Mouse control for scrolling switch options through screen icon for the switch

• US 6,532,001 B1
• Filed: 04/10/1996
• Issued: 03/11/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 04/10/1996
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Snap-On Technologies Incorporated (Snap-On Incorporated)
• Original Assignee: Snap-On Technologies Incorporated (Snap-On Incorporated)
• Inventors: Petersen, Mark H., Shepherd, Richard H., Moritz, Tyrone J., Taraki, Yosuf M., Trsar, Dale A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Hjerpe, Richard
• Assistant Examiner(s): LANEAU, RONALD
• Application Number:
  US08/628,995
• Time in Patent Office: 2,526 Days
• Field of Search: 345/156, 345/157, 345/163, 345/112, 345/145, 395/326, 395/333
• US Class Current: 345/163
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04802 3D-info-object: information is displayed on the internal or external surface of a three dimensional manipulable object, e.g. on the faces of a cube that can be rotated by the user
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04847 Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning

Abstract

A display control apparatus includes a display screen and a mouse and a processor coupled to the screen and mouse for displaying a mouse cursor and icons graphically representing switches, with each switch having assigned thereto a circular list of indicia respectively representing different switch options. If the mouse button is clicked on an icon the switch associated with the icon is activated and if the mouse button is held down while the cursor is on an activated icon the list of indicia assigned to the icon switch is scrolled through the icon while the cursor remains trapped in the icon. The display screen is incorporated in an engine analyzer which stores frames of digitized waveform data, the screen having a frame icon which indicates number in a decimal number, the number of the frame being displayed. When the cursor button is held down while the cursor is on the frame icon, vertical movements of the mouse will scroll the whole or integer part of the frame number through the icon window, i.e., the digits to the left of the decimal point will be scrolled, and when the mouse is moved horizontally, the numbers to the right of the decimal point will be scrolled to display portions of two consecutive frames, thereby effectively shifting on the screen the position of the beginning of the frame.

Claims

1. Display control apparatus comprising:

a display screen,

a mouse having a X-Y motion sensor and control buttons, and operable under stored program control for controlling the display screen to display thereon indicia including a first indicium which is a cursor associated with the mouse,

said processor including means cooperating with the mouse to define first and second operational modes for the mouse wherein in the first mode the processor is responsive to movements of the mouse detected by the X-Y motion sensor for effecting corresponding movements of the cursor anywhere on the screen and wherein in the second mode the processor is responsive to any movement of the mouse detected by the X-Y motion sensor in either of two opposite directions while the cursor is on a second indicium to control a condition of the second indicium without affecting the location on the screen of either the cursor or the second indicium,

wherein said second indicium is a screen icon having graphical images displayed therein, and

wherein the icon represents a switch and said processor includes means assigning to said switch a list of graphical images respectively representing different switch options with one image at a time being displayed in said icon, said processor in the second operational mode of the mouse being responsive to movements of the mouse detected by the X-Y motion sensor while the cursor is on the icon for scrolling through the list of images assigned to the icon.

2. The apparatus of claim 1, wherein the list forms a continuous loop.

3. Display control apparatus comprising:

a display screen,

a mouse having a X-Y motion sensor and control buttons, and operable under stored program control for controlling the display screen to display thereon indicia including a first indicium which is a cursor associated with the mouse,

said processor including means cooperating with the mouse to define first and second operational modes for the mouse wherein in the first mode the processor is responsive to movements of the mouse detected by the X-Y motion sensor for effecting corresponding movements of the cursor anywhere on the screen and wherein in the second mode the processor is responsive to any movement of the mouse detected by the X-Y motion sensor in either of two opposite directions while the cursor is on a second indicium to control a condition of the second indicium without affecting the location on the screen of either the cursor or the second indicium,

wherein said second indicium is a screen icon having graphical images displayed therein, and

wherein the icon represents two switches and said processor includes means assigning to each switch a list of graphical images respectively representing different switch options with one image at a time from each list being displayed in said icon, said processor in the second operational mode of the mouse being responsive to substantially vertical movements of the mouse detected by the X-Y motion sensor for scrolling through the list of character groups assigned to one of the switches and responsive to substantially horizontal movements of the mouse detected by the X-Y motion sensor for scrolling through the list of character groups assigned to the other switch.

4. Display control apparatus comprising:

a display screen,

a mouse having an X-Y motion sensor and a control button, and

a processor coupled to the display screen and to the mouse and operable under stored program control for controlling the display screen to display thereon a cursor associated with the mouse and icons graphically representing switches with each switch having assigned thereto a list of indicia respectively representing different switch options,

said processor including means responsive to depression of the mouse control button while the cursor is on an icon for activating the icon and the switch represented by the icon,

said processor including means responsive to depression of the mouse control button for more than a predetermined time while the cursor is on an icon for rendering the icon responsive to any movement of the mouse in either of two opposite directions detected by the X-Y motion sensor for scrolling through the list of indicia assigned to the activated switch.

5. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein said processor includes means responsive to activation of an icon to provide an indication on the screen that the switch is activated.

6. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein said processor includes means responsive to depression of the mouse control button for more than the predetermined time while the mouse cursor is on an icon for indicating on the screen that the switch represented by the icon is in a scrolling mode.

7. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein each icon describes a window on the screen within which is displayed a selected one of the indicia in the list associated with the switch represented by the icon.

8. The apparatus of claim 7, wherein said processor includes means responsive to depression of the mouse control button for more than the predetermined time while the mouse cursor is on an icon for trapping the cursor within the window defined by the icon.

9. The apparatus of claim 4, wherein said display screen includes a part of an engine analyzer for analyzing multi-cylinder internal combustion engines.

10. Display control apparatus comprising:

a display screen,

a mouse having an X-Y motion sensor and a control button, and

a processor coupled to the display screen and to the mouse and operable under stored program control for controlling the display screen to display thereon a cursor associated with the mouse and an icon graphically representing two switches with each switch having assigned thereto a list of indicia respectively representing different switch options,

said processor including means responsive to depression of the mouse control button while the cursor is on the icon for activating the icon and the switches represented by the icon,

said processor including means responsive to depression of the mouse control button for more than a predetermined time while the mouse cursor is on the icon for rendering the icon responsive to each substantially vertical up or down movement of the mouse detected by the X-Y motion sensor for scrolling through the list of indicia assigned to one of the switches and responsive to each substantially horizontal left or right movement of the mouse detected by the X-Y motion sensor for scrolling through the list of indicia associated with the other switch.

11. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein the selected indicia for the two switches are displayed side-by-side to form different parts of a two-part graphical image.

12. The apparatus of claim 11, wherein the image is a decimal number with the first part including digits before the decimal point and associated with one of the switches and with the second part including digits after the decimal point and associated with the other switch.

13. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein said processing means includes means for displaying on the screen a waveform associated with the icon, said processing means being responsive to scrolling of the list associated with one of the switches for correspondingly scrolling the waveform across the screen.

14. The apparatus of claim 10, wherein said display screen is part of an engine analyzer for analyzing waveforms from a multi-cylinder internal combustion engine.

15. The apparatus of claim 14, and further comprising memory means for storing numbered frames of digital waveform data displayed on the screen, said processing means including means responsive to scrolling of one of the lists for changing by whole numbers the frame of data displayed on the screen and being responsive to scrolling of the other list for changing by fractional numbers the frame of data displayed on the screen and correspondingly shifting the position of the displayed waveform data on the screen.