Mind API (draft) (1.0)

This document describes a draft version of Mind API and is subject to change at any time without notice.

Introduction

Mind API is a cloud platform (aka PaaS) that enables you to build applications where group of people communicate on the Internet using voice and video. For example, you can easily build a standalone application for video conferencing from scratch, or embed audio and video communication capabilities into an existing chat application, and do a lot more. Here is a list of features of Mind API:

  • Voice and video chats for up to X participants
  • Instant text messaging between the participants
  • Manageable recording of meetings on the server side
  • Screen/window sharing and streaming multimedia content
  • Support for SIP participants
  • Streaming meetings to YouTube, Twitch and other RTMP(S)-enabled servers
  • P2P audio and video calls (coming soon)
  • Support for H.323 participants (coming soon)
  • Sourcing external RTSP and RTMP streams (coming soon)

Mind API allows you to take a full advantage of described functionality without a need to dive deep into low level details. All the complexity is hidden behind a simple HTTP-based API which can be used directly on the server, but we highly encourage you to stick with one of our SDKs on the client:

Mind API is RESTful and built on top of HTTP. It uses predictable resource URIs and standard HTTP response status codes to indicate errors. The API accepts and returns JSON in the HTTP body. We use standard HTTP methods and authentication which are understood by almost any off-the-shelf HTTP client. We support cross-origin resource sharing, allowing you to interact directly with our API from a client-side web application deployed to its own domain. Mind API uses WebSockets to keep all the parts of your application in sync (they also help tracking the presence of participants).

See it in action

To demonstrate what you can do with Mind API we have developed a simple web-application for video conferencing. It allows you to create a media room where up to 5 participants can communicate using voice, video and text messages. The room is automatically destroyed in 15 minutes after creation. Try it yourself.

Get application ID and token

To use Mind API you will need an application ID and a token. For development purpose we suggest you to start with our free shared application ID 00e1db72-c57d-478c-88be-3533d43c8b34 and corresponding token:

W1VJggwnvg2ldDdvSYES07tpLCWLDlD5nFakVJ6QSCPiZRpAMGyAzKW07OpM1IpceZ2WT5h5Mu7Ekt7WDTQzMUoQkVTRE4NdYUFE

They allow creating unlimited number of conferences with up to 5 participants and up to 15 minutes duration each. These limits should be enough for you to start developing your application. To get an application ID and a token without such limits, please fill out a form here.

Authentication

Authentication is performed using bearer HTTP authentication scheme, thereby all HTTP requests to Mind API must include an access token which must be sent in the Authorization HTTP request header:

Authorization: Bearer <token>

If the client is unable to set the headers (which is the case for Javascript WebSocket API), the token can be sent as a value of access_token HTTP request parameter. Any request without a valid token will return 401 - Unauthorized HTTP response status code.

There are two types of accesss tokens: application token and participant token. Application token is requested together with the application ID. Application token gives anyone who is using it a full access to Mind API on behalf of corresponding application. This type of token is required to create and delete conferences, it is intended to be used on server-side code only and should never be exposed in public, i.e. never share your application token in publicly accessible areas such GitHub, client-side code, and so forth.

Participant token is generated whenever your create a new participant in the conference. It can't be used for conference creation or deletion (like application token), but it gives an ability to act on behalf of the corresponding participant, and is intended to be passed to (and used on) a client-side code. Every participant token is tied to a single conference. It invalidates if conference ends or if the participant was expelled from the conference.

Errors

Mind API uses conventional HTTP response status codes to indicate whether a specific API request has been completed successfully of failed. In general, 200 indicates success, 4xx indicate a failure due to supplied parameters, and 500 indicates an error on the server-side.

Status Code Description
200 - OK The request was successful and the value (if there is any) was returned.
400 - Bad Request A required attribute of the request is missing or has an invalid value.
401 - Unauthorized No valid token was provided.
403 - Forbidden The request is not allowed, e.g. an attendee participant is not allowed to delete a conference.
404 - Not Found The requested resource doesn't exist.
415 - Unsupported Media Type Unsupported media type was specified in the `Content-Type` HTTP request header.
500 - Server Error Something went wrong on the server-side.

