Display and control of menus with radial and linear portions

• US 5,926,178 A
• Filed: 04/01/1997
• Issued: 07/20/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 06/06/1995
• Status: Expired due to Term

• Current Assignee: Autodesk, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Silicon Graphics Incorporated (Graphics Properties Holdings, Inc.)
• Inventors: Kurtenbach, Gordon P.
• Primary Examiner(s): Breene, John E.
• Application Number:
  US08/840,725
• Time in Patent Office: 840 Days
• Field of Search: 345/326-358, 345/146, 345/145
• US Class Current: 715/834
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04807 Pen manipulated menu
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text

Abstract

A menu may be displayed combining a radial marking menu portion and a linear menu portion. Item selection in the linear portion is performed by location selection using a pointing device. Item selection in the marker portion is determined by the pattern of a stroke made by the pointing device with the system ignoring linear menu items across which the stoke completely passes. Linear menu items may be non-hierarchically related to the radial items. Linear and radial portions may be simultaneously produced on a display based on a single input event.

Claims

1. A display, comprising:

a radial menu displaying radial menu items from which a selection can be made; and

a linear menu simultaneously displayed with said radial menu having menu items non-hierarchically related to the radial menu items, and said radial and linear menus being simultaneously produced and displayed based on a single input event.

2. A display, comprising:

a radial menu having plural radial menu items from which a selection can be made; and

a linear menu simultaneously displayed with said radial menu, having linear menu items non-hierarchically associated with said radial menu items where a number of linear menu items corresponding to the radial menu items is at least one and less than a total number of the radial menu items, and said radial and linear menus being simultaneously produced and displayed based on a single input event.