Flowchart element drawing method and device, storage medium and computer device

Abstract

This application discloses a method, apparatus, storage medium, and computer device for drawing flowchart elements, relating to the field of graphics drawing. When drawing flowchart elements for a sub-process comprising multiple steps, this application creates a template flowchart element on a canvas, then configures the template flowchart element with basic information including the identity information of multiple participants and the element name. After configuration, a target flowchart element is generated, which is associated with the sub-process. This allows drawing one flowchart element to represent multiple steps of a sub-process. Compared to the prior art where a flowchart element is drawn for each step, this reduces the workload of drawing and connecting flowchart elements, improving the efficiency of flowchart drawing.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This application relates to the field of graphic drawing, and more particularly to a method, apparatus, storage medium, and computer device for drawing flowchart elements. Background Technology

[0002] To visually represent the execution order of each step in a process, flowchart elements corresponding to the process are generally used on computer devices. The method for drawing flowchart elements is to draw a flowchart element for each step in the process, then connect the flowchart elements according to the topological relationship between them, and set the attribute information of the flowchart elements. However, as the complexity of the process increases, the workload of drawing the flowchart elements also increases accordingly. Summary of the Invention

[0003] This application provides a method, apparatus, storage medium, and computer equipment for drawing flowchart elements, which can solve the problem of the large workload in drawing flowchart elements when the process is complex in the prior art. The technical solution is as follows:

[0004] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application provide a method for drawing flowchart elements, the method comprising:

[0005] Display primitive canvas;

[0006] Create a template flowchart element on the element canvas;

[0007] Determine the element type of the template flowchart elements;

[0008] The configuration interface is displayed according to the specified graphic element type;

[0009] Based on the user's configuration instructions, the configuration interface configures the basic information of the template flowchart elements; wherein, the basic information includes: the element name and the identity information of multiple participants;

[0010] After configuring the template flowchart element based on the basic information, a target flowchart element is generated; wherein, the target flowchart element is associated with a sub-process including multiple steps.

[0011] Secondly, embodiments of this application provide a flowchart element drawing apparatus, the apparatus comprising:

[0012] The display unit is used to display the primitive canvas;

[0013] A creation unit is used to create template flowchart elements on the element canvas;

[0014] A determining unit is used to determine the element type of the template flowchart element;

[0015] The configuration interface is displayed according to the specified graphic element type;

[0016] Based on the configuration instructions, the basic information of the template flowchart elements is configured in the configuration interface; wherein, the basic information includes: the element name and the identity information of multiple participants;

[0017] After configuring the template flowchart element based on the basic information, a target flowchart element is generated; wherein, the target flowchart element is associated with a sub-process including multiple steps.

[0018] Thirdly, embodiments of this application provide a computer storage medium storing a plurality of instructions adapted for loading by a processor and executing the above-described method steps.

[0019] Fourthly, embodiments of this application provide a computer device, which may include: a processor and a memory; wherein the memory stores a computer program, the computer program being adapted to be loaded by the processor and to execute the above-described method steps.

[0020] The beneficial effects of the technical solutions provided in some embodiments of this application include at least the following:

[0021] When it is necessary to draw flowchart elements for a sub-process that includes multiple steps, a template flowchart element is created on the canvas. Then, the template flowchart element is configured with basic information including the identity information of multiple participants and the element name. After the configuration is completed, a target flowchart element is generated. This target flowchart element is associated with the sub-process. In this way, drawing a single flowchart element can represent multiple steps of the sub-process. Compared with the existing technology that draws a flowchart element for each step, it can reduce the workload of drawing and connecting elements, and improve the efficiency of drawing elements. Attached Figure Description

[0022] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the prior art, the drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below. Obviously, the drawings described below are only some embodiments of this application. For those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative effort.

