Semantic zoom-based navigation of displayed content

• US 10,372,292 B2
• Filed: 03/13/2013
• Issued: 08/06/2019
• Est. Priority Date: 03/13/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Vogel, Matthew, Sinha, Avijit, Destrebecq, Olivier, Kim, Sayim, Strong, Robert, Di Sandro, Ronald, Vong, William
• Primary Examiner(s): Hong, Stephen S
• Assistant Examiner(s): Sheffield, Hope C
• Application Number:
  US13/801,747
• Publication Number:
  US 20140281868A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,337 Days
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04806 Zoom, i.e. interaction techniques or interactors for controlling the zooming operation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04808 Several contacts: gestures triggering a specific function, e.g. scrolling, zooming, right-click, when the user establishes several contacts with the surface simultaneously; e.g. using several fingers or a combination of fingers and pen
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0483 Interaction with page-structured environments, e.g. book metaphor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/18 of spreadsheets form-filling G06F40/174

Abstract

Semantic zoom based navigation may be used to navigate content, such as content related to spreadsheets. Different gestures (e.g. pinch/stretch, pan, swipe) may be used while navigating the content. For example, while viewing data from a particular sheet in a workbook a pinch gesture may be received that changes the displayed content to a thumbnail view showing thumbnails that each represent a different sheet within the workbook. A gesture may also be received to change a view of an object. For example, a user may perform a stretch gesture near an object (e.g. a chart, graph, . . . ) that changes the current view to a view showing underlying data for the object. A user may also perform a gesture (e.g. a stretch gesture) on a portion of a displayed object that changes the current view to a view showing the underlying data for a specific portion of the object.

Claims

1. A method for navigating content, comprising:

displaying a current view of spreadsheet data associated with a workbook including one or more sheets;

receiving a first gesture to change the current view of the spreadsheet data;

changing the current view to a thumbnail view of the spreadsheet data that displays at least one thumbnail representing at least one of the sheets of the workbook when the current view is a data view of the spreadsheet data and the first gesture is a zoom instruction that moves the zoom level below a predetermined zoom threshold that indicates to display the thumbnail view of the spreadsheet data as a thumbnail within the workbook;

changing the current view of the spreadsheet data to a data view of the spreadsheet data when the current view is the thumbnail view of the spreadsheet data displaying the at least one thumbnail representing the at least one or more sheets of the workbook and the first gesture is a zoom instruction that indicates to display the data view of the spreadsheet data;

displaying a graphical object generated from the spreadsheet data, the graphical object including a plurality of sections;

receiving a second gesture;

determining whether the second gesture corresponds to a first command or a second command, the second command being distinct from the first command, wherein the first command corresponds to a gesture performed on the displayed graphical object, and wherein the second command corresponds to a gesture performed adjacent to, but not within the displayed graphical object;

when the second gesture is performed on the displayed graphical object, determining which of the plurality of sections received the second gesture and replacing the display of the graphical object with a display of a respective portion of the spreadsheet data from which the section that received the second gesture was generated; and

when the second gesture is performed adjacent to, but not within the displayed graphical object, replacing the display of the graphical object with a display of the spreadsheet data used to generate all of the plurality of sections of the graphical object.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein changing the current view to the thumbnail view comprises displaying a thumbnail for each sheet of the workbook.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising determining when the instruction is associated with the object associated with the workbook.

4. The method of claim 3, further comprising changing the current view to display the object in response to a zoom instruction that indicates to display the object.

5. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the first gesture comprises receiving a stretch gesture and changing a number of thumbnails that are displayed.

6. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the first gesture comprises receiving a pinch gesture and changing a number of thumbnails that are displayed.

7. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the first gesture comprises receiving a pan gesture and adjusting a view of the displayed thumbnails.

8. The method of claim 1, wherein receiving the first gesture comprises receiving a selection of one of the thumbnails and in response to receiving the selection exiting the thumbnail view and displaying spreadsheet data that is associated with the sheet represented by the selected thumbnail.

