# US 10,375,122 B2 · Control apparatus, communications control system, and non-transitory recording medium that stores program > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,375,122 B2 - Document ID: US10375122B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 15/249,569 - Filed: 2016-08-29 - Published: 2017-03-02 - Granted: 2019-08-06 - Earliest claimed: 2015-09-01 - Assignees: Ricoh Company, Ltd. - Applicants: Atsushi Miyamoto; Hiroshi Hinohara; Takeshi Horiuchi; Takuya Soneda; Naoki Umehara - Inventors: Atsushi Miyamoto; Hiroshi Hinohara; Takeshi Horiuchi; Takuya Soneda; Naoki Umehara - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10375122B2 ## CPC - H04L 65/1046: Call controllers; Call servers - H04L 65/1069: Session establishment or de-establishment - H04L 65/1086: {session scope modification} - H04L 65/403: 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) - H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M) ## Abstract A control apparatus includes at least one processor configured to receive a request from a first communications terminal from among a plurality of communications terminals to select one or more relay apparatuses that relay content data transmitted and received between the first communications terminal and a second communications terminal from among the communications terminals; select one or more relay apparatuses included in one or more networks usable by the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal in response to the received request; and transmit identification information of the selected one or more relay apparatuses to the first communications terminal. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A control apparatus comprising: a network interface; a storage unit, and at least one processor configured to: receive, through a network interface, a request from a first communications terminal from among a plurality of communications terminals to start a communication between the first communications terminal and a second communications terminal and select one or more relay apparatuses that relay content data transmitted and received between the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal from among the communications terminals, said one or more relay apparatuses including a first relay apparatus that belongs to a first intranet and a second relay apparatus that belongs to a second intranet that is connected to the first intranet via a network that is not an intranet; search for one or more relay apparatuses that are included in intranets and usable for the communication between the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal; select, based on a result of the search, the first and second relay apparatuses included in the first and second intranets usable by the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal in response to the received request; and transmit, through the network interface, identification information of the selected first and second relay apparatuses to the first communications terminal from which the request was received, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: instruct the first and second relay apparatuses to directly communicate to each other, thereby performing the communication between the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: read information stored in a storage unit where relay apparatuses respectively usable by the communications terminals are associated with identifiers of networks in which the relay apparatuses are included, and select the one or more relay apparatuses included in the one or more networks in which the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal are included. ### Claim 3 (depends on 2) The control apparatus according to claim 2, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: store network addresses as the identifiers of the networks. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: select a second relay apparatus included in a second network of the second communications terminal for the first communications terminal if a first relay apparatus included in a first network other than the second network of the second communications terminal has been already selected for the first communications terminal. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: select a first relay apparatus included in a first network for transmitting content data to and receiving content data from the first communications terminal, and a second relay apparatus included in a second network for transmitting content data to and receiving content data from the second communications terminal, if the first communications terminal is included in the first network to which access from outside of the first network is restricted, and the second communications terminal is included in the second network to which access from outside of the second network is restricted, and wherein the content data is transmitted and received between the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal via the first relay apparatus and the second relay apparatus. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to select a same relay apparatus located in one of the intranets when the first and the second communications terminals are located in the one of the intranets. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The control apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is configured to select, based on the search result, only the first and second relay apparatuses included in the intranets usable by the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal in response to the received request. ### Claim 8 (depends on 7) The control apparatus according to claim 7, wherein the content data transmitted and received between the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal is kept within the first and second intranets during the communication. ### Claim 9 A communications control system comprising: a plurality of communications terminals; and a control apparatus, wherein a first communications terminal from among the communications terminals comprises at least one processor configured to: transmit a request to start a communication between the first communications terminal and a second communications terminal and select one or more relay apparatuses that relay content data transmitted and received between the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal from among the communications terminals, and the control apparatus comprises: a network interface; a storage unit, and at least one processor configured to: receive, through a network interface, a request from a first communications terminal from among a plurality of communications terminals to start a communication between the first communications terminal and a second communications terminal and select one or more relay apparatuses that relay content data transmitted and received between the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal from among the communications terminals, said one or more relay apparatuses including a first relay apparatus that belongs to a first intranet and a second relay apparatus that belongs to a second intranet that is connected to the first intranet via a network that is not an intranet; search for one or more relay apparatuses that are included in intranets and usable for the communication between the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal; select, based on a result of the search, the first and second relay apparatuses included in the first and second intranets usable by the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal in response to the received request; and transmit, through the network interface, identification information of the selected first and second relay apparatuses to the first communications terminal from which the request was received, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: instruct the first and second relay apparatuses to directly communicate to each other, thereby performing the communication between the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal. ### Claim 10 (depends on 9) The communications control system according to claim 9, wherein the at least one processor of the first communications terminal is further configured to: display the identification information of the one or more relay apparatuses received from the control apparatus, and receive an input from a user to select at least one of the one or more relay apparatus. ### Claim 11 A non-transitory recording medium storing a program which, when executed by one or more processors, causes the one or more processors to: receive, through a network interface, a request from a first communications terminal from among a plurality of communications terminals to start a communication between the first communications terminal and a second communications terminal and select one or more relay apparatuses that relay content data transmitted and received between the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal from among the communications terminals, said one or more relay apparatuses including a first relay apparatus that belongs to a first intranet and a second relay apparatus that belongs to a second intranet that is connected to the first intranet via a network that is not an intranet; search for one or more relay apparatuses that are included in intranets and usable for the communication between the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal; select, based on a result of the search, the first and second relay apparatuses included in the first and second intranets usable by the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal in response to the received request; and transmit, through the network interface, identification information of the selected first and second relay apparatuses to the first communications terminal from which the request was received, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to: instruct the first and second relay apparatuses to directly communicate to each other, thereby performing the communication between the first communications terminal and the second communications terminal.