Granted Patent B2

US 9,473,627 · App. 14/543,706 · Granted Oct 18, 2016

Abstract

Claims (78)

1. A video endpoint, comprising:

video equipment configured to enable an audibly-impaired user to engage in video communication sessions with another user of another video endpoint; and

at least one control circuit operably coupled with the video equipment, the at least one control circuit configured to:

provide a user interface to the audibly-impaired user, the user interface configured to:

enable the audibly-impaired user to manage a database of text strings including adding new text strings to the database, removing text strings from the database, or modifying the text strings stored in the database; and

enable the audibly-impaired user to select from text strings stored in a database without requiring the audibly-impaired user to input individual characters of the selected text string during an ongoing video communication session with another video endpoint;

transmit, in a non-tone-based real-time text (RTT) format, the user-selected text string to the another video endpoint for presentation to the other user during the ongoing video communication session; and

access the database as a shared database such that changes made to the text strings stored in the database are available to other video communication devices that are operated by the same audibly-impaired user.

2. The video endpoint of claim 1 , further comprising a data storage device operably coupled with the at least one control circuit, the data storage device comprising the database of text strings for the video endpoint to locally access the text strings.

3. The video endpoint of claim 1 , wherein the at least one control circuit is configured to communicate with a remote server including a data storage device comprising the database for the video endpoint to remotely access the text strings.

4. The video endpoint of claim 1 , wherein the user interface is configured to enable the audibly-impaired user to add the new text strings to the database during the ongoing video communication session.

5. The video endpoint of claim 1 , wherein the video endpoint is configured to send video data to the another video endpoint with the user-selected text string embedded into the video data such that the user-selected text string is displayed by the another video endpoint during the ongoing video communication session as part of video corresponding to the video data.

6. The video endpoint of claim 1 , wherein the at least one control circuit is configured to transmit the user-selected text string separate from the video data to the another video endpoint during the ongoing video communication session.

7. The video endpoint of claim 1 , wherein the user interface is further configured to:

present text received from the another video endpoint during the ongoing video communication session; and

enable the audibly-impaired user to save the text received from the another video endpoint during the ongoing video communication session as a new text string to the database such that is subsequently available for selection by the audibly-impaired user.

8. The video endpoint of claim 1 , wherein the at least one control circuit is configured to associate the text strings with categories, and present the text strings organized in the categories within the user interface for selection during the on-going video communication session.

9. The video endpoint of claim 1 , wherein the at least one control circuit comprises:

at least one memory device including computer-readable instructions directed to providing the user interface and to performing acts the at least one control circuit is configured to perform; and

at least one processing element operably coupled to the at least one memory device and configured to execute the computer-readable instructions of the at least one memory device.

10. A video endpoint, comprising:

video equipment configured to enable an audibly-impaired user to engage in video communication sessions with another user of another video endpoint; and

at least one control circuit operably coupled with the video equipment, wherein the at least one control circuit is configured to:

provide a user interface to the audibly-impaired user, the user interface configured to:

enable the audibly-impaired user to manage a database of text strings including adding new text strings to the database, removing text strings from the database, or modifying the text strings stored in the database; and

enable the audibly-impaired user to select from text strings stored in a database during an ongoing video communication session with another video endpoint without requiring the audibly-impaired user to input individual characters of the selected text string; and

transmit the user-selected text string from the text strings to the another video endpoint for presentation to the other user; and

access the database as a shared database such that changes made to the text strings stored in the database are available to other video communication devices that are operated by the same audibly-impaired user.

11. A method of operating a video endpoint for audibly-impaired users, the method comprising:

engaging in an ongoing video communication session with another video endpoint;

displaying text strings stored in a database in a graphical user interface of the video endpoint during the ongoing video communication session;

selecting a text string from the displayed text strings responsive to a user input from the audibly-impaired user during the ongoing video communication session without requiring the audibly-impaired user to input individual characters of the user-selected text string;

transmitting the user-selected text string as non-tone-based real-time text (RTT) data to the another video endpoint during the ongoing video communication session for display by the another video endpoint including:

transmitting text data corresponding to the user-selected text string separate from the video data to the another video endpoint if it is determined that the another video endpoint is capable of receiving text data; and

transmitting video data with text corresponding to the user-selected text string embedded into the video data to the another video endpoint if it is determined that the another video endpoint is not capable of receiving text data;

modifying the database of text strings responsive to another user input from the audibly-impaired user; and

determining whether the another video endpoint is capable of receiving text data transmitted from the video endpoint.

12. The method of claim 11 , further comprising:

selecting another text string from the displayed text strings responsive to another user input from the audibly-impaired user during the ongoing video communication session;

displaying the another selected text string into a text editing field of the graphical user interface prior to transmitting the another selected text string during the ongoing video communication session;

modifying the another selected text string displayed in the text editing field prior to being transmitted to the another video endpoint during the ongoing video communication session; and

transmitting the modified another selected text string to the another video endpoint to enable the another video endpoint to display the modified another text string during the ongoing video communication session.

