IP Library › Granted Patent US 11,463,492
Granted Patent B1
US 11,463,492 · App. 17/513,646 · Granted Oct 4, 2022

Moderator controls for breakout rooms

Inventor: Nick Swerdlow (Santa Clara, CA)
Assignee: Zoom Video Communications, Inc.
H04L65/4038H04L12/1822H04L65/1069
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Quick Facts
Patent No.
US 11,463,492
App. No.
17/513,646
Granted
Oct 4, 2022
Kind
B1
Abstract

A meeting host or moderator can control communications among participants in virtual breakout rooms without requiring the host to join a breakout room as a participant. The host can run conferencing software to instantiate a meeting room and breakout rooms associated with the meeting room. The host can control communications in the breakout rooms, such as by transmitting and/or receiving content through one or more channels established by the conferencing software. The host can transmit and/or receive content such as a real time audio stream, a transcription of the audio stream, a screen or window being shared, chat messages, and the like, without joining the breakout room.

Claims (46)

1. A method, comprising:

instantiating a meeting room controlled by a host, the meeting room configured to allow communication among the host and meeting participants;

instantiating one or more breakout rooms associated with the meeting room, wherein a communication within a breakout room is limited to one or more of the meeting participants in the breakout room, and wherein host credentials allow the host to control the one or more breakout rooms by allowing the meeting participants to join the one or more breakout room with the meeting participants receiving visual indications of other meeting participants in the one or more breakout rooms; and

controlling communication in the one or more breakout rooms, based on the host credentials, by transmitting content from the host when the host is in the meeting room to the one or more breakout rooms without requiring the host to leave the meeting room and join the one or more breakout rooms as an additional meeting participant and without the meeting participants in the one or more breakout rooms receiving a visual indication of the host in the one or more breakout rooms.

2. The method of claim 1 , wherein an audio stream from a breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms is output at a client device of the host to allow the host to control the communication in the breakout room.

3. The method of claim 1 , wherein chat messages from a breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms are output at a client device of the host to allow the host to control the communication in the breakout room.

4. The method of claim 1 , wherein a screen being shared in a breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms is output at a client device of the host to allow the host to control the communication in the breakout room.

5. The method of claim 1 , wherein a screen being shared in a breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms is configured from a client device of the host to display content from the client device.

6. The method of claim 1 , wherein a screen being shared in a breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms is limited by a timer configured by a client device of the host.

7. The method of claim 1 , wherein an audio communication is configured from a client device of the host to broadcast to a breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms.

8. The method of claim 1 , comprising:

allowing a breakout participant in a breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms to initiate content communication with the host from the breakout room.

9. The method of claim 1 , comprising:

allowing the host to control a first communication in a first group of the one or more breakout rooms while controlling a second communication in a second group of the one or more breakout rooms.

10. The method of claim 1 , comprising:

allowing the host to display content from a first screen being shared in a first breakout room to a second screen being shared in a second breakout room.

11. An apparatus, comprising:

a memory; and

a processor configured to execute instructions stored in the memory to:

instantiate a meeting room controlled by a host, the meeting room configured to allow communication among the host and meeting participants;

instantiate one or more breakout rooms associated with the meeting room, wherein a communication within a breakout room is limited to one or more of the meeting participants in the breakout room, and wherein host credentials allow the host to control the one or more breakout rooms by allowing the meeting participants to join the one or more breakout room with the meeting participants receiving visual indications of other meeting participants in the one or more breakout rooms; and

control communication in the one or more breakout rooms, based on the host credentials, by transmitting content from the host when the host is in the meeting room, to the one or more breakout rooms without requiring the host to leave the meeting room and join the one or more breakout rooms as an additional meeting participant and without the meeting participants in the one or more breakout rooms receiving a visual indication of the host in the one or more breakout rooms.

12. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the instructions include instructions to:

output, at a client device of the host, an audio stream from a breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms to allow the host to control the communication in the breakout room.

13. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the instructions include instructions to:

output, at a client device of the host, chat messages from a breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms to allow the host to control the communication in the breakout room.

14. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the instructions include instructions to:

output, at a client device of the host, a screen being shared in a breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms to allow the host to control the communication in the breakout room.

15. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the instructions include instructions to:

to display content from a client device of the host to a screen being shared in a breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms.

16. The apparatus of claim 11 , wherein the instructions include instructions to:

allow the host to control a first communication in a first group of the one or more breakout rooms while controlling a second communication in a second group of the one or more breakout rooms.

17. A non-transitory computer readable medium storing instructions operable to cause one or more processors to perform operations comprising:

instantiating a meeting room controlled by a host, the meeting room configured to allow communication among the host and meeting participants;

instantiating one or more breakout rooms associated with the meeting room, wherein a communication within a breakout room is limited to one or more of the meeting participants in the breakout room, and wherein host credentials allow the host to control the one or more breakout rooms by allowing the meeting participants to join the one or more breakout room with the meeting participants receiving visual indications of other meeting participants in the one or more breakout rooms; and

controlling communication in the one or more breakout rooms, based on the host credentials, by transmitting content from the host when the host is in the meeting room to the one or more breakout rooms without requiring the host to leave the meeting room and join the one or more breakout rooms as an additional meeting participant and without the meeting participants in the one or more breakout rooms receiving a visual indication of the host in the one or more breakout rooms.

18. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 17 , the operations comprising:

outputting, at a client device of the host, an audio stream from a breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms to allow the host to control the communication in the breakout room.

19. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 17 , the operations comprising:

outputting, at a client device of the host, chat messages from a breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms to allow the host to control the communication in the breakout room.

20. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 17 , the operations comprising:

outputting, at a client device of the host, a screen being shared in a breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms to allow the host to control the communication in the breakout room.

21. The method of claim 1 , wherein transmitting content to the one or more breakout rooms comprises:

transmitting content to a first breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms without the host joining the first breakout room and without transmitting content to a second breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms.

22. The method of claim 1 , wherein transmitting content to the one or more breakout rooms comprises:

forcing content to a screen being shared in a breakout room of the one or more breakout rooms without the host joining the breakout room.

Assignments (2)
CHANGE OF NAME Recorded Jan 7, 2025
From: ZOOM VIDEO COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
To: ZOOM COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
Reel/Frame 069839/0593 →
ASSIGNMENT OF ASSIGNOR'S INTEREST Recorded Oct 28, 2021
From: SWERDLOW, NICK
To: ZOOM VIDEO COMMUNICATIONS, INC.
Reel/Frame 057954/0562 →