Virtual Video Intercom Answering Stations Without Hardware Changes
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing video intercom systems require centralized management of answering service functionalities, which limits usability and necessitate additional hardware or protocol modifications for audio and video message handling.
Innovation Solution
A video intercom system utilizing virtual stations that replicate indoor stations to manage answering services, allowing decentralized operation without hardware or protocol changes, using a station management device to activate and deactivate virtual machines for recording and playback.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If centralized management of answering service functionalities is implemented through the main indoor station, then message recording and playback can be managed, but system complexity increases and hardware resources are unnecessarily consumed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent creates virtual copies (virtual stations) of the main indoor station that can independently perform answering service functionalities. Instead of requiring the physical main indoor station to handle all message recording and playback operations, virtual representations are instantiated that can be activated/deactivated as needed, distributing the operational burden and reducing the complexity on the physical device.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent extracts the answering service management functionality from the main indoor station hardware and implements it as separate virtual station processes. This separation allows the core hardware to remain simple while the virtualized functions provide enhanced usability, effectively removing the complexity burden from the physical device.
2Ease of operation
If additional hardware or protocol modifications are made to implement decentralized answering service, then usability improves, but device complexity and manufacturing costs increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses virtualization to create software-based copies of indoor stations that can be deployed without any physical hardware changes. These virtual stations run on existing system infrastructure, enabling decentralized answering service functionality while maintaining compatibility with current hardware and communication protocols.
Solution Approach 2:
The virtual station architecture provides multi-functionality by allowing the same virtualization platform to handle both centralized and decentralized answering service operations. The system can dynamically instantiate virtual stations as needed, providing universal functionality across different deployment scenarios without requiring specialized hardware for each function.
3Adaptability or versatility
If virtual stations are activated for each recipient indoor station, then decentralized management is achieved, but system resource consumption increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements dynamic virtual station management where virtual stations are activated only when needed for specific operations and deactivated when not in use. This dynamic instantiation and deactivation of virtual stations allows the system to provide decentralized management capability on-demand, reducing resource consumption during idle periods while maintaining adaptability when operations are required.
Solution Approach 2:
The system recycles and reuses virtual station instances by deactivating them after use and reactivating them when needed again. This approach allows the system to maintain a pool of virtual station templates that can be rapidly instantiated and deactivated, providing decentralized functionality without permanently allocating resources for each potential virtual station.
Data Source
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AI summary
The present invention relates to a video intercom system (1). The system (1) comprises an outdoor station (10), a plurality of indoor stations (30, 40, 50), and a station management device (20, 30, 90). In particular, the station management device (20, 30, 90) receives a call from the outdoor station (10) or from one of the indoor stations (30, 40, 50) which is directed to at least one recipient indoor station (30, 40, 50), it activates a virtual station (83), it associates the virtual station (83) to the recipient indoor station (30, 40, 50), it forwards at least one between a video data stream and an audio data stream to the virtual station (83), and it deactivates the virtual station (83) at the end of the call. The virtual station (83) is a virtual machine that replicates the operation of an indoor station that stores at least one portion of the received video data stream and/or audio data stream.