[0023] Figure 1 This is a schematic diagram of the network architecture provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0024] Figure 2 This is a flowchart illustrating the method for drawing flowchart elements provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0025] Figure 3 This is a schematic diagram of the configuration interface for the serial flowchart elements provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0026] Figure 4 This is a schematic diagram of the configuration interface for parallel flowchart elements provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0027] Figure 5 These are schematic diagrams of flowchart elements drawn in the prior art provided in the embodiments of this application and target flowchart elements drawn in this application;

[0028] Figure 6 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a flowchart element drawing device provided in this application;

[0029] Figure 7 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of a computer device provided in this application. Detailed Implementation

[0030] To make the objectives, technical solutions, and advantages of this application clearer, the embodiments of this application will be described in further detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0031] It should be noted that the flowchart element drawing method provided in this application is generally executed by computer equipment, and correspondingly, the flowchart element drawing device is generally set in the computer equipment.

[0032] Figure 1 An exemplary system architecture is shown for a method or apparatus for drawing flowchart elements that can be applied to this application.

[0033] like Figure 1 As shown, the system architecture may include a computer device 101 and a server 102. The computer device 101 and the server 102 can communicate via a network, which serves as the medium for providing communication links between the various units. The network may include various types of wired or wireless communication links, such as wired communication links including fiber optic cables, twisted-pair cables, or coaxial cables, and wireless communication links including Bluetooth communication links, Wi-Fi communication links, or microwave communication links.

[0034] The computer device 101 is equipped with flowchart drawing software. The flowchart drawing software is used to draw flowchart elements for the process. The drawn flowchart elements are then published on the server 102. The drawn flowchart elements are run on the server 102 to realize the subsequent approval process.

[0035] It should be noted that computer device 101 and server 102 can be either hardware or software. When computer device 101 and server 102 are hardware, they can be implemented as a distributed server cluster consisting of multiple servers, or as a single server. When computer device 101 and server 102 are software, they can be implemented as multiple software programs or software modules (e.g., used to provide distributed services), or as a single software program or software module; no specific limitations are made here.

[0036] The computer device described in this application can be equipped with various communication client applications, such as video recording applications, video playback applications, voice interaction applications, search applications, instant messaging tools, email clients, social platform software, etc.

[0037] Computer devices can be either hardware or software. When a computer device is hardware, it can be any computer device with a display screen, including but not limited to smartphones, tablets, laptops, and desktop computers. When a computer device is software, it can be installed on the computer devices listed above. It can be implemented as multiple software programs or software modules (e.g., used to provide distributed services) or as a single software program or software module; no specific limitation is made here.

[0038] When a computer device is used as hardware, it can also be equipped with a display device and a camera. The display device can be any device capable of displaying information, and the camera is used to capture video streams. Examples of display devices include cathode ray tube displays (CR), light-emitting diode displays (LED), e-ink screens, liquid crystal displays (LCD), and plasma display panels (PDP). Users can utilize the display device on their computer to view displayed text, images, videos, and other information.

[0039] It should be understood that Figure 1 The number of computer devices, networks, and servers shown is for illustrative purposes only. The number of computer devices, networks, and servers can be any number, depending on the implementation requirements.

[0040] The following will be combined with the appendix Figure 2 This application provides a detailed description of the method for drawing flowchart elements according to embodiments of the present application. The drawing device for flowchart elements in the embodiments of the present application can be... Figure 1 The computer equipment shown.

[0041] Please see Figure 2 This is a flowchart illustrating a method for drawing flowchart elements, as provided in this application embodiment. Figure 2 As shown, the method described in this application embodiment may include the following steps:

[0042] S201, Display the primitive canvas.

[0043] When a user needs to draw a flowchart, they open the flowchart drawing software installed on the computer device, and the computer device displays a graphic canvas on the display unit. The flowcharts in this application include, but are not limited to: approval processes, business processes, technological processes, algorithm processes, etc.

[0044] S202. Create a template flowchart element on the element canvas.

[0045] Users interact with the graphic element canvas using an input device to create template flowchart elements, whose shapes, colors, and fields are pre-configured.

