METHOD AND SYSTEM FOR CONFIGURING SELECTION OF CONTEXTUAL DASHBOARDS

• US 20160188145A1
• Filed: 01/08/2014
• Published: 06/30/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 01/11/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Synacor, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Teknision, Inc. (Synacor, Inc.)
• Inventors: VIDA, Gabor, MACKENZIE, Stephen, MACDONNELL, Anthony
• Granted Patent: US 10,579,228 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/11 Instrument graphical user interfaces or menu aspects
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/1438 Touch screens
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/563 Vehicle displaying mobile device information
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/5899 Internet
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2360/592 Data transfer involving external databases
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2370/11 Graphical user interfaces or menu aspects
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2370/1438 Touch screens
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2370/563 Vehicle displaying mobile device information
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2370/5899 Internet
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2370/592 External database involved
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 2370/73 with special adaptation to the user or to the vehicle
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/00 Instruments specially adapted for vehicles; Arrangement of instruments in or on vehicles
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/10 Input arrangements, i.e. from user to vehicle, associated with vehicle functions or specially adapted therefor
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/65 Instruments specially adapted for specific vehicle types or users, e.g. for left- or right-hand drive
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/80 Arrangements for controlling instruments
• CPC Class Codes: B60K 35/85 Arrangements for transferring vehicle- or driver-related data
• 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 3/0484 for the control of specific functions or operations, e.g. selecting or manipulating an object, an image or a displayed text element, setting a parameter value or selecting a range
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/61 Installation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/65 : Updates security arrangements therefor G06F21/57
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/4451 : User profiles; Roaming
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 : Execution arrangements for user interfaces

Abstract

An electronic device may have multiple users and multiple customized user interfaces for each user resulting in a large number of user customized UI dashboard configurations. However, defining these user customized UI dashboard configurations is performed by each user such that addition and/or replacement of software applications requires users to reconfigure customized UI dashboards. Similarly, organization generated dashboards must be configured on each user device. It would be beneficial for such user customized UI dashboard configurations to be updateable in response to information provided during new software installation, software upgrades etc or for UI dashboard configurations to be adjusted absent any such update/upgrade. It would also be beneficial for context rules to be adaptable based upon learned behaviour or external adjustments just as it would be beneficial for the context rule engine to automatically identify new potential rules as a result of current and previous behaviour.

Claims

1. A method comprising:

establishing a context rule engine in execution upon a microprocessor comprising at least a context rule of a plurality of context rules, each context rule determining a user interface to display in dependence upon a predetermined set of conditions being met;

installing an application upon a device comprising at least the microprocessor, the application comprising first data relating to the application and second data relating to a context of displaying the application to a user of the device; and

modifying the at least one context rule in dependence upon the second data.

2. The method according to claim 1 wherein,

the second data relating to a context of displaying the application to a user of the device comprises data defining that the application be displayed as at least one of as an icon on a user interface, as an open application for use within a user interface, a minimized window, an icon on a taskbar, and an application within a dashboard.

3. The method according to claim 1 further comprising;

establishing with a remote server whether a revision to the application has been published;

downloading the revision of the application, wherein the revision to the application includes a revision to the second data.

4. The method according to claim 1 further comprising;

establishing with a remote server whether a revision to the second data has been published;

downloading the revised second data; and

modifying the at least one context rule in dependence upon the revised second data.

5. A method comprising:

executing a context rule engine upon a microprocessor comprising at least a context rule of a plurality of context rules, each context rule determining a user interface to display in dependence the result of applying a context rule meeting a predetermined condition;

receiving with the microprocessor context data relating to a plurality of factors;

determining in dependence upon the context data and the plurality of context rules that none of the context rules meet the predetermined condition;

varying a predetermined portion of the context rules;

determining that a varied context rule at least one of meets the predetermined condition and is closer to the predetermined condition; and

adding the varied context rule to the plurality of context rules.

6. The method according to claim 5 wherein,

varying a predetermined portion of the context rules comprises trialing at least one context rule variation by replacing an element of each context rule of the predetermined portion of the context rules with a new variable.

7. The method according to claim 5 wherein,

the steps of varying the predetermined portion of the context rules and determining that the varied context rule at least one of meets the predetermined condition and is closer to the predetermined condition are performed in conjunction with comparing the current context data with previous context data stored within a memory, the previous context data relating to previous occurrences when none of the context rules met the predetermined condition.

8. The method according to claim 5 wherein,

the steps of varying the predetermined portion of the context rules and determining that the varied context rule at least one of meets the predetermined condition and is closer to the predetermined condition are replaced by a process comparing the current context data with previous context data stored within a memory, the previous context data relating to previous occurrences when none of the context rules met the predetermined condition, and establishing a new context rule based upon the current context data when the comparison of the current context data and the previous context data meets a predetermined criteria.

9. A method comprising:

executing a context rule engine upon a microprocessor executing at least one context rule of a plurality of context rules to determine the applicable context rule, each context rule relating to a specific user interface dashboard of a plurality of user interface dashboards and comprising at least a context factor and a weighting relating to the context factor;

executing a user interface generator upon a microprocessor to generate the user interface dashboard associated with the applicable context rule for presentation to a user.

10. The method according to claim 9 further comprising;

installing a software application upon the device comprising at least the microprocessor, the installation process comprising transferring first data relating to the software application and second data relating to a context rule.

11. The method according to claim 10 wherein,

the second data comprises at least one of a new weighting to be applied to a context factor within the context rule, a new context rule, and a new context factor to be added to a context rule of the plurality of context rules.