# US 10,484,452 B2 · Approach for sharing electronic documents during electronic meetings > Agents: this data is available as JSON from the patentgrep API and MCP server — see https://patentgrep.com/llms.txt - Number: US 10,484,452 B2 - Document ID: US10484452B2 - Status: Granted - Kind: B2 - Application number: 14/746,466 - Filed: 2015-06-22 - Published: 2016-12-22 - Granted: 2019-11-19 - Earliest claimed: 2015-06-22 - Assignees: Ricoh Company, Ltd. - Applicants: Alex Reyes - Inventors: Alex Reyes - Web page: https://patentgrep.com/patent/US10484452B2 ## CPC - H04L 67/06: specially adapted for file transfer, e.g. file transfer protocol [FTP] - G06F 3/0484: for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range - G06F 3/14: Digital output to display device {; Cooperation and interconnection of the display device with other functional units} - G06F 3/1423: {controlling a plurality of local displays, e.g. CRT and flat panel display} - G06F 21/604: {Tools and structures for managing or administering access control systems} - G06F 21/6209: {to a single file or object, e.g. in a secure envelope, encrypted and accessed using a key, or with access control rules appended to the object itself} - H04L 67/535: {Tracking the activity of the user (network monitoring arrangements H04L43/00; recording of computer activity G06F11/34)} - H04M 7/0027: {Collaboration services where a computer is used for data transfer and the telephone is used for telephonic communication} - G06F 2221/2113: Multi-level security, e.g. mandatory access control - G09G 2358/00: Arrangements for display data security - G09G 2370/16: Use of wireless transmission of display information - H04L: TRANSMISSION OF DIGITAL INFORMATION, e.g. TELEGRAPHIC COMMUNICATION (arrangements common to telegraphic and telephonic communication H04M) - G06F: ELECTRIC DIGITAL DATA PROCESSING (computer systems based on specific computational models G06N) - H04M: TELEPHONIC COMMUNICATION (circuits for controlling other apparatus via a telephone cable and not involving telephone switching apparatus G08) - G09G: ARRANGEMENTS OR CIRCUITS FOR CONTROL OF INDICATING DEVICES USING STATIC MEANS TO PRESENT VARIABLE INFORMATION (arrangements for transferring data between digital computers and displays G06F3/14; static indicating arrangements comprising an association of a number of separate sources or light control cells G09F9/00; static indicating arrangements comprising integral associations of a number of light sources H01J, H01K, H10H, H05B33/12; scanning, transmission or reproduction of documents or the like, e.g. facsimile transmission, details thereof H04N1/00) ## Abstract An approach is provided for sharing electronic documents during electronic meetings. Client devices of meeting participants are configured with a file sharing application that allows participants of an electronic meeting to request and receive, during the electronic meeting, electronic documents that are displayed during the electronic meeting. The file sharing application allows presenters to review and approve or deny requests for electronic documents, and to apply security restrictions to electronic documents on a participant-by-participant basis. Security restrictions may also be specific to particular electronic meetings and access to electronic documents shared during electronic meetings may be restricted to users who were participants of the electronic meetings. The approach is not limited to files per se and is applicable to sharing any type of data in any format or structure. ## Claims ### Claim 1 A first apparatus for providing an improvement in the sharing of electronic documents between network devices during electronic meetings, the first apparatus comprising: one or more processors; one or more memories communicatively coupled to the one or more processors; a display; a collaboration client executing on the first apparatus and configured to: support an electronic meeting via one or more computer networks with a second apparatus that is external to and different from the first apparatus, wherein the second apparatus corresponds to a presenter participant of the electronic meeting, and generate and display, on the display of the first apparatus, a graphical user interface that includes: a first set of one or more graphical user interface controls that allow a user of the first apparatus to request a particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting; and an attendee list that: lists a plurality of participants of the electronic meeting that includes at least the presenter participant and at least one non-presenting participant, and specifies for each participant, from the plurality of participants of the electronic meeting, whether the participant has requested the particular electronic document from the presenter participant; and a file sharing application executing on the first apparatus and configured to: in response to a user selection of the first set of one or more graphical user interface controls that allow a user of the first apparatus to request a particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting: determine, based upon file sharing data stored in the one or more memories of the first apparatus, that the presenter participant is the presenter of the particular electronic document, and generate and transmit to the second apparatus via the one or more computer networks, a request for the particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting, wherein at the second apparatus, in response to receiving the request for the particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting, a collaboration client executing on the second apparatus causes to be displayed on a display of the second apparatus, a plurality of graphical user interface controls that include a control to allow the presenter participant to deny the request and two or more controls to allow the presenter participant to accept the request, wherein each control, from the two or more controls to allow the presenter participant to accept the request, corresponds to a different security restriction level, at the second apparatus, the presenter participant selects a particular control for accepting the request and the particular control corresponds to a particular restriction level, receive, from the second apparatus via the one or more computer networks, a response to the request for the particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting, wherein the response to the request for the particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting includes the particular electronic document