[0046] S203. Determine the element type of the template flowchart.

[0047] The primitive types in this application include parallel flowchart primitives and serial flowchart primitives. Parallel flowchart primitives correspond to parallel sub-processes, and parallel sub-processes include multiple steps executed in parallel. Serial flowchart primitives correspond to serial sub-processes, and serial sub-processes include multiple steps executed in serial order.

[0048] S204. Display the configuration interface according to the graphic element type.

[0049] The computer device displays the corresponding configuration interface according to the type of graphic element. The configuration interface is used to configure the basic information of the template flowchart element. The configuration interface may include multiple drop-down controls, which are used to display a list of candidate field values ​​after the drop-down controls are triggered. Then, based on the user's selection parameters, the user selects the required field value from the field value list to complete the configuration of a certain field.

[0050] S205. Configure the basic information of the configuration template flowchart elements in the configuration interface based on the configuration instructions.

[0051] The basic configuration information includes: the name of the graphic element and the identity information of multiple participants.

[0052] For example, see Figure 3The configuration interface for the serial flowchart element shown is used to set basic information, form configuration, and participant settings based on the configuration. The computer device sets the unique identifier and name (i.e., element name) of the flowchart element in the configuration interface based on the user's configuration instructions. The configuration instructions are generated by the user's input device, which can be a mouse, keyboard, or touchscreen, etc. The unique identifier can be represented by strings and numbers, and the element name can be directly displayed on the flowchart element. In this embodiment, the element name is set to "Serial Signing Activity". Based on the user's configuration instructions, the computer device sets the form name and form address. The form name can be set via a drop-down control, and the form address can be represented by a directory name. Multiple participants are set based on the user's configuration instructions: hjb01, Chen**, Zhao**E, and yjrpt02. Each participant is assigned an organization and role. The user can set participants via a drop-down control, improving setup efficiency. The serial flowchart element here corresponds to a serial sub-process. Each participant set above corresponds to a step in the serial sub-process. That is, the serial sub-process in this embodiment contains 4 serially executed steps, and the approvers of each step are hjb01, Chen**, Zhao**E, and yjrpt02, respectively.

[0053] For example, see Figure 4 The configuration interface for the parallel flowchart element shown allows the computer device to configure the unique identifier, name, form name, and form address of the parallel flowchart element. The form name and form address represent forms approved by multiple participants. In this embodiment, multiple participants are configured to approve the same form. The computer device further configures the roles, organizations, and user identifiers of the multiple participants. Furthermore, the computer device can configure countersigning rules and concurrent signing rules. Countersigning indicates that the parallel sub-process will only pass when multiple participants approve simultaneously, while concurrent signing indicates that the parallel sub-process will pass when at least one participant approves. Each parallel flowchart element corresponds to a parallel sub-process, which includes multiple parallel steps, with each participant corresponding to one step in the parallel sub-process.

[0054] Furthermore, the computer device of this application also configures the attribute information of multiple steps corresponding to the template flowchart elements based on the user's configuration instructions. For example, the attribute information of the sub-process type and the steps includes: step name, step order, the previous step of the first step, the next step of the last step, and the rollback step when the approval fails. The sub-process type includes parallel sub-process, serial sub-process or other sub-process.

[0055] S206. After configuring the template flowchart elements based on the basic information, the target flowchart elements are generated.

[0056] The target flowchart element is associated with a sub-process, which can be a serial sub-process, a parallel sub-process, or other types of sub-process. The multiple steps included in the sub-process and the multiple participants set have a one-to-one mapping relationship, that is, one participant corresponds to one step, so as to achieve the purpose of representing multiple steps by drawing a flowchart element.

