Method and apparatus for displaying cascading menu

• US 10,209,863 B2
• Filed: 04/29/2010
• Issued: 02/19/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 05/05/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Alibaba Group Holding Ltd.
• Inventors: Zhang, Xiaoxin, Yang, Changyuan
• Primary Examiner(s): Tran, Tuyetlien T
• Application Number:
  US12/863,374
• Publication Number:
  US 20120124523A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,218 Days
• Field of Search: 715810, 715841, 715853, 715854
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• 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 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces

Abstract

The present disclosure discloses a method of displaying a cascading menu that includes a plurality of submenus. The method determines a first submenu as indicated for browsing by a user based on a clicking event of the user. When an operation interface of the first submenu is in a collapsed mode, a number of submenus that are currently in an expanded mode within an operation interface of the cascading menu is counted. When the number of submenus that are currently in the expanded mode reaches a defined threshold, at least a second submenu is selected from the submenus that are currently in the expanded mode, and an operation interface of the second submenu is shrunk. The operation interface of the first submenu is expanded. Therefore, a size of the operation interface of the cascading menu will not increase as the number of the expanded submenus increases. As such, the amount of a page space occupied by the cascading menu is reduced and utilization of the page space is improved. The present disclosure further discloses a terminal apparatus.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

displaying operating interfaces of a plurality of submenus in a cascading menu, the plurality of submenus comprising at least a first submenu;

determining that the first submenu is selected by a user based at least in part on a clicking event of the user;

selecting at least a second submenu from submenus currently in an expanded mode to shrink an operation interface of the at least second submenu based at least in part on an operation interface of the first submenu being in a collapsed mode, selecting the at least second submenu comprising;

selecting a currently expanded submenu having a level that is highest from one or more submenus that are located at levels higher than the first submenu to be the at least second submenu in response to determining that the one or more submenus that are located at the levels higher than the first submenu are currently in the expanded mode; and

selecting a currently expanded submenu having a level that is lowest from one or more submenus that are located at levels lower than the first submenu to be the second submenu in response to determining that no submenu that is located at a level higher than the first submenu is currently in the expanded mode;

expanding the operation interface of the first submenu after the operation interface of the at least second submenu is shrunk;

determining whether to expand an operation interface of a third submenu which is adjacent to the first submenu and located at a level lower than the first submenu based on a size of an operation interface of the cascading menu in response to the operation interface of a third submenu being in the collapsed mode;

expanding the operation interface of the third submenu;

counting a number of submenus that are currently in the collapsed mode; and

selecting at least a fourth submenu from the submenus that are currently in the expanded mode to shrink an operation interface of the fourth submenu when the number of submenus that are currently in the expanded mode reaches a predetermined threshold.

2. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

measuring a size of the operation interface of the first submenu;

comparing the measured size of the operation interface with a predetermined threshold; and

determining that the operation interface of the first submenu is in the collapsed mode when the measured size of the operation interface of the first submenu is less than the predetermined threshold.

3. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising expanding the operation interface of the first submenu when a number of submenus currently in the expanded mode does not reach a predetermined threshold.

4. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising measuring sizes of operation interfaces of submenus other than the first submenu to identify any operation interface of the submenus other than the first submenu to be in the expanded mode.

5. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising:

counting a number of submenus that are currently in the expanded mode within the operation interface of the cascading menu; and

comparing the number of submenus that are currently in the expanded mode with a predetermined threshold to obtain a comparison result, wherein expanding the operation interface of the first submenu comprises expanding the operation interface of the first submenu when the number of submenus that are currently in the expanded mode does not reach the predetermined threshold based at least in part on the comparison result.

6. The method as recited in claim 1, further comprising determining a number of submenus to be concurrently expanded with the first submenu based on a size of an operating interface of the cascading menu including the plurality of submenus.