CONTEXT SWITCHING ZOOMING USER INTERFACE

• US 20100175029A1
• Filed: 01/06/2009
• Published: 07/08/2010
• Est. Priority Date: 01/06/2009
• Status: Abandoned Application

• Current Assignee: General Electric Company
• Original Assignee: General Electric Company
• Inventors: Williams, Scott Terrell
• Application Number:
  US12/349,218
• Publication Number:
  US 20100175029A1
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/835
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/0428 Safety, monitoring G05B19/0423 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/058 Safety, monitoring
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/4063 Monitoring general control system G05B19/4062 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 19/409 characterised by using manual data input [MDI] or by using control panel, e.g. controlling functions with the panel; characterised by control panel details or by setting parameters G05B19/408, G05B19/4093 take precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/21009 Display states of I-O
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23163 Display enlarged, zoomed detail and small overall schematic, plan
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 2219/23258 GUI graphical user interface, icon, function bloc editor, labview
• CPC Class Codes: G05B 23/0216 Human interface functionality, e.g. monitoring system providing help to the user in the selection of tests or in its configuration
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04806 Zoom, i.e. interaction techniques or interactors for controlling the zooming operation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34

Abstract

A diagnostic system includes a display module that displays an icon view and one or more sensor views. The icon view includes icons that represent associated processes and the sensor views include sensor data that is associated with respective ones of the processes. A processor module receives the sensor data from sensors. A human interface device communicates with the processor module and includes a pointing device. The pointing device facilitates selecting one of the icons and zooming the icon view to switch from the icon view to its associated sensor view.

Claims

1. A diagnostic system, comprising:

a display module that displays an icon view and one or more sensor views, the icon view including icons that represent associated processes and the sensor views include sensor data that is associated with respective ones of the processes;

a processor module that receives the sensor data from sensors; and

a pointing device that communicates with the processor module and facilitates selecting one of the icons and zooming the icon view to switch from the icon view to its associated sensor view.

2. The diagnostic system of claim 1 wherein the processor module switches between the icon view and the sensor view based on comparing a zoom level in the icon view to a predetermined zoom threshold.

3. The diagnostic system of claim 1 wherein the pointing device is one of a mouse and a digitizing pad.

4. The diagnostic system of claim 3 wherein the mouse includes a scroll wheel and the digitizing pad includes a wand and a digitizing surface.

5. The diagnostic system of claim 1 wherein the sensor views include at least one of a graph and a numerical value.

6. The diagnostic system of claim 1 wherein the display module includes one of a liquid crystal display and a cathode ray tube.

7. A method of operating a diagnostic system, comprising:

displaying an icon view and one or more sensor views, the icon view including icons that represent associated processes and the sensor views including sensor data that is associated with respective ones of the processes;

receiving the sensor data from sensors;

selecting one of the icons; and

zooming the icon view to switch from the icon view to its associated sensor view.

8. The method of claim 7 further comprising comparing a zoom level in the icon view to a predetermined zoom threshold and switching between the icon view and the sensor view based on the comparison.

9. The method of claim 7 further comprising performing the zooming via one of a mouse and a digitizing pad.

10. The method of claim 9 wherein zooming via the mouse includes scrolling a scroll wheel and wherein zooming via the digitizing pad includes motioning a wand in a predetermined pattern over a digitizing surface.

11. The method of claim 7 wherein the sensor views include at least one of a graph and a numerical value.

12. The method of claim 7 wherein displaying the icon view and one or more sensor views includes displaying the icons and sensor data one of a liquid crystal display and a cathode ray tube.

13. A diagnostic system, comprising:

means for displaying an icon view and one or more sensor views, the icon view including icons that represent associated processes and the sensor views including sensor data that is associated with respective ones of the processes;

means for receiving the sensor data from sensors; and

means for facilitating selecting one of the icons and zooming the icon view to switch from the icon view to its associated sensor view.

14. The diagnostic system of claim 13 wherein the means for displaying switches between the icon view and the sensor view based on comparing a zoom level in the icon view to a predetermined zoom threshold.