Information presentation system for a graphical user interface

• US 6,654,034 B1
• Filed: 05/04/2000
• Issued: 11/25/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 05/04/2000
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Original Assignee: International Business Machines Corporation
• Inventors: Kanevsky, Dimitri, Zlatsin, Alexander
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Cao (Kevin)
• Application Number:
  US09/564,618
• Time in Patent Office: 1,300 Days
• Field of Search: 345/751, 345/753, 345/744, 345/764, 345/781, 345/839, 345/848, 345/853, 348/586, 348/584, 348/587
• US Class Current: 715/764
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/01 Input arrangements or combined input and output arrangements for interaction between user and computer G06F3/16 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/033 Pointing devices displaced or positioned by the user , e.g. mice, trackballs, pens or joysticks; Accessories therefor digitisers characterised by the transducing means G06F3/041
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance

Abstract

A system and method for GUI on multiple monitors that are located in the same user work space. This invention involves a computer using an external source that is able to keep track of what applications the user has outside of his/her computer. The computer still has all of these applications within it, but when they are not needed they are taken off the screen. Two methods are disclosed to track these functions of the applications. The first method involves using a connection with the Internet with all the users devices. The second method involves using a video camera to conduct a visual search for certain devices that are on the user'"'"'s desk. Certain of the items on a user'"'"'s desk such as an Internet picture frame, a television, a telephone, a calculator, etc. are connected to the Internet. Whether or not the item on the user'"'"'s desk is being used is determined by the Internet connection. Other items such as a clock, radio, etc. could have a separate source to identify the device. This separate source involves using one or more video cameras to detect if a certain device is located on a users desk. For either method, there can be an option for a menu that would contain a list of applications that could be opened manually if needed.

Claims

1. A system comprising:

a video monitor, a central processing unit and a memory unit located in a user working place, wherein the central processing unit runs a plurality of computer applications, and the central processing unit includes means to display a plurality of icons on the monitor, each of the icons representing one of said applications, and

a server remote from the user working place and defining a virtual monitor,

wherein the central processing unit and the server are connected by a network,

the server including means to control and coordinate the display of the icons and transmits to the central processing unit information to display the icons in a manner determined by the server.

2. The system as in claim 1, where control and coordination of application and GUI means one or mote of the following:

a) similar applications are represented by only one GUI element on some monitor;

b) if some of monitor is deactivated, then a GUI element that was run on this monitor is activated on some other monitor;

c) data associated with application is stored in memories in such a way to enable a GUI element on monitors associated with these memories if some of monitor with these GUI elements are deactivated;

d) profiles for starting GUI on monitors are coordinated if these profiles activate similar application;

e) setting priorities for GUI elements and displaying GUI elements in accordance with priorities.

3. The system as in claim 2 where GUI element associated with an application means one or more of the following:

an icon, window, shell, picture, text, a set of icons, a

set of windows, a graph, a fractal icon.

4. The system as in claim 2 where some of embedded devices are associated with single applications.

5. The system as in claim 4, where single applications include one or more of the following:

clock, calendar, frame, TV, telephone, e-mail, word

processing.

6. The system as in claim 2, where similar applications represented by GUI elements on devices that are associated with single applications and on other monitors with multiple GUI elements these GUI elements are deactivated.

7. A system according to claim 6, further comprising:

an e-mail device for handling e-mail operations and including an e-mail database; and

a computer connected to the e-mail device via a network, and including (i) means for handing the e-mail operations, and (ii) an e-mail database for storing information sent to the database by the e-mail database in the e-mail device, to help prevent problems that may arise when a disconnection occurs between the e-mail device and the network, because the information lost remains in the computer'"'"'s e-mail database, and the computer'"'"'s e-mail database continues to receive new messages.

8. The system as in claim 1, where some of memories are located in embedded devices such as watches, cameras, palmtops, web phones.

