Method and system for computer screen layout based on a recombinant geometric modular structure

• US 7,124,360 B1
• Filed: 08/04/1999
• Issued: 10/17/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 08/04/1999
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Helfannd/Drenttel, Inc.
• Original Assignee: Helfannd/Drenttel, Inc.
• Inventors: Drenttel, William, Helfand, Jessica
• Primary Examiner(s): Hong, Stephen
• Assistant Examiner(s): Huynh, Thu V.
• Application Number:
  US09/366,858
• Time in Patent Office: 2,631 Days
• Field of Search: 707/517, 707/518, 707/520, 707/513, 345/764, 345788-789, 345/792, 715/517, 715/518, 715/520, 715/764, 715/513, 715/500
• US Class Current: 715/205
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 30/00 Commerce

Abstract

A system comprising templates for entering and displaying information/data, such as in a Web page or browser, or in the interface for software or an operating system is disclosed. The screen is divided into an array of grids filling the entire area of the template. At least one, and preferably a majority of the grids are dimensioned based on the proportions of traditional Japanese tatami mats. The grids guide design decisions made by the interface designer or graphics designer in carving up and organizing a page, creating an underlying structure and framework for laying out and displaying the information/data. A primary application of the template is in interface and website design, in which the template automatically divides the screen into frames, each frame being used to enter, edit and/or display information on the computer screen or Web page. The system optionally allows an end-user to reposition the grids within the template, reorganizing the information/data to suit specific needs. The system also has application to the control of the directional flow of language, wherein repositionable grids are oriented to facilitate vertical or horizontal flow of text positioned within said grids.

Claims

1. A template data structure embodied on a computer-readable medium for computerized generation of a display of information on computer display devices, said template defining a display area with a dimensional configuration of a height of approximately a first whole number of dimensional units and a width of approximately a second whole number of dimensional units, said template data structure comprising:

a plurality of grids combined and arranged together to fill the entire display area of said template, each of said grids being dimensioned to have approximately a two dimensional unit by one dimensional unit configuration, wherein only grids of the desired 2×

1 unit length-to-width ratio of dimensions are used to form all display components filling the entire display area of said template data structure, such that the grids forming all display components are readily proportioned by the 2×

1 dimensional unit ratio in the template data structure to fit together in whole numbers of dimensional units to fill the entire display area of the template data structure and said template data structure comprising instructions to automatically maintain the proportioning of said grids during operation on at least one of the grids of the template data structure to generate a resulting display on computer display devices, wherein all grids in said generated resulting display have the proportioning by the 2×

1 dimensional unit length-to-width ratio of said grids and said operation on said at least one of the grids being at least one action selected from the group consisting of repositioning, resizing, reshaping, reorienting, and subdividing.

2. The template data structure of claim 1, wherein at least one of said grids is further subdivided into two sub-grids each having an approximately one dimensional unit by one dimensional unit configuration.

3. The template data structure of claim 1, wherein said template data structure is provided on a Web authoring program for generating pages for display with a browser program, said grids comprising frames in which information may be entered, through said authoring program and displayed via said browser program.

4. The template data structure of claim 1, wherein said template data structure is provided within a software program, said grids comprising frames in which information may be entered to and displayed via said software program.

5. The template data structure of claim 1, wherein said template data structure is provided at the level of an operating system of a computer, said grids comprising frames in which computer programs can be displayed.

6. A computerized system using a template data structure for computerized generation of a display of information on a computer display device, said template data structure defining a display area with a dimensional configuration of a height of approximately a first whole number of dimensional units and a width of approximately a second whole number of dimensional units and being subdivided into a plurality of grids combined and arranged together to fill the entire display area of said template, wherein each of said grids has an approximately two dimensional unit by one dimensional unit configuration, and wherein only grids of the desired 2×

1 unit length-to-width ratio of dimensions are used to form all display components filling the entire display area of said template data structure, such that the grids forming all display components are readily proportioned by the 2×

1 dimensional unit ratio in the template data structure to fit together in whole numbers of dimensional units to fill the entire display area of the template data structure wherein the template data structure automatically maintains the desired 2×

1 dimensional unit length-to-width ratio of said grids during operation on at least one of the grids of the template data structure to generate a resulting display on computer display device, wherein all grids in said generated resulting display have the desired 2×

1 dimensional unit length-to-width ratio of said grids and said operation on said at least one of the grids being at least one action selected from the group consisting of repositioning, resizing, reshaping, reorienting, and subdividing.

7. The template data structure system of claim 6, wherein at least one of said grids is further subdivided into two sub-grids each having an approximately one dimensional unit by one dimensional unit configuration.