[0057] For example, see Figure 5 As shown, when the element type of the template flowchart element is a parallel flowchart element, flowchart element 51 is generated on the element canvas. The target flowchart element corresponds to a serial sub-process. The serial sub-process includes the following steps in sequence: business approval step, department approval step, and manager approval step. In the prior art, it is necessary to use 4 elements to draw the elements of this serial sub-process. However, this application only needs to draw 1 element, which can reduce the workload of drawing elements and improve the efficiency of flowchart element drawing.

[0058] Further, see Figure 5 As shown, when the element type of the template flowchart element is a parallel flowchart element, a target flowchart element 52 is generated on the element canvas. The target flowchart element corresponds to a parallel sub-process, which includes three parallel steps: contract approval step, budget approval step, and procurement approval step. In the prior art, it is necessary to draw three elements when drawing this parallel sub-process, while this application only requires drawing one element. This can reduce the workload of element drawing and improve the efficiency of flowchart element drawing.

[0059] In this embodiment, when it is necessary to draw a flowchart element corresponding to the process, the serial sub-processes and parallel sub-processes in the process are first identified. Each step of the parallel sub-process is associated with the same form, that is, the approver of each step reviews the same form. Then, according to the method of this application, the identified and processed parallel sub-processes and serial sub-processes are used to obtain template flowchart elements, and after configuring the basic information, the target flowchart element is obtained, so as to realize the purpose of one flowchart element representing the steps including multiple sub-processes and improve the drawing efficiency.

[0060] In this embodiment of the application, when it is necessary to draw flowchart elements for a sub-process that includes multiple steps, a template flowchart element is created on the canvas. Then, the template flowchart element is configured with basic information including the identity information of multiple participants and the element name. After the configuration is completed, a target flowchart element is generated. This target flowchart element is associated with the sub-process. In this way, drawing one flowchart element can represent multiple steps of the sub-process. Compared with the prior art, which draws a flowchart element for each step, it can reduce the workload of drawing and connecting elements and improve the efficiency of drawing elements.

[0061] The following are embodiments of the apparatus described in this application, which can be used to execute the embodiments of the method described in this application. For details not disclosed in the apparatus embodiments of this application, please refer to the embodiments of the method described in this application.

[0062] Please see Figure 6 This illustration shows a schematic diagram of a flowchart element drawing apparatus provided in an exemplary embodiment of this application, hereinafter referred to as apparatus 6. Apparatus 6 can be implemented as all or part of a computer device through software, hardware, or a combination of both. Apparatus 6 includes: a display unit 601, a creation unit 602, a determination unit 603, a configuration unit 604, and a generation unit 605.

[0063] Display unit 601 is used to display a primitive canvas;

[0064] Creation unit 602 is used to create template flowchart elements on the element canvas;

[0065] The determining unit 603 is used to determine the element type of the template flowchart element;

[0066] The display unit 601 is also used to display a configuration interface according to the graphic element type;

[0067] Configuration unit 604 is used to configure the basic information of the template flowchart elements in the configuration interface based on configuration instructions; wherein, the basic information includes: the name of the flowchart element and the identity information of multiple participants;

[0068] The generation unit 605 is used to generate a target flowchart element after configuring the template flowchart element according to the basic information; wherein the target flowchart element is associated with a sub-process including multiple steps.

[0069] In one or more possible embodiments, creating template flowchart elements on the primitive canvas includes:

[0070] Select a template flowchart element from the template library based on the user's selection command;

[0071] The template flowchart elements are placed on the element canvas based on the user's drag-and-drop instructions.

[0072] In one or more possible embodiments, the basic information further includes: form information, which includes a form name and a form address, and each participant is configured with the same form name and form address.

[0073] In one or more possible embodiments, when the element type of the template flowchart element is a parallel flowchart element, the basic information further includes: joint signature rule information or countersignature rule information.

[0074] In one or more possible embodiments, when the element type of the template flowchart element is a serial flowchart element, the basic information further includes: the sequence information of the plurality of participants.

[0075] In one or more possible embodiments, the target flowchart element is provided with a marker indicating the element type.

