Method and apparatus for suggesting completions for a partially entered data item based on previously-entered, associated data items

Abstract

A system for improving the efficiency and reliability of entering data into a database or spreadsheet computer program by providing suggested completions to the data entry operator. The operator invokes an edit mode (200) for a particular data area and a dynamic list of possible completions is generated (210) based on other data items associated with the edited data area. The list of possible completions is dynamic because it changes to reflect the status of the current data within the database or spreadsheet. As the operator enters characters of a data item (220), the list of completed data items is searched for an entry that matches the entered data item (230). If a match is found then the matching item is displayed to the data entry operator as a suggested completion (240). The data entry operator can then elect to accept the suggested completion (250) or to continue entering the data item.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD[0001]The present invention relates generally to the field of computer-based applications requiring data entry and more particularly to the field of improving the data entry process by automatically completing a partially entered data item with a matching data item from a list of previously entered data items.BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION[0002]In the field of data processing systems, data is entered into databases for the purposes of rapid searching, retrieving or processing. Since its inception, the field of data processing has been bottle-necked by the time consuming and human-error prone process of data entry. Therefore, it is desirable to improve the efficiency and reliability of entering data into a database system. One method to achieve this objective is the use of automatic completion algorithms to assist in the data entry process. Automatic completion algorithms generally refer to the technique of comparing a partially-entered data item to a list of possible com...

AI Technical Summary

Benefits of technology

[0014]A unique aspect of the generation process includes defining which data items are associated with the data item being entered. In the context of a generic database, the present invention provides several methods to perform this process. Generally, data items that fall within the same category or a similar category to the data item being entered are considered to be associated data items. Therefore, an advantage of the present invention is the ability to define which data entries within a database are related to a data item being entered, to generate a list of suggested completions based on these associated data entries, and to provide a dynamic completion list which tracks the actual contents of the database.

[0015]Another aspect of the present invention is that the completed data item list can be filtered so that data items which do not benefit the automatic completion feature are eliminated from the list. This is especially beneficial in a generic database where the nature of the database allows for a mixture of data types within associated categories. For instance, a generic database may allow for numeric entries and text entries to be entered into the same database category. An example of such a category would be a library database, which combines the category that lists the name of the person a book is checked out to, and the category indicating the number of days that the book has been on the shelf without being checked out. The second category is used to determine if the book should be removed from the shelves and placed into the archives. In this scenario, the numeric entries for the days on the shelf could be filtered from the completed data item list. The benefits derived from this ability is that the list is not encumbered with extraneous numeric entries which could result in slowing down the list generation process, and the entry of numeric data will not trigger any automatic completions which could easily result in entering invalid data (i.e., having the entry “1” automatically complete to “100”). Therefore, another advantage of the present invention is the provision of a technique for filtering out non-useful items from the list of suggested completions in order to maximize the efficiency of an automatic completion feature.

[0016]Second, the present invention minimizes the impact of the completion lists on system resources such as memory by storing the completed data item list in a dynamic data structure. In contrast to a static data item list, a dynamic list does not require permanent memory resources. Once a data item has been entered into the database and accepted by the user, the memory occupied by the data item list can be released and reallocated to other resources. The efficient use of memory resources is necessary in a database system, and thus, the minimization of overhead memory is imperative. This is increasingly important in a generic database that does not have pre-defined data types, and therefore, can not obtain the benefit of using efficient memory storage schemes which take advantage of pre-defined data types. Advantageously, the present invention provides a list of suggested completions which makes efficient use of memory storage.

[0017]Third, the present invention minimizes any delays in processing user inputs by using a tiered technique to generate the completed data item list. This tiered technique includes generating the completed data item list one section at a time, allowing for input processing in between the generation of each section. In addition, a suggested completion can be provided to the user based on a partially generated list. This is beneficial because it provides virtually immediate feedback to the user and expedites the data entry process. Therefore, another benefit of the present invention is the generation of a list of suggested completions in a manner that minimizes the impact to data input processing and provides instantaneous responses to the user.

[0018]More specifically described, the present invention is an automatic completion feature that can be implemented in a spreadsheet application. When a user begins to edit a cell within a spreadsheet, a completed data item list is generated from the previously entered data items stored in cells associated with the edited cell. As the user enters characters into the cell, the completed data item list is searched for an entry corresponding to the partial data entry in the edited cell. If a qualifying match is found, then the data item is displayed as a suggested completion within the cell being edited. The user then has opportunity to accept the suggested completion and thereby accelerate the data entry process, to enter additional characters to define a new data entry in the spreadsheet, or to reject the suggested completion. By accepting the suggested completion, the benefit of increasing the speed of data entry is realized and the integrity of the entered data is assured (i.e., the data entry is in conformance with previously entered data). Therefore, it is a further advantage of the present invention to improve the efficiency and reliability of data entry in a spreadsheet by providing the ability for an automatic completion feature utilizing a list of completed data items stored in cells associated with a cell being edited.

[0019]These and other aspects, features, and advantages of the present invention will be more clearly understood and appreciated from a review of the following detailed description of the present invention and possible embodiments thereof, and by reference to the appended drawings and claims.

Problems solved by technology

Since its inception, the field of data processing has been bottle-necked by the time consuming and human-error prone process of data entry.

In this interface, “ACCESS” again does not provide an automatic completion feature.

Implementing an automatic completion feature for the process of entering user-definable data posses several technically complicated issues.

Images