Intelligent Mechanism to Automatically Discover and Notify a Potential Participant of a Teleconference

Abstract

Notifying an identified person of a teleconference is provided. Data corresponding to an audio record of the teleconference is received during the teleconference. Pattern recognition is performed on the data during the teleconference. In response to recognizing in the data a pattern corresponding to an identification of the identified person during the teleconference, a device associated with the identified person is contacted during the teleconference. A response related to the audio record is received from the device.

What is claimed is: 
     
         1 . A method for notifying an identified person of a teleconference, the method comprising:
 receiving, by a data processing system, data corresponding to an audio record of the teleconference during the teleconference;   performing, by the data processing system, pattern recognition on the data during the teleconference;   responsive to the data processing system recognizing in the data a pattern corresponding to an identification of the identified person during the teleconference, contacting, by the data processing system, a first device associated with the identified person during the teleconference; and   receiving, by the data processing system, a response related to the audio record from the first device.   
     
     
         2 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the contacting, by the data processing system, the first device associated with the identified person during the teleconference only occurs if tag words are spoken during the teleconference. 
     
     
         3 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 conveying, by the data processing system, the response to a second device. 
 
     
     
         4 . The method of  claim 3  wherein the second device is associated with at least one other attendee of the teleconference. 
     
     
         5 . The method of  claim 3  wherein the second device is associated with a person that is not participating in the teleconference. 
     
     
         6 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the response comprises a message recorded prior to initiation of the teleconference, and wherein the identified person does not join the teleconference. 
     
     
         7 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the contacting, by the data processing system, the first device associated with the identified person during the teleconference comprises at least one of transmitting an instant message to an instant message address associated with the identified person, transmitting an email to an email address associated with the identified person, transmitting a text message to a mobile communication device associated with the identified person, and calling a telephone number associated with the identified person. 
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the response comprises at least one of joining the teleconference, transmitting an instant message containing an indicated response, transmitting an email containing an indicated response, transmitting a text message containing an indicated response from a mobile communication device, transmitting an audio message from a communication device, transmitting an indication that the identified person will be late, and transmitting an indication that the identified person will not attend the teleconference. 
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 1  further comprising:
 recording, by the data processing system, the teleconference; and 
 saving, by the data processing system, the recording. 
 
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 9  wherein the recording, by the data processing system, the teleconference comprises recording the teleconference as a podcast, and wherein the method further comprises:
 replaying, by the data processing system, the podcast to the identified person on the first device in real time as the teleconference is conducted. 
 
     
     
         11 . The method of  claim 1  wherein the data processing system is a server computer having installed thereon speech pattern recognition software, wherein the server computer is connected to a network over which the teleconference is being held. 
     
     
         12 . A computer program product stored on a computer readable storage medium having instructions embodied thereon that are executable by a data processing system for notifying an identified person of a teleconference, the computer program product comprising:
 instructions for receiving data corresponding to an audio record of the teleconference during the teleconference;   instructions for performing pattern recognition on the data during the teleconference;   instructions for contacting a first device associated with the identified person during the teleconference in response to recognizing in the data a pattern corresponding to an identification of the identified person during the teleconference; and   instructions for receiving a response related to the audio record from the first device.   
     
     
         13 . The computer program product of  claim 12  wherein the instructions for contacting the first device associated with the identified person during the teleconference comprise instructions for contacting the first device only if tag words are spoken during the teleconference. 
     
     
         14 . The computer program product of  claim 12  further comprising:
 instructions for conveying the response to a second device. 
 
     
     
         15 . The computer program product of  claim 14  wherein the second device is associated with one of another attendee of the teleconference or a person that is not participating in the teleconference. 
     
     
         16 . A data processing system for notifying an identified person of a teleconference, the data processing system comprising:
 a bus;   a communications unit coupled to the bus;   a storage device coupled to the bus, wherein the storage device stores instructions; and   a processor coupled to the bus, wherein the processor executes the instructions to receive data corresponding to an audio record of the teleconference during the teleconference; perform pattern recognition on the data during the teleconference; contact a first device associated with the identified person during the teleconference in response to recognizing in the data a pattern corresponding to an identification of the identified person during the teleconference; and receive a response related to the audio record from the first device.   
     
     
         17 . The data processing system of  claim 16  wherein the processor executes the instructions to contact the first device associated with the identified person during the teleconference only if tag words are spoken during the teleconference. 
     
     
         18 . The data processing system of  claim 16  wherein the processor further executes the instructions to convey the response to a second device. 
     
     
         19 . The data processing system of  claim 18  wherein the second device is associated with one of another attendee of the teleconference or a person that is not participating in the teleconference.