.

[0011] It is therefore one object of the present invention to create a wireless presentation system which enables versatile use and in particular enables presenters to simultaneously make image data from two or more image data sources, in particular from a data processing device, wirelessly available to other presentation participants.

[0012] Another task is to find a simplified way of wirelessly forwarding image data to two or more image display devices, particularly when the image display devices are connected to different network nodes.

[0013] This object is achieved by means of a peripheral device according to claim 1 , which is used in a presentation system according to claim 10, which in turn implements the method of claim 16.

[0014] The central element of the presentation system according to the invention is the improved peripheral device and here in particular the up-transcoding means, which, in comparison to known models, allow the processing of two or more video data streams, which can originate from the same data processing device or from different data processing devices, simultaneously. For this purpose, the peripheral device can in particular have two or more video coders, for example video encoders, which simultaneously generate several output video streams from the input video data. Herein, the input video data are raw or pre-coded input video stream(s) which are generated by a generic or proprietary driver running on the data processing device from image or video data generated by the image data source(s) associated with that processing device. From these input video data the videocoders generate multiple output video streams which may all have the same video format or different video formats.

[0015] A video coder is hardware or software which can encode or re-encode video signals or data from one format to another. Here, encoding refers to converting a raw, uncoded (usually broadband) video signal into an encoded, usually narrowband one. Re-encoding means converting one encoded (usually narrowband) video format into another.

[0016] The input video stream or streams are transmitted to the peripheral device via one or more video / data interfaces to which it is connected.

[0017] A pure / real video interface is an interface that is used to transmit analog or digital video signals between devices. Data transmission is essentially unidirectional (except for identification or control data such as EDID), namely from the video source, such as a PC or camera, to the video sink, such as a digital screen or projector. An example of an analog video interface is VGA (Video Graphics Adapter). Examples of digital (pure) video interfaces are DVI (Digital Video Interface) and HDMI (High Definition Multimedia Interface) as well as DisplayPort.

[0018] An exception to unidirectionality is identification data such as EDID (Extended Display Identification Data), which the connected data sinks use to identify themselves to the data sources. EDID and its enhanced version E- EDID (Enhanced EDID) are metadata that contain information about the manufacturer and serial number of an image display device, such as a screen, and above all its capabilities such as resolution and refresh rates, so that the video source, such as a PC, can adjust the parameters of the video signal transmitted to the screen (video timing parameters) accordingly.

[0019] In contrast, pure data interfaces are set up for two-way transmission and the transmitted information / data is available on a connected data processing device and can be stored on the hard disk. Examples of (pure) data interfaces are the RS 232 serial interface, which was used for a long time, but was replaced by USB-A and now USB-C.

[0020] However, depending on the wiring, USB-C is also an example of an interface type that combines both categories, which is referred to here as a video-capable data interface. These are data interfaces that, on the one hand due to the bandwidth and also due to the appropriate wiring, are able to transmit both (arbitrary) digital data and digital video signal / data. With USB-C, this is achieved by the fact that, depending on the signal present, it can be sent to either the graphics card or the USB hub of the computer, which is then referred to as alternating operating mode (alternate mode), for instance in the case of DisplayPort alternate mode, HDMI alternate mode or Thunderbolt alternate mode. However, if the wiring of the respective USB-C port does not include a direct connection to the graphics card, that USB-C port is not video-capable, i.e. "only" a pure data interface.

[0021] The term video / data interface as used here includes both pure video interfaces and video-capable data interfaces.

[0022] Which image data source(s) generate the input image or video data is not relevant within the scope of the invention. The image data source can be a real or virtual desktop, the output of a program running on the data processing device, the output of a camera connected to the data processing device, or an image buffer that contains screen content displayed on an integrated or connected screen of the data processing device. The invention also envisages that the peripheral device in some versions has more than one downlink interface and is connected to several video / data interfaces at the same time. The interfaces of the peripheral device can include pure video interfaces, video-capable data interfaces, or a mix of these. The peripheral device can have two or more pure video interfaces, for example, with which it is simultaneously connected to corresponding interfaces of one or more data processing devices and via which it separately receives different input video signals, which it then processes separately using its up-transcoding means. The up-transcoding means can, for example, generate an output multi-video stream from the input video signals. Alternatively, the up-transcoding means can also generate two or more separate output video streams.

