Motorola Corporation

Douglas J Newlin

Timothy M Burke

Robert Davis Battin

Robert W Lancelot

Wesley Stuart Jones

Charles P Richardson

A video access apparatus (110, 150, 750, 850) provides for audio and video teleconferencing and telephony via a first communication channel (103) coupled to a primary station (105) having communication with a network (140), such as the public switched telephone network or an ISDN network. The video access apparatus (110) includes a video network interface (210); a radio frequency modulator/demodulator (205); a user interface (215); and a processor arrangement (190). A videophone apparatus (700, 800) is coupleable to a video access apparatus via a second communication channel for video reception and transmission, and via a third communication channel for audio reception and transmission. The videophone apparatus includes a video monitor (715), a camera interface (235), a video camera (720), and a telephony module (710). Multiple videophone apparatuses (700, 800) may be used simultaneously, and multiple video signals from the videophone apparatuses (700, 800) may be multiplexed and combined into one composite video signal for transmission to the network (140).

Videophone apparatus, method and system for audio and video conferencing

An apparatus (105), system (100) and method is provided for a unified circuit switched and packet-based communications system architecture having network interworking functionality. The apparatus (105) includes a circuit switched network interface (130), with the circuit switched network interface coupleable to a network switch (135) for communication of a circuit switched network protocol signal with a circuit switched network (160); a packet-based network interface (140), the packet-based network interface coupleable to a router (115) for communication of a packet-based network protocol signal with a packet-based network (150); a transceiver (120) coupleable to the communications channel (103) for the transmission and reception of a first protocol signal; and a communications controller (145), the communications controller coupled to the circuit switched network interface, to the packet-based network interface and to the transceiver, the communications controller responsive, through a set of program instructions and an interworking function, to interconvert the first protocol signal with the circuit switched network protocol signal and to interconvert the first protocol signal with the packet-based network protocol signal.

Apparatus, system and method for a unified circuit switched and

An apparatus and method are provided for multimedia communications with multiple network functionality, such as conflict resolution for multiple simultaneous communication sessions involving separate and independent networks and call types, such as video and voice. The apparatus includes a first network interface, such as a cable interface (120), an ISDN interface (125) or a telephony interface (130), with the first network interface coupleable to a first network for communication of a first network signal; a second network interface, the second network interface coupleable to a second network for communication of a second network signal; a user interface such as a user/audio interface (135) for reception of a plurality of control signals; and a processor arrangement (143) responsive through a set of program instructions, when operably coupled, to determine a presence of a first network communication session, to further determine an occurrence of the second network signal, and upon the occurrence of the second network signal during the first network communication session, to provide a distinctive alert to the user interface during the first network communication session indicating the occurrence of the second network signal.

Alerting user engaged in a first communications session on a first

A video access apparatus (110, 150, 160) provides for audio and video teleconferencing and telephony via a first communication channel (103) having communication with a network (140), such as the public switched telephone network or an ISDN network. The network (140) is preferably an intelligent network (115) having an intelligent peripheral (125) which provides for user interface functionality, for call control and configuration, and for interworking functions. The video access apparatus (160) includes a wireline network interface (210) for reception of a first protocol signal to form a received protocol signal and for transmission of a second protocol signal to form a transmitted protocol signal; a radio frequency modulator/demodulator (205) to convert a baseband output video signal to a radio frequency output video signal and to convert a radio frequency input video signal to a baseband input video signal; and a processor arrangement (190) responsive, through a set of program instructions, to convert the received protocol signal to the baseband output video signal and to an output audio signal, and to convert the baseband input video signal and an input audio signal to the second protocol signal.

Apparatus, method and system for wireline audio and video conferencing

A multimedia interface station (102) establishes a multimedia sensory data link between the Internet (108) and a subscriber premise (112) eliminating an Internet protocol. Visual and audio data received from the Internet (108) is converted to a multimedia sensory signal at the multimedia interface station (102) and transmitted to a sensory transmission device (150) such as a television (142) in the subscriber premise (112) without using the Internet protocol.

