Method and circuit for controlling the display of items or information with different display priorities

• US 6,480,208 B1
• Filed: 10/07/1996
• Issued: 11/12/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 10/06/1995
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Enterprise Systems Technologies S.a.r.l. (Atos SE)
• Original Assignee: Siemens AG
• Inventors: Eble, Markus, Honold, Stefan
• Primary Examiner(s): Saras, Steven
• Assistant Examiner(s): Bell, Paul A.
• Application Number:
  US08/726,946
• Time in Patent Office: 2,227 Days
• Field of Search: 345/684, 345/810, 345/807, 345/619, 340/525, 340/524, 340/459, 340/519, 340/691, 704/10
• US Class Current: 715/807
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2477 for selecting a function from a menu display H04M1/2474 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 1/2746 Sorting, e.g. according to history or frequency of use

Abstract

A method and a circuit arrangement for controlling information to be displayed in an optical display installation in a program-controlled apparatus, in particular in a telecommunication apparatus. Display priority levels are allocated to the information to be displayed, so that information with higher priority levels are displayed with higher priority in relation to information with a lower priority level. The priority level of displayed information can be changed. The information with different priority levels comprise a concurrent information subset. The priority of currently displayed information preferably is lowered by at least two priority levels.

Claims

1. A method for controlling the display of items of information in an optical display installation in a program-controlled apparatus, comprising the steps of:

storing in a memory items of information to be displayed and a currently displayed item of information, said items of information having first and second information parts, said first information part comprising information which is specific to processes undertaken via the apparatus, said second information part comprising information that is not specific to a process undertaken via the apparatus including a menu and at least indicates a process which is configured to be executed via the apparatus and which the apparatus is configured to execute;

allocating display priority levels to the items of information; and

displaying an item of information with a higher priority level with a higher priority in relation to an item of information with a lower priority level,

wherein,

the priority level of a displayed item of information is changeable, and

in a given technical state of the apparatus, items of information with different priority levels comprise the same second information part.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the program-controlled apparatus is a telecommunication apparatus.

3. The method according to claim 1, comprising the step of reducing the priority of a displayed item of information by at least two priority levels.

4. The method of claim 1 comprising the step of displaying the second information part of the items of information with different priority levels in a predetermined region of the optical display installation.

5. The method according to claim 1, comprising the step of reducing the priority level of a displayed item of information depending upon elapsed display time.

6. The method according to claim 1, comprising the step of reducing the priority level of a displayed item of information depending upon state-individual information.

7. The method of claim 1, comprising the step of overwriting the displayed item of information stored in the memory by an item of information to be displayed that has the same priority level as the displayed item of information.

8. A circuit configured for controlling display of items of information in an optical display installation in a program-controlled apparatus, the circuit including a memory associated with the optical display installation which is configured to store items of information to be displayed.

wherein, display priority levels are allocated to the items of information to be displayed so that an item of information with a higher priority level is displayed with a higher priority in relation to an item of information with a lower priority level, said items of information to be displayed having first and second information parts, said first information part comprising information which is specific to processes undertaken via the apparatus, said second information part comprising information which is not specific to a process undertaken via the apparatus including a menu and at least one menu point which indicates a process which the apparatus is designed to execute;

wherein,

the priority level of a displayed item of information is changeable; and

in a given technical state of the apparatus, items of information with different priority levels comprise the same second information part.

9. The circuit of claim 8, characterized in that the circuit comprises both a control unit to which is allocated a control program and the memory for receiving the items of information to be displayed.

10. The circuit of claim 9, characterized in that the memory comprises respective memory areas for receiving items of information with one priority level, one such memory area allocated to each priority level.

11. The circuit of any one of claim 8, 9, or 10, characterized in that the optical display installation comprises at least two display areas, one of which displays the second information part.

12. The circuit of claim 8, wherein the program-controlled apparatus is a telecommunication apparatus.