Visual Interface for Non-Linear Business Logic Simulation

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Solution Overview

Problem

Business users lack the ability to understand and analyze complex business logic and data, leading to inefficiencies in monitoring corporate wellness and making decisions, particularly in heterogeneous metric environments where specialized training is often required.

Innovation Solution

A visual user interface that enables business users to manipulate non-linear calculations and run data-centric 'what-if' simulations, facilitating collaborative interaction and recursive scoring across compound rules, allowing for the aggregation and categorization of data.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If business logic is stored in calculations and programming, then the system can process complex business rules, but understanding the logic requires specialized training that deprives many people of the ability to understand assumptions

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveability to understand business logicVSAvoidcomplexity of business logic representation

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates visual copies of business logic through scorecards, KPIs, and threshold representations that mirror the underlying calculations and programming. These visual representations allow business users to understand and interact with complex logic without needing to comprehend the programming code itself, effectively copying the logic into an accessible visual format

Inventive Principle:

Principle #26Copying

Solution Approach 2:

The patent introduces visual intermediaries (scorecards, KPI visualizations, threshold graphs) that mediate between the complex programming logic and business users. These intermediaries translate complex calculations into understandable visual forms, allowing users to grasp business assumptions without specialized training

Inventive Principle:

Principle #24Intermediary (Mediator)

2Reliability

If the system monitors a broad array of heterogeneous metrics, then comprehensive corporate wellness assessment is achieved, but the costs and resources required to access and analyze the data become significant

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecompleteness of corporate wellness monitoringVSAvoidresources for accessing and analyzing data

Core Design Contradiction:

ReliabilityVSLoss of energy

Solution Approach 1:

The patent creates a universal scorecard framework that can monitor multiple heterogeneous metrics (financial, customer, staffing, process) through a single unified interface. This multi-functional system allows comprehensive corporate wellness assessment across diverse data types without requiring separate analysis tools for each metric type, reducing overall resource requirements

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Solution Approach 2:

The patent combines multiple heterogeneous metrics and data sources into unified scorecards and KPIs. By merging disparate metrics (e.g., financial data, customer satisfaction, staffing levels) into integrated visual representations, the system achieves comprehensive monitoring while reducing the resources needed to access and analyze individual data sources separately

Inventive Principle:

Principle #5Merging (Combining)

3Measurement precision

If specialized training is required to understand business logic, then accurate analysis is possible, but many business users are deprived of the ability to understand assumptions on which decisions are based

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveaccuracy of business logic analysisVSAvoidaccessibility to business logic understanding

Core Design Contradiction:

Measurement precisionVSEase of operation

Solution Approach 1:

The patent segments complex business logic into discrete, manageable visual components including individual scorecards, KPIs, and threshold representations. Each segment represents a specific aspect of business logic that can be understood independently, allowing users to grasp complex assumptions through incremental visualization rather than overwhelming monolithic representations

Inventive Principle:

Principle #1Segmentation

Data Source

PatentUS8732603B2Visual designer for non-linear domain logic

Publication Date: 2014.05.20 MICROSOFT TECHNOLOGY LICENSING LLC

AI summary

User interface that enables a user to manipulate visual representations of non-linear business logic to define and run data-centric “what-if” simulations. The visual interface models non-linear calculations based on the mapping of an input value in a non-linear domain to a score range, which score range can be continuous or non-continuous. The interface presents variable graphical indicator representations, as well as proximity and sensitivity visualizations. Different models can be developed and tested using live data feeds and aggregated dependent data feeds. The visual interface employs recursive scoring, and facilitates collaborative interface interaction.