Graphical Program Visual Problem Indication
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Solution Overview
Problem
Graphical programming environments, while intuitive and powerful, can be complex for users to evaluate and diagnose issues within, especially when it comes to performance, errors, and adherence to design or style standards, limiting their efficiency and productivity.
Innovation Solution
A system and method for programmatically analyzing graphical programs to identify and visually indicate problems, such as performance issues, errors, or style deviations, by examining properties of objects within the program and displaying relevant information to the user, allowing for selective highlighting of problematic areas within the program's block diagram or user interface.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If graphical programming environments are used to make programming more intuitive and accessible, then ease of operation is improved, but device complexity increases making it difficult for users to evaluate and diagnose issues
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies color-coded visual indicators to different elements in the graphical program to indicate their operational status. Problematic areas are highlighted with distinct colors or visual markers, allowing users to quickly identify and diagnose issues without needing to manually evaluate complex graphical programs. This visual feedback mechanism resolves the contradiction by maintaining the intuitive graphical interface while adding diagnostic capability.
2Adaptability or versatility
If graphical programs are created with multiple nodes and connections to implement complex processes, then functionality and adaptability are improved, but difficulty of detecting and measuring problems increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system implements automated feedback by analyzing the graphical program structure and providing visual indicators of potential problems. The analysis engine examines node connections, data flow, and program logic to detect issues such as unreachable code, improper connections, or logical errors. This feedback mechanism allows users to detect problems in complex graphical programs without manually tracing through numerous nodes and connections.
3Measurement precision
If programmatic analysis is performed to identify problems in graphical programs, then measurement precision is improved, but loss of time increases due to analysis requirements
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs partial analysis by focusing on specific aspects of the graphical program that are most likely to contain problems. Rather than analyzing every element in detail, the system identifies and highlights only the problematic areas, providing sufficient precision for diagnosis while minimizing the time required. Users can optionally perform deeper analysis on specific regions if needed.
Data Source
AI summary
A system and method for visually indicating one or more problems in a graphical program. The graphical program may be programmatically analyzed to discover a problem (or potential problem) in the graphical program. The problem found during the programmatic analysis of the graphical program may then be visually indicated on a display device. Visually indicating the problem may comprise visually indicating one or more objects in the graphical program to which the problem corresponds. Visually indicating the graphical program object(s) may comprise displaying information or altering the appearance of the object(s) in order to call the user's attention to the object(s).