GRAPHICAL USER INTERFACE DEVICE

• US 20120060091A1
• Filed: 06/15/2011
• Published: 03/08/2012
• Est. Priority Date: 09/03/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
• Original Assignee: Mitsubishi Electric Corporation
• Inventors: Oi, Tadashi, Mori, Kazuyuki, UENO, Yohei, Kobashi, Akira
• Granted Patent: US 9,164,647 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/705
• 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

Abstract

A graphical user interface device includes an operation procedure information database, a display element information database, an operation determination section, a display element selection section, and an integrated procedure and display-element screen preparation section. Procedure information and a display item to be operated by an operator are registered in the operation procedure information database. The procedure information is text information forming an operation manual. The operation determination section determines a current operation step based on information given from an actual plant. The integrated procedure and display-element screen preparation section prepares a layout of an operation screen allowing the procedure information and the display item of the current operation step to be simultaneously displayed on a single screen of the input/output equipment.

Claims

1. A graphical user interface device for use in a monitor control system for a monitor control of a plant, said graphical user interface device comprising:

an operation procedure information database in which text information forming an operation manual and a display item to be operated by an operator are registered for each of operation steps;

a display element information database in which display element information about a display element included in said display item is registered;

an operation determination section that determines a current operation step from said operation steps based on information given from said plant;

a display element selection section that selects, from said display element information database, said display element information corresponding to said display item of said current operation step determined by said operation determination section; and

an integrated procedure and display-element screen preparation section that, based on said display element information selected by said display element selection section, prepares a layout of an operation screen allowing said text information and said display item corresponding to said current operation step to be simultaneously displayed on a single screen of an interface device.

2. The graphical user interface device according to claim 1, wherein

text information forming said operation manual and arrangement position information indicating relative arrangement positions of said display items are registered in said operation procedure information database for each of a plurality of said operation steps arranged in the order,

said display element selection section selects, from said display element information database, said display element information corresponding to said display items of said plurality of operation steps included in the same operation procedure as said current operation step determined by said operation determination section,

said integrated procedure and display-element screen preparation section prepares a layout of the operation screen such that said text information and said display items of said plurality of operation steps included in the same operation procedure as that of said current operation step can be simultaneously displayed on the single screen of the interface device based on said arrangement position information of said display items, and at the same time said display items and said text information corresponding to said display items can be close to each other.

3. The graphical user interface device according to claim 2, wherein

with respect to said text information and said display items of all of said operation steps included in the same operation procedure as that of said current operation step, said integrated procedure and display-element screen preparation section calculates a visibility evaluation value for evaluating the visibility obtained in a case of performing a screen arrangement based on said arrangement position information indicating relative arrangement positions of said display items, selects said current operation step and said operation steps around said current operation step that can be displayed within the single screen while said visibility evaluation value is within a predefined range, and prepares a layout of the operation screen such that said display items and said text information corresponding to said display items of said selected operation steps can be close to each other.

4. The graphical user interface device according to claim 2, wherein

information about a branch in said operation procedure is registered in said operation procedure information database,

in a case where said operation procedure including said current operation step has said branch, said integrated procedure and display-element screen preparation section prepares a layout of the operation screen in which said text information and said display item of said operation step that is a branch destination can be associated with a conditional expression of the branch and can be simultaneously displayed on the single screen of said interface device.

5. The graphical user interface device according to claim 1,

said display item includes a plurality of said display elements that are classified into hierarchical groups such that the number of said display elements belonging to one unit group can decrease in a lower level in the hierarchy,

said integrated procedure and display-element screen preparation section comprises:

a display element change section that changes an arrangement of said plurality of display elements in the layout of said operation screen, on a said unit group basis; and

a screen layout determination section that calculates a visibility evaluation value for evaluating the visibility of the arrangement of said plurality of display elements obtained as a result of the change made by said display element change section and, based on said visibility evaluation value, causes said display element change section to recursively change the arrangement of said plurality of display elements,

said display element change section shifts said unit group regarding the change of the arrangement of said plurality of display elements, sequentially from a lower level in the hierarchy to an upper level in the hierarchy.

6. The graphical user interface device according to claim 1, further comprising:

an input section that receives an external operation for editing a layout of said operation screen containing said text information and said display item to be displayed on said single screen of said interface device;

a display element edit section that edits said layout of said operation screen containing said text information and said display item to be displayed on said single screen of said interface device, based on the operation received by said input section; and

an operation procedure preparation section that changes an operation-procedure information including said text information and said display item registered in said operation procedure information database, based on the operation received by said input section.

7. The graphical user interface device according to claim 2, further comprising:

a cooperative-operation-information database in which a cooperative operation procedure is registered, said cooperative operation procedure having a combination of a plurality of operation steps included in a plurality of said operation procedures that should be concurrently performed; and

a cooperative operation analysis section that determines operation steps to be displayed from said plurality of operation steps included in said cooperative operation procedure, based on said current operation step determined by said operation determination section,

wherein said integrated procedure and display-element screen preparation section prepares a layout of the operation screen allowing said operation steps determined by said cooperative operation analysis section to be simultaneously displayed on the single screen of the interface device while said operation steps are sorted on said operation procedure basis.