Automatic program generation method with a visual data structure display

• US 5,287,449 A
• Filed: 10/09/1990
• Issued: 02/15/1994
• Est. Priority Date: 11/06/1987
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Kojima, Keiji
• Primary Examiner(s): Herndon, Heather R.
• Application Number:
  US07/595,747
• Time in Patent Office: 1,225 Days
• Field of Search: 364/280.7, 364/286.1, 364/927.63, 364/521, 364/147, 364/148, 340/721, 395/133, 395/155, 395/159, 395/161
• US Class Current: 345/161
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/34 Graphical or visual programming

Abstract

A method for displaying on an image plane of a display unit a first area as an area representative of array data and displaying in place of the first area the, in response to a first input from an input device which assigns a position on the image plane of the first area and a first process applied to some elements of the array data, as an area representative of the array data, a second area having at least two partial areas including the partial areas include a first partial area representative of a group of elements subjected to the first process and a second partial area representative of a group of elements not subjected to the first process a program is generated, in response to a position in the image plane of at least one partial area in the second area and a third input instructing the program generation input from the input device after the second input from the input device assigning the second process applied to a group of elements corresponding to the at least one partial area. The program applies the second process to a group of elements corresponding to the at least one partial area after the first process has been executed with respect to some elements of the array data.

Claims

1. A program generation method of generating a program for processing an array by a processing device in response to various commands inputted by an operator through keys of a keyboard and selection thereby of icons displayed on a screen of a display device, comprising the steps, executed by said processing device, of:

(a) in response to input of each of a plurality of commands each designating one of plural data to be processed by the program, storing a first kind of data indicative of said designated one of the plural data, and displaying a first kind of icon indicative of said designated one of the plural data, wherein at least one particular data within said plural data comprises array data of said array, said array data comprises a set of data elements each of which is designated by a name of the array data and a value of an index assigned to said each data element, the index being common to the set of data elements;

(b) in response to input of at least one particular command which requires selection of a data element which satisfies a data selection condition designated by the particular command, within said array data, storing a second kind of data indicative of a first part of the array data which comprises one data element which satisfies the data selection condition, within said array data, storing a third kind of data indicative of a second part of this array data which comprises one or plural data elements which do not satisfy the data selection condition, within said array data, and storing a fourth kind of data indicative of the data selection condition and displaying a second icon indicative of the first part of the array data and a third icon indicative of the second part of the array data;

(c) in response to input of each of said commands each designating an operation to be executed and selection of at least one of said second and third icons displayed on said display device, storing a fifth kind of data indicative of execution of the operation on one data corresponding to the selected one icon, and storing a sixth kind of data indicative of a resulting data of the operation, and displaying a fourth icon indicative of the resulting data; and

(d) in response to input of a command requiring generation of a program for processing said array, storing a program which executes a sequence of processings on said array required by commands inputted on the plural data to be processed, based upon data already stored in the steps (a) to (c).

2. A program generation method according to claim 1, wherein said step (a) further includes the step of:

storing, in response to each of a plurality of commands each requiring generation of data, a data kind of data designated by each command.

3. A program generation method according to claim 2, wherein the program generation step (d) includes the step of generating, in response to a data kind already stored for data designated by one of the commands requiring generation of data, an object code which declares a data variable which is of a same data kind as the already stored data kind for said designated data.

4. A program generation method according to claim 1, wherein the program generation step (d) includes the step of generating, in response to the already stored fourth kind of data indicative of the data selection condition, an object code which branches to different processing, depending upon whether or not there is a data element within the array data, which satisfies the data selection condition.

5. A program generation method according to claim 1, wherein the program generation step (d) includes the step of generating, in response to the already stored fifth kind of data indicative of an execution of an operation, an object code which calls a procedure which executes the operation.

6. A program generation method of generating a program for processing an array in a system including a display device, an input device for inputting commands and a processor for processing inputted commands, said input device including a position selector for selecting one of icons displayed by the display device, said method comprising the steps, executed by the processor, of:

(a) displaying an icon representative of array data of said array, said array data comprises a set of data elements each of which is designated by a name of said array and a value of an index, assigned to said each data element, the index being common to the set of data elements;

(b) in response to a preceding command inputted by an operator and in response to selection of the displayed icon by said operator, displaying a preceding group of icons each representative of one preceding group within preceding groups of data elements, when data elements of the array data are divided into the preceding groups as a result of execution of preceding processing required by the preceding command on the array data;

(c) in response to at least one succeeding command inputted by the operator and in response to selection of at least one of the preceding group of icons representative of one group within the preceding groups of data elements, displaying a succeeding group of icons each representative of a group within succeeding groups of data elements, when the data elements of the one preceding group represented by the selected one icon are further divided into the succeeding groups as a result of execution of processing required by the succeeding command on the preceding one group of data elements represented by the selected one icon; and

(d) in response to a program generation command inputted by the operator, generating a program which executes a sequence of processings on said array required by a sequence of commands inputted by the operator, including the preceding and succeeding commands.

