US 6,151,621 A · Personal conferencing system

Abstract

There is described a personal conferencing method and system for a client (32)/server (30) environment. The server (30) stores conference model data (60) such as a shared chalkboard or a molecular model and each client has a copy of the conference model data (61). When one of said clients (32A, 32B, 32C) edits the model (61) it creates an instruction (64A) for operating on the model and sends the instruction (64A) to the server (30). The server (30) operates (62) on its conference model data (60) on receipt of the instruction (64A) and resends the instruction (64B) to each of the clients (32A, 32B, 32C) and each client (32A, 32B, 32C) performs the same operation (63) on their respective copies of the conference data model (61). Whereby after a plurality of different operating instructions (64B) from different clients (32A, 32B, 32C) the respective copies of the conference model data (60) are equivalent.

Claims18

Dependent claims

A method for controlling a personal conference between a server (30) and one or more clients (32A,32B, 32C) for sharing common conference model data (60) comprising:

storing the conference model data (60) on each client in the conference;
generating, at a client, a pre-instruction representing an operation on the conference model data (60) and sending the pre-instruction from the client to the server (30);
receiving at the server the pre-instruction from the client;
broadcasting an instruction, in response to the pre-instruction, for operating on the conference model from the server to all the clients;
and
operating on the conference model, at each client, according the broadcast instruction;
whereby the server provides a centralized meeting place for clients to advertise and participate in shared work and whereby each client receives broadcast instructions in the same order and performs operations on its respective conference data model in the same order so that all copies of the conference model data remain consistent.

4 more elements

A computer program product, stored on a computer-readable storage medium, for executing computer program instructions to carry out the steps of a method for controlling a personal conference between a server (30) and one or more clients (32A,32B, 32C) for sharing common conference model data (60);

said method steps comprising:
storing conference model data (60) on each client in the conference;
generating, at a client, a pre-instruction representing an operation on the conference model data (60);
sending the pre-instruction from the client to the server (30);
receiving at the server the pre-instruction from the client;
broadcasting a corresponding instruction from the server to all the clients in response to the pre-instruction;
and
operating on the conference model, at each client, according the received instruction;
whereby the server provides a centralized meeting place for clients to advertise and participate in shared work and whereby each client receives instructions and performs operations on its respective conference data model in the same order as other clients so that all copies of the conference model data remain consistent.

6 more elements

Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.

Personal conferencing system

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Personal conferencing system

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Abstract

Claims18