[0023] In embodiments of the invention in which the peripheral device has only one downlink interface for connection to a data processing device or another image source device, such as a camera or a media player, this must be a multi-video capable video / data interface. A multi-video capable video / data interface is one that supports a multi-video format, such as the DisplayPort-MST format, i.e. a video data format in which several video streams are reversibly combined into a single multi-video stream.

[0024] The number of output video streams generated can correspond to the number of video encoders or can be smaller or larger. It can be smaller if the number of image sources is less than the number of video encoders or if not all image sources are to be forwarded to the network nodes of the presentation system. For example, if the peripheral device is to generate two output video streams simultaneously, it can include two video coder units.

[0025] It is also conceivable that a single video coder unit, especially a video encoder unit, processes two or more input video streams alternately or serially to form the output video streams. This method is possible in particular for low-resolution video streams. However, the additional data processing effort caused when switching between the input data streams means that the performance of the video coder is used less efficiently. It is therefore preferable to provide several video coders which, as described above, can simultaneously generate a number of output video data streams corresponding to their number.

[0026] The peripheral device according to the invention has two types of interfaces in a basically known manner. It is connected via at least one downstream interface to a data processing device and / or another image source device such as cameras or media players, and via at least one (wireless) upstream interface to the network node of the presentation system via which the output video data streams reach the presentation screen, i.e. the common screens for all those taking part in the presentation.

[0027] If only one downlink interface is available, this is a multi-video capable interface such as a USB-C interface. Accordingly, the input video data is available as USB-C data, which is in the Displayport MST (multistream technology) standard. The one downlink interface can also be a multi-video capable pure video interface, such as a DisplayPort interface.

[0028] If there is more than one downlink interface, one, several or even all downlink interfaces can be non-multi-video capable video interfaces, such as an HDMI interface or a DVI interface.

[0029] In its simplest embodiment, the peripheral device of the wireless presentation system according to the invention only allows the transmission of video data in the uplink direction, i.e. the transmission of two or more output video data streams from a data processing device to the network node for output on a shared screen or projector. However, it can also have down-transcoding means that make it possible to receive image data from the network node in the opposite, i.e. downlink direction and to pass it on - processed or not - to the data processing device for further use, for example display on its screen or for use in a video conference for forwarding to the remote participants). These down-transcoding means can also preferably process two or more video data streams, for example in that the video encoders used to generate the output video data streams also process input video data that is received via the upstream interface and is forwarded from the peripheral device to the data processing device via the downstream interface for display on a screen assigned to the data processing device, for example a main screen in the form of an integrated laptop screen or a screen coupled to the data processing device via another interface. In the downstream direction, the video encoders work in particular as transcoders of the downstream input video streams received in coded form via the narrowband network connection.

[0030] A second aspect of the present invention relates to the number of destination points of the output video streams transmitted in the uplink direction. In the simplest case, these are forwarded to a single network node via the wireless uplink interface(s). However, the invention also envisages that the peripheral device can be prepared to connect simultaneously or alternately to two or more network nodes, thereby being able to forward an output video stream to each of the network nodes.

[0031] According to this aspect, which can be combined with the other aspects presented herein, the present invention provides that, in the manner of a matrix switch, each of the input video streams originating from the image data sources is processed by the up-transcoding means of the peripheral device and the generated output video streams can be forwarded independently of one another to one, several or all of the network nodes connected via the uplink interface(s). It may happen that all output video streams are temporarily transmitted only to a specific network node and the connections to the other network node(s) are therefore not used. It is also conceivable that an output video stream originating from one image data source is sent to one network node and an output video stream originating from another image data source is sent to another network node. Within the scope of a free and independent transmission of the output video streams, all of these constellations are covered by the present invention.

