If you hire your own interpreters, they can call a PublicInput phone number during a live meeting and interpret for the phone callers who picked their language. You set it up once per board, and it works for every meeting on that board.
This article is for meeting admins on accounts that have live interpretation. There's also a section you can forward to your interpreters or your interpretation vendor.
Before you start
Not yet released. This feature has not shipped to production yet. Everything below describes how it is intended to work and may change before release. This draft is internal to PublicInput and should not be shared with customers.
This is available on request for accounts with live interpretation. Ask your PublicInput contact to turn it on. You'll also need:
Publisher permission on the board.
Live interpretation turned on for the meeting, with the language your interpreter covers turned on.
That language on the Phone caller menu.
What you can do with it
Let a hired interpreter speak live to the phone callers who chose their language.
Give each language its own code, so each interpreter lands in the right language.
Approve the phone numbers your interpreters call from, so nobody else can get in.
Set it up once and use it for every meeting on the board.
Keep automatic interpretation as a backup. It pauses while your interpreter is on and comes back when they hang up.
Where to find it
Open the meeting. In the Live Interpretation panel, click Settings. The Interpretation Settings panel opens on the right. Scroll past Phone caller menu and Online-only languages to Your own interpreters (call in by phone).
Step by step
In the Phone caller menu section, check that your interpreter's language is on the menu. A language has to be there before it can have a code.
Under Your own interpreters, look at Number interpreters call. If it says "Not set up yet," ask your PublicInput contact. Calls won't connect until the number is set up.
Under Interpreter codes, type a code of 4 to 8 digits next to each language you have an interpreter for. Use a different code for each language. Codes are unique across PublicInput, so if one is already taken, pick another.
Under Approved phone numbers, add the numbers your interpreters will call from, one per line. Start each with + and the country code. US numbers start with +1.
Click Save.
Send each interpreter the number to call and the code for their language, and confirm the number they'll call from is on your list.
Who hears the interpreter
The interpreter's voice goes only to phone callers who chose that language on the phone menu. People listening online, people in the meeting room, and phone callers in other languages don't hear them. It's one way, too. The interpreter doesn't hear the meeting on this call, so they need to follow it some other way, like your livestream on a second device.
If automatic interpretation is also on for that language, it pauses while your interpreter is connected, so callers hear only your interpreter and never both at once. When the last interpreter hangs up, automatic interpretation comes back by itself, usually within about five seconds. Callers listening in that language stay connected the whole time.
For your interpreters
You can forward this part as is.
Call the number you were given, from the phone number the organizer approved. Caller ID has to be on.
When you hear "Enter your interpreter code, then press pound," enter your code and press #.
You'll hear "You're connected to the" followed by your language. From then on, everything you say goes live to phone listeners in that language.
Follow the meeting on the livestream. Use headphones so the livestream sound doesn't get into your call.
If you use an automated dialer, have it dial the number, wait for the code prompt, send the digits followed by #, and call from an approved number.
If the call ends with a message instead, here's what it means:
"This phone number is not approved for the interpreter line." The number you called from isn't on any list, or caller ID is off.
"That code didn't match." Check the code and call again.
"This phone number is not approved for that code." Your number is approved, but not for this board. Ask the organizer to add it.
"The meeting for that code isn't open for calls yet." Call back closer to the start time. Calls connect once the meeting opens for phone callers, usually 30 minutes before it starts.
"Interpretation for that language isn't turned on for this meeting." Ask the organizer to turn it on.
What it does not do
Tell your interpreters and your team about these up front.
It's one way. The interpreter can't hear the meeting on this call, and the meeting can't hear them.
It's for phone callers only. Online listeners and the meeting room don't hear the interpreter.
It doesn't bring an interpreter into Zoom or another video platform.
It doesn't replace automatic interpretation. If your interpreter drops off, automatic interpretation picks back up.
It isn't a private channel. If two interpreters call in with the same language's code, listeners hear both of them.
It's separate from Interpreter Mode.
Tips and limits
Have your interpreter call in after the meeting opens for phone callers but before it starts, so you know they're connected before anyone is listening.
If you've hidden phone interpretation from the public phone menu, interpreters can still call in. That makes it easy to rehearse.
Each board can have up to 24 interpreter codes and 50 approved phone numbers.
To turn off a code, clear it and click Save.
Give the number only to interpreters. It isn't your public meeting line.
Expect a few seconds of quiet between your interpreter hanging up and automatic interpretation coming back.