Home Gateway Session Integration for VoIP

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative Solutions
Generate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Current multi-conference services in VoIP systems are inflexible, requiring a specific conference bridge and not allowing terminals to join ongoing communications without establishing a new session.

Innovation Solution

A communication method where a home gateway identifies and signals all ongoing sessions to local terminals, enabling any terminal to request and integrate into an existing session, using SIP protocol for session management.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If a specific conference bridge with a reference telephone number is used for multi-conference services, then the service can manage multiple communications simultaneously, but the system becomes inflexible and does not allow terminals to insert themselves into ongoing communications

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveflexibility of terminal integrationVSAvoidrequirement for dedicated conference bridge
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent extracts the conference bridge functionality from a dedicated hardware component and relocates it to the home gateway's software. The gateway identifies ongoing sessions and enables direct terminal integration without requiring a separate conference bridge device, thereby reducing device complexity while maintaining adaptability

Inventive Principle:
Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Solution Approach 2:

The home gateway is given multiple functions: it acts as both a standard call management device and an implicit conference bridge. By signaling ongoing sessions to local terminals and enabling integration requests, the gateway universally handles both point-to-point and multi-party communications without requiring specialized conference equipment

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

2Adaptability or versatility

If a conference bridge with reference number is used, then multi-conference services can be established, but terminals cannot join ongoing communications without establishing a new session

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveability to join ongoing sessionsVSAvoidtime to establish new session
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The home gateway performs preliminary action by proactively signaling all ongoing communication sessions to local terminals before any integration request is made. This advance notification enables terminals to immediately join existing sessions without the time delay of establishing new connections

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The home gateway acts as an intermediary between terminals and ongoing sessions. It receives integration requests from terminals, matches them with appropriate ongoing sessions based on signaling information, and facilitates seamless joining without requiring new session establishment

Inventive Principle:
Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Adaptability or versatility

If exhaustive session information is signaled to all local terminals, then users can be aware of all sessions and join any session, but the signaling load and information management complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveuser awareness and access to all sessionsVSAvoidsession management and signaling complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements self-service by enabling terminals to autonomously access and join sessions based on information provided by the gateway. Terminals can independently send integration requests for any session they are informed about, reducing the need for complex centralized management while maintaining comprehensive session accessibility

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Data Source

PatentEP2238727B1Method of communication for managing communication sessions at the level of a domestic gateway
Publication Date: 2017.09.27 ORANGE SA
  • EP2238727B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP2238727B1 patent drawingFigure 2

AI summary

The present invention relates to a method of communication between a plurality of local terminals (T1, T2, T3) connected to a domestic gateway (P) and a plurality of remote terminals (T´1, T´2). In accordance with the invention, the method comprises: a step of identification (E1) by the domestic gateway (P) of the communications in progress on each local terminal connected to the domestic gateway (P); a step of signalling (E3) by the domestic gateway (P) of the set of identified communication sessions in progress to said plurality of connected local terminals; and a step of integration (E5), during which the domestic gateway (P) integrates a local terminal (T3) into a communication session in progress (C1), on receipt of an integration request issued by the local terminal (T3).