Instant communications system having established communication channels between communication devices

Abstract

A communication server and accompanying communication devices allow near instantaneous communication between users of the communication devices. A communication device may be configured with multiple channels, where each channel is assigned a corresponding communication device. As the communication devices are registered with the communication server, each communication device has knowledge of other registered communication devices. Thus, communication devices may communicate nearly instantaneously with each other. Furthermore, as the communication device is equipped with multiple channels, a single communication device may host a conference call with other communication devices. In addition, communication device may include multiple buttons to control the communication device, and indicator lights to indicate the status of calls with other communication devices

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A device-implemented method comprising:
 receiving, by a first communication device, a spoken command for initiating communication with a second communication device, the spoken command indicating the second communication device;   responsive to receiving the spoken command:
 determining, by the first communication device, a device identifier associated with the second communication device based upon the spoken command; 
 initiating, by the first communication device, a communication channel with the second communication device using the device identifier associated with the second communication device, the communication channel configured to support one or more media streams over an Internet Protocol (IP) network with the second communication device; 
 receiving, by the first communication device, a media stream input; and 
 transmitting, by the first communication device, an outgoing media stream containing the media stream input to the second communication device via the communication channel. 
   
     
     
         2 . The method according to  claim 1 , further comprising receiving, by the first communication device, configuration information for the second communication device, the configuration information comprising the device identifier for the second communication device. 
     
     
         3 . The method according to  claim 2 , further comprising storing, by the first communication device, the configuration information for the second communication device in a memory of the first communication device. 
     
     
         4 . The method according to  claim 1 , further comprising configuring, by the first communication device, the communication channel to support the one or more multimedia streams with the second communication device based upon the device identifier of the second communication device and at least part of the spoken command. 
     
     
         5 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein determining the device identifier of the second communication device comprises:
 transmitting, by the first communication device, to a communication server a request for the device identifier associated with the second communication device, wherein the request is generated according to the spoken command; and   receiving, by the first communication device, the device identifier returned from the communication server.   
     
     
         6 . The method according to  claim 1 , further comprising receiving, by the first communication device, an incoming media stream from the second communication device via the communication channel. 
     
     
         7 . The method according to  claim 6 , further comprising displaying, by an indicator light of the first communication device, an indication of the incoming media stream. 
     
     
         8 . The method according to  claim 6 , wherein the incoming media stream includes an audio component, the method further comprising playing, by the first communication device, the audio component of the incoming media stream via a speaker of the first communication device. 
     
     
         9 . The method according to  claim 6 , wherein the incoming media stream includes a video component, the method further comprising displaying, by the first communication device, the video component of the incoming media stream via a graphical user interface of the first communication device. 
     
     
         10 . The method according to  claim 1 , wherein the media stream input of the outgoing media stream includes a video component. 
     
     
         11 . A first communication device comprising:
 a processor configured to:
 receive from a user a spoken command for initiating communication with a second communication device, the spoken command indicating the second communication device; 
 determine a device identifier associated with the second communication device based upon the spoken command; 
 initiate a communication channel with the second communication device using the device identifier associated with the second communication device, the communication channel configured to support one or more media streams over an Internet Protocol (IP) network with the second communication device; 
 receive a media stream input; and 
 transmit an outgoing media stream containing the media stream input to the second communication device via the communication channel. 
   
     
     
         12 . The first communication device according to  claim 11 , wherein the processor is further configured to receive configuration information for the second communication device, the configuration information comprising the device identifier for the second communication device. 
     
     
         13 . The first communication device according to  claim 12 , further comprising a memory configured to store the configuration information for the second communication device. 
     
     
         14 . The first communication device according to  claim 11 , wherein the processor is further configured to configure the communication channel to support the one or more multimedia streams with the second communication device based upon the device identifier of the second communication device and at least part of the spoken command. 
     
     
         15 . The first communication device according to  claim 11 , wherein the processor is further configured to:
 transmit to a communication server a request for the device identifier associated with the second communication device, wherein the request is generated according to the spoken command; and   receive the device identifier returned from the communication server.   
     
     
         16 . The first communication device according to  claim 11 , wherein the processor is further configured to receive an incoming media stream from the second communication device via the communication channel. 
     
     
         17 . The first communication device according to  claim 16 , further comprising an indicator light controlled by the processor, wherein the processor is further configured to control the indicator light to display an indication of the incoming media stream. 
     
     
         18 . The first communication device according to  claim 16 , further comprising a speaker configured to play an audio component of the incoming media stream received from the second communication device. 
     
     
         19 . The first communication device according to  claim 16 , further comprising a graphical user interface configured to display a video component of the incoming media stream received from the second communication device. 
     
     
         20 . The first communication device according to  claim 11 , further comprising a webcam configured to receive video input, and wherein the media stream input of the outgoing media stream includes a video component.