WebSockets

Mind API uses WebSockets to notify applications of all changes in conferences. To start receiving notifications related to a confernce, the server-side of your application should open a WebSocket using the following URI:

wss://api.mind.com/<applicationId>/<conferenceId>

WebSocket opening request requires an application token. Every WebSocket connection is tied to only one conference. In order to receive notifications for multiple conferences, your application has to open multiple WebSockets — one for every conference. The application cannot open multiple WebSockets for the same conference — opening of a new WebSocket would lead to closing of the old one with 4001 code.

A separate notification is sent for every change in the conference. Notifications are sent only for changed made by participants or Mind API iself (i.e. no notification is sent for a change made by the application itself). Each notification is a JSON with three attributes: type, location and resource. The type attribute can have one of the following values: created, updated and deleted. They correspond to creation of a new resource, modification and deletion of the existent one, respectively. The location attribute contains an URI of the affected resource. The URI is relative to the conference, / URI means the conference itself. The resource attribute stores an initial or a new value of the created or updated resource, respectively. Here is an example of the notification which is sent when a new participant is created:

{
    "type": "created",
    "location": "/participants/24300bf9-d9f2-4bbf-9719-8660d110bc63",
    "resource": {
        "id": "24300bf9-d9f2-4bbf-9719-8660d110bc63",
        "online": false,
        "name": "John Doe",
        "role": "speaker",
        "media": {
            "audio": false,
            "video": false
        },
        "secondaryMedia": {
            "audio": false,
            "video": false
        }
    }
}

Normally the application should close each opened WebSocket on its own before the deletion of the conference, but WebSockets can also be closed at the initiative of the Mind API if the conference duration exceeds 24 hours limit. In such case the WebSocket is closed with 4000 code.

Conference

Create conference

Creates a new conference with the specified parameters. Only an application is permitted to create new conferences.

path Parameters
applicationId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 00e1db72-c57d-478c-88be-3533d43c8b34

The ID of an application

Request Body schema: application/json
name
string
Default: "​"
layout
string
Default: "mosaic"
Enum: "mosaic" "selector" "presenting_mosaic" "presenting_selector"
recordingLayout
string
Deprecated
Enum: "mosaic" "selector" "presenting_mosaic" "presenting_selector"

Responses

200
Response Schema: application/json
id
string <uuid>
name
string
layout
string
Enum: "mosaic" "selector" "presenting_mosaic" "presenting_selector"
recording
object (ConferenceRecording)
endingAt
integer <int64>
post /{applicationId}
https://api.mind.com/{applicationId}

Request samples

Content type
application/json
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{
  • "name": "Meeting name",
  • "layout": "mosaic"
}

Response samples

Content type
application/json
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{
  • "id": "1cf69ae4-4c54-47cf-b409-97e88f62fe12",
  • "name": "Meeting name",
  • "layout": "mosaic",
  • "recording":
    {
    },
  • "endingAt": 1663792395
}

Get conference

Returns a conference with the specified ID. If detailed query parameter is set to true then the conference will include a list of all participants and might include a list of all streamings — the latter is included only if the conference is requested by the application. The lists are ordered according to the same rules which apply for listing participants and listing streamings, respectively. If detailed parameter is omitted or explicitly set to false then the conference will contain neither participants nor streamings lists. The conference is permitted to be got either by the application which has created it or by any participant who belongs to the conference.

path Parameters
applicationId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 00e1db72-c57d-478c-88be-3533d43c8b34

The ID of an application

conferenceId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 1cf69ae4-4c54-47cf-b409-97e88f62fe12

The ID of a conference

query Parameters
detailed
boolean
Default: false

Specifies if returned conference should include all the details or not

Responses

200
Response Schema: application/json
id
string <uuid>
name
string
layout
string
Enum: "mosaic" "selector" "presenting_mosaic" "presenting_selector"
recording
object (ConferenceRecording)
endingAt
integer <int64>
participants
Array of objects (Participant) Nullable

