Method and system for automatically creating and displaying a customizable three-dimensional graphical user interface (3D GUI) for a computer system

• US 20040109031A1
• Filed: 05/13/2002
• Published: 06/10/2004
• Est. Priority Date: 05/11/2001
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: Gamehancement LLC (Jeffrey M. Gross)
• Original Assignee: Gamehancement LLC (Jeffrey M. Gross)
• Inventors: Deaton, Kenneth, Gedeon, Steven A.
• Application Number:
  US10/145,567
• Publication Number:
  US 20040109031A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 345/848
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 13/00 Interconnection of, or transfer of information or other signals between, memories, input/output devices or central processing units interface circuits for specific input/output devices G06F3/00 ; multiprogram control therefor G06F9/46; multiprocessor systems G06F15/16
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/954 Navigation, e.g. using categorised browsing
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9577 Optimising the visualization of content, e.g. distillation of HTML documents
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04815 Interaction with a metaphor-based environment or interaction object displayed as three-dimensional, e.g. changing the user viewpoint with respect to the environment or object
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 19/00 Manipulating 3D models or images for computer graphics
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2219/024 Multi-user, collaborative environment

Abstract

The present invention is a new 3D graphical user interface (3D GUI) technology that seamlessly integrates personal computer (PC) desktop, web portal, and data visualization functions in an intuitive 3D environment. This new paradigm in human computer interfaces provides seamless and intuitive access to a computer'"'"'s operating systems, applications, and files as well as the Internet and on-line web portal functions. The invention automatically scans a computer user'"'"'s hard drive and dynamically creates a customized 3D environment that allows intuitive access to all the user'"'"'s computer functionality. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, the 3D GUI installs as the active desktop on a PC, replacing the user'"'"'s “wallpaper” with the 3D GUI. In this embodiment, the calculator program is accessed by clicking on the calculator on the desk, word processing documents look like actual paper documents, the weather outside is based on today'"'"'s weather forecast, and the radio accesses an Internet radio station.

Claims

1. A customizable 3-dimensional graphical user interface (3D GUI) for a computer, including:

a. customizable 3D space containing scenes (e.g. rooms, sky, worlds), objects and icons;

b. means to navigate throughout the 3D space to view, manipulate, and click on the scene elements, objects, and/or icons;

c. means for the user to interface with the computer, operating system, Internet, files, or underlying data through the icons in 3D space.

2. A customizable 3D GUI according to claim 1, wherein:

the 3D scene is automatically created based on certain criteria such as user preferences, the number and type of files currently on the user'"'"'s system, the number of images on the user'"'"'s hard drive, or the number of browser favorite bookmarks in the user'"'"'s system.

3. A customizable 3D GUI according to claim 1, wherein:

the 3D scene can be dynamically altered based on certain user-defined criteria such as selecting the desired color scheme or type of architecture desired (e.g. Art Deco, Victorian, Gothic, Egyptian . . . ).

4. A customizable 3D GUI according to claim 1, wherein:

the 3D scene seamlessly integrates content from the Internet (e.g. the weather outside can be generated based on the actual weather, a stock ticker can be integrated into the scene based on actual stock info, and ads can be placed into the scene off of the Internet . . . ).

5. A customizable 3D GUI according to claim 1, wherein:

the 3D scene is created using procedural generation of graphics and scenes.

6. A customizable 3D GUI according to claim 1, wherein:

means for multiple users to navigate and interact with the scene and objects at the same time.

7. A customizable 3D GUI according to claim 1, wherein:

the icons consist of standard shortcut icons as they currently look on a 2D desktop and/or 3D models and/or customized icons.

8. A customizable 3D GUI according to claim 1, wherein:

the icons actually look like the underlying file or website (e.g. the icon will be a screen captured image of the website or file), referred to as What You See Is What You Get Icons (WYSIWYG Icons).

9. A customizable 3D GUI according to claim 1, wherein:

the icons and linked files or websites are pulled off of the Internet.

10. A customizable 3D GUI according to claim 1, wherein:

the 3D GUI is platform independent and can be used on a PC, game console, set-top box, wireless device, mobile device, or virtual reality device.

11. A customizable 3D GUI according to claim 1, wherein:

the 3D GUI is configured to be used for e-commerce, on-line shopping, stock market, financial, real estate, or factory floor automation industries.

