Systems and methods of generating a chart matrix in a data visualization region

• US 10,042,517 B2
• Filed: 04/28/2017
• Issued: 08/07/2018
• Est. Priority Date: 06/02/2003
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University (Stanford Management Co.)
• Original Assignee: Board of Trustees of the Leland Stanford Junior University (Stanford Management Co.)
• Inventors: Stolte, Chris, Tang, Diane L., Hanrahan, Patrick
• Primary Examiner(s): LEWIS, CHERYL RENEA
• Application Number:
  US15/582,478
• Publication Number:
  US 20170235446A1
• Time in Patent Office: 466 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/212 with details for data modelling support
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/221 Column-oriented storage; Management thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/2282 Tablespace storage structures; Management thereof
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/248 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/252 between a Database Management System and a front-end application
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/26 Visual data mining; Browsing structured data
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/282 Hierarchical databases, e.g. IMS, LDAP data stores or Lotus Notes
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/283 Multi-dimensional databases or data warehouses, e.g. MOLAP or ROLAP
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2216/03 Data mining
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04842 Selection of displayed objects or displayed text elements G06F3/0482 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04847 Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/177 of tables; using ruled lines
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/18 of spreadsheets form-filling G06F40/174
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/954 Relational
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/956 Hierarchical
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/959 Network
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99942 Manipulating data structure, e.g. compression, compaction, compilation
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99943 Generating database or data structure, e.g. via user interface
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99944 Object-oriented database structure
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 : Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

An exemplary method of generating a chart matrix comprises outputting a user interface (UI) comprising a row header UI section, a column header UI section, and a grid header UI section in a headers UI section, outputting a chart matrix defined by associating a first data dimension corresponding to a data dimension placed in a first position in the row header with a row edge of the chart matrix, and a second data dimension corresponding to a data dimension placed in a first position in the column header with a column edge of the chart matrix, outputting two or more charts nested within each of two or more cells of the chart matrix, providing a user option to perform a drill operation on a selected member displayed in the chart matrix, and outputting, in response to the user input to perform the drill operation, a modified chart matrix.

Claims

1. A computing device, comprising:

at least one processor;

at least one memory operably coupled to the at least one processor, wherein the at least one processor is configured to;

output a user interface comprising a row header user interface section, a column header user interface section, and a grid header user interface section in a headers user interface section, enabling a user to place selected data dimensions into the row header user interface section, the column header user interface section, and the grid header user interface section;

in response to the user placing selected data dimensions into the row header user interface section, the column header user interface section, and the grid header user interface section, output a chart matrix defined by associating a first data dimension corresponding to a data dimension placed in a first position in the row header user interface section with a row edge of the chart matrix, and a second data dimension corresponding to a data dimension placed in a first position in the column header user interface section with a column edge of the chart matrix, wherein members of the first data dimension are displayed as row headers of the chart matrix, and members of the second data dimension are displayed as column headers of the chart matrix;

output two or more charts nested within each of two or more cells of the chart matrix, wherein the cells of the chart matrix are defined by intersections of rows defined by the row edge and columns defined by the column edge, and wherein each of the two or more charts in each of the two or more cells of the chart matrix display data corresponding to additional data dimensions placed in one or more additional positions in the row header user interface section, in one or more additional positions in the column header user interface section, and in the grid header user interface section, wherein members of hierarchies of the additional data dimensions are displayed extended or distributed in the two or more charts nested within each respective cell of the cells in the chart matrix for the members of the first and second data dimensions defined by the row heading and the column heading specific to the respective cell;

provide a user option to perform a drill operation on a selected member displayed in the chart matrix; and

output, in response to the user input to perform the drill operation, a modified chart matrix displaying related members in at least one of the one or more charts, wherein the related members are related by one hierarchical level from the selected member.

2. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the drill operation comprises a drill-down operation, and the related members are related by one hierarchical level down from the selected member in the data dimension of the selected member.

3. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the drill operation comprises a drill-up operation, and the related members are related by one hierarchical level up from the selected member in the data dimension of the selected member.

4. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the selected member is displayed in one of the two or more charts, and the related members are displayed in the two or more charts.

5. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the selected member is displayed in one of the row headers, and the related members are displayed in the row headers.

6. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is configured to output the user interface such that the data dimensions for placing into the row header user interface section, the column header user interface section, and the grid header user interface section comprise a date dimension, a geography dimension, a revenue dimension, a products dimension, and a non-geographically-defined sales channels dimension that comprises one or more categories of stores and one or more categories of non-store sales channels.

7. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to output the two or more charts in the two or more cells of the chart matrix such that the members of the hierarchy of the dimension positioned as the second dimension in the column header user interface section define horizontally distributed charts in each cell of the chart matrix, wherein each of the horizontally distributed charts corresponds to one of the members of the hierarchy of the dimension positioned as the second dimension in the column header user interface;

and the members of the hierarchy of the dimension positioned as the second dimension in the row header user interface section are displayed as vertically extending bars within each of the horizontally distributed charts in each cell of the chart matrix, wherein each of the vertically extending bars corresponds to one of the members of the hierarchy of the dimension positioned as the second dimension in the row header user interface.

8. The computing device of claim 1, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to update each of the charts in the chart matrix in response to the user input to perform the drill operation on one data member in the matrix.

9. A computer program product, comprising:

one or more computer-readable tangible storage devices;

program instructions, stored on at least one of the one or more computer-readable tangible storage devices, to output a user interface comprising a row header user interface section, a column header user interface section, and a grid header user interface section in a headers user interface section, enabling a user to place selected data dimensions into the row header user interface section, the column header user interface section, and the grid header user interface section;

program instructions, stored on at least one of the one or more computer-readable tangible storage devices, to output, in response to the user placing selected data dimensions into the row header user interface section, the column header user interface section, and the grid header user interface section, a chart matrix defined by associating a first data dimension corresponding to a data dimension placed in a first position in the row header user interface section with a row edge of the chart matrix, and a second data dimension corresponding to a data dimension placed in a first position in the column header user interface section with a column edge of the chart matrix, wherein members of the first data dimension are displayed as row headers of the chart matrix, and members of the second data dimension are displayed as column headers of the chart matrix;

program instructions, stored on at least one of the one or more computer-readable tangible storage devices, to output two or more charts nested within each of two or more cells of the chart matrix, wherein the cells of the chart matrix are defined by intersections of rows defined by the row edge and columns defined by the column edge, and wherein each of the two or more charts in each of the two or more cells of the chart matrix display data corresponding to additional data dimensions placed in one or more additional positions in the row header user interface section, in one or more additional positions in the column header user interface section, and in the grid header user interface section, wherein members of hierarchies of the additional data dimensions are displayed extended or distributed in the two or more charts nested within each respective cell of the cells in the chart matrix for the members of the first and second data dimensions defined by the row heading and the column heading specific to the respective cell;

program instructions, stored on at least one of the one or more computer-readable tangible storage devices, to provide a user option to perform a drill operation on a selected member displayed in the chart matrix; and

program instructions, stored on at least one of the one or more computer-readable tangible storage devices, to output, in response to the user input to perform the drill operation, a modified chart matrix displaying related members in at least one of the one or more charts, wherein the related members are related by one hierarchical level from the selected member.

10. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the drill operation comprises a drill-down operation, and the related members are related by one hierarchical level down from the selected member in the data dimension of the selected member.

11. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the drill operation comprises a drill-up operation, and the related members are related by one hierarchical level up from the selected member in the data dimension of the selected member.

12. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the selected member is displayed in one of the two or more charts, and the related members are displayed in the two or more charts.

13. The computer program product of claim 9, wherein the selected member is displayed in one of the row headers, and the related members are displayed in the row headers.

14. A computing device, comprising:

at least one processor; and

at least one memory operably coupled to the at least one processor, wherein the at least one processor is configured to;

output a user interface comprising a row header user interface section, a column header user interface section, and a grid header user interface section in a headers user interface section, enabling a user to place selected data dimensions into the row header user interface section, the column header user interface section, and the grid header user interface section;

in response to the user placing selected data dimensions into the row header user interface section, the column header user interface section, and the grid header user interface section, output a chart matrix defined by associating a first data dimension corresponding to a data dimension placed in a first position in the row header user interface section with a row edge of the chart matrix, and a second data dimension corresponding to a data dimension placed in a first position in the column header user interface section with a column edge of the chart matrix, wherein members of the first data dimension are displayed as row headers of the chart matrix, and members of the second data dimension are displayed as column headers of the chart matrix;

