System and method for visualization of categories

• US 7,953,738 B2
• Filed: 09/30/2004
• Issued: 05/31/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 06/28/2002
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Heckerman, David Earl, Tang, Zhaohui, Bocharov, Alexei V., Oveson, Scott Conrad, Rounthwaite, Robert L., Chickering, David Maxwell
• Primary Examiner(s): Mofiz; Apu M
• Assistant Examiner(s): Le; Hung D
• Application Number:
  US10/955,585
• Publication Number:
  US 20050108285A1
• Time in Patent Office: 2,434 Days
• Field of Search: 707/740, 707/749
• US Class Current: 707/740
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/58 Retrieval characterised by using metadata, e.g. metadata not derived from the content or metadata generated manually
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/5838 using colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/5854 using shape and object relationship
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 11/206 Drawing of charts or graphs
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/917 Text
• CPC Class Codes: Y10S 707/99945 Object-oriented database structure processing

Abstract

Distribution displays for categories are provided which illuminate the distribution of continuous attributes over all cases in a category, and which provide a histogram of the population of the different states of categorical attributes. An array of such displays by attribute (in one dimension) and category (in another dimension) may be provided. Category diagram displays are also provided for visualizing the different categories, and their distributions, populations, and similarities. These are displayed through different shading of nodes and edges representing categories and the relationship between two categories, and through proximity of nodes.

Claims

1. A method for displaying category data, where a data set comprises more than two categories, each comprising a category data set, said method comprising:

calculating similarity for a selected category and each other category from among said more than two categories; and

providing a display where each category of said more than two categories is represented by an object, where each object representing said more than two categories is connected to every other object of said more than two categories by an edge, and where the position of said objects is determined through a charge-and-spring graph layout algorithm;

where each object is represented as a mutually repelling point charge and is continuously linked to every other node of a plurality of nodes by the edge modeled as a spring whose strength is proportional to a similarity between the categories represented by the objects.

2. A computer-readable storage medium comprising computer-executable modules having computer-executable instructions for displaying category data, where a data set comprises more than two categories, each comprising a category data set, said modules comprising:

a module for calculating similarity for a selected category and each other category from among said more than two categories; and

a module for providing a display where each category of said more than two categories is represented by an object, where each object representing said more than two categories is connected to every other object of said more than two categories by an edge, and where the position of said objects is determined through a charge-and-spring graph layout algorithm;

where each object is represented as a mutually repelling point charge and is continuously linked to every other node of a plurality of nodes by the edge modeled as a spring whose strength is proportional to a similarity between the categories represented by the objects.

3. A computer device for displaying category data, where a data set comprises more than two categories, each comprising a category data set, said device comprising:

means for calculating similarity for a selected category and each other category from among said more than two categories; and

means for providing a display where each category of said more than two categories is represented by an object, where every object representing said more than two categories is connected to each other object of said more than two categories by an edge, and where the position of said objects is determined through a charge-and-spring graph layout algorithm;

where each object is represented as a mutually repelling point charge and is continuously linked to every other node of a plurality of nodes by the edge modeled as a spring whose strength is proportional to a similarity between the categories represented by the objects.