Display component selecting system and method

• US 5,969,717 A
• Filed: 07/25/1997
• Issued: 10/19/1999
• Est. Priority Date: 07/25/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Toshiba (Toshiba Corporation)
• Inventors: Ikemoto, Hiroyuki
• Primary Examiner(s): Bayerl, Raymond J.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Nguyen, Thomas T.
• Application Number:
  US08/900,709
• Time in Patent Office: 816 Days
• Field of Search: 395/704, 345/333, 345/340, 345/335, 345/332, 345/342, 345/352
• US Class Current: 715/762
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces

Abstract

A display component selecting system comprises unit for inputting a screen input/output data item to be inputted and/or outputted on a display screen and use information representing a use for the data item by at least one attribute, unit, which includes a table showing the correspondence between various attributes and various display components, for holding a selection rule used to select a suitable display component in accordance with the inputted use information, and unit for selecting a display component associated with the inputted screen input/output data item in accordance with the selection rule.

Claims

1. A display component selecting system relating to a user interface, comprising:

inputting means for inputting identification information for identifying functions relating to the user interface and an arbitrary attribute item selected from among a plurality of attribute items that are prepared for each of the functions to specify a display component;

input data storage means for storing the identification information input by the inputting means in association with information on the input attribute item; and

selection rule holding means for storing a selection rule for assigning one display component to functions whose information on the input attribute item are common; and

component selecting means for collating the information on the attribute item stored in the input data storage means with information on the attribute item stored in the selection rule holding means, and for selecting a display component which has the attribute items of a same predetermined combination as collated information on the attribute items and assigning the selected display component to the identification information.

2. The system according to claim 1, further comprising means for generating layout information used to lay out the display components selected by said selecting means on a display screen.

3. The system according to claim 2, further comprising means for generating screen code information from the layout information generated by said layout information generating means on the basis of a specific screen code generation rule.

4. A display component selecting system relating to a user interface, comprising:

inputting means for inputting identification information for identifying functions relating to the user interface, an arbitrary attribute item selected from among a plurality of attribute items that are prepared for each of the functions, and information indicative of importance of each of the functions;

input data storage means for storing the identification information input by the inputting means in association with information on the input attribute item and the information indicative of importance; and

selection rule holding means for storing a selection rule for assigning one display component to functions whose information on the attribute item and an emphasis attribute that indicates whether the display component should be visually emphasized based on the importance are common; and

component selecting means for collating the information on the attribute item stored in the input data storage means with information on the attribute item stored in the selection rule holding means and selecting a display component which has the attribute items of a same predetermined combination as the collated information on the attribute items, and for assigning the selected display component to the identification information, and when a plurality of display components are selected, said component selecting means further selecting a suitable display component from the selected display components on the basis of the information on the importance stored in the input data storage means and in view of the emphasis attribute stored in the selection rule holding means, and assigning the suitable display component to the identification information.

5. The system according to claim 4, further comprising means for generating layout information used to lay out the display components selected by said selecting means on a display screen.

6. The system according to claim 5, further comprising means for generating screen code information from the layout information generated by said layout information generating means on the basis of a specific screen code generation rule.

7. A method of selecting one of display components relating to a user interface, comprising:

the inputting step of inputting identification information for identifying functions relating to the user interface, and an arbitrary attribute item selected from among a plurality of attribute items that are prepared for each of the functions to specify a display component;

the input data storage step of storing the identification information input in the inputting step in association with information on the input attribute item; and

the selection rule holding step of storing a selection rule for assigning one display component to functions whose information on the input attribute item are common; and

the step of collating the information on the attribute item stored in the input data storage step with information on the attribute item stored in the selection rule holding step, and of selecting a display component which has the attribute items of a same predetermined combination as the collated information on the attribute items and assigning the selected display component to the identification information.

8. A method of selecting one of display components relating to a user interface, comprising:

the inputting step of inputting identification information for identifying functions relating to the user interface, an arbitrary attribute item selected from among a plurality of attribute items that are prepared for each of the functions, and information indicative of importance of each of the functions;

the input data storage step of storing the identification information input in the inputting step in association with information on the input attribute item and the information indicative of importance; and

the selection rule holding step of storing a selection rule for assigning one display component to functions whose information on the attribute item, and an emphasis attribute that indicates whether the display component should be visually emphasized based on the importance, are common; and

the component selecting step of collating the information on the attribute item stored in the input data storage step with information on the attribute item stored in the selection rule holding step and selecting a display component which has the attribute items of a same predetermined combination as the collated information on the attribute items, and of assigning the selected display component to the identification information, and when a plurality of display components are selected, said component selecting step further selecting a suitable display component from the selected display components on the basis of the stored information on the importance and in view of the stored emphasis attribute, and assigning the suitable display component to the identification information.