18. The method of claim 1, wherein the predetermined zoom threshold is less than 60%.

9. A computer-readable storage device, not including any waves or signals, storing computer-executable instructions for navigating content, comprising:

displaying a current view of spreadsheet data associated with a sheet of a workbook;

receiving a first gesture to change the current view;

changing the current view to a thumbnail view of the spreadsheet data that displays a thumbnail for each sheet of the workbook when the first gesture is a zoom instruction that moves the zoom level below a predetermined zoom threshold that indicates to display the thumbnail view of the spreadsheet data;

changing the current view of the spreadsheet data to an object view that displays a graphical representation of an object associated with the current view of spreadsheet data when the first gesture is a zoom instruction that indicates to display the object;

displaying a graphical object generated from the spreadsheet data, the graphical object including a plurality of sections;

receiving a second gesture;

determining whether the second gesture corresponds to a first command or a second command, the second command being distinct from the first command, wherein the first command corresponds to a gesture performed on the displayed graphical object, and wherein the second command corresponds to a gesture performed adjacent to, but not within the displayed graphical object;

when the second gesture is performed on the displayed graphical object, determining which of the plurality of sections received the second gesture and replacing the display of the graphical object with a display of a respective portion of the spreadsheet data from which the section that received the second gesture was generated; and

when the second gesture is performed adjacent to, but not within the displayed graphical object, replacing the display of the graphical object with a display of the spreadsheet data used to generate all of the plurality of sections of the graphical object.

10. The computer-readable storage device of claim 9, wherein the second gesture is a zoom instruction.

11. The computer-readable storage device of claim 9, wherein receiving the first gesture comprises receiving a stretch gesture and performing one of:

changing a number of thumbnails that are displayed and displaying a data view associated with one of the displayed thumbnails.

12. The computer-readable storage device of claim 9, wherein receiving the first gesture comprises receiving a pinch gesture and performing one of:

changing a number of thumbnails that are displayed and changing the current view to a data view.

13. The computer-readable storage device of claim 9, further comprising receiving a pan gesture and adjusting a view of the displayed thumbnails.

14. The computer-readable storage device of claim 9, further comprising receiving a selection of one of the thumbnails and in response to receiving the selection exiting the thumbnail view and displaying spreadsheet data that is associated with the sheet represented by the selected thumbnail.

19. The method of claim 9, wherein the predetermined zoom threshold is less than 60%.

15. A method for navigating content comprising:

displaying at least one thumbnail view of spreadsheet data associated with a workbook including one or more sheets, wherein each of the at least one thumbnail view represents a different sheet within the workbook;

receiving a first gesture,

when the first gesture is a stretch gesture, increasing the number of thumbnails viewable;

when the first gesture is a pinch gesture, decreasing the number of thumbnails viewable;

displaying a graphical object generated from spreadsheet data of a spreadsheet application, the graphical object including a plurality of sections;

receiving a second gesture;

determining whether the second gesture corresponds to a first command or a second command, the second command being distinct from the first command, wherein the first command corresponds to a gesture performed on the displayed graphical object, and wherein the second command corresponds to a gesture performed adjacent to, but not within the displayed graphical object;

when the second gesture is performed on the displayed graphical object, determining which of the plurality of sections received the first gesture and replacing the display of the graphical object with a display of the respective portion of the spreadsheet data from which the section that received the first gesture was generated; and

when the second gesture is performed adjacent to, but not within the displayed graphical object, replacing the display of the graphical object with a display of the spreadsheet data used to generate all of the plurality of sections of the graphical object.

16. The method of claim 15, wherein the graphical object is a pie chart and wherein the plurality of sections comprise a plurality of wedges of the pie chart.

17. The method of claim 15, wherein the graphical object is a bar chart and wherein the plurality of sections comprise a plurality of bars of the bar chart.