Computer assisted graphic teleconferencing method and apparatus

Claim 1

An audiographic telephone conference system between a plurality of participants or users, comprising: a plurality of user apparatus, one for each participant, each said user apparatus having a single respective telephone line for selectively coupling to one or more other said user apparatus, and wherein each said user apparatus further includes, telephone apparatus; a programmable modem including a receiving section and a transmitting section; a programmable digital computer operable to control the connection of said telephone apparatus and said modem to said respective telephone lines, said computer further including, operational mode selection means, video display means, data input means, a memory for storing a computer program and a plurality of graphic images fed into said memory by said data input means and means for retrieving a selected graphic image from said memory, said memory further including means for storing one or more user viewable graphic images and a user viewable index file of stored graphic images, and means for selectively displaying said graphic images or said index file on said display means; said computer being operable in accordance with said stored computer program to cause said modem receiving section to continuously silently monitor telephone communications among the plurality of users without interfering with voice conferencing except when transmitting to permit operation of said mode selection means to: (i) selectively cause a graphic image locally stored in said memory to both be displayed by said display means and to be transmitted simultaneously to all other participants turing a mandatory brief interruption in voice communication among said users; (ii) receive a graphic image transmitted from other said user apparatus via the respective programmable modems also turing a mandatory brief interruption in voice communication among said users; and (iii) further, when desirable, switch to a companion graphics program capable of both altering existing graphic images and generating new graphic images.