Unified Object Page Floorplans for Multi-App Navigation

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Solution Overview

Problem

Users interacting with multiple software applications on diverse computer platforms face challenges in achieving a unified and efficient user experience, particularly in enterprise environments where different roles require access to various subsets of applications, leading to complexity in navigation and data access.

Innovation Solution

A system that presents a common user interface (UI) across diverse client devices, utilizing object page floorplans with a title bar, header, navigation control, content area, and footer toolbar, allowing for personalized and adaptable display of multiple applications, enabling seamless access and navigation through a unified web-based interface.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If multiple software applications are deployed across diverse computer platforms to serve different user roles, then application functionality and user-specific access are improved, but navigation complexity and data access difficulty increase

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveapplication functionalityVSAvoidnavigation complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system segments the complex multi-application environment into standardized object pages, each representing a discrete business object (e.g., customer, order, product). These object pages are organized into application sets that can be independently configured and accessed, breaking down the overwhelming complexity of navigating multiple applications into manageable, standardized units.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

The patent implements a universal object page framework that serves multiple applications across different user roles. The same object page structure and navigation mechanisms are reused across various applications, providing a consistent interface paradigm that reduces navigation complexity while maintaining access to diverse application functionality through a single unified approach.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

2Ease of operation

If a unified user interface is implemented across diverse client devices, then user experience consistency is improved, but adaptability to different screen sizes and device capabilities deteriorates

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveuser experience consistencyVSAvoiddevice adaptability
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The object page framework employs dynamic layout adjustment mechanisms that automatically adapt the standardized interface to different device screen sizes and capabilities. The system dynamically modifies the presentation of object pages based on device characteristics, maintaining user experience consistency through standardized interactions while adapting visual layout and content density to fit various form factors from mobile phones to desktop displays.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #15Dynamics

3Ease of manufacture

If standardized object pages are used across multiple applications, then development efficiency and maintenance are improved, but customization capability for specific user roles may be limited

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvedevelopment efficiencyVSAvoidcustomization capability
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of manufactureVSAdaptability or versatility

Solution Approach 1:

The system applies local quality by allowing specific customizations within the standardized object page framework. While the overall structure and navigation remain standardized for efficiency, individual object pages can be customized with role-specific fields, actions, and configurations to meet specific user role requirements. This enables tailored functionality at the local level without compromising the global standardization that drives development efficiency.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Data Source

PatentUS10649611B2Object pages in multi application user interface
Publication Date: 2020.05.12 SAP SE
  • US10649611B2 patent drawing
  • US10649611B2 patent drawing
  • US10649611B2 patent drawing

AI summary

A system for presenting a common user interface (UI) of multiple applications on diverse client computing devices as a web page that includes a set of UI elements leading to the multiple applications. The diverse client computing devices have display screens of diverse sizes. In the system, backend servers host a UI infrastructure including the common UI and one or more object page floorplans of respective UI object pages representing the multiple applications and representing application information and data on the diverse client computing devices. Design tools are available to process the object page floorplans to display, create, or edit the UI object pages. The object page floorplans include a first object page layout including a title bar, a header, an expanded default state, a navigation control, a content area, and a footer toolbar containing actions that are performed upon a corresponding first UI object page.