Adaptable Transparency for Media Player Menu Readability
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Solution Overview
Problem
As media players increase in functionality, navigating and reading status in menus and sub-menus becomes increasingly difficult due to added complexity and the washing out of standard display colors when personalized backgrounds are used.
Innovation Solution
Adjusting the visual settings of a background image behind menu options, such as altering darkness and size, to indicate depth within menus and sub-menus, allowing users to better perceive their progression and read menu options more effectively.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If users personalize the display background with their own photographs, then the display becomes more attractive and personalized, but the standard colors for menus are washed out and become difficult to read
Solution Approach 1:
The display background is divided into multiple regions with different transparency levels. The menu region has reduced transparency (making it darker) while the background region maintains full transparency for the personalized image. This segmentation allows both personalization and readability to coexist by treating different areas of the display differently.
Solution Approach 2:
Different regions of the display have different transparency properties. The menu area uses a darker, less transparent overlay to ensure readability, while the background area maintains the full personalized image visibility. This local differentiation resolves the contradiction by applying appropriate transparency levels to specific locations rather than uniformly across the entire display.
2Adaptability or versatility
If media players increase functionality with additional menus and options, then the player becomes more versatile, but the menu structure becomes more complex and difficult to navigate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent adds a visual dimension to menu navigation by using transparency variations to indicate menu depth. Instead of relying solely on hierarchical menu structures, the system uses visual cues (transparency levels) to represent the depth level, making the menu structure more intuitive and easier to navigate despite increased functionality.
Solution Approach 2:
The transparency layer acts as an intermediary visual cue between the menu structure and the user. It translates the abstract menu hierarchy into a visual representation where transparency levels correspond to depth levels, helping users understand their position in the menu structure without increasing perceived complexity.
3Adaptability or versatility
If users proceed deeper into menus and sub-menus, then more functionality becomes accessible, but the visual status indication becomes less clear and navigation becomes more difficult
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses transparency changes (a form of visual property change) to indicate menu depth. As users navigate deeper into menus, the transparency level changes to provide visual feedback about their current position in the hierarchy, making it easier to detect and understand their progression through the menu structure.
Data Source
AI summary
By adjusting visual settings on a display behind a section of a background to emphasize menu options, a user can determine the status in the series of menus and sub-menus and can better read the menu options.