Icon display apparatus

• US 5,515,495 A
• Filed: 09/29/1992
• Issued: 05/07/1996
• Est. Priority Date: 09/30/1991
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Ikemoto, Hiroyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Powell, Mark R.
• Assistant Examiner(s): HUYNH, BA
• Application Number:
  US07/953,028
• Time in Patent Office: 1,316 Days
• Field of Search: 395/155-161
• US Class Current: 715/835
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04817 using icons graphical or visual programming using iconic symbols G06F8/34
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/00 2D [Two Dimensional] image generation

Abstract

An icon display apparatus includes a display having a screen for displaying at least one window and a plurality of icons, an icon image memory for storing a plurality of icon data corresponding to the plurality of icons displayed on the display, a window image memory for storing a plurality of window picture data corresponding to the plurality of windows selectively displayed on the display, an iconifying circuit for converting a window displayed on a screen of the display into an icon, a mouse for designating a window to be iconified and a display position of the converted icon on the screen of the display, and a display drive circuit for supplying icon data corresponding to the window and coordinate data corresponding to the designated display position so as to display the converted icon at the designated position on the screen.

Claims

1. An icon display apparatus comprising:

display means for displaying a picture including a window having an iconifying designation mark, a plurality of icons, and a cursor having a shape;

input means for moving the cursor to the iconifying designation mark and designating the iconifying designation mark;

iconifying designation detecting means for detecting the iconifying designation in response to the designation of the iconifying designation mark;

window display coordinate storing means for storing a window name and display coordinates of the window, a display order, an iconifying flag representing whether an iconifying state is set, and icon display coordinates;

means for reading out the window name and display coordinates thereof in a display order from said window display coordinate storing means in response to the direction of iconifying designation by said iconifying designation detecting means;

an icon image memory for storing a plurality of icon data corresponding to the plurality of icons and outputting icon data corresponding to the window name read out from said window display coordinate storing means;

window erasing means for setting the iconifying flag and erasing the display order stored in said window display coordinate storing means upon the detection of the iconifying designation from said iconifying designation detecting means;

cursor changing means for changing the shape of the cursor from a first shape to an icon frame shape which is different from an icon shape in response to the iconifying designation from said iconifying designation means and for restoring the shape of the cursor from the icon frame shape to the first shape at a location selected by user; and

means for supplying the icon data corresponding to the window name, the icon data being read out from said icon image memory, and the icon display coordinates to said display means.

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said cursor changing means comprises a cursor image memory for storing cursor picture data corresponding to a plurality of cursors and means for reading out cursor picture data corresponding to said icon frame shape from said cursor image memory in response to the iconifying designation from said iconifying designation detecting means.

3. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said input means comprises a mouse for outputting coordinate data and click data, and said iconifying designation detecting means detects the iconifying designation upon reception of the click data from said mouse and coordinate data corresponding to the iconifying designation mark.

4. An icon display apparatus having display means for displaying a cursor having a shape, a window having an iconifying designation mark, the iconifying designation mark having a specified location in connection with the window, the icon display apparatus comprising:

an input device for entering position information and first and second selection indication information;

cursor means, responsive to the input device, for movably displaying the cursor on the display means in accordance with the position information;

iconifying designation detecting means, responsive to the position information and the first selection indication information, for detecting that the position information coincides with the specified location of the iconifying designation mark and that the first selection indication information has been entered, thereby generating an iconifying signal;

converting means, responsive to the iconifying signal, for converting the shape of the cursor from a first shape to a second shape representative of the window and erasing the window from said display means;

icon generation means, responsive to the second selection indication information, for generating an icon corresponding to the erased window at a desired position anywhere on a display screen of said display means, said desired position being determined by the cursor moved in accordance with the position information; and

cursor shape restoration means, responsive to the second selection indication information, for restoring the shape of the cursor to the first shape.

5. An apparatus according to claim 4, wherein said iconifying means includes means for converting a shape of the cursor which designates the iconifying mark into a shape of an icon frame.

6. An icon display apparatus comprising:

display means having a screen with a rectangular display space corresponding to all available display areas on said screen for displaying an unconverted menu display window and a plurality of icons;

an icon image memory for storing a plurality of icon data respectively corresponding to said plurality of icons displayed in said rectangular display space;

a window image memory for storing window picture data corresponding to said unconverted menu display window displayed in said rectangular display space;

iconifying means for converting said unconverted menu display window displayed in said rectangular display space into an icon corresponding to said unconverted menu display window;

input means for designating said unconverted menu display window to be iconified and for movably designating a display position of said icon corresponding to said unconverted menu display window anywhere in said rectangular display space, said movable designation of said icon display position being automatically activated in response to said conversion of said unconverted menu display window; and

display driving means for supplying icon data corresponding to said unconverted menu display window and coordinate data corresponding to said designated display position, to display said icon corresponding to said unconverted menu display window at said designated display position anywhere in said rectangular display space, so that said icon corresponding to said unconverted menu display window may be freely positioned in accordance with said movably designated display position instead of being located in a predetermined area in said rectangular display space,

wherein said unconverted menu display window displayed in said rectangular display space has an iconifying mark, said input means comprises means for movably displaying a cursor in said rectangular display area, and said iconifying means comprises iconifying designation detecting means for detecting designation of said iconifying mark in accordance with said cursor moved by said input means and means for, in response to detection of iconifying designation by said iconifying designation detecting means, reading out, from said icon image memory, icon data corresponding to said unconverted menu display window designated by said input means,

wherein said iconifying means includes means for converting a shape of said cursor which designates said iconifying mark into a shape of an icon frame.

7. Icon display apparatus comprising:

display means for generating a display of a window and a movable cursor;

a clicking detector for detecting that an input device button has been depressed and generating in response thereto a clicking signal;

a designation mark coordinate determining circuit for determining that a designation mark associated with said window has been designated on said display and generating in response thereto an output signal;

an iconifying designation detector, coupled to said clicking detector and to said designation mark coordinate determining circuit, for generating a conversion signal in response to detecting a first clicking signal corresponding to a first depression of said input device button from said clicking detector coincidentally with said output signal;

a window display controller, coupled to said iconifying designation detector, for erasing said window from said display in response to said conversion signal;

means, coupled to said iconifying designation detector and to said clicking detector, for changing said cursor into an icon frame in response to said conversion signal and allowing said icon frame to be immediately moved to a new position anywhere on said display without an additional clicking signal from said clicking detector, and responsive to a second clicking signal from said clicking detector corresponding to a second depression of said input device button, changing said icon frame back into said cursor at said new position on said display; and

means, responsive to said second clicking signal from said clicking detector corresponding to said second depression, for generating an icon corresponding to said erased window at said new position on said display.