Automated Configuration Wizard Generation for Complex Applications

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Solution Overview

Problem

Creating a configuration wizard for complex applications is time-consuming and prone to errors, requiring significant effort and manual intervention, especially when the application undergoes changes.

Innovation Solution

An automated tool generates a wizard user interface, allowing users to select data points, map them to fields, and define validations and rules, with a standard approach that can be easily edited and regenerated when changes occur.

Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles

VSEngineering Contradiction Analysis

1Adaptability or versatility

If manual creation of configuration wizard is used, then customization flexibility is improved, but development time and effort increase significantly

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecustomization flexibilityVSAvoiddevelopment time

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSLoss of time

Solution Approach 1:

The system performs preliminary actions by automatically generating the wizard UI structure, data point selections, and field mappings based on the control application configuration before the user needs to use it. This pre-generation eliminates the time-consuming manual creation process while maintaining full customization capability through the underlying configuration data.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The wizard generation process serves itself by automatically extracting information from the control application configuration and generating the corresponding wizard UI elements. The system uses its own configuration data to create the wizard without requiring external manual intervention, thereby reducing development time while preserving adaptability.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

2Adaptability or versatility

If manual creation of configuration wizard is used, then customization flexibility is improved, but error rate increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvecustomization flexibilityVSAvoiderror rate

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSReliability

Solution Approach 1:

Inventive Principle:

Principle #25Self-service

Solution Approach 2:

The system implements feedback mechanisms where the generated wizard is validated against the control application configuration to ensure consistency and correctness. This automated validation loop detects and corrects errors that would otherwise occur during manual creation, improving reliability while maintaining customization flexibility.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #23Feedback

3Adaptability or versatility

If manual modification of wizard is done when application changes, then adaptability is improved, but productivity decreases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improveadaptability to changesVSAvoidmodification speed

Core Design Contradiction:

Adaptability or versatilityVSProductivity

Solution Approach 1:

Inventive Principle:

Principle #10Preliminary action

Solution Approach 2:

The wizard generation process is dynamic and automatically adapts when the control application configuration changes. The system continuously monitors configuration changes and regenerates the wizard accordingly, providing adaptability to changes without requiring manual intervention, thus maintaining both adaptability and productivity.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #15Dynamics

4Productivity

If automated wizard generation is used, then productivity is improved, but device complexity increases

Engineering Contradiction:

Improvedevelopment efficiencyVSAvoidsystem complexity

Core Design Contradiction:

ProductivityVSDevice complexity

Solution Approach 1:

The system implements a universal wizard generation mechanism that handles multiple types of control applications and configuration scenarios through a single automated process. This multi-functional approach improves productivity by eliminating the need for separate manual wizard creation processes while managing complexity through standardized generation templates and rules.

Inventive Principle:

Principle #6Universality (Multi-functionality)

Data Source

PatentUS10127056B2Automatic application wizard

Publication Date: 2018.11.13 HONEYWELL INTERNATIONAL INC

AI summary

A system to automate creation of a configuration wizard from, for example, an underlying control application. In one instance, a complex application may be represented with a simple configuration view such as that of a configuration wizard. When an application is being created, a user may be provided with a feature that defines the configuration wizard. Some aspects of the present approach are that a wizard user interface may be automatically generated, a standard approach may be provided to define the wizard, and, for changes which are performed in the application, the wizard may easily be edited and regenerated.