[0032] The peripheral device can have more than one wireless uplink interface, particularly two, three or more independently operating uplink interfaces, which can be of the same or different types. For example, the peripheral device can have two independent WiFi interfaces. In addition to this, one or more LiFi interfaces can be present. Alternatively or additionally, the peripheral device can have other wireless (uplink) interfaces suitable for transmitting video data.

[0033] Alternatively, the peripheral device according to this aspect uses only a single upstream interface, via which it alternately connects to the various network nodes.

[0034] Each network node can be connected in the manner described above to one or more screens, typically but not necessarily by cable, on which the output video streams are displayed.

[0035] This second aspect of the invention also explicitly includes peripheral devices whose up-transcoding means, unlike previously described, can only process a single input video stream and generate a (single) output video stream from it, which the peripheral device then distributes to the network nodes via its simultaneous or alternating connection to the two or more network nodes in accordance with the user's wishes or specifications or conference settings. Such peripheral devices would therefore not be multivideo stream capable and would therefore function as pure video (stream) distributors (in the case of simultaneous network node connections) or as video (stream) switches (in the case of alternating network node connections). Another important aspect of the present invention is that the input image or video data is generated using a generic or proprietary driver and the downlink interface via which the peripheral device is coupled to the data processing device is a video / data interface. In contrast to the known presentation systems described above, the system according to the invention does not require its own image data generation software, which must be installed or run on the data processing device. This simplifies and speeds up the use of the system according to the invention, since no software installation is necessary and no proprietary software needs to be run.

[0036] From the outputs of the two or more image data sources the driver is able to generate as many image or video data streams and to provide them as a multi-video stream on the video data interface of the data processing device to which the peripheral device is coupled with its downlink interface, in order to transmit them to the peripheral device. A generic driver is a program that is available as standard on the data processing device and, in contrast to a proprietary driver, does not have to be installed when the peripheral device according to the invention is used for the first time.

[0037] From the image data received by the data processing device, the peripheral device automatically generates the two or more output video streams according to the invention using its own data processing means. The video (en)coders used can be in the form of software executed on a central CPU of the peripheral device, i.e. can be parallel active software threads, with these threads being executed serially on a single core of a single-core CPU or, in the case of a multi-core CPU, simultaneously. One or all of the video encoders can also be available as dedicated hardware components in the form of their own video encoder processor.

[0038] In preferred embodiments, there can be a single video encoder, in particular for each of the output video data streams to be generated, which is available in the form of software or as dedicated hardware. In particularly preferred embodiments, the latter is the case, i.e. a dedicated hardware video encoder is integrated on the peripheral device for generating each of the output video data streams. For example, two, three, four or even more hardware-implemented video encoders can be integrated on the peripheral device.

[0039] The advantage of the presentation system according to the invention and the peripheral device(s) used therein is that a presentation participant can make the content of two image data sources in or associated with his / her data processing device available to other presentation participants. In addition to the content of his main screen, on which, for example, diagrams or texts or representations on which the presenter provides explanations are displayed, the content of a second screen coupled to his data processing device can also be displayed. The transmission of a second or further virtual desktops of the data processing device is also possible.

[0040] As an alternative application, it is also possible to make the image data of a camera connected to the data processing device or directly to the peripheral device available to the other presentation participants.

[0041] The decoupling and transmission of an (enlarged) section of the data processing device's main screen as a second video stream is also possible.

[0042] A fourth advantageous application made possible by the present invention consists in transmitting the output of another program running on a data processing device, for example a video player or video rendering software, via a second video channel provided, which is transmitted alongside the content of the main screen of the data processing device transmitted on the first channel. Further advantageous embodiments of the present invention, which can be implemented individually or in combination, provided they do not obviously exclude each other, are presented below.

[0043] The wireless presentation system according to the invention can comprise one, two or more peripheral devices. Preferably, it comprises one peripheral device for each presentation participant who wishes to contribute to the presentation or one peripheral device per data processing device.

[0044] Preferably, two or more presentation screens are connected to the network node. Two or more of the output video data streams of a presenter or one or more output video data streams of different presenters can be displayed on the two or more presentation screens.

[0045] In embodiments with only one presentation screen, the network node, in particular the base unit, is preferably able to display the two or more output video streams received from the at least one peripheral device next to each other in split-screen mode.

