Virtual Meeting Endpoint Evaluation for Adaptive Video Bitrates
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Solution Overview
Problem
Virtual meetings consume significant resources, particularly electricity generated from non-sustainable and higher-carbon emitting power sources, leading to substantial greenhouse gas emissions, especially from endpoints like virtual meeting clients and private data centers.
Innovation Solution
Systems and methods adjust virtual meeting settings based on endpoint sustainability attributes, such as location and environmental impact, by reducing video streams from high-definition to standard-definition when high-carbon electricity is used, and increasing bit rates when sustainable electricity is available, with options for user overrides.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Illumination intensity
If high-definition video streams are transmitted during virtual meetings, then video quality is improved, but energy consumption and greenhouse gas emissions increase
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts video stream bit rates based on real-time sustainability assessments of endpoint power sources. Video quality is not fixed but adapts according to the carbon intensity of the electricity being consumed, allowing the system to optimize between quality and sustainability conditions change
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes the bit rate parameter of video streams based on the sustainability characteristics of the power source. When sustainable energy is detected, higher bit rates (better quality) are used; when non-sustainable energy is detected, lower bit rates (lower quality) are applied, directly linking energy source characteristics to transmission parameters
2Use of energy by moving object
If video streams are reduced to lower bit rates, then energy consumption is reduced, but video quality deteriorates
Solution Approach 1:
Different video streams receive different quality levels based on the specific sustainability characteristics of each endpoint's power source. Rather than uniformly reducing all video quality, the system applies localized quality adjustments only where non-sustainable energy is being consumed, preserving high quality for endpoints using sustainable energy
Solution Approach 2:
The system continuously monitors the sustainability attributes of power sources and uses this feedback to adjust video stream bit rates in real-time. This closed-loop control ensures that video quality is optimized according to the current energy consumption profile, automatically improving quality when sustainable energy becomes available
3Object-generated harmful factors
If sustainability attributes are monitored and video streams are adjusted dynamically, then greenhouse gas emissions are reduced, but system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system automatically assesses the sustainability attributes of power sources and adjusts video streams without requiring user intervention or complex manual configuration. The endpoint devices themselves perform the sustainability assessment and initiate appropriate bit rate changes, reducing the need for complex external control systems
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary assessment of power source sustainability before establishing or adjusting video streams. By evaluating the carbon intensity of the power source in advance, the system can proactively select appropriate bit rates, avoiding the need for complex real-time adjustments during active transmission
Data Source
AI summary
Devices, systems, methods, and processes for conducting sustainability-aware virtual meetings are described herein. When establishing virtual meetings, each of the participants can have various devices, locations, histories, and other data associated with them. This can create various sustainable attributes at each stage of the virtual meeting. However, the endpoints of the virtual meetings, such as the client and/or server-based devices, are typically most responsible for producing negative environmental outcomes. Therefore, embodiments described herein can focus on the endpoints of virtual meetings and evaluate various endpoint attributes that are related to the sustainability attributes with each endpoint. If the endpoints are found to exceed a sustainability threshold, such as a budget or other amount, a video bit rate associated with the endpoint is reduced. This reduction can be from a high-definition signal to a standard-definition signal. The reduction may also be overridden based on either a prompt or heuristic event.