output a plurality of charts within each cell of a plurality of cells of the chart matrix, wherein the cells of the chart matrix are defined by intersections of rows defined by the row edge and columns defined by the column edge, and wherein the charts within the cells of the chart matrix display additional data corresponding to additional dimensions placed in additional positions in the row header user interface section, in additional positions in the column header user interface section, or in the grid header user interface section, wherein members of the additional dimensions are displayed as extended or distributed across each of the plurality of charts within each cell of the plurality of cells of the chart matrix;

provide a user option to perform a drill operation on a selected member displayed in the chart matrix; and

output, in response to the user input to perform the drill operation, a modified chart matrix displaying related members in the plurality of charts in the cells of the plurality of cells of the modified chart matrix, wherein the related members are related by one hierarchical level from the selected member.

15. The computing device of claim 14, wherein at least three additional dimensions are placed in additional dimension positions either as an additional dimension in the row header user interface section, as an additional dimension in the column header user interface section, or as a dimension in the grid header user interface section, such that at least five dimensions are placed in the header user interface sections, including the data dimension placed in the first position in the row header user interface section, the data dimension placed in the first position in the column header user interface section, and the at least three additional dimensions in the additional dimension positions,

the at least one processor further being configured to:

output a plurality of charts within each cell of the chart matrix, wherein the charts within each respective cell of the chart matrix display data for the at least three additional dimensions, corresponding to data defined for that respective cell for the first data dimension associated with the row edge of the chart matrix and the second data dimension associated with the column edge of the chart matrix.

16. The computing device of claim 15, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to display horizontally or vertically extending bars corresponding to members of two of the at least three additional dimensions in each chart within each cell of the matrix, and wherein the plurality of charts within each respective cell of the matrix are horizontally or vertically distributed within the respective cell of the matrix in accordance with a third of the at least three additional dimensions.

17. The computing device of claim 14, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to update each of the charts in the chart matrix in response to the user input to perform the drill operation on one data member in the matrix.

18. The computing device of claim 14, wherein the data dimensions for placing into the row header user interface section, the column header user interface section, and the grid header user interface section comprise a date dimension, a geography dimension, a revenue dimension, a products dimension, and a sales channels dimension, wherein the sales channels dimension comprises non-geographically-defined sales channel categories comprising one or more categories of stores and one or more categories of non-store sales channels.

19. The computing device of claim 14, wherein the at least one processor is further configured to:

provide a user option to select a new data dimension to associate with the row edge or the column edge; and

output, in response to a user input to select a new data dimension to associate with the row edge or the column edge, a modified chart matrix displaying the new data dimension in the row edge or the column edge, respectively.

20. A computing device, comprising:

at least one processor;

at least one memory operably coupled to the at least one processor, wherein the at least one processor is configured to;

output a user interface comprising a row header user interface section, a column header user interface section, and a grid header user interface section in a headers user interface section, enabling a user to place selected data dimensions into the row header user interface section, the column header user interface section, and the grid header user interface section;

in response to the user placing selected data dimensions into the row header user interface section, the column header user interface section, and the grid header user interface section, output a chart matrix defined by associating a first data dimension corresponding to a data dimension placed in a first position in the row header user interface section with a row edge of the chart matrix, and a second data dimension corresponding to a data dimension placed in a first position in the column header user interface section with a column edge of the chart matrix, wherein members of the first data dimension are displayed as row headers of the chart matrix, and members of the second data dimension are displayed as column headers of the chart matrix;

output one or more charts in one or more cells of the chart matrix, wherein;

the cells of the chart matrix are defined by intersections of rows defined by the row edge and columns defined by the column edge, and

the one or more charts in the one or more matrix cells of the chart matrix comprise additional data corresponding to data dimensions placed in one or more additional positions in the row header user interface section, in one or more additional positions in the column header user interface section, and in the grid header user interface section;

provide a user option to perform a drill operation on a selected member displayed in the chart matrix; and

output, in response to the user input to perform the drill operation, a modified chart matrix displaying related members in the one or more charts, wherein the related members are related by one hierarchical level from the selected member.