[0046] The invention also includes embodiments in which a single peripheral device according to the invention makes the output (multi-)video streams generated from the video signals received by one or more data processing devices after passing through the video encoders available not just to one but to several network nodes, either simultaneously or alternately.

[0047] Which output video data stream(s) of which presentation participant is / are shown on the presentation screen(s) at a certain point in time, or which of the image data is transmitted to remote meeting participants, can be controlled centrally from the network node. Alternatively this is controlled decentrally, for example in such a way that each participant in the meeting can initiate the transmission of their image data themselves, for instance by making an input on their data processing device or peripheral device, e.g. by pressing a button on the image data generation software running on their data processing device or an input device of the peripheral device, or by activating the transmission with a voice command or a gesture.

[0048] The peripheral device according to the invention is preferably prepared so that parameters of the output video data streams can be configured, for example by means of control data which are part of the data stream between the data processing device and the peripheral device. The control data can include EDID control data that is transmitted from the peripheral device to the data processing device. Furthermore, control data relating to the image processing to be carried out by the video encoders can be transmitted from the data processing device to the peripheral device. This applies to all generated output video data streams simultaneously or individually.

[0049] In the opposite (downward) direction, in preferred embodiments, information about the peripheral device and the input video streams accepted by it, i.e. that can be processed, is transmitted via the downward interface from the peripheral device to a connected video output device, such as a data processing device such as a PC, laptop or notebook, a camera or a media player. This can take place in the form of an EDID (Extended Display Information Data) data set. The EDID information is stored in a preferably non-rewritable memory module on the peripheral device, the content of which is automatically transmitted to a video output device when it is connected to it.

[0050] In preferred embodiments, the transcoding means of the peripheral device according to the invention can carry out further image processing steps in addition to generating the output video streams.

[0051] In some embodiments of the peripheral device according to the invention, the wireless uplink interface via which the peripheral device is connected to and communicates with the network node is a LiFi (Light Fidelity) or a WIFI interface and comprises a wireless transceiver that operates in the optical, infrared or radio range of the electromagnetic spectrum.

[0052] In some embodiments of the peripheral device according to the invention, the uplink interface(s) (e.g. a wireless transceiver) can also be connected to and communicate with several network nodes simultaneously or alternately. For this purpose, the peripheral device can have more than one wireless uplink interface, for example several WiFi, Li Fi or comparable interfaces.

[0053] The network node of the presentation system according to the invention can comprise a base unit. This is a device that combines all the components required to provide the functions of the network node in one housing. The base unit is therefore equipped in particular with a wireless data interface which is compatible with the wireless uplink interface of the peripheral device. The base unit accordingly comprises a wireless transmitter-receiver, data processing means for processing the output video data streams received from the peripheral device(s) and forwarding them to the shared presentation screen, whereby the base unit is particularly prepared to display several received video streams next to each other on the shared presentation screen (split-screen mode) or to display one of the data streams and record the others or forward them to a second base unit which covers another part of the room or another conference room.

[0054] Further features, advantages and properties of the present invention are apparent from the following preferred embodiments explained in more detail with reference to the figures. These are intended only to illustrate the present invention and not to restrict its generality.

[0055] It is shown in:

[0056] Figure 1 A: A schematic representation of a first known wireless presentation system Figure 1 B: A schematic representation of a second known wireless presentation system

[0057] Figure 2A: A schematic representation of a wireless presentation system according to the invention in a first preferred embodiment.

[0058] Figure 2B: The presentation system of Figure 2A used by several users, each with their own laptop and a connected peripheral device.

[0059] Figure 3A: Another preferred embodiment of the wireless presentation system according to the invention, in which the peripheral device connects simultaneously or quasi-simultaneously to several network nodes and transmits one of the video streams to each.

[0060] Figure 3B: The embodiment of Figure 3A, in which the peripheral device transmits both video streams to each of the several network nodes.

[0061] Figure 3C: The embodiment of the presentation system according to Fig. 3A and 3B, used by multiple users, each with their own laptop and one connected peripheral device.