8. The template data structure system of claim 6, wherein said system using said template data structure is provided in a Web authoring program for generating pages for display with a browser program, said grids comprising frames in which information may be entered, through said authoring program and displayed via said browser program.

9. The template data structure system of claim 6, wherein said system using said template data structure is provided within a software program, said grids comprising frames in which information may be entered to and displayed via said software program.

10. The template data structure system of claim 6, wherein said template data structure is provided at the level of an operating system of a computer, said grids comprising frames in which computer programs can be displayed.

11. A method of arranging information, including text and graphic images, in a computerized display employing a template data structure having a display area with a dimensional configuration of a height of approximately a first whole number of dimensional units and a width of approximately a second whole number of dimensional units, said method comprising the step of forming said template data structure subdivided into a plurality of grids combined and arranged together to fill the entire display area of said template, wherein each of said grids has an approximate two-by-one dimensional unit configuration, wherein only grids of the desired 2×

1 unit length-to-width ratio of dimensions are used to form all display components filling the entire display area of said template data structure, such that the grids forming all display components are readily proportioned by the 2×

1 dimensional unit ratio in the template data structure to fit together in whole numbers of dimensional units to fill the entire display area of the template data structure, and wherein the method automatically maintains the desired 2×

1 dimensional unit length-to-width ratio of said grids during operation on at least one of the grids of the template data structure to generate a resulting display on computer display device, wherein all grids in said generated resulting display have the desired 2×

1 dimensional unit length-to-width ratio of said grids and said operation on said at least one of the grids being at least one action selected from the group consisting of repositioning, resizing, reshaping, reorienting, and subdividing.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising the step of providing a plurality of template data structures, each said template data structure having a different arrangement of grids of the desired 2×

1 unit length-to-width ratio of dimensions that are used to form all display components filling the entire display area of said template data structure.

13. The method of claim 11, further comprising the step of entering information into each of said grids such that said template data structure is used to display different information in said grids.

14. The method of claim 11, further comprising the step of employing said template data structure in a Web authoring program for generating pages for display with a browser program in which information may be entered through said authoring program and displayed via said browser program.

15. The method of claim 11, wherein said template data structure is provided at the level of an operating system of a computer, said grids comprising frames in which computer programs can be displayed.

16. A method for employing a template data structure for generating a computerized screen display of a given display area for displaying text and other information on a computer display device, said text information having at least two formats, at least one of said formats having a horizontal direction orientation and at least one of said formats having a vertical direction orientation, said method comprising:

creating a first screen display by dividing the area of the display defined by a first template data structure into a first plurality of grids which are combined and arranged together to fill the entire area of the display, each of said plurality of grids being dimensioned to have approximately a two dimensional unit by one dimensional unit configuration, wherein only grids of the desired 2×

1 unit length-to-width ratio of dimensions are used to form all display components filling the entire display area of said template data structure, wherein the method automatically maintains the desired 2×

1 dimensional unit length-to-width ratio of said grids during operation on at least one of the grids of the template data structure to generate a resulting display on computer display device, wherein all grids in said generated resulting display have the desired 2×

1 dimensional unit length-to-width ratio of said grids and said operation on said at least one of the grids being at least one action selected from the group consisting of repositioning, resizing, reshaping, reorienting, and subdividing, at least one of said first plurality of grids displaying said text information formatted in said horizontal direction orientation, said at least one grid having a horizontal orientation corresponding to the orientation of said textual information format;

creating a second screen display by dividing the area of the display defined by a second template data structure into a second plurality of grids which are combined and arranged together to fill the entire area of the display, each of said second plurality of grids being dimensioned to have approximately a two dimensional unit by one dimensional unit configuration, wherein only grids of the desired 2×

1 unit length-to-width ratio of dimensions are used to form all display components filling the entire display area of said template data structure, wherein the method automatically maintains the desired 2×

1 dimensional unit length-to-width ratio of said grids during operation on at least one of the grids of the template data structure to generate a resulting display on computer display device, wherein all grids in said generated resulting display have the desired 2×

1 dimensional unit length-to-width ratio of said grids and said operation on said at least one of the grids being at least one action selected from the group consisting of repositioning, resizing, reshaping, reorienting, and subdividing, each of said grids having a horizontal or vertical orientation, at least one of said second plurality of grids displaying said text information formatted in said vertical direction orientation, said at least one grid having a vertical orientation corresponding to the orientation of said textual information format,

selecting a first format for said text information from said at least two template data structures; and

displaying said screen display having textual information entered in said selected template data structure.

17. The method of claim 16, wherein at least one of said grids is further subdivided into two sub-grids each having an approximately one dimensional unit by one dimensional unit configuration.