Method and apparatus for capturing a group photograph during a video conferencing session

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10523900-B1
Application number	US-201916359390-A
Country	US
Kind code	B1
Filing date	Mar 20, 2019
Priority date	Mar 20, 2019
Publication date	Dec 31, 2019
Grant date	Dec 31, 2019

Abstract

In various embodiments, a group photograph system coordinates and creates a group photograph of participants of a video conferencing session. Using inputs from the participants, the group photograph system captures images of individual participants and selectively assembles a group photograph based on the rating of each individual participant. In one embodiment, the group photograph system sends a countdown signal to a first participant and a second participant wherein the first participant and the second participant are part of a group photograph within a video conferencing session wherein the countdown signal represents an amount of time before a first participant image is captured of the first participant. In another embodiment, the group photography system captures the first participant image and a second participant image of the first participant and the second participant, respectively and creates a first group photograph which includes the first participant image and the second participant image.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A computer-implemented method, comprising:
sending a countdown signal to a first participant and a second participant wherein the first participant and the second participant are part of a group photograph within a video conferencing session wherein the countdown signal represents an amount of time before a first participant image is captured of the first participant;
simultaneously capturing the first participant image and a second participant image of the first participant and the second participant, respectively;
creating a first group photograph which includes the first participant image and the second participant image;
transmitting, to the first participant, the first group photograph and the first participant image;
receiving a first group photograph rank from the first participant, wherein the first group photograph rank reflects a rating of the first group photograph by the first participant;
based on the first group photograph rank within a ranking selector, simultaneously capturing a third participant image and a fourth participant image of the first participant and the second participant, respectively; and
creating a second group photograph based on the first group photograph rank within the ranking selector, wherein the second group photograph includes the third participant image and the fourth participant image.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising receiving a second photograph rank from the first participant wherein the second group photograph rank reflects a rating of the second group photograph by the first participant.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 2 , further comprising creating a final group photograph based on the first photograph rank and the second photograph rank wherein the final photograph includes the second participant image and the third participant image by combining select images from the first group photograph and the second group photograph.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 2 , further comprising creating a final group photograph based on the first photograph rank and the second photograph rank wherein the final photograph is the first group photograph.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 2 , further comprising creating a final group photograph based on the first photograph rank and the second photograph rank wherein the final photograph is the first group photograph.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising creating a final group photograph based on the first photograph rank wherein the final group photograph is one of the first group photograph and the second group photograph.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising creating a final group photograph that represents each participant in the video conferencing session through one of a photographic representation and a textual representation.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising receiving a second group photograph rank from the second participant, wherein the second group photograph rank reflects a rating of the first group photograph by the second participant.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 8 , further comprising creating a final group photograph based on the first photograph rank and the second photograph rank wherein the final photograph includes one of the first participant image and the third participant image and further wherein the final photograph includes one of the second participant image and the fourth participant image by combining select images from the first group photograph and the second group photograph such that the first participant and the second participant are represented.

10. The computer-implemented method of claim 1 , further comprising inviting each participant in the video conferencing session to participant in taking a collective group photograph to commemorate attending the video conferencing session.

11. One or more non-transitory computer readable media including instructions that, when executed by one or more processors, cause the one or more processors to perform the steps of:
sending a countdown signal to a first participant and a second participant wherein the first participant and the second participant are part of a group photograph within a video conferencing session wherein the countdown signal represents an amount of time before a first participant image is captured of the first participant;
simultaneously capturing the first participant image and a second participant image of the first participant and the second participant, respectively;
creating a first group photograph which includes the first participant image and the second participant image;
transmitting, to the first participant, the first group photograph and the first participant image;
receiving a first group photograph rank from the first participant, wherein the first group photograph rank reflects a rating of the first group photograph by the first participant;
based on the first group photograph rank within a ranking selector, simultaneously capturing a third participant image and a fourth participant image of the first participant and the second participant, respectively; and
creating a second group photograph based on the first group photograph rank within the ranking selector, wherein the second group photograph includes the third participant image and the fourth participant image.

12. The one or more non-transitory computer readable media of claim 11 , further comprising receiving a second photograph rank from the first participant wherein the second group photograph rank reflects a rating of the second group photograph by the first participant.

13. The one or more non-transitory computer readable media of claim 12 , further comprising creating a final group photograph based on the first photograph rank and the second photograph rank wherein the final photograph includes the second participant image and the third participant image by combining select images from the first group photograph and the second group photograph.

14. The one or more non-transitory computer readable media of claim 12 , further comprising creating a final group photograph based on the first photograph rank and the second photograph rank wherein the final photograph is the first group photograph.

15. The one or more non-transitory computer readable media of claim 12 , further comprising creating a final group photograph based on the first photograph rank and the second photograph rank wherein the final photograph is the first group photograph.

16. The one or more non-transitory computer readable media of claim 11 , further comprising creating a final group photograph based on the first photograph rank wherein the final group photograph is one of the first group photograph and the second group photograph.

17. The one or more non-transitory computer readable media of claim 11 , further comprising creating a final group photograph that represents each participant in the video conferencing session through one of a photographic representation and a textual representation.

18. The one or more non-transitory computer readable media of claim 11 , further comprising receiving a second photograph rank from the second participant, wherein the second group photograph rank reflects a rating of the first group photograph by the second participant.

19. The one or more non-transitory computer readable media of claim 18 , further comprising creating a final group photograph based on the first photograph rank and

Assignees

• Zoom Video Communications Inc

Inventors

• Jiang Dingping
• Wald Juan Jiang
• Wang Liang
• Zhang Huipin

Classifications

• H04L65/403

  Arrangements for multi-party communication, e.g. for conferences (data switching systems for conference H04L12/18; arrangements for connecting several subscribers to a common circuit, i.e. affording conference facilities H04M3/56; television conferencing systems H04N7/15) · CPC title

• H04N7/147 Primary

  Communication arrangements, e.g. identifying the communication as a video-communication, intermediate storage of the signals (selecting H04Q) · CPC title

• H04N7/152

  Multipoint control units therefor · CPC title

• H04N7/155 Primary

  involving storage of or access to video conference sessions (tracking arrangements for later retrieval of a computer conference content or participants activities H04L12/1831) · CPC title

• H04L65/1083

  In-session procedures · CPC title