Conference Call Manager Priority Queue Audio Control

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Solution Overview

Problem

During conference calls, participants often face issues with volume adjustments due to varying audio levels and interruptions, leading to confusion and undesirable interactions, as participants may not be aware of the current speaker or have different speaking priorities.

Innovation Solution

A method and apparatus are implemented to manage conference calls by allowing participants to adjust the volume of the current speaker and prevent interruptions through a priority-based system, using a conference call manager that tracks participant identities and preferences, and a queue system to organize speaking order based on priority rankings.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If participants can freely adjust volume settings during conference calls, then individual audio preferences are satisfied, but system complexity increases and continuous adjustments are required

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvevolume adjustment capabilityVSAvoidvolume management system

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system pre-detects and stores amplification preferences for each participant before the conference call begins. When a participant joins, their volume preferences are automatically configured, eliminating the need for continuous manual adjustments during the call.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system automatically manages volume levels by detecting participant identities and applying stored amplification preferences without requiring manual intervention. The conference call manager autonomously adjusts audio levels based on participant characteristics and environmental factors.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

2Productivity

If interruptions are allowed during conference calls, then participant engagement is improved, but confusion increases and important participants are disrupted

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveparticipant engagementVSAvoidinterruption confusion

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

Different participants are assigned different priority levels that determine their interruptibility. High-priority participants (e.g., supervisors, moderators) are protected from interruptions, while low-priority participants can be interrupted. This local differentiation of quality resolves the contradiction by allowing selective engagement.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The system continuously monitors speaker identity and priority levels, dynamically controlling whether interruptions are permitted. When a high-priority participant is detected as the current speaker, the system provides feedback to block interruptions, thereby preventing confusion while maintaining engagement for appropriate participants.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

3Reliability

If volume adjustments are made manually during conference calls, then audio levels can be corrected, but time is lost and continuous intervention is needed

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveaudio level consistencyVSAvoidadjustment time

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary detection of participant characteristics and environmental conditions before the conference call starts, storing amplification preferences in advance. This pre-configuration ensures reliable audio levels without requiring time-consuming manual adjustments during the call.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The conference call manager automatically maintains consistent audio levels by detecting participant identities and applying stored preferences in real-time, eliminating the need for manual interventions and saving participant time while ensuring reliability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

4Adaptability or versatility

If all participants are treated equally during conference calls, then fairness is maintained, but important participants cannot be prioritized

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvepriority-based managementVSAvoidcall management simplicity

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The system assigns different priority levels to different participants based on their roles and importance (e.g., supervisors, moderators, regular participants). This local differentiation allows the system to adapt to various conference needs while maintaining simple automated management through identity-based priority assignment.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentUS9019868B2Methods and apparatus to manage conference calls

Publication Date: 2015.04.28 SBC KNOWLEDGE VENTURES LP

AI summary

Methods and apparatus to manage conference calls are described. An example method includes classifying participants of the conference call in a hierarchy according to respective priority values; detecting an attempt of a participants to speak at a same time; detecting which one of the participants has a lower priority ranking; blocking an audio signal of the one of the participants having the lower priority ranking; placing an identifier associated with the blocked one of the participants in a queue; organizing the queue according to a behavior-based policy by comparing an utterance of a current speaker to a keyword associated with the conference call to determine a relevancy of the utterance; and increasing a point total associated with the current speaker in response to determining that the utterance is substantially relevant, and decreasing the point total associated with the current speaker in response to determining that the utterance is substantially irrelevant.