and was generated in response to the presenter participant approving the request for the particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting, and cause the particular electronic document to be presented to the user of the first apparatus subject to the particular security restriction level that corresponds to the control selected by the presenter participant. ### Claim 2 (depends on 1) The first apparatus of claim 1, wherein the data generated by the file sharing application of the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting is specific to the electronic meeting. ### Claim 3 (depends on 1) The first apparatus of claim 1, wherein the file sharing application is further configured to decrypt the encrypted version of the particular electronic document to recover the particular electronic document using both the data generated by the file sharing application of the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting and the data specified by the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting. ### Claim 4 (depends on 1) The first apparatus of claim 1, wherein the data specified by the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting is an alphanumeric string. ### Claim 5 (depends on 1) The first apparatus of claim 1, wherein the encrypted version of the particular electronic document is generated by the file sharing application of the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting using data generated by the file sharing application of the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting. ### Claim 6 (depends on 1) The first apparatus of claim 1, wherein the file sharing application is further configured to request from the file sharing application of the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting, one or more of the data generated by the file sharing application of the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting, or the data specified by the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting. ### Claim 7 (depends on 1) The first apparatus of claim 1, wherein the file sharing application is further configured to cause the particular electronic document to be displayed to the user in a read-only viewer that prohibits a copy of the particular electronic document from being made. ### Claim 8 One or more non-transitory computer-readable media for providing an improvement in the sharing of electronic documents between network devices during electronic meetings, the one or more non-transitory computer-readable media storing instructions which, when processed by one or more processors, cause: a collaboration client executing on a first apparatus to: support an electronic meeting via one or more computer networks with a second apparatus that is external to and different from the first apparatus, wherein the second apparatus corresponds to a presenter participant of the electronic meeting, and generate and display, on the display of the first apparatus, a graphical user interface that includes: a first set of one or more graphical user interface controls that allow a user of the first apparatus to request a particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting; and an attendee list that: lists a plurality of participants of the electronic meeting that includes at least the presenter participant and at least one non-presenting participant, and specifies for each participant, from the plurality of participants of the electronic meeting, whether the participant has requested the particular electronic document from the presenter participant; and a file sharing application executing on the first apparatus to: in response to a user selection of the first set of one or more graphical user interface controls that allow a user of the first apparatus to request a particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting: determine, based upon file sharing data stored in the one or more memories of the first apparatus, that the presenter participant is the presenter of the particular electronic document, and generate and transmit to the second apparatus via the one or more computer networks, a request for the particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting, wherein at the second apparatus, in response to receiving the request for the particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting, a collaboration client executing on the second apparatus causes to be displayed on a display of the second apparatus, a plurality of graphical user interface controls that include a control to allow the presenter participant to deny the request and two or more controls to allow the presenter participant to accept the request, wherein each control, from the two or more controls to allow the presenter participant to accept the request, corresponds to a different security restriction level, at the second apparatus, the presenter participant selects a particular control for accepting the request and the particular control corresponds to a particular restriction level, receive, from the second apparatus via the one or more computer networks, a response to the request for the particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting, wherein the response to the request for the particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting includes an encrypted version of the particular electronic document and the response was generated in response to the presenter participant approving the request for the particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting, and cause the particular electronic document to be presented to the user of the first apparatus subject to the particular security restriction level that corresponds to the control selected by the presenter participant. ### Claim 9 (depends on 8) The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 8, wherein the data generated by the file sharing application of the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting is specific to the electronic meeting. ### Claim 10 (depends on 8) The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 8, further comprising additional instructions which, when processed by the one or more processors, cause the file sharing application to decrypt the encrypted version of the particular electronic document to recover the particular electronic document using both the data generated by the file sharing application of the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting and the data specified by a presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting. ### Claim 11 (depends on 