13. A method of operating a video endpoint for audibly-impaired users, the method comprising:

engaging in an ongoing video communication session with another video endpoint,

displaying text strings stored in a database in a graphical user interface of the video endpoint during the ongoing video communication session;

selecting a text string from the displayed text strings responsive to a user input from the audibly-impaired user during the ongoing video communication session without requiring the audibly-impaired user to input individual characters of the user-selected text string;

transmitting the user-selected text string as non-tone-based real-time text (RTT) data to the another video endpoint during the ongoing video communication session for display by the another video endpoint;

modifying the database of text strings responsive to another user input from the audibly-impaired user;

receiving data corresponding to text from the another video endpoint during the ongoing video communication session;

displaying the text corresponding to the data received from the another video endpoint during the ongoing video communication session; and

storing the text received from the another video endpoint as a new text string to the database that is subsequently available for selection by the audibly-impaired user during the ongoing video communication session.

14. A method of transforming a computing device into a video endpoint, the method comprising:

storing computer-readable instructions on one or more storage devices of one or more servers configured to communicate with the computing device, the computer-readable instructions configured to instruct the computing device to:

establish a video communication session with another video endpoint; and

generate and display a user interface to an audibly-impaired user, the user interface configured to:

manage a database of text strings stored in a database at least by adding new text strings, updating existing text strings, or deleting existing text strings responsive to a user input from the audibly-impaired user, wherein the database is shared database such that changes made to the text strings stored in the database are available to other video communication devices that are operated by the same audibly-impaired user; and

enable the audibly-impaired user to select from the text strings stored in the database during the ongoing video communication session without requiring the audibly-impaired user to input individual characters of the selected text string; and

transmit the user-selected text string during the ongoing the video communication session in a non-tone-based real-time text (RTT) format to the another video endpoint for presentation to the other user.

15. A video endpoint, comprising:

video equipment configured to enable an audibly-impaired user of the video endpoint to engage in a two-way video communication session with a translator at a video relay service configured to translate between the video data from the audibly-impaired user and audible data from an audio endpoint during a simultaneous audio communication session between the video relay service and the audio endpoint;

at least one storage device configured to store a database of text strings; and

at least one control circuit configured to:

display a graphical user interface to the audibly-impaired user on an electronic display, the graphical user interface comprising:

a video field configured to display video of the translator received from the video relay service during an ongoing video communication session with the relay service;

a list of at least a portion of the text stings stored in the database in a user-selectable arrangement, the list configured to enable the audibly-impaired user to select from the text strings stored in the database during the ongoing video communication session without requiring the audibly-impaired user to input individual characters of the selected text string;

a text editing field configured to enable the audibly-impaired user to input, update, or delete text strings in the database to modify the text strings that are available for selection by the audibly-impaired user, wherein the database is shared database such that changes made to the text strings stored in the database are updated to databases in other video communication devices that are operated by the same audibly-impaired user; and

transmit, in a non-tone-based real-time text (RTT) format, the user-selected text string during the ongoing video communication session to the video relay service for presentation to the translator.

16. The video endpoint of claim 15 , wherein the text strings include one or more account numbers, mailing addresses, email addresses, telephone numbers, prescription information, payment information, driving instructions, restaurant orders, a work address, or a residential address of the audibly-impaired user of the video endpoint.

17. The video endpoint of claim 15 , further comprising a remote control configured to control the video endpoint to select the user-selected text string during the ongoing video communication session responsive to an input from the audibly-impaired user into the remote control.

18. A communication system configured to facilitate communication between an audibly-impaired user and an audibly-capable user through a video relay service, the communication system comprising:

a video relay service configured to provide sign language translation services by establishing video communication between a translator and the audibly-impaired user, and audio communication between the translator and the audibly-capable user; and

a plurality of video communication devices specifically configured for use by the audibly-impaired user, each video communication device having a camera, electronic display, and control circuit configured to:

retrieve text strings during an ongoing video communication session from a database of pre-stored text strings;

display the retrieved text strings during the ongoing video communication session to the electronic display of the video communication device;

receive an input from the audibly-impaired user selecting one of the displayed text strings during the ongoing video communication session;

transmit the selected text string to the translator at the video relay service during the ongoing video communication session; and

add new text strings, delete the text strings, or update the text strings in the database to modify the text strings stored in the database subsequently available for selection during the ongoing video communication session or another video communication session;

wherein each video communication device is further configured to access a shared database including the database such that changes made to the text strings stored in the database on one video communication device are available to the other video communication devices that are operated by the same audibly-impaired user.

Assignments (15)