GUI Widget Navigating Related Objects Using Nested Radial Areas
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Solution Overview
Problem
Existing graphical user interface (GUI) navigation systems, such as menu bars and pie menus, face challenges with screen encumbrance and excessive mouse displacement when navigating among a large number of related objects, particularly when dealing with complex hierarchies and numerous relations between them.
Innovation Solution
A GUI widget that displays objects of first and second groups within visually linked display areas, allowing objects of a third group to replace those in the second group upon user selection, with nested and scaled display areas to maintain compactness and intuitive navigation, while visual cues help maintain the user's understanding of relations between groups.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If a menu bar displays groups of objects in separate rectangular display areas, then objects can be organized into groups, but the widget occupies excessive screen space and requires large mouse displacements to navigate
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies nesting by placing multiple display areas within a circular widget boundary, where display areas for different object groups are nested concentrically. This allows multiple groups of objects to be displayed simultaneously within a compact circular area, reducing the overall widget size while maintaining organized group display capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent transitions from linear rectangular display areas to a radial/circular arrangement where display areas are positioned at different angular positions and radii. This dimensional change from linear to radial organization allows more efficient use of screen space and reduces the distance users must move to navigate between related objects.
2Area of stationary object
If a pie menu displays objects in radial slices, then mouse displacement is reduced, but the menu cannot effectively handle a large number of related objects with multiple relations
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the circular widget into multiple display areas, each dedicated to displaying a specific group of related objects. This segmentation allows the widget to handle large numbers of objects by organizing them into manageable groups, with each group displayed in its own designated area rather than competing for limited radial space.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent creates a universal navigation widget that can display multiple groups of objects simultaneously and handle various types of relations between them. The widget is designed to be versatile, accommodating different numbers of object groups and relations, making it adaptable to complex hierarchical structures while maintaining a compact form factor.
3Ease of operation
If display areas are shifted to show new groups of objects, then navigation among object groups is enabled, but screen encumbrance and mouse displacement increase
Solution Approach 1:
The patent positions display areas at different radii within the circular widget, creating a hierarchical structure where related object groups are placed at different levels. This radial hierarchy allows users to navigate efficiently by moving between concentric rings rather than across large linear distances, reducing mouse displacement time while maintaining clear visual organization of object relations.
Data Source
AI summary
The invention is directed to a widget (10) of graphical user interface for navigating amongst related objects, wherein: - the widget is adapted for displaying first and second groups of objects within respective first and second visually linked display areas (12; 14); and - the widget is further adapted, upon user selection of a relation between an object of the second group and a third group of objects, for displaying objects of the third group in the second display area (14) and objects of the second group in the first display area (12). The invention also relates to a method for navigating amongst related objects, comprising a step of providing to a user a graphical user interface with such a widget (10). Finally the invention is directed to a computer program comprising code means for implementing the method and to a computer system comprising means for implementing the method.