[0062] Figures 1A and 1B show a schematic representation of two known wireless presentation systems.

[0063] In both, the presentation system 1 comprises a network node in the form of a base unit 11, to which a presentation or main screen is connected via an HDMI interface. A data processing device 2, e.g. a laptop 2, is connected to a peripheral device 10 (“dongle”) by means of an interface 21 or 21 ' via a corresponding data connection C2. In addition to the USB-A or USB-C interface 101 , the peripheral device 10 has a second, wireless interface 102, via which it can send data to the base unit 11 . The wireless interface 102 can in particular be a WiFi interface and establish a WiFi connection C3 to the base unit 11. The base unit 11 decodes the data received via the WiFi interface 118 using the decoder 116 and transmits it via HDMI to the connected presentation screen 110.

[0064] In Figure 1A, the peripheral device 10 is coupled to the data processing device 2 via a USB-A or a non-video-capable USB-C interface 2T and accordingly via a USB data connection C2. Software 29 running on the data processing device creates and encodes the image or video data. These are then transmitted to the peripheral device 10 via the USB-A or USB-C interface 2T and the connection C2. The image or video data received by the peripheral device 10 via the connection C2 are passed directly to the WiFi interface 102 and from there to the base unit via the WiFi connection C3.

[0065] In Figure 1 B, in contrast, the peripheral device 10 has an integrated data set of so-called EDID parameters (Extended Display Identification Data), whereby it is recognized as a monitor when connected to a digital video interface (e.g. HDMI, DisplayPort) or to a video-capable data interface (e.g. USB-C) and, as a result, uncompressed video information is output from the data processing device to the peripheral device.

[0066] The peripheral device of this embodiment also has a video encoder 104, which converts the input image or video data IVD received via the interface 101 into an output video stream OVD by changing the data format, in particular by compressing an uncompressed, broadband video signal.

[0067] Figures 2A and 2B schematically illustrate a presentation system according to the invention comprising one or more peripheral devices according to the invention. The data processing device in the form of the laptop 2 has two image data sources 22-1 and 22-2. The first image data source 22-1 is the image buffer of the laptop screen 20. The second image data source 22-2 can be another image buffer, a real or virtual desktop or the input buffer of a camera connected to the data processing device.

[0068] The data interface 21 here is a video-capable USB-C interface, which is connected to the USB-C interface 101 of the peripheral device 10 via the USB-C video data connection C2. Using the generic or proprietary driver 23 running on the data processing device 2, a data stream encoded in DP- MST (Display Port Multi Stream Technology) is created from the image data generated by the two image data sources 22-1 , 22-2 and sent via the data connection C2 to the peripheral device 10, where the embedded input video streams IVD1 , IVD2 are first extracted and then fed to a video encoder 104-1 , 104-2. The video encoders 104-1 and 104-2 each generate an output video data stream, OVS1 and OVS2 respectively, from the respective input image or video data IVD1 , IVD2, whereby in addition to pure recoding they may also carry out image processing steps such as sharpening, smoothing, contrast or brightness improvement, gamma or color transformations or similar.

[0069] A USB-C interface is very well suited for the purposes of the invention because it is a multi-video capable interface, i.e. a video capable interface via which several video streams can be transmitted simultaneously. In the case of the USB-C interface, this is the case due to compatibility with the DP- MST format already mentioned. Alternatively, a DisplayPort interface could also be used, as this also supports the DP-MST format.

[0070] In other embodiments, the peripheral device 10 has, alternatively or in addition to a multi-video capable interface 101 , another, non-multi-video capable digital video interface such as an HDMI and / or a DVI interface. Embodi- merits of the peripheral device are also envisaged and claimed which comprise two or more video capable or non-multi-video capable digital video interfaces, which can all be of the same type or can be a mix of different interface types.

[0071] In the embodiment of Figures 2A and 2B, the base unit 11 has two HDMI interfaces, to each of which a presentation screen 110-1 , 110-2 is connected. For example, the first output video data stream OVS1 can be displayed on the first presentation screen 110-1 and the second output video data stream OVS2 can be displayed on the second presentation screen 110-2. This allows a presenter to display the contents of two (virtual or real) desktops of his data processing device simultaneously for all presentation participants to see, for example, for joint comparison of documents or files. Instead of HDMI interfaces, other video / data interfaces could also be used.

