Conferencing App Audio Video Pause Detection

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Solution Overview

Problem

During audio and video conferencing sessions, users may experience distractions or interruptions, leading to unnecessary bandwidth usage and potential broadcasting of unwanted events to other participants.

Innovation Solution

A conferencing application that automatically analyzes audio and video data to detect pause conditions, such as a user leaving the frame or engaging in another conversation, and pauses the distribution of audio and/or video data accordingly, resuming when the conditions are no longer met.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Reliability

If the user's audio and video are continuously transmitted during a conferencing session, then the user can participate in the conference without interruption, but bandwidth is wasted and other participants are distracted by unwanted events

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvecontinuous participationVSAvoidbandwidth usage
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The system dynamically adjusts the transmission state of audio and video based on real-time detection of user presence and activity. The conferencing application monitors whether the user is present and actively participating, and automatically pauses transmission when the user is absent or engaged in distracting activities, thereby optimizing bandwidth usage while maintaining reliable communication when needed.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

2Speed

If the user's audio and video are continuously transmitted, then real-time communication is maintained, but other participants are distracted by unwanted events such as background noises or user leaving the frame

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvereal-time communicationVSAvoiddistractions to participants
Core Design Contradiction:
SpeedVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements a feedback mechanism where the conferencing application continuously monitors the user's environment and activity state through video frame analysis and audio level detection. Based on this feedback, the system automatically determines when to pause or resume transmission, eliminating distractions to other participants while maintaining real-time communication capability when the user is actively engaged.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #23Feedback

Solution Approach 2:

The conferencing application autonomously manages the transmission state without requiring manual user intervention. The system self-monitors for pause conditions (such as user absence, phone calls, or loud background noises) and automatically pauses or resumes audio and video transmission, thereby protecting other participants from distractions while maintaining seamless communication when appropriate.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

3Ease of operation

If manual muting controls are provided to users, then users can control their own audio/video transmission, but the system lacks automated response to distraction conditions

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveuser controlVSAvoidautomated pause detection
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSExtent of automation

Solution Approach 1:

The conferencing application implements automated self-monitoring capabilities that detect pause conditions without user intervention. The system automatically analyzes video frames to detect user presence and audio levels to identify loud background noises, and autonomously pauses transmission when distraction conditions are detected, eliminating the need for manual user control while maintaining ease of operation through intelligent automation.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Data Source

PatentEP4131852B1Automated pausing of audio and/or video during a conferencing session
Publication Date: 2025.05.28 MITEL CORP
  • EP4131852B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP4131852B1 patent drawingFigure 2
  • EP4131852B1 patent drawingFigure 3

AI summary

Embodiments include an audio analyzer to analyze audio data received from a user computing system operating as a participant in a conference managed by a conferencing application and to detect one or audio pause conditions; a video analyzer to analyze video data received from the user computing system and to detect one or video pause conditions; and a conferencing manager to automatically pause distribution of the audio data to other participants of the conference when the one or more audio pause conditions are detected and automatically pause distribution of the video data to the other participants when the one or more video pause conditions are detected.