System and method for block scaling data to fit a screen on a mobile device

• US 6,965,388 B2
• Filed: 03/31/2003
• Issued: 11/15/2005
• Est. Priority Date: 10/21/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Vale, Peter Ormand, McLain, Jay Franklin, Dadi, Andrew
• Primary Examiner(s): Brier, Jeffery A.
• Application Number:
  US10/404,675
• Publication Number:
  US 20040075672A1
• Time in Patent Office: 960 Days
• Field of Search: 345/660, 345620-624, 345/666, 345/667, 715/521, 715/523, 715/525, 715/864
• US Class Current: 345/660
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2340/0407 Resolution change, inclusive of the use of different resolutions for different screen areas
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 2340/145 related to small screens
• CPC Class Codes: G09G 5/00 Control arrangements or circuits for visual indicators common to cathode-ray tube indicators and other visual indicators image data processing or generation, in general G06T

Abstract

The present invention is directed to a system and method for block scaling data in order to fit the data to a screen on a mobile device such that “horizontal scrolling” is minimized. The method of block scaling recursively fits blocks within other blocks within further blocks to dynamically optimize the content for a smaller screen. The block scaling is based upon a minimum width for each block depending on the type of data included in each block. The blocks are scaled to the available screen size unless the minimum width for any given block is larger than the screen of the mobile device. When the minimum width is wider than the screen, the data defaults to the minimum width in order to preserve the integrity of the data.

Claims

1. A computer-implemented method for block scaling data to fit a screen on a mobile device, the method comprising:

grouping elements of the data into a first block and a second block, wherein the second block is a sub-block of the first block;

determining a width for the first block and a width for the second block;

comparing the width of the first block to the width of the second block;

increasing the width of the first block when the width of the second block is greater than the width of the first block; and

scaling the data associated with the first block and the second black according to their respective widths to display data on the screen such that horizontal scrolling is minimized.

2. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the grouping further comprises evaluating the page of data according to a standard that define the data of the page that is block level data.

3. The computer-implemented method of claim 2, wherein the standard corresponds to one of the group comprising HTML, XHTML, and CSS.

4. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the first block is the top-level block for the page of data.

5. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the width of the second block corresponds to one of a group comprising a longest unbreakable word associated with the second block, a widest image associated with the second block and a widest form field associated with the second block.

6. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, wherein the width of the first block corresponds to one of a group comprising a longest unbreakable word associated with the first block, a widest image associated with the first block, a widest form field associated wit the first block, and the width associated with the second block.

7. The computer-implemented method of claim 1, further comprising determining whether the second block includes a resizing clement, wherein a width associated with the resizing element is wider than the width of the screen on the mobile device.

8. The computer-implemented method of claim 7, further comprising increasing the width associated with the second block to match the width of the resizing element when the resizing element is present in the second block.

9. The computer-implemented method of claim 7, further comprising setting the width of a first block to match the width corresponding to the screen on the mobile device when a resizing element is not present in the second block.

10. A mobile device, comprising:

a processor;

a display;

a memory into which a plurality of computer-executable instructions are loaded, the computer-executable instructions causing the processor to perform a method comprising;

grouping elements of a page of data into a first block and a second block;

comparing a width associated with the first block to a width associated with the second block;

increasing the width of the first block when the width of the second block is greater than the width of the first block; and

scaling the data associated with the first block and the second block according to their respective widths to display data on the screen such that horizontal scrolling is minimized.

11. The mobile device of claim 10, wherein the computer-executable instructions further cause the processor to determine a minimum width for the second block, wherein the minimum width corresponds to one of a group comprising a longest unbreakable word associated with the second block, a widest image associated with the second block, and a widest form field associated with the second block.

12. The mobile device of claim 10, wherein the computer-executable instructions further cause the processor to determine whether the second block includes a resizing element, wherein a width associated with the resizing element is wider than the width of the screen on the mobile device.

13. The mobile device of claim 12, wherein the computer-executable instructions further cause the processor to increase the width associated with the second block to match the width of the resizing element when the resizing element is present in the second block.

14. The mobile device of claim 12, wherein the computer-executable instructions further cause the processor to set the width of a first block to match the width corresponding to the screen on the mobile device when a resizing element is not present in the second block.

15. A computer-readable medium encoded with computer-executable instructions causing a computing device to perform a method comprising:

grouping elements of a page of data into a first block and a second block;

setting a width of the first block to match a width corresponding to a screen on the mobile device;

comparing the width associated with the first block to a width associated with the second block;

increasing the width of the first block when the width of the second block is greater than the width of the first block; and

scaling the elements associated with the first block and the second block according to their respective widths to display the page of data on the screen such that horizontal scrolling is minimized.

16. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the second block is a sub-block of the first block, and the first block is a parent block of the second block.

17. The computer-readable medium of claim 15, wherein the first block is the top-level block for the page of data.

18. The computer readable medium of claim 15, further comprising determining a minimum width for the second block, wherein the minimum width corresponds to one of a group comprising a longest unbreakable word associated with the second block, a widest image associated with the second block, and a widest form field associated with the second block.

19. The computer readable medium of claim 15, further comprising determining whether the second block includes a resizing element, wherein a width associated with the resizing element is wider than the width of the screen on the mobile device.

20. The computer readable medium of claim 19, further comprising increasing the width associated with the second block to match the width of the resizing element when the resizing element is present in the second block.

21. The computer readable medium of claim 19, further comprising setting the width of a first block to match the width corresponding to the screen on the mobile device when a resizing element is not present in the second block.

22. The computer readable medium of claim 15, further comprising setting a width of non-black elements within the first block to correspond to the width of the screen when the width of the first block is greater than the width of the screen.