Video-Based Undo Control Area for Precise Interaction Tracking
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Existing computer programs do not provide adequate feedback to users when using the undo command, making it difficult for users to track and revert specific changes, especially when repeated actions are involved.
Innovation Solution
A system that records user interactions as a video record with timestamps and allows users to navigate through the interactions using a control area, enabling intuitive undo and redo operations by rewinding or advancing the video playback of changes, providing visual and temporal memory of actions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Loss of information
If traditional undo command is used, then the document is restored to a previous state, but the user does not receive adequate feedback about what was actually changed
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements a video record control area that provides visual feedback by displaying a timeline of user interactions with indicators. When the user hovers over or selects an indicator, the system previews the state at that point in time, allowing the user to see exactly what changes will be undone before confirming the action. This feedback mechanism directly addresses the problem of insufficient information about changes.
Solution Approach 2:
The video record control area serves as an intermediary between the user and the document state. Instead of directly undoing changes without context, the system introduces this intermediate interface that visualizes the history of changes and allows the user to review them before reversal, thereby improving understanding without complicating the core operation.
2Loss of information
If undo/redo log is used to list actions, then partial list of actions is provided, but too little feedback is given especially when similar actions are repeated
Solution Approach 1:
The patent uses visual indicators with different appearances to represent different types of user interactions. Each indicator in the video record control area can be distinguished by its visual characteristics, allowing users to quickly identify and differentiate between repeated or similar actions. This visual encoding helps users discriminate between actions that might otherwise appear identical in a text-based log.
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of presenting action history as a simple linear text list, the patent transforms it into a visual timeline with spatial arrangement and visual indicators. This adds dimensional information (visual appearance, position in timeline) to the flat list of actions, enabling users to better distinguish between similar actions through their visual representation.
3Measurement precision
If video record with timestamps is implemented, then precise tracking of user interactions is enabled, but the system complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent extracts the video recording functionality into a separate, dedicated control area that is distinct from the main document editing interface. This separation allows the complex video recording and timestamp management to be handled in a specialized module without burdening the core document processing system, thereby managing complexity while maintaining precision.
Solution Approach 2:
The system creates a visual copy or representation of the document's state history in the video record control area. Instead of modifying the original document structure to store detailed interaction data, the system generates a parallel visual timeline that mirrors the sequence of changes, enabling precise tracking through a simplified interface layer.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2A~2B
Figure 3
AI summary
A computer-implemented method includes creating (102) a video record of user interactions with a computer program, and displaying (110) a control area configured to receive a rewind user command and an advance user command. In response to receiving the rewind user command, the computer program reverts (118) to a first state that is prior to at least one of the recorded user interactions. In response to receiving the advance user command, the computer program progresses (122) to a second state of that is between the first state and a last-known state of the computer program.