8) The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 8, wherein the data specified by the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting is an alphanumeric string. ### Claim 12 (depends on 8) The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 8, wherein the encrypted version of the particular electronic document is generated by the file sharing application of a presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting using data generated by the file sharing application of the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting. ### Claim 13 (depends on 8) The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 8, further comprising additional instructions which, when processed by the one or more processors, cause the file sharing application to request from the file sharing application of the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting, one or more of the data generated by the file sharing application of the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting, or the data specified by the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting. ### Claim 14 (depends on 8) The one or more non-transitory computer-readable media of claim 8, further comprising additional instructions which, when processed by the one or more processors, cause the file sharing application to cause the particular electronic document to be displayed to the user in a read-only viewer that prohibits a copy of the particular electronic document from being made. ### Claim 15 A computer-implemented method for providing an improvement in the sharing of electronic documents between apparatuses during electronic meetings, the computer-implemented method comprising: a collaboration client executing on a first apparatus: supporting an electronic meeting via one or more computer networks with a second apparatus that is external to and different from the first apparatus, wherein the second apparatus corresponds to a presenter participant of the electronic meeting, and generating and displaying, on the display of the first apparatus, a graphical user interface that includes: a first set of one or more graphical user interface controls that allow a user of the first apparatus to request a particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting; and an attendee list that: lists a plurality of participants of the electronic meeting that includes at least the presenter participant and at least one non-presenting participant, and specifies for each participant, from the plurality of participants of the electronic meeting, whether the participant has requested the particular electronic document from the presenter participant; and a file sharing application executing on the first apparatus: in response to a user selection of the first set of one or more graphical user interface controls that allow a user of the first apparatus to request a particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting: determining, based upon file sharing data stored in the one or more memories of the first apparatus, that the presenter participant is the presenter of the particular electronic document, and generating and transmitting to the second apparatus via the one or more computer networks, a request for the particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting, wherein at the second apparatus, in response to receiving the request for the particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting, a collaboration client executing on the second apparatus causes to be displayed on a display of the second apparatus, a plurality of graphical user interface controls that include a control to allow the presenter participant to deny the request and two or more controls to allow the presenter participant to accept the request, wherein each control, from the two or more controls to allow the presenter participant to accept the request, corresponds to a different security restriction level, at the second apparatus, the presenter participant selects a particular control for accepting the request and the particular control corresponds to a particular restriction level, receiving, from the second apparatus via the one or more computer networks, a response to the request for the particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting, wherein the response to the request for the particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting includes the particular electronic document and was generated in response to the presenter participant approving the request for the particular electronic document currently being displayed during the electronic meeting, and causing the particular electronic document to be presented to the user of the first apparatus subject to the particular security restriction level that corresponds to the control selected by the presenter participant. ### Claim 16 (depends on 15) The computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein the data generated by the file sharing application of the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting is specific to the electronic meeting. ### Claim 17 (depends on 15) The computer-implemented method of claim 15, further comprising the file sharing application decrypting the encrypted version of the particular electronic document to recover the particular electronic document using both the data generated by a file sharing application of the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting and the data specified by the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting. ### Claim 18 (depends on 15) The computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein the data specified by the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting is an alphanumeric string. ### Claim 19 (depends on 15) The computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein the encrypted version of the particular electronic document is generated by the file sharing application of a presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting using data generated by the file sharing application of the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting. ### Claim 20 (depends on 15) The computer-implemented method of claim 15, further comprising the file sharing application requesting from the file sharing application of the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting, one or more of the data generated by the file sharing application of the presenter participant of the particular electronic document during the electronic meeting, or the data specified by the presenter participant of the electronic document during the electronic meeting.