Included only if detailed query parameter is true

streamings
Array of objects (Streaming) Nullable

Included only if detailed query parameter is true and if the conference is requested by the application

get /{applicationId}/{conferenceId}
https://api.mind.com/{applicationId}/{conferenceId}

Response samples

Content type
application/json
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{
  • "id": "1cf69ae4-4c54-47cf-b409-97e88f62fe12",
  • "name": "Meeting name",
  • "layout": "mosaic",
  • "recording":
    {
    },
  • "endingAt": 1663792395,
  • "participants":
    [
    ],
  • "streamings":
    [
    ]
}

Delete conference

Deletes a conference with the specified ID. The deletion assumes expelling of all the participants and deleting all the data tied with the conference. Only the application which has created the conference is permitted to delete it.

path Parameters
applicationId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 00e1db72-c57d-478c-88be-3533d43c8b34

The ID of an application

conferenceId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 1cf69ae4-4c54-47cf-b409-97e88f62fe12

The ID of a conference

Responses

200
delete /{applicationId}/{conferenceId}
https://api.mind.com/{applicationId}/{conferenceId}

Modify conference parameters

Modifies parameters of a conference with the specified ID. All parameters of the conference is permitted to be modified either by the application which has created it or by any moderator who belongs to the conference.

path Parameters
applicationId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 00e1db72-c57d-478c-88be-3533d43c8b34

The ID of an application

conferenceId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 1cf69ae4-4c54-47cf-b409-97e88f62fe12

The ID of a conference

Request Body schema: application/json
name
string Nullable

Responses

200
Response Schema: application/json
id
string <uuid>
name
string
layout
string
Enum: "mosaic" "selector" "presenting_mosaic" "presenting_selector"
recording
object (ConferenceRecording)
endingAt
integer <int64>
patch /{applicationId}/{conferenceId}
https://api.mind.com/{applicationId}/{conferenceId}

Request samples

Content type
application/json
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{
  • "name": "Modified meeting name"
}

Response samples

Content type
application/json
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{
  • "id": "1cf69ae4-4c54-47cf-b409-97e88f62fe12",
  • "name": "Meeting name",
  • "layout": "mosaic",
  • "recording":
    {
    },
  • "endingAt": 1663792395
}

Get recording

Returns the recording of a conference with the specified ID. The recording is returned as either MP4 or JPEG file (depending on the value of Accept HTTP request header). The MP4 file contains the entire recording (i.e. audio and video), whereas JPEG file — only one meaningful video frame of the recording (aka a thumbnail). The recording is permitted to be got either by the application which has created the conference or by any moderator who belongs to the conference.

path Parameters
applicationId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 00e1db72-c57d-478c-88be-3533d43c8b34

The ID of an application

conferenceId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 1cf69ae4-4c54-47cf-b409-97e88f62fe12

The ID of a conference

Responses

200
Response Schema:
string <binary>
get /{applicationId}/{conferenceId}/recording
https://api.mind.com/{applicationId}/{conferenceId}/recording

Get recording preview

Returns the preview of the recording. The preview is returned as a WebP file that contains the most meaningful frames of the recording on top of each other. The resolution of each frame is one-sixteenth (by area) of resolution of the recording. The preview is permitted to be got either by the application which has created the conference or by any moderator who belongs to the conference.

path Parameters
applicationId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 00e1db72-c57d-478c-88be-3533d43c8b34

The ID of an application

conferenceId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 1cf69ae4-4c54-47cf-b409-97e88f62fe12

The ID of a conference

Responses

200
Response Schema: image/webp
string <binary>
get /{applicationId}/{conferenceId}/recording/preview
https://api.mind.com/{applicationId}/{conferenceId}/recording/preview

Start recording

Starts or resumes recording of a conference. The recording is permitted to be started or resumed either by the application which has created the conference or by any moderator who belongs to the conference.

path Parameters
applicationId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 00e1db72-c57d-478c-88be-3533d43c8b34

The ID of an application

conferenceId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 1cf69ae4-4c54-47cf-b409-97e88f62fe12