7. A method according to claim 6, wherein:

displaying as the succeeding group of icons a group of icons which is representative of a group within plural groups of data elements when the plural groups of data elements are obtained after execution of the processing required by the succeeding command on the one preceding group of data elements.

8. A program generation method of generating a program for processing structured data in a system including a display device, an input device for inputting commands and a processor for processing inputted commands, said input device including a position selector for selecting one of icons displayed by the display device, said method comprising the steps, executed by the processor, of:

(a) displaying a first group of icons each representative of one of first different portions of array data of said structured data, said array data comprises a set of data elements each of which is designated by a name of said structured data and a data identifier which is uniquely assigned to send a data element among the set of data elements;

(b) in response to a command inputted by an operator and in response to selection of at least one icon of the first group by said operator displaying a second group of icons each representative of one of second different portions of said array data, when the data elements of the array data are further divided into the second different portions, as a result of execution of processing required by the command on one first portion within the original array data, represented by the selected one icon;

(c) repeating the step (b), by using the second group of icons in place of the first group of icons; and

(d) in response to a program generation command inputted by the operator, generating a program which executes a sequence of processings on said structured data required by a sequence of commands inputted by the operator.

9. A program generation method of generating a program for processing an array of data by a processing device in response to various commands inputted by an operator and selection thereby of icons displayed on a screen of a display device, comprising the steps, executed by said processing device, of:

(a) responsive to input of each of a plurality of commands of a first kind each designating one of plural data to be processed by the program, displaying on said display device an icon indicative of the designated one data;

(b) in response to input of another particular command which designated a data selection condition and in response to selection of one or plural data elements within array data of said array that satisfy the data selection condition, displaying an icon indicative of one or plural data elements within said array data which satisfy the data selection condition and an icon indicative of one or plural data elements within said array data which do not satisfy the data selection condition;

(c) responsive to input of each of commands each designating an operation to be executed and to selection for that each command, of at least one of the icons displayed on said display device, displaying on said display device an icon indicative of resulting data of the operation on one data corresponding to the selected icon;

(d) in response to input of one particular command which designates one array data as one of the plural data to be processed, displaying an icon indicative of said array data which comprises a set of data elements each of which is designated by a name of said array and a value of an index, assigned to send each data element, the index being common to the set of data elements;

(e) in response to input of another particular command which designates a data selection condition and which requires selection of one or plural data elements within said array data, which satisfy the data selection condition, displaying an icon indicative of one data element within said array data which satisfies the data selection condition and an icon indicative of one or plural data elements within said array data which do not satisfy the data selection condition; and

(f) responsive to input of a command of a third kind requiring generation of a program for processing said array, storing a program which executes a sequence of processings on said array required by commands inputted by said operator.

10. A program generation method of generating a program for processing an array in a system including a display device, an input device for inputting commands and a processor for processing inputted commands, said input device including a position selector for selecting one of icons displayed by the display device, said method comprising steps, executed by the processor, of:

(a) displaying an icon representative of array data of said array, said array data comprises a set of data elements each of which is designated by a name of said array and a value of an index, assigned to said each data element, the index being common to the set of data elements;

(b) in response to a preceding command inputted by an operator and in response to selection of the displayed icon by said operator, displaying a preceding group of icons each representative of one preceding group within preceding groups of data elements, when the set of data elements are divided into the preceding groups as a result of execution of the preceding command on the array data;

(c) in response to at least one succeeding command inputted by the operator and in response to selection of at least one of the preceding group of icons representative of one preceding group of data elements within the preceding groups of data elements, displaying another icon indicative of a result of execution of the succeeding command on the one preceding group of data elements; and

(d) in response to a further succeeding command which requires generation of a program for processing said array, generating a program which executes a sequence of processings on said array required by a sequence of commands inputted by the operator, including the preceding command and the succeeding command.

11. A method according to claim 10, wherein the preceding command is a data selection command which requires selection of one of the set of data elements which satisfies a data selection condition designated by the data selection command;

and

wherein the preceding groups of data elements comprises a first group which includes one data element which satisfies the data selection condition, a second group which comprises data elements which do not satisfy the data selection condition and which have smaller values of the index assigned than a value of index assigned to the one data element, and a third group which have larger values of the index assigned than the value of the index assigned to the one data element.

12. A method according to claim 11, wherein the selected one preceding group of data elements are the third group of data elements;

wherein the succeeding command is another data selection command which requests selection of another data element within the third group of data elements, which satisfies another data selection condition designated by the another data selection command;

wherein the another icon is representative of the another data element within the third group of data elements;

wherein the method further includes the step of displaying, in response to the another data selection command, further another icon and still further another icon, the further another icon representing a group of data elements among the third group of data elements, which have larger values of the index assigned than a value of index assigned to the another data element and which do not satisfy the another data selection condition, and the still further another icon representing a group of data elements within the third group of data elements, which have smaller values of the index assigned than the value of index assigned to the another data element.