Task Suggestion Interface for Digital Assistant Interaction

Resolve Bottlenecks,
Find Innovative Solutions
Generate Solutions

Solution Overview

Problem

Digital assistants often restrict user interactions to specific commands and fail to adapt based on previous user behavior, leading to suboptimal task performance and user experience.

Innovation Solution

The implementation of a method on an electronic device with a display and touch-sensitive surface that displays user interfaces with suggestion affordances, detects user inputs, and performs tasks or requires confirmation based on task types, allowing for natural-language speech inputs and voice shortcuts, enhancing user interaction efficiency and reducing errors.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Ease of operation

If digital assistants use predefined commands and limited interaction modes, then device complexity is reduced and ease of manufacture is improved, but user interaction efficiency deteriorates and task performance time increases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveuser interaction efficiencyVSAvoidsystem complexity
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs tasks automatically based on detected user inputs and contextual information without requiring explicit step-by-step commands. The digital assistant autonomously identifies task types, determines appropriate actions, and executes tasks, allowing the system to serve itself in processing user intents and reducing the cognitive burden on users.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The system proactively displays suggestion affordances based on contextual data and predicted user needs before users explicitly request actions. By anticipating user intentions and presenting relevant task suggestions in advance, the system reduces interaction steps and accelerates task performance while maintaining manageable complexity through structured prediction models.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

2Reliability

If digital assistants require multiple confirmation steps for task execution, then reliability is improved, but task performance time increases and productivity decreases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improvetask execution accuracyVSAvoidtask performance speed
Core Design Contradiction:
ReliabilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

The system applies different confirmation requirements to different task types based on their risk profiles and importance. High-stakes tasks that could have significant consequences require confirmation interfaces, while routine, low-risk tasks execute automatically without additional confirmations. This differentiated approach maintains reliability for critical operations while maximizing productivity for常规 tasks.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #3Local quality

Solution Approach 2:

The system implements selective confirmation rather than universal confirmation for all tasks. By applying confirmation only to specific task types where it is necessary, the system achieves adequate reliability without the excessive overhead of confirming every action, thus balancing safety with efficiency.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #16Partial or excessive action

3Ease of operation

If digital assistants provide detailed interfaces and multiple input options, then ease of operation is improved, but use of energy increases and battery life decreases

Engineering Contradiction:
Improveinterface usabilityVSAvoiddevice power consumption
Core Design Contradiction:
Ease of operationVSUse of energy by moving object

Solution Approach 1:

The system displays suggestion affordances in advance based on contextual analysis, allowing users to quickly select from pre-filtered options rather than searching through comprehensive interfaces. This preliminary presentation of relevant actions reduces the time users spend navigating complex interfaces and decreases the duration of high-power display and processing states, thereby reducing overall energy consumption.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The system updates and refreshes suggestion affordances periodically or event-driven rather than maintaining continuous complex interface states. By activating detailed interfaces only when needed and returning to simpler states otherwise, the system reduces the cumulative power consumption associated with rendering and processing complex UI elements while maintaining usability when interactions occur.

Inventive Principle:
Principle #19Periodic action

Data Source

PatentEP4148596B1Accelerated task performance
Publication Date: 2023.11.08 APPLE INC
  • EP4148596B1 patent drawingFigure 1
  • EP4148596B1 patent drawingFigure 2A
  • EP4148596B1 patent drawingFigure 2B

AI summary

Systems and processes for accelerating task performance are provided. An example method includes, at an electronic device including a display and one or more input devices, displaying, on the display, a user interface including a suggestion affordance associated with a task, detecting, via the one or more input devices, a first user input corresponding to a selection of the suggestion affordance, in response to detecting the first user input: in accordance with a determination that the task is a task of a first type, performing the task, and in accordance with a determination that the task is a task of a second type different than the first type, displaying a confirmation interface including a confirmation affordance.