[0072] Alternatively, it is also possible to display one of the output video data streams of another peripheral device similar to the peripheral device 10, but which is connected to another data processing device (not shown).

[0073] Figure 2B shows a situation in which the presentation system of Figure 2A is used by several users, each of whom has his or her own laptop and a connected peripheral device. Each of the several peripheral devices, of which only two devices 10.1 and 10.M are shown for reasons of clarity, connects to the base unit 11 and transmits one or more of the generated output video streams. The base unit decides which of the video streams is displayed on which of the screens 110-1 and 110-2, whereby only the video streams of one user can be displayed on one screen at a time, alternatively the video streams of several users each in split-screen mode on one of the screens or, in the case of simultaneous display of the (multi-)video streams of several users, a first video stream in split-screen mode on the first screen 110-1 and another video stream of the same or other users in split-screen mode on the other screen 110-2. Figures 3A - 3C illustrate a further preferred embodiment of the invention in which the peripheral device(s) connect(s) simultaneously or quasi-simul- taneously to several network nodes and can transmit one of the video streams to each of them.

[0074] Figure 3A shows a situation with a single user laptop 2 and a peripheral device 10 connected to it, which sends the output video stream VS1-1 generated by the video encoder 104-1 to the first base unit 11.1 and the output video stream VS1-2 generated by the video encoder 104-2 to the second base unit 11.2. To do this, it can either connect simultaneously to both base units 11.1 and 11.2 using two wireless, preferably WiFi, uplink interfaces 102, or, if only one uplink interface 102 is available, connect quasi-simulta- neously, i.e. in rapid alternation, to the two base units 11.1 and 11.2. Each of the base units displays the video stream sent to it on the (one) connected screen 110.1 or 110.2.

[0075] The embodiment of the presentation system in Figure 3B is similar to that shown in Figure 3A, in particular the same peripheral device is used. In contrast to Figure 3A, each of the base units 11.1 and 11.2 is connected via HDMI to two screens 110.1-1 and 110.1-2 or 110.2-1 and 110.2-2. The peripheral device transmits both output video streams VS1-1 and VS1-2 simultaneously or quasi-simultaneously to each of the base units, where both video streams can then be displayed simultaneously on one of the connected screens.

[0076] Figure 3C shows the use of the embodiment according to Figure 3B by several users. As shown, the peripheral devices can each send both of the respective output video streams VS1-1 , VS1-2, VSM-1 and VSM-2 to each of the two base units 11.1 and 11.2. Alternatively, each of the users can also decide to send only one of the video streams to one of the base units or to send both video streams to a different base unit. This gives users maximum flexibility in the presentation of their content. Users can select which video stream should be sent to which of the base units, for example, on a GUI of the generic driver or an application software of the presentation sys- tern 1 running on the respective laptop 2.1 , 2.M.

[0077] The version of the presentation system 1 shown in Figure 3 requires a peripheral device 10 which is prepared for simultaneous or quasi-simultane- ous connection to several base units. In a further preferred embodiment of the presentation system with multiple users (not shown), this is supplemented by a main access node to which the peripheral devices connect and which then routes the incoming video streams in the manner of a matrix switch to one or more desired network nodes, in particular base units. This embodiment is also compatible with the peripheral devices according to Figure 2, which are not (necessarily) suitable for simultaneous or quasi- simultaneous connection to several base units. The main access node can be easily retrofitted in the presentation system according to Figure 2.

