Communication system architecture

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9667799-B2
Application number	US-201414530514-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Oct 31, 2014
Priority date	Nov 25, 2013
Publication date	May 30, 2017
Grant date	May 30, 2017

Abstract

Disclosed is a communication system—for effecting communication events between a computer system, comprising first and second computer devices, and additional endpoint(s) connected via a communication network—comprising processing units, each having access to computer storage holding executable code modules for managing a communication event configured to implement a media modality controller configured to manage media modality of an established communication event and a call controller configured to establish the communication event. An instance of the media modality controller is assigned responsive to an instruction initiated to the media controller by the call controller to convey media modality control signals of the communication event to a media agent on the first device without accessing a call agent on the second device. The initiation of the instruction by the call controller is responsive to an instruction received via the network from the call agent on the second device.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A communication system for effecting communication events between first and second devices and one or more additional endpoints connected via a communication network, the communication system comprising:
one or more processing units having access to computer storage storing executable code modules for managing a communication event, the code modules configured to implement a call controller, a media modality controller, and an additional media modality controller, the call controller configured to establish a communication event between the first device and the second device, the call controller and the media modality controller each configured to communicate a different respective particular type of control data with an agent of a corresponding type at each of the first and second devices, the media modality controller configured to manage media modality of the established communication event, the additional media modality controller configured to manage an additional media modality of the established communication event;
wherein an instance of the media modality controller is assigned responsive to a first instruction initiated to the media modality controller by the call controller to convey media modality control signals of the communication event directly to a media agent on the first device without accessing a call agent on the second device and without accessing a call agent on the first device;
wherein the initiation of the first instruction by the call controller is responsive to a second instruction received via the network from the call agent on the second device;
wherein an instance of the additional media modality controller is assigned responsive to additional instructions initiated to the additional media modality controller by the call controller to convey additional media modality control signals of the communication event directly to an additional media agent on the first device, the media modality controller and the call controller both not configured to communicate with the additional media agent of the first device;
wherein the call controller is configured to:
receive, from the call agent of the second device, a third instruction to indirectly control operation of the additional media modality agent of the first device; and
initiate, responsive to the third instruction being received, a fourth instruction to the additional media modality controller; and

wherein the media modality controller is configured to initiate, based on the fourth instruction, a second control signal to the additional media modality agent of the first device.

2. A communication system according to claim 1 further comprising detection logic configured to detect an association of the first and second devices responsive to which the detection logic causes a notification to be transmitted to the call agent on the second device.

3. A communication system according to claim 2 , wherein said detection logic is configured to detect that the first and second devices are connected to a common access point of the network.

4. A communication system according to claim 2 , wherein the detection logic informs one of: the call controller responsive to which the call controller transmits said notification; or the media modality controller responsive to which the media modality controller informs the call controller and responsive to which the call controller transmits said notification.

5. A communication system according to claim 1 wherein the call controller is configured to transmit an identifier of the first device to the media modality controller responsive to an instruction received from the call agent on the second device, said conveyance of media modality control signals by the media modality controller instance being based on the identifier of the first device.

6. A communication system according to claim 1 , wherein each of the first and second devices is associated with a common user.

7. A communication system according to claim 1 wherein the code modules are configured to implement a transport controller for managing transportation of the media modality of the communication event.

8. A communication system according to claim 7 , wherein the detection logic is part of one of the call controller or the transport controller.

9. A communication system according to claim 1 , wherein:
the call controller is configured to access the computer storage to access a policy; and
said initiation of the instruction to the media modality controller by the call controller is dependent on the policy.

10. A communication system according to claim 9 , wherein the policy indicates that at least one of the second device or a user of the second device is permitted to make use of the first device.

11. A method for effecting communication events, the method comprising:
implementing, by code modules of a communication system, a call controller, a media modality controller, and an additional media modality controller each configured to communicate a different respective particular type of control data with an agent of a corresponding type at each of a first device and a second device;
establishing, by the call controller of the communication system, a communication event between the first device and the second device by at least communicating directly with a call agent executed at the second device but not with a media modality agent executed at the first device and not with an additional media modality agent executed at the second device;
managing, by the media modality controller of the communication system, media modality of the communication event responsive to instructions from the call controller by at least communicating via the communication network directly with the media modality agent executed at the first device without accessing the call agent executed at the second device;
receiving a first instruction to the call controller from the call agent of the second device to indirectly control operation of the media modality agent of the first device;
responsive to receiving the first instruction, initiating, by the call controller, a second instruction to the media modality controller;
responsive to initiating the second instruction, initiating, by the media modality controller, a first control signal to the media modality agent of the first device;
managing, by the additional media modality controller of the communication system, an additional media modality of the established communication event for communicating with at least the first device via the network, the additional media modality controller being responsive to additional instructions from the call controller and configured to communicate with an additional media modality agent of the first device, the media modality controller and the communication controller both not configured to communicate with the additional media modality agent of the first device;
receiving, at the call controller and from the call agent of the second device, a third instruction to indirectly control operation of the additional media modality agent of the first user device;
responsive to receiving the third instruction, initiating, by the call controller, a fourth instruction to the additional media modality controller; and
initiating, by the media modality controller and based on the fourth instruction, a second control signal to the additional media modality agent of the first user device.

12. A method according to claim 11 , wherein an additional call agent is not executed at the first device.

13. A method according to claim 11 , further comprising receiving, from the call agent of the second device, asso

Assignees

• Microsoft Technology Licensing Llc

Inventors

• Olivier Carl S
• Laasik Marek
• Zolotarjov Sergei
• Velenko Mihails
• Jefremov Andrei

Classifications

• H04M7/006 Primary

  Networks other than PSTN/ISDN providing telephone service, e.g. Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP) , including next generation networks with a packet-switched transport layer (H04L65/00 takes precedence; aspects not specific to the type of network H04M3/00; special services in those networks H04M3/42) · CPC title

• H04L65/80

  Responding to QoS · CPC title

• G06F9/45558

  Hypervisor-specific management and integration aspects · CPC title

• H04L65/1069

  Session establishment or de-establishment · CPC title

• H04L65/1006

  Electricity · mapped topic