[0076] In one or more possible embodiments, the configuration interface includes multiple drop-down controls for selecting field values ​​in the basic information via a drop-down method.

[0077] It should be noted that the device 6 provided in the above embodiments is only illustrated by the division of the above functional modules when executing the flowchart element drawing method. In actual applications, the above functions can be assigned to different functional modules as needed, that is, the internal structure of the device can be divided into different functional modules to complete all or part of the above functions. In addition, the flowchart element drawing device and the flowchart element drawing method embodiments provided in the above embodiments belong to the same concept, and the implementation process is detailed in the method embodiments, which will not be repeated here.

[0078] The sequence numbers of the embodiments in this application are for descriptive purposes only and do not represent the superiority or inferiority of the embodiments.

[0079] This application also provides a computer storage medium that can store multiple instructions, which are adapted to be loaded and executed by a processor as described above. Figure 2 The method steps of the illustrated embodiment can be found in the following documentation for detailed execution. Figure 2 The specific details of the illustrated embodiments will not be elaborated here.

[0080] This application also provides a computer program product that stores at least one instruction, which is loaded and executed by the processor to implement the method for drawing flowchart elements as described in the above embodiments.

[0081] Please see Figure 7 This document provides a schematic diagram of the structure of a computer device according to an embodiment of this application. Figure 7 As shown, the computer device 700 may include: at least one processor 701, at least one network interface 704, a user interface 703, a memory 705, and at least one communication bus 702.

[0082] The communication bus 702 is used to enable communication between these components.

[0083] The user interface 703 may include a display screen and a camera. Optionally, the user interface 703 may also include a standard wired interface and a wireless interface.

[0084] The network interface 704 may optionally include a standard wired interface or a wireless interface (such as a Wi-Fi interface).

[0085] The processor 701 may include one or more processing cores. The processor 701 connects to various parts of the computer device 700 using various interfaces and lines, and performs various functions and processes data by running or executing instructions, programs, code sets, or instruction sets stored in memory 705, and by calling data stored in memory 705. Optionally, the processor 701 may be implemented using at least one hardware form of Digital Signal Processing (DSP), Field-Programmable Gate Array (FPGA), or Programmable Logic Array (PLA). The processor 701 may integrate one or a combination of several of the following: Central Processing Unit (CPU), Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), and modem. The CPU primarily handles the operating system, user interface, and applications; the GPU is responsible for rendering and drawing the content required for display; and the modem handles wireless communication. It is understood that the modem may also not be integrated into the processor 701 and may be implemented as a separate chip.

[0086] The memory 705 may include random access memory (RAM) or read-only memory. Optionally, the memory 705 may include a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium. The memory 705 can be used to store instructions, programs, code, code sets, or instruction sets. The memory 705 may include a program storage area and a data storage area, wherein the program storage area may store instructions for implementing an operating system, instructions for at least one function (such as touch function, sound playback function, image playback function, etc.), instructions for implementing the above-described method embodiments, etc.; the data storage area may store data involved in the above-described method embodiments, etc. Optionally, the memory 705 may also be at least one storage device located remotely from the aforementioned processor 701. Figure 7 As shown, the memory 705, which serves as a computer storage medium, may include an operating system, a network communication module, a user interface module, and application programs.

[0087] exist Figure 7 In the computer device 700 shown, the user interface 703 is mainly used to provide an input interface for the user and to obtain user input data; while the processor 701 can be used to call the application program stored in the memory 705 and specifically execute, such as... Figure 2 The method shown can be referred to for details. Figure 2 As shown, it will not be elaborated further here.

[0088] Those skilled in the art will understand that all or part of the processes in the above embodiments can be implemented by a computer program instructing related hardware. The program can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium, and when executed, it can include the processes of the embodiments of the above methods. The storage medium can be a magnetic disk, optical disk, read-only memory, or random access memory, etc.