[0078] List of reference characters

[0079] 1 presentation system

[0080] 10, 10.1 , 10.M peripheral device

[0081] 101 input / downlink interface

[0082] 102 wireless output / uplink interface (e.g. WiFi)

[0083] 104, 104-1 , 104-2 video encoder

[0084] 11 , 11.1 , 11.2 basis unit

[0085] 110, 110-1 , 110-2 Screen

[0086] 116 video data decoder

[0087] 118 wireless interface to the peripharl device(s)

[0088] 2, 2.1 , 2.M laptop computer

[0089] 21 ‘ non-video-capable data interface

[0090] 21 video-capable interface

[0091] 22-1 , 22-2 image data source

[0092] 23 generic or proprietary driver

[0093] C1-C4 data connection

[0094] VS1-1 , VS1-2 video stream from 10.1 to 11.1 respectively 11.2

[0095] VSM1-1 , VSM1-2 video stream from 10.M to 11.1 resp. 11.2

[0096] IVD input video stream

[0097] IVD1 , IVD2 input video streams ovs output video stream

[0098] OVS1 , OVS2 output video streams

Claims

Claims1. A peripheral device for routing data between a data processing device (2) and a network node (11) of a wireless presentation system (1),the peripheral device (10) comprising; a downlink interface (101), via which the peripheral device (10) is connectable or connected to a video / data interface (21) of the data processing device (2), a wireless uplink interface (102), via which the peripheral device (10) is connectable or connected to the network node(11), uptranscoding means (104, 104-1 , 104-2), for receiving first data from the data processing device (2) via the downlink interface(101) and transferring data via the uplink interface (102) to the network node (11), wherein the up-transcoding means (104, 104-1 , 104-2) are prepared to generate an output video stream (OVS) by encoding raw or transcoding coded input image- or video data (IVD, IVD1 , IVD2) contained in the first data and transmit the output video stream (OVS) to the network node (11) via the upward interface(102), characterized in that the up-transcoding means (104-1 , 104-2) are further prepared to generate two or more output video streams (OVS1 , OVS2), in particular exactly two output video streams (OVS1 , OVS2) simultaneously.

2. The peripheral device according to claim 1 , wherein the up-trans- coding means (104-1 , 104-2) comprise two or more video coders(104-1 , 104-2), for example exactly two video coders (104-1 , 104-2), in particular one video coder (104-1 , 104-2) per generated output video stream (OVS1 , OVS2).

3. The peripheral device according to the preceding claim, wherein one of the video coders (104-1 , 104-2), in particular all video coders (104-1 , 104-2), are implemented as dedicated hardware or as software executed on a CPU of the peripheral device (10).

4. The peripheral device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein a video format of the output video streams (OVS1 , OVS2) is selectable by a control signal as part of the first data, in particular optionally selectable separately for each of the generated output video streams (OVS1 , OVS2).

5. The peripheral device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the downlink interface (101) is a multi-video capable video / data interface, in particular a USB-C or a display port interface.

6. The peripheral device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein it comprises two or more downlink interfaces (101) by means of which it can be connected to two or more video / data interfaces of the data processing device (2) and / or further data processing devices, wherein one or all of the downlink interfaces are non-multivideo-capable pure video interfaces, such as HDMI interfaces, VGA interfaces and / or DVI interfaces, and / or are multivideo-capable data interfaces, such as USB-C interfaces and / or DisplayPort interfaces.

7. The peripheral device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the up-transcoding means (104-1 , 104-2) are prepared to carry out further data processing steps on the input video or image data (IVD1 , IVD2) in addition to the coding or recoding of the input image or video data (IVD1 , IVD2) for generating the output video streams (OVS1 , OVS2), in particular clipping, pasting or merging ofimage data or post-processing such as sharpening, brightness or contrast changes..

8. The peripheral device according to one of the preceding claims, wherein it further comprises down-transcoding means, which can also be identical to the up-transcoding means, in order to receive second data, such as an input video stream, from the network node (11) via the up-link interface (102) and to pass it on in encoded or re-encoded, in particular processed, form to the data processing device (2)..

9. The peripheral device according to the preceding claim, wherein the wireless uplink interface (102) in terms of hardware comprises a wireless transceiver, and / or is a WiFi, Li Fi or comparable interface, with a sufficient data transmission speed for transmitting video streams, and / or can be connected simultaneously or alternately to several network nodes.