The ID of a conference

Responses

200
post /{applicationId}/{conferenceId}/recording/start
https://api.mind.com/{applicationId}/{conferenceId}/recording/start

Stop recording

Stops or pauses recording of a conference. The recording is permitted to be stopped or paused either by the application which has created the conference or by any moderator who belongs to the conference.

path Parameters
applicationId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 00e1db72-c57d-478c-88be-3533d43c8b34

The ID of an application

conferenceId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 1cf69ae4-4c54-47cf-b409-97e88f62fe12

The ID of a conference

Responses

200
post /{applicationId}/{conferenceId}/recording/stop
https://api.mind.com/{applicationId}/{conferenceId}/recording/stop

Get recording transcription

Returns the transcription of the recording. The transcription is returned as an array of timestamped and authored utterances. The transcription can be got only when the recording is in stopped state, otherwise you would get 409 - Conflict response. The transcribing is done in parallel with the recording, but after stopping the recording, it may take a while before the transcription is ready. An attempt to get the transcription which is not ready yet would end up with 503 - Service Unavailable response. In such case you should wait for the number of seconds indicated in Retry-After HTTP response header before retrying the request. The transcription is permitted to be got either by the application which has created the conference or by any moderator who belongs to the conference.

path Parameters
applicationId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 00e1db72-c57d-478c-88be-3533d43c8b34

The ID of an application

conferenceId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 1cf69ae4-4c54-47cf-b409-97e88f62fe12

The ID of a conference

Responses

200
Response Schema: application/json
Array
timestamp
integer <int64>
participantId
string <uuid>
text
string
get /{applicationId}/{conferenceId}/recording/transcription
https://api.mind.com/{applicationId}/{conferenceId}/recording/transcription

Response samples

Content type
application/json
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[
  • {
    }
]

Message

Send message

Sends a message to a conference (i.e. to all participant of the conference) or to a specific participant or to the application. A message is permitted to be sent either by the application which has created the conference or by any participant which belongs to the conference.

path Parameters
applicationId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 00e1db72-c57d-478c-88be-3533d43c8b34

The ID of an application

conferenceId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 1cf69ae4-4c54-47cf-b409-97e88f62fe12

The ID of a conference

Request Body schema: application/json
sendTo
required
string <uuid>

The addressee of the message. It can be the ID of a participant or the ID of the application or (if you want to send the message to the application and to all participants at once) the ID of the conference

text
required
string

Responses

200
Response Schema: application/json
id
string <uuid>
sentTo
string <uuid>
sentBy
string <uuid>
sentAt
string <date-time>
text
string
post /{applicationId}/{conferenceId}/messages
https://api.mind.com/{applicationId}/{conferenceId}/messages

Request samples

Content type
application/json
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{
  • "sendTo": "1cf69ae4-4c54-47cf-b409-97e88f62fe12",
  • "text": "Message text"
}

Response samples

Content type
application/json
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{
  • "id": "3f09f6e0-3712-4485-9edf-7af1807b3617",
  • "sentTo": "1cf69ae4-4c54-47cf-b409-97e88f62fe12",
  • "sentBy": "24300bf9-d9f2-4bbf-9719-8660d110bc63",
  • "sentAt": 1516883710000,
  • "text": "Message text"
}

Participant

Get all participants

Returns a list of all participants in the conference. The participants are returned in no particular order and there is no guarantee that the order will remain constant over time, but if the list is requested by a participant then it is guaranteed that this participant takes the first place in the list. The list of participants is permitted to be got either by the application which has created the conference or by any participant who belongs to the same conference.

path Parameters
applicationId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 00e1db72-c57d-478c-88be-3533d43c8b34

The ID of an application

conferenceId
required
string <uuid>
Example: 1cf69ae4-4c54-47cf-b409-97e88f62fe12

The ID of a conference

Responses

200
Response Schema: application/json
Array
id
string <uuid>
online
boolean
name
string
priority
number <double>
role
string
Enum: "moderator" "presenter" "speaker" "attendee"