Presentations in multi-user communication sessions

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-12333662-B2
Application number	US-202318345884-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jun 30, 2023
Priority date	Aug 11, 2022
Publication date	Jun 17, 2025
Grant date	Jun 17, 2025

Abstract

An electronic device such as a head-mounted device may present extended reality content such as a representation of a three-dimensional environment. The representation of the three-dimensional environment may be changed between different viewing modes having different immersion levels in response to user input. The three-dimensional environment may represent a multiuser communication session. A multiuser communication session may be saved and subsequently viewed as a replay. There may be an interactive virtual object within the replay of the multiuser communication session. The pose of the interactive virtual object may be manipulated by a user while the replay is paused. Some multiuser communication sessions may be hierarchical multiuser communication sessions with a presenter and audience members. The presenter and audience members may receive generalized feedback based on the audience members during the presentation. A participant may have their role changed between audience member and presenter during the presentation.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An electronic device comprising:
one or more displays;
one or more processors;
one or more sensors; and
memory storing instructions configured to be executed by the one or more processors, the instructions for:
while in a presenter role for a multiuser communication session, presenting, using at least the one or more displays, an extended reality environment, wherein the extended reality environment comprises:
a representation of a virtual audience from a perspective on a virtual stage, wherein the representation includes generalized feedback based on participants of the multiuser communication session having an audience member role;

obtaining, using the one or more sensors, user input; and
changing the representation of the virtual audience based on the user input, wherein changing the representation of the virtual audience comprises:
adding a generalized visual audience attention indicator to the representation of the virtual audience;
adding a generalized visual audience mood indicator to the representation of the virtual audience;
adding a generalized visual audience attendance indicator to the representation of the virtual audience;
adding poll results to the representation of the virtual audience;
adding a list of at least some participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role to the representation of the virtual audience;
adding avatars for at least some participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role to the representation of the virtual audience; or
changing an appearance for a virtual venue in which the virtual audience appears.

2. The electronic device defined in claim 1 , wherein the generalized feedback comprises:
a generalized visual audience attention indicator based on an attention of the participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role;
a generalized visual audience mood indicator based on a mood of the participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role; or
a generalized visual audience attendance indicator based on a number of the participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role.

3. The electronic device defined in claim 1 , wherein the representation of the virtual audience includes:
a visual representation of an attention for an individual participant of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role; or
a visual representation of a mood for an individual participant of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role.

4. The electronic device defined in claim 1 , wherein the representation of the virtual audience comprises a plurality of avatars and wherein only a subset of the plurality of avatars is individually controlled by the participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role.

5. The electronic device defined in claim 1 , further comprising:
one or more speakers, wherein the generalized feedback comprises generalized audio feedback that is presented by the one or more speakers and that is based on audio of the participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role.

6. The electronic device defined in claim 1 , wherein the representation of the virtual audience comprises:
poll results from the participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role;
a list of at least some participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role; and
avatars for at least some participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role.

7. The electronic device defined in claim 1 ,
wherein the instructions further comprise instructions for:
obtaining, using the one or more sensors, additional user input; and
based on the additional user input, causing a change in a point of view of the virtual stage from within the extended reality environment for at least one participant of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role.

8. A method of operating an electronic device that comprises one or more displays and one or more sensors, the method comprising:
while in a presenter role for a multiuser communication session, presenting, using at least the one or more displays, an extended reality environment, wherein the extended reality environment comprises:
a representation of a virtual audience from a perspective on a virtual stage, wherein the representation includes generalized feedback based on participants of the multiuser communication session having an audience member role;

obtaining, using the one or more sensors, user input; and
changing the representation of the virtual audience based on the user input, wherein changing the representation of the virtual audience comprises:
adding a generalized visual audience attention indicator to the representation of the virtual audience;
adding a generalized visual audience mood indicator to the representation of the virtual audience;
adding a generalized visual audience attendance indicator to the representation of the virtual audience;
adding poll results to the representation of the virtual audience;
adding a list of at least some participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role to the representation of the virtual audience;
adding avatars for at least some participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role to the representation of the virtual audience; or
changing an appearance for a virtual venue in which the virtual audience appears.

9. The method defined in claim 8 , wherein the generalized feedback comprises:
a generalized visual audience attention indicator based on an attention of the participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role;
a generalized visual audience mood indicator based on a mood of the participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role; or
a generalized visual audience attendance indicator based on a number of the participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role.

10. The method defined in claim 8 , wherein the representation of the virtual audience includes:
a visual representation of an attention for an individual participant of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role; or
a visual representation of a mood for an individual participant of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role.

11. The method defined in claim 8 , wherein the representation of the virtual audience comprises a plurality of avatars and wherein only a subset of the plurality of avatars is individually controlled by the participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role.

12. The method defined in claim 8 , wherein the electronic device further comprises one or more speakers and wherein the generalized feedback comprises generalized audio feedback that is presented by the one or more speakers and that is based on audio of the participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role.

13. The method defined in claim 8 , wherein the representation of the virtual audience comprises:
poll results from the participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role;
a list of at least some participants of the multiuser communication session having the audience member role; and
avatars for at least some participants of the multiuser communication session having the

Assignees

• Apple Inc

Inventors

• Burns Aaron M
• Poulos Adam G
• Palangie Alexis H
• Blachnitzky Benjamin R
• Papadopoulos Charilaos
• Schattel David M
• Demirayak Ezgi
• Wang Jia
• Abbasian Reza
• Carlin Ryan S

Classifications

• H04L65/403 Primary

  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

• G06T19/003

  Navigation within 3D models or images · CPC title

• G06T2219/2016

  Rotation, translation, scaling · CPC title

• G06T19/20

  Editing of three-dimensional [3D] images, e.g. changing shapes or colours, aligning objects or positioning parts · CPC title

• G06T13/40

  of characters, e.g. humans, animals or virtual beings · CPC title