10. A presentation system which allows at least one presenting participant among the participants of a meeting or conference to simultaneously display two image or video data streams (OVS1 , OVS2) on one or more shared screens (110, 110-1 , 110-2), comprising:• a data processing device with a video / data interface (21), at least one image data source (22, 22-1 , 22-2) and a generic or proprietary driver (23) in order to generate one or more image data streams (IVD, IVD1 , IVD2) from image data generated by the image data source(s) (22-1 , 22-2) and to output them on the video / data interface (21),• a peripheral device (10) which can be connected or is connected to the video / data interface (21) of the data processing device (2) and is prepared to display two image or video datastreams (OVS1 , OVS2) from the image data generated by the to generate an output video stream (OVS, OVS1 , OVS2) from raw or coded image or video data (IVD, IVD1, IVD2) received by the data processing device,• a network node (11) with a wireless network interface (118), by means of which the network node (11) can be connected or is connected to the wireless uplink interface (102) of the peripheral device (10) via a data connection (C3), characterized in that the peripheral device (10) is a peripheral device according to one of the preceding peripheral device claims, and the data processing device (2) comprises two or more image data sources (22-1 , 22-2) and the generic or proprietary driver (23) is further suitable for generating a multi-video stream from image data generated by the two or more image data sources (22-1 , 22-2) and for outputting this multi-video stream on the video / data interface (21).

11. The presentation system according to the preceding claim, wherein the two or more image data sources (22-1, 22-2) are selected from one of the following data sources: one or more image data memories (22-1, 22-2) containing image data for display on a screen (20) or image projector associated with the data processing device (2), in particular integrated or connected via an image data interface, a partial area of the first screen of the data processing device, an output of a software program executed on the data processing device (2), and / or from a camera connected to the data processing device (2).

12. The presentation system according to one of claims 10 or 11 , wherein the network node is a base unit (11) comprising a housing which houses:- the network interface (118),- means for decoding the video data streams (OVS1 , OVS2) received from the peripheral device (10) via the data connection (C3), and- one or more video-capable interfaces which are connected or connectable to one or more presentation screens (110, 110-1 , 110-2).

13. The presentation system according to one of the preceding presentation system claims, wherein the network interface (118) comprises a wireless transmitter-receiver and is in particular a WiFi or LiFi interface.

14. The presentation system according to one of the preceding presentation system claims, wherein it is suitable for two or more presenting participants of the meeting or conference, each of whom has his or her own data processing device, in that it comprises two or more peripheral devices (10) according to one of the above peripheral device claims, in particular a number of peripheral devices (10) corresponding to the number of presenting participants, each of which is connected to at least one of the data processing devices (2) of the presenting participants, wherein the wireless uplink interface of each of the peripheral devices is connected to the or one of the wireless network interfaces of the network node (11)..

15. The presentation system according to one of the preceding presentation system claims comprising more than one network node (11) and at least one peripheral device which can be connected simultaneously or alternately to several network nodes.

16. A method for simultaneously transmitting image or video data of two or more image data sources of one or more data processing or image generation devices (2) of at least one presenting participant in a meeting or conference, using a presentation system according to one of claims 10 - 15, comprising: generating a multi-video stream comprising two or more input image data streams (IVD1 , IVD2) from the image data of two or more of the image data sources (22-1 , 22-2) using the generic driver, transmitting the multi-video stream from the data processing device (2) via the video / data interface (21) to the peripheral device (10), generating two or more output video data streams (OVS1 , OVS2) from the two or more Input image data streams (IVD1 , IVD2) using the up-transcoding means (104-1 , 104-2) of the peripheral device (10), transmitting the two or more output video data streams (OVS1 , OVS2) to the network node(s) (11), and displaying the two or more output video data streams (OVS1 , OVS2) on the at least one main screen (110, 110-1 , 110-2) of one network node or of different network nodes.

17. The method according to the preceding claim using a presentation system according to claim 14, wherein the decision as to which two or more of the output video data streams (OVS1 , OVS2) that can be transmitted or are transmitted by the two or more peripheral devices (2) to the network node(s) (11) are displayed on the main screen(s) (110, 110-1 , 110-2) is made centrally at the respective network node (11) or decentrally by the presenting participants.

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