Vector Graphic Highlight Paths for Accurate Node Lighting

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Solution Overview

Problem

Adding highlights to vector graphics manually is tedious and prone to errors, requiring designers to manually create new vector objects and accurately identify highlight boundaries.

Innovation Solution

A system that automatically adds highlights to vector graphics by preprocessing the vector graphic to remove redundant anchor points, generating a graph representation, and creating a highlight path object based on user-selected nodes and provided parameters.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Measurement precision

If highlights are added manually to vector graphics, then the designer can precisely control the highlight boundaries and appearance, but the process becomes tedious and time-consuming

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvehighlight boundary accuracyVSAvoidtime to add highlights

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs automatic highlight addition by detecting vector objects and generating highlight paths without requiring manual intervention for each highlight element. The computer automatically identifies boundaries, creates highlight paths, and applies styling based on user-selected regions, allowing the system to serve itself in the highlight creation process.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The system pre-processes vector graphics data by detecting and storing information about vector objects, their boundaries, and geometric properties before the actual highlight addition occurs. This preliminary detection and preparation of data structures enables rapid highlight generation when user input is received.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

2Productivity

If highlights are added automatically to vector graphics, then the process becomes faster and less manual effort is required, but precision in identifying highlight boundaries may be reduced

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvespeed of adding highlightsVSAvoidhighlight boundary accuracy

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSMeasurement precision

Solution Approach 1:

The system replaces manual mechanical operations of drawing and adjusting highlight paths with automated computer-based image processing and geometric analysis. Algorithms automatically detect vector object boundaries, calculate highlight path geometry, and apply styling rules, substituting human manual operations with computational processes that maintain precision while increasing speed.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #28Mechanics substitution (Replace mechanical system)

Solution Approach 2:

The system introduces intermediate data structures and processing layers between user input and final highlight rendering. These intermediaries include detected vector object data, calculated boundary information, and generated highlight path representations that preserve geometric precision while enabling automated processing.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

3Ease of operation

If manual creation of vector objects for highlights is performed, then complete control over highlight appearance is achieved, but the complexity of the design process increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveease of adding highlightsVSAvoidcomplexity of highlight creation process

Core Design Contradiction:

Ease of operationVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system extracts the complex operations of highlight creation from the user's manual process. By detecting vector objects automatically and generating highlight paths through algorithmic processing, the system removes the need for users to manually create and adjust individual highlight vector objects, thereby simplifying the operation while managing the complexity through automated backend processing.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #2Taking out (Extraction)

Data Source

PatentUS12505590B2Node lighting

Publication Date: 2025.12.23 ADOBE INC

AI summary

Embodiments are disclosed for adding node highlighting to vector graphics. In particular, in one or more embodiments, the disclosed systems and methods comprise receiving a selection of a plurality of anchor points of a vector graphic to be highlighted, generating a graph representing one or more path objects of the vector graphic, each node of the graph corresponding to an anchor point of the one or more path objects and each connection corresponding to a path segment connecting the anchor point to another anchor point, identifying a highlight trajectory including a subset of nodes from the graph, the highlight trajectory including at least a start node and an end node, generating a highlight path including at least one or more highlight nodes corresponding to a subset of nodes from the highlight trajectory, and updating the vector graphic to include the highlight path.