Video Conference Representative Cursors for Shared-Screen Highlighting
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Solution Overview
Problem
In typical online video conferences, participants other than the presenter struggle to identify and highlight specific content on the shared presentation screen, leading to inconvenience and disruption as they rely on verbal cues or body movements, which can hinder effective discussion.
Innovation Solution
A video conference device equipped with a camera, communication circuit, and processor that captures real-time video and biometric features, allowing multiple participants to control a representative cursor on the shared screen through authorized gestures or instructions, ensuring synchronized and coordinated interaction.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If only the screen provider can use the cursor to mark positions on the presentation screen, then the presenter can control the discussion flow, but other participants cannot easily indicate or discuss specific content locations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent introduces representative cursors as intermediaries that allow participants to indicate content positions without directly controlling the main cursor. These cursors act as mediators between participant intentions and screen content, enabling easy content indication while maintaining system simplicity
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates virtual copies of cursor functionality in the form of representative cursors that can be positioned on the screen without requiring physical cursor control. This copying approach allows multiple participants to indicate locations simultaneously without complicating the actual cursor control mechanism
2Adaptability or versatility
If the presenter broadcasts their screen to all participants, then everyone can view the same content, but participants cannot simultaneously operate or highlight different content areas
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the cursor functionality into multiple representative cursors, each associated with different participants. This segmentation allows simultaneous multi-user interaction where each user can independently position and operate their own cursor on the shared screen without interfering with others
Solution Approach 2:
The representative cursor system provides universal interaction capability across all participants. Each participant can use their representative cursor for multiple operations including indicating positions, highlighting content, and discussing specific areas, enabling versatile multi-user interaction on the same screen
3Productivity
If participants use language or body movements to express content locations, then no additional technical complexity is added, but discussion efficiency and clarity deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces the mechanical/physical methods of indicating content (body movements, gestures) with a digital system using representative cursors on the screen. This substitution dramatically improves discussion efficiency and location precision while maintaining ease of use
4Loss of time
If multiple participants need to find the same content item on the screen, then everyone can locate the item, but significant time is lost and conference flow is disrupted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent enables preliminary action by allowing participants to proactively position representative cursors on content items before discussion begins. This preliminary positioning eliminates the need for time-consuming content location during discussions, as all participants can immediately see where each cursor is pointing
Data Source
AI summary
A video conference device includes a camera, a communication circuit and a processor. The camera is configured to capture a real-time video of a first location. The communication circuit is communicatively connected to a remote server and a first electronic device located at the first location. The processor executes an online conference application, and processes the real-time video and real-time visual signals received from the remote server via the communication circuit. The processor executes the online conference application to establish or join an online video conference on the remote server. The processor obtains first authentication information from the first electronic device via the communication circuit, sends the first authentication information for identity authentication, and receives first operation authorizations granted to the first electronic device by the remote server based on the first authentication information. The first operation authorizations enable the first electronic device to control a first representative cursor.