Providing communication services using sets of I/O devices

An input and/or output, I/O, user device among a plurality of I/O user devices that is configured as a controlling I/O user device providing communication services using a set of the I/O user devices, the controlling I/O user device comprising at least one processor and at least one memory storing instructions executable by the at least one processor to perform operations comprising:

• identify a set of I/O user devices among the I/O user devices that are determined to be proximately located to a user by at least one of the I/O user devices among the I/O user devices detecting a user tag transported by the user, and are further determined, based on user interface (UI) capabilities for the set of I/O user devices, to satisfy a combined capability rule for being combinable to provide a combined UI for a communication service;
• based on a communication request from a network entity for establishing the communication service between the user and a requesting user terminal, and further based on determining that the set of I/O user devices is proximately located to the user and satisfies the combined capability rule, perform:
• provide communication sessions between the user terminal emulation server and each of the I/O user devices in the set, and between the user terminal emulation server and the requesting user terminal via the network entity;
• route communication traffic that is received from at least one of the I/O user devices in the set toward the requesting user terminal;
• and
• for each data type that is received as communication traffic from the requesting user terminal, select one of the I/O user devices from among the set of I/O user devices based on matching characteristics of the data type to the UI capabilities for the one of the I/O user devices, and then routing the data of the data type toward the selected one of the I/O user devices;
• and
• responsive to another communication request from the network entity for establishing another communication service between another user and another requesting user terminal, performing further operations to:
• determine whether another set of I/O user devices among the I/O user devices is proximately located to the another user and available for use for the another communication service and is further determined, based on the UI capabilities of the another set of I/O user devices to satisfy the combined capability rule for being combinable to provide a combined UI for the another communication service;
• and
• based on determining that no other set of I/O user devices is determined to satisfy the combined capability rule, available for use by the another communication service, and proximately located to the another user,
• configure one of the I/O user devices in the set of I/O user devices that is proximately located to the another user but is currently being used by the user, to operate to provide a shared UI that is used by the user while the communication service is continuing to be provided to the user and that is further used by the another user while the another communication service is provided to the another user.

A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable medium storing program code that is executed by a processor in a user terminal emulation server for providing communication services using sets of input and/or output, I/O, user devices, the processor performing operations comprising:

• identifying a set of I/O user devices among the I/O user devices that are determined to be proximately located to a user by at least one of the I/O user devices among the I/O user devices detecting a user tag transported by the user, and are further determined, based on user interface (UI) capabilities for the set of I/O user devices, to satisfy a combined capability rule for being combinable to provide a combined UI for a communication service;
• based on a communication request from a network entity for establishing the communication service between the user and a requesting user terminal, and further based on determining that the set of I/O user devices is proximately located to the user and satisfies the combined capability rule, performing:
• providing communication sessions between the user terminal emulation server and the I/O user devices in the set and between the user terminal emulation server and the requesting user terminal via the network entity;
• routing communication traffic that is received from at least one of the I/O user devices in the set toward the requesting user terminal;
• and
• for a data type of communication traffic that is received from the requesting user terminal, selecting one of the I/O user devices from among the set of I/O user devices based on matching a characteristic of the data type to a UI capability of the one of the I/O user devices, and then routing the communication traffic of the data type toward the selected one of the I/O user devices;
• and
• responsive to another communication request from the network entity for establishing another communication service between another user and another requesting user terminal, performing further operations to:
• determine whether another set of I/O user devices among the I/O user devices is proximately located to the another user and available for use for the another communication service and is further determined, based on the UI capabilities of the another set of I/O user devices to satisfy the combined capability rule for being combinable to provide a combined UI for the another communication service;
• and
• based on determining that no other set of I/O user devices is determined to satisfy the combined capability rule, available for use by the another communication service, and proximately located to the another user,
• configure one of the I/O user devices in the set of I/O user devices that is proximately located to the another user but is currently being used by the user, to operate to provide a shared UI that is used by the user while the communication service is continuing to be provided to the user and that is further used by the another user while the another communication service is provided to the another user.

A computer program product comprising a non-transitory computer readable medium storing program code that is executed by a processor in an input and/or output, I/O, user device among a plurality of I/O user devices that is configured as a controlling I/O user device providing communication services using a set of the I/O user devices, the processor performing operations comprising:

• identifying a set of I/O user devices among the I/O user devices that are determined to be proximately located to a user by at least one of the I/O user devices among the I/O user devices detecting a user tag transported by the user, and are further determined, based on user interface (UI) capabilities for the set of I/O user devices, to satisfy a combined capability rule for being combinable to provide a combined UI for a communication service;
• based on a communication request from a network entity for establishing the communication service between the user and a requesting user terminal, and further based on determining that the set of I/O user devices is proximately located to the user and satisfies the combined capability rule, perform:
• providing communication sessions between the user terminal emulation server and each of the I/O user devices in the set, and between the user terminal emulation server and the requesting user terminal via the network entity;
• routing communication traffic that is received from at least one of the I/O user devices in the set toward the requesting user terminal;
• and
• for each data type that is received as communication traffic from the requesting user terminal, selecting one of the I/O user devices from among the set of I/O user devices based on matching characteristics of the data type to the UI capabilities for the one of the I/O user devices, and then routing the data of the data type toward the selected one of the I/O user devices;
• and
• responsive to another communication request from the network entity for establishing another communication service between another user and another requesting user terminal, performing further operations to:
• determine whether another set of I/O user devices among the I/O user devices is proximately located to the another user and available for use for the another communication service and is further determined, based on the UI capabilities of the another set of I/O user devices to satisfy the combined capability rule for being combinable to provide a combined UI for the another communication service;
• and
• based on determining that no other set of I/O user devices is determined to satisfy the combined capability rule, available for use by the another communication service, and proximately located to the another user,
• configure one of the I/O user devices in the set of I/O user devices that is proximately located to the another user but is currently being used by the user, to operate to provide a shared UI that is used by the user while the communication service is continuing to be provided to the user and that is further used by the another user while the another communication service is provided to the another user.