[0089] The above-disclosed embodiments are merely preferred embodiments of this application and should not be construed as limiting the scope of this application. Therefore, any equivalent variations made in accordance with the claims of this application shall still fall within the scope of this application.

Claims

1. A method of drawing a flowchart element, characterized by, include: Display primitive canvas; Based on the user's selection command, a template flowchart element is selected from the template library, and based on the user's drag command, the template flowchart element is placed on the element canvas. Determine the element type of the template flowchart elements; wherein, the element type includes parallel element type and serial element type; The configuration interface is displayed according to the element type; wherein, when the element type of the template flowchart element is a parallel flowchart element, the configuration interface displays controls for configuring joint signature rules or countersignature rules; when the element type of the template flowchart element is a serial flowchart element, the configuration interface displays controls for configuring the order information of multiple participants; the configuration interface also includes multiple drop-down controls, which are used to select field values ​​in the basic information by dropping them down. Based on the user's configuration instructions, the configuration interface configures the basic information of the template flowchart element. This basic information includes: element name, identity information of multiple participants, and form information. The form information includes a form name and a form address, representing a form approved by multiple participants, with each participant having the same form name and form address. When the template flowchart element's element type is a parallel flowchart element, the basic information also includes: joint signature rule information or countersignature rule information. The countersignature rule information indicates that the parallel sub-process will only pass when multiple participants approve simultaneously, while the joint signature rule information indicates that the parallel sub-process passes when at least one participant approves. When the template flowchart element's element type is a serial flowchart element, the basic information also includes: the order information of the multiple participants. After configuring the template flowchart element according to the basic information, a target flowchart element is generated; wherein, the target flowchart element is associated with a sub-process including multiple steps, and the multiple steps in the sub-process correspond one-to-one with the multiple participants; and the target flowchart element is displayed as a single graphic element on the graphic element canvas, and the target flowchart element is set with a mark indicating the graphic element type.

2. A flowchart element drawing device characterized by comprising: include: The display unit is used to display the primitive canvas; A creation unit is used to select a template flowchart element from the template library based on the user's selection instruction, and place the template flowchart element on the element canvas based on the user's drag and drop instruction; A determining unit is used to determine the element type of the template flowchart elements; wherein, the element type includes parallel element type and serial element type; The display unit is further configured to display a configuration interface according to the element type; wherein, when the element type of the template flowchart element is a parallel flowchart element, the configuration interface displays controls for configuring joint signature rule information or countersignature rule information; when the element type of the template flowchart element is a serial flowchart element, the configuration interface displays controls for configuring the order information of multiple participants; the configuration interface also includes multiple drop-down controls, which are used to select field values ​​in the basic information by dropping them down. A configuration unit is used to configure the basic information of the template flowchart element in the configuration interface based on the user's configuration instructions. The basic information includes: element name, identity information of multiple participants, and form information. The form information includes a form name and a form address, which represent forms approved by multiple participants, with each participant having the same form name and form address. When the element type of the template flowchart element is a parallel flowchart element, the basic information also includes: joint signature rule information or countersignature rule information. The countersignature rule information indicates that the parallel sub-process will only pass when multiple participants approve simultaneously, and the joint signature rule information indicates that the parallel sub-process will pass when at least one participant approves. When the element type of the template flowchart element is a serial flowchart element, the basic information also includes: the order information of the multiple participants. The generation unit is configured to generate a target flowchart element after configuring the template flowchart element according to the basic information; wherein the target flowchart element is associated with a sub-process including multiple steps, and the multiple steps in the sub-process correspond one-to-one with the multiple participants; and the target flowchart element is displayed as a single graphic element on the graphic element canvas, and the target flowchart element is provided with a mark indicating the graphic element type.

3. A computer storage medium, characterized in that, The computer storage medium stores a plurality of instructions adapted for loading by a processor and executing the method steps of claim 1.

4. A computer device, comprising: include: A processor and a memory; wherein the memory stores a computer program adapted to be loaded by the processor and to execute the method steps of claim 1.

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