Method and apparatus for providing internet service at a subscriber

A multimedia control apparatus (101, 201) provides for control over a plurality of media (145), including telephony, video conferencing, video display, home automation and control, and other communication systems such as voice mail. The multimedia control apparatus includes a network interface (110) coupleable to a network communication channel (103) for communication with a network (104); a user interface (120) responsive to receive a first control signal of a plurality of control signals; a plurality of media application modules (140), each media application module of the plurality of media application modules coupleable to a corresponding medium of a plurality of corresponding media (145); and a processor arrangement (130) having a plurality of operating modes. The processor arrangement (130) is responsive, through a set of program instructions and in response to the first control signal, to select a first media application module of the plurality of media application modules, to enter a first operating mode of the plurality of operating modes, the first operating mode corresponding to the first media application module, and with the processor arrangement being further responsive, in conjunction with the first media application module, to control the corresponding medium.

Apparatus, method and system for multimedia control and communication

A cable telephony system (100) including a plurality of subscriber units (104) connected to a head-end (102) by a cable distribution network (106) in which upstream and downstream data transmissions are sent between subscribers (104) and head-end (102). Both shared and unshared connections are supported within cable telephony system (100). Transmission between a subscriber (104) and head-end (102) may involve both a shared and unshared connection in which unshared connections are employed to provide a higher quality of service when the shared connection is unable to do so.

Method and system for maintaining a guaranteed quality of service in

An apparatus (300, 400) and method are provided for multimedia communications, such as for video conferencing. One of the embodiments of the apparatus for multimedia input and control (300) includes a video input (310) to produce an input video signal; an audio input (320) to produce an input audio signal; a radio frequency modulator (350); a data/control input (330) to produce an input data signal; and a processor arrangement (360) responsive when operably coupled, through a set of program instructions, to produce a first processor signal to the radio frequency modulator to combine the input video signal with the input audio signal to form a composite audio/video signal, and the processor arrangement (360) further responsive to modulate the input data signal to form a modulated input data signal and produce a second processor signal to the radio frequency modulator to combine the input video signal with the modulated input data signal to form a combined video/data signal.

Multimedia input and control apparatus and method for multimedia

Apparatuses, systems, and a method provide for a visual display of speech, such as the visual display of a received audio signal in telecommunications, especially useful for the hearing impaired. The preferred apparatus includes a network interface that is coupleable to a first communication channel to receive an audio signal; a radio frequency (RF) modulator to convert a baseband output video signal to a RF output video signal and to transmit the RF output video signal on a second communication channel for video display; and a processor coupled to the network interface and to the RF modulator for running a set of program instructions to convert the received audio signal to a text representation of speech, and to further convert the text to the baseband output video signal. The RF output video signal, when displayed on a video display, provides the visual display of speech. The preferred apparatus may also include a speech generation subsystem.

Conversion of communicated speech to text for tranmission as RF

A network interface (105) uses valid identifiers including the DN, SPID and Switch ID to communicate with a PSTN (110) and uses generic identifiers to communicate with customer premise equipment (120) in order to establish an ISDN communication link when the customer premise equipment does not know the DN, SPID, and Switch ID.

ISDN communication system and method thereof

A universal multimedia access apparatus for accessing any of a plurality of multimedia applications provided by a multimedia network. The universal multimedia access apparatus accesses a predetermined one of the plurality of multimedia applications using an application-specific module interfaced thereto, the application-specific module being selected from a plurality of application-specific modules. The universal multimedia access apparatus comprises a transceiver and a processing unit. The transceiver communicates multimedia information between the multimedia network and the application-specific module, and communicates with the multimedia network in any one of a plurality of communication modes. The processing unit is operative to identify the application-specific module interfaced thereto and the predetermined one of the plurality of multimedia applications associated with the application-specific module, and operative to command the transceiver to communicate with the multimedia network in a mode associated with the predetermined one of the plurality of multimedia applications.

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Geneva, IL, United States of America

Douglas J Newlin