Desktop Sharing Window Z-Order Management

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Solution Overview

Problem

In online desktop sharing sessions, attendees are constrained to viewing windows in the same z-order as the presenter, making it difficult for them to bring obscured background windows to the foreground without altering the presenter's display or interrupting the session.

Innovation Solution

The presenter device captures and transmits image data of background windows, including obscured portions, to attendee devices, allowing attendees to request and display these windows over the foreground window without changing the presenter's display.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Loss of information

If the presenter's desktop is captured and transmitted as a series of images showing all visible windows, then all window content can be shared with attendees, but windows may overlap and obscure each other making some portions invisible unless the presenter brings them to the foreground

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvevisibility of background window contentVSAvoidpresenter control requirement

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of informationVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The system segments the window management functionality by separating the presenter's view from attendee's view. Attendees can independently manage and reorder windows in their own displays without affecting the presenter's desktop, allowing background windows to be brought to foreground for visibility while the presenter continues their presentation uninterrupted.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent adds a new dimension of control by allowing attendees to manipulate the z-order and positioning of windows in their own display space, which is independent from the presenter's desktop space. This creates two separate window management dimensions: the presenter's original desktop arrangement and the attendee's customized view arrangement.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #17Another dimension (Dimensionality change)

2Adaptability or versatility

If attendees are constrained to viewing windows in the same z-order as the presenter, then the presenter's display remains unchanged, but it becomes difficult for attendees to bring obscured background windows to the foreground

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveattendee window management flexibilityVSAvoidaccess to obscured window content

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSLoss of information

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary action by capturing image data of background windows including obscured portions before the attendee needs to view them. This pre-capture allows the attendee to later request and display these pre-captured window images in their own display without requiring the presenter to manually bring each window to the foreground.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The patent creates a copy of the presenter's window arrangement that can be independently manipulated by the attendee. Instead of directly accessing or modifying the presenter's desktop, the attendee receives and manipulates a replicated version of the window display, allowing flexible reordering and positioning without affecting the original presenter's view.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

3Loss of information

If the presenter manually brings background windows to the foreground to make them visible, then obscured window content becomes visible, but the presenter's workflow is interrupted and the session is disrupted

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvevisibility of background window contentVSAvoidpresenter workflow continuity

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of informationVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The system extracts the window management function from the presenter's responsibilities and transfers it to the attendee's control. The attendee can independently request and display background window content without requiring the presenter's intervention, thereby extracting the disruptive manual window switching action from the presenter's workflow while still providing access to all window content.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentUS9612730B2Viewing different window content with different attendees in desktop sharing

Publication Date: 2017.04.04 CISCO TECHNOLOGY INC

AI summary

A presenter device transmits, to an attendee device participating in an online desktop sharing session, image data of a plurality of windows. The plurality of windows comprises a foreground window obscuring at least a portion of at least one background window. The presenter device captures image data of at least one background window including the obscured portion of the background window without altering the display of the presenter device. A request is received from the attendee device for image data of at least one background window to display the background window over the foreground window on a display of the attendee device. In response to receiving the request, the presenter device transmits the captured image data of the background window, including any obscured portion, to the attendee device.