9. A system according to claim 1, for use with a computer having a standard profile and a unified profile, wherein the profile is the following in a stand alone computer with standard profiles:

one person activates a computer;

the computer requires the display of an e-mail icon, display of a calendar icon, and a display of a telephoneicon;

if the computer participates in a unified application framework, then the unified profile is used to dominate the standard profile;

the user'"'"'s profile has user priorities;

if the user chooses to not display icons with applications, it works the following way;

for every item that is required to be displayed on monitor by standard profile is checked;

if this application exists in a separate device on some other monitor, it does not display e-mail, it overwrites the standard profile;

unified profile can be located on the Internet and the standard profile can be found on the user'"'"'s computer.

10. A system according to claim 9, wherein the unified profile can be located on the Internet, and the standard profile can be found on the user'"'"'s computer.

11. A system according to claim 10, wherein there are several monitors on one desk;

each monitor is connected application icons are organized on each monitor in such a way that the applications that are used more often are seen in front of all the other applications, so in this way, the applications are ordered from most used to least used;

the more frequently used icons or applications are described as the larger icons and the icons or applications that are used less are described as the smaller icons;

a prioritizer keeps track of the priorities for icons on very monitor;

the prioritizer defines which icons have a higher priority by keeping track of each time an icon is used;

the prioritizer can put several large icons that are used more frequently than others on a separate monitor and the ones used less frequently on a different monitor.

12. A system comprising:

a video monitor, a central processing unit, a memory unit, and a television camera located in a user working place, wherein the central processing unit runs a plurality of computer applications, and the central processing unit includes means to display a plurality of graphical user interface icons on the monitor, each of the icons representing one of said applications, and

a server remote from the user working place and defining a virtual monitor,

wherein the central processing unit and the server are connected by a network,

the server including

i) means to control and coordinate the display of the icons and transmits to the central processing unit information to display the icons in a manner determined by the server, and

ii) an object recognition module to identify objects in the user working place.

13. The system as in claim 12, where control and coordination of applications and GUI means one or more of the following:

a) similar applications are represented by only one GUI element on some monitor;

b) if one of the monitors is deactivated, then a GUI element that was run on this monitor is activated on some other monitor;

c) a data associated with applications is stored in memories in such a way to enable a GUI element on monitors associated with these memories if one of the monitors with these GUI elements was deactivated;

d) profiles for starting GUI on monitors are coordinated if these profiles activate similar applications;

e) setting priorities for GUI elements and displaying GUI elements in accordance with priorities.

14. A system according to claim 12, wherein a video camera captures images;

these images are sent to a server;

the server receives the images and sends them through an object recognizer;

the image is processed through a module, which normalizes, transforms and compares the image;

the images are compared to a list of standard objects;

these standard objects contain images of many forms of clocks, watches, calendars, telephones, televisions, etc. that could be located on user'"'"'s desk;

if an object is identified using a list of standard objects, the object is immediately labeled using the module;

the module labels an object that was found on the list of standard objects to make this device easier to identify;

a second module prioritizes applications by using a prioritizer or an organizer;

this prioritizer organizes all the user'"'"'s applications from the most use applications to the least used applications;

the most used applications are put on a separate monitor and the least used applications are put on a separated monitor.

15. A method for recognizing icons, comprising the steps;

first, reading a profile in one or more monitors;

to finds what image icons should be displayed on an identified monitor each of the icons representing a computer application;

then, finding, through an Internet server, applications running on monitors by using one of a group of defined procedures; and

then, organizing and prioritizing the icons in accordance to the importance of the item applications represented by the icon.

16. A program storage device readable by machine, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the machine to perform method steps for recognizing icons, the method steps comprising:

reading a profile in one or more monitors to determine what image icons should be displayed on an identified monitor each of the icons representing a computer application;

finding applications are already running on a set of monitors; and

organizing and prioritizing the icons in accordance with the important of applications represented by the icons.

17. A program storage device according to claim 16, wherein the finding step includes the step of finding what corresponding applications are already running on other monitors through an Internet server with the devices that are connected directly to the Internet or those that are connected through a video camera.

18. A program storage device according to claim 16, wherein the finding step includes the step of finding other monitors by the display icons of those applications that are not on the Internet list.

19. A program storage device according to claim 16, wherein the organizing and prioritizing step includes the step of prioritizing the icons in accordance to the importance of the item.