Software Window Navigation Region Expansion

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Solution Overview

Problem

Software applications often display navigation adornments that reveal sensitive information, crowding the screen and potentially exposing confidential data to onlookers, making it difficult to maintain privacy during document editing.

Innovation Solution

A method to hide navigation information in software windows, allowing the content region to expand while maintaining the window's size and location, thereby protecting sensitive information from view and reducing visual clutter.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If navigation adornments are displayed in the window, then users can quickly access functionality and navigate content, but sensitive information may be exposed to onlookers and the screen becomes crowded

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvenavigation accessVSAvoidinformation exposure

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSObject-affected harmful factors

Solution Approach 1:

The navigation region is segmented into multiple sections, each displaying different levels of navigation information. The system divides the navigation hierarchy (notebook, section, page tabs) into separate navigable regions, allowing selective display of sensitive versus non-sensitive information in different segments of the interface.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Solution Approach 2:

Different regions of the navigation interface are assigned different display qualities - some regions show detailed information while others show only essential navigation. The system applies local quality by making certain navigation elements visible while obscuring or hiding specific tabs or sections based on their sensitivity, allowing each region to have appropriate information density.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #3Local quality

2Ease of operation

If navigation adornments are displayed in the window, then users can access functionality quickly, but the content viewing area becomes reduced

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvefunctionality accessVSAvoidcontent viewing area

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSArea of moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The navigation regions are designed to be dynamic and collapsible. Users can expand or collapse navigation regions based on their current needs, allowing the content area to dynamically adjust its available space. The system transitions between expanded and collapsed states of navigation regions to optimize the balance between accessibility and viewing area.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

3Loss of information

If all navigation information is displayed, then users have complete context awareness, but the interface becomes cluttered and distracting for onlookers

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecontext awarenessVSAvoidinterface clutter

Core Design Contradiction:

Loss of informationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system displays only the necessary portion of navigation information rather than all available information. By showing partial navigation context (current notebook, current section, current page) while hiding or collapsing other navigation elements, the system provides sufficient context awareness without creating excessive interface clutter that would distract onlookers.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #16Partial or excessive action

Data Source

PatentEP2024875B1Content editing protected view

Publication Date: 2021.03.31 MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING LLC

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AI summary

A software application window shows current content in a content region and navigation information in a plurality of navigation regions, with the navigation regions showing contextual information for the current content, as well as for related content. A request to hide navigation information is received, and navigation information for related content is hidden from the window. Any space made available by the hidden content is used to expand the content region, while maintaining the same size and location of the software application window.