12. An automatically created customizable 3-dimensional graphical user interface (3D GUI) for a computer, including:

a. customizable 3D space containing scenes (rooms, sky, worlds), objects and/or icons that are automatically generated;

b. the 3D GUI application can scan the user'"'"'s hard drive to find each program, shortcut, favorite website, folder, and file and the application can automatically create a 3D scene and place an icon for each such program, shortcut, website, folder and file into the 3D scene;

c. means to navigate throughout the 3D space to view, manipulate, and click on the scene elements, objects, and/or icons;

d. means for the user to interface with the computer, operating system, Internet, files, or underlying data through the icons in 3D space.

13. An automatically created customizable 3D GUI according to claim 12, wherein:

the 3D scene is automatically created based on certain criteria such as user preferences, the number and type of files currently on the user'"'"'s system, the number of images on the user'"'"'s hard drive, or the number of browser favorite bookmarks in the user'"'"'s system.

14. An automatically created customizable 3D GUI according to claim 12, wherein:

the 3D scene can be dynamically altered based on certain user-defined criteria such as selecting the desired color scheme or type of architecture desired (e.g. Art Deco, Victorian, Gothic, Egyptian . . . ).

15. An automatically created customizable 3D GUI according to claim 12, wherein:

the 3D scene seamlessly integrates content from the Internet (e.g. the weather outside can be generated based on the actual weather, a stock ticker can be integrated into the scene based on actual stock info, and ads can be placed into the scene off of the Internet . . . ).

16. An automatically created customizable 3D GUI according to claim 12, wherein:

the 3D scene is created using procedural generation of graphics and scenes.

17. An automatically created customizable 3D GUI according to claim 12, including:

means for multiple users to navigate and interact with the scene and objects at the same time.

18. An automatically created customizable 3D GUI according to claim 12, wherein:

the icons can consist of standard shortcut icons as they currently look on the 2D desktop and/or 3D models and/or customized icons.

19. An automatically created customizable 3D GUI according to claim 12, wherein:

the icons actually look like the underlying file or website (e.g. the icon will be a screen captured image of the website or file), referred to as What You See Is What You Get Icons (WYSIWYG Icons).

20. An automatically created customizable 3D GUI according to claim 12, wherein:

the icons and linked files or websites are pulled off of the Internet.

21. An automatically created customizable 3D GUI according to claim 12, wherein:

the 3D GUI is platform independent and can be used on a PC, game console, set-top box, wireless device, mobile device, or virtual reality device.

22. An automatically created customizable 3D GUI according to claim 12, wherein:

the 3D GUI is configured to be used for e-commerce, on-line shopping, stock market, financial, real estate, or factory floor automation industries.

23. An automatically created customizable 3-dimensional graphical user interface (3D GUI) for a computer using procedurally generated graphical information, including:

a. customizable 3D space containing scenes (rooms, sky, worlds), objects and/or icons that are automatically generated;

b. means to scan the user'"'"'s hard drive to find each program, shortcut, favorite website, folder, and file and the application and to automatically create a 3D scene and place an icon for each such program, shortcut, website, folder and file into the 3D scene;

c. means to navigate throughout the 3D space to view, manipulate, and click on the scene elements, objects, and/or icons;

d. means for the user to interface with the computer, operating system, Internet, files, or underlying data through the icons in 3D space;

e. means for procedurally generating graphical information including an application program containing algorithms that allow some and/or all of the 3D scenes and/or objects and/or icons to be procedurally generated or modified based on transmission of a smaller “

seed”

file and/or user preferences.

24. An automatically created and procedurally generated customizable 3D GUI according to claim 23, wherein:

the 3D scene seamlessly integrates content from the Internet (e.g. the weather outside can be generated based on the actual weather, a stock ticker can be integrated into the scene based on actual stock info, and ads can be placed into the scene off of the Internet . . . ).

25. An automatically created and procedurally generated customizable 3D GUI according to claim 23, including:

means for multiple users to navigate and interact with the scene and objects at the same time.

26. An automatically created and procedurally generated customizable 3D GUI according to claim 23, wherein:

the icons actually look like the underlying file or web site (e.g. the icon will be a screen captured image of the website or file), referred to as What You See Is What You Get Icons (WYSIWYG Icons).

27. An automatically created and procedurally generated customizable 3D GUI according to claim 23, wherein:

the icons and linked file or website are pulled off of the Internet.

28. An automatically created and procedurally generated customizable 3D GUI according to claim 23, wherein:

the 3D GUI is platform independent and can be used on a PC, game con sole, set-top box, wireless device, mobile device, or virtual reality device.

29. An automatically created and procedurally generated customizable 3D GUI according to claim 23, wherein:

the 3D GUI is configured to be used for e-commerce, on-line shopping, stock market, financial, real estate, or factory floor automation industries.