Menu display for a graphical user interface

• US 7,966,575 B1
• Filed: 08/28/2000
• Issued: 06/21/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 08/28/1999
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Original Assignee: Koninklijke Philips Electronics N.V. (Koninklijke Philips N.V.)
• Inventors: Jetha, Zeenat, Jansen, Johannes A.
• Primary Examiner(s): Ke; Simon
• Application Number:
  US09/649,677
• Time in Patent Office: 3,949 Days
• Field of Search: 715775-788, 715806-808, 715/825, 715/828, 715841-847, 345775-788, 345/794, 345/803, 345806-808, 345/810, 345/820, 345/825, 345/828, 345/829, 345/834, 345/835, 345/839, 345841-847, 345/850
• US Class Current: 715/817
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus

Abstract

Methods of providing a menu display 1 for a GUI 31 are disclosed together with a computer program, a computer-readable storage medium 34 and apparatus 31 for the same. Methods include the steps of displaying a menu 1 in the form of a group of icons 3, 20, 21 wherein each icon corresponds to a menu option and is selectable by a user, and displaying an icon selector graphic 4 adapted to identify the icon 20 corresponding to a menu option currently selected by a user. A textual label 19 or a submenu 6-11 corresponding to the currently selected menu option/icon 20 may be displayed. Also, the group of icons and the icon selector graphic may be rotatable relative to each other and where the icon selector graphic is stationary and the group of icons rotatable, the center of rotation of the group of icons may be located outside the periphery of a display. Further disclosed is a rotatable menu window 5.

Claims

1. A method of providing a menu display for a GUI comprising the steps of:

displaying in a visually rotatable first portion of a screen a menu on the screen in the form of at least a subset of a group of icons, wherein each icon corresponds to a respective menu option among a plurality of menu options, and is selectable by a user;

displaying an icon selector graphic on the screen that is adapted to identify which icon corresponding to a particular one of the menu options is currently selected by a user; and

displaying in a visually rotatable second portion of the screen that is intersected by at least one edge of the screen such that only a textual label that describes the currently selected menu option is fully in view on the screen, wherein the textual label is from a group of textual labels;

wherein

the group of icons and the icon selector graphic are rotatable relative to each other and in accordance with an input by the user.

2. A method according to claim 1 wherein each of the textual labels describes a respective one of the plurality of menu options.

3. A method according to claim 1 wherein a center of rotation of the group of textual labels is located outside the screen.

4. A method according to claim 1 wherein the icon selector graphic is stationary and the group of icons is rotatable.

5. A method according to claim 4 wherein the group of icons is appended to a rotatable carrier that is rotatable in the plane of the screen.

6. A method according to claim 4 wherein a centre of rotation of the rotatable carrier to which the group of icons is appended is located outside the screen such that the rotatable carrier to which the group of icons is appended is intersected by at least one edge of the screen.

7. A method according to claim 4 wherein at least one of the icons for which the respective menu option is currently unselected is out of view at any given time.

8. A computer program comprising instructions for performing a method according to claim 1.

9. A computer-readable storage medium having recorded thereon a computer program according to claim 8.

10. Apparatus having a display, a processor and a user input device for providing a GUI menu display in accordance with claim 1.

11. A method according to claim 3, wherein:

a different one of the textual labels is fully in view on the screen when a corresponding one of the plurality of menu options is selected by the user, while a remainder of the textual labels and a remainder of the rotatable textual label carrier is off the screen.

12. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the displaying the menu on the screen in the form of the at least a subset of the group of icons comprises displaying a rotatable icon wheel on which the at least a subset of the group of icons is provided.

13. The method of claim 1, wherein:

the displaying the menu on the screen in the form of the at least a subset of the group of icons comprises displaying a rotatable icon wheel on which only the subset of the group of icons is provided.

14. A method of providing a menu display for a GUI comprising the steps of:

displaying a primary menu on a screen in the form of at least a subset of a group of icons, wherein each icon corresponds to a respective primary menu option among a plurality of available primary menu options and is selectable by a user;

displaying an icon selector graphic on the screen that is adapted to identify the icon corresponding to a particular one of the primary menu options that is currently selected by a user;

displaying, on the screen, a submenu associated with the currently selected primary menu option, wherein the submenu is displayed concurrently with the primary menu; and

in the event of a new primary menu option being selected, rotating into view on the screen, concurrently with the primary menu, a new submenu associated with the new primary menu option;

wherein the group of icons and the icon selector graphic are rotatable relative to each other in the plane of the screen, and in accordance an input by the user;

wherein, in a first mode of operation, in order to select a primary menu option, the user is able to rotate the group of icons relative to the icon selector graphic in either direction using first selection means;

wherein the group of icons rotate about a center of rotation that is different than a center of rotation of the submenu and

wherein, in a second mode of operation, the user is able to select a submenu option using the same first selection means in the same fashion.

15. A method according to claim 14 wherein the submenu options are located on a planar rotatable window that is surrounded by a frame;

and

wherein, in the event of a new primary menu option being selected, the window is rotated with respect to the frame, whereby the new submenu is revealed to be on the flip-side of the window.

16. A method according to claim 15 wherein, in the event of a new primary menu option being selected, the window is rotated 180°

with respect to the frame to reveal the flip side thereof.

17. A method according to claim 14 whereby switching between the first and second modes of operation is accomplished by second selection means.

18. A method according to claim 17 wherein the first selection means comprises up and down cursor keys on a keypad, and the second selection means comprises left and right cursor keys on the keypad.

19. A method according to claim 17 wherein the second selection means comprises a toggle switch for toggling between the first and second modes of operation.

20. A method according to claim 14 wherein the icon selector graphic is stationary and the group of icons is rotatable.

21. A method according to claim 20 wherein the group of icons is appended to a rotatable carrier.

22. A method according to claim 20 wherein a centre of rotation of the group of icons is located outside the screen.

23. A method according to claim 20 wherein at least one currently unselected icon is out of view at any given time.

24. A method of providing a menu display for a GUI comprising the steps of:

displaying on a screen a menu in the form of at least a subset of a group of icons, the group of icons being rotatable about a center of rotation along a curve, at least a portion of which appears on the screen, wherein each icon corresponds to a respective menu option among a plurality of menu options, and is selectable by a user; and

separately displaying on the screen, and in a portion of the screen, that is intersected by at least one edge of the screen such that only a textual label that describes the currently selected menu option is fully in view on the screen wherein the textual label from a group of textual labels.

25. A method according to claim 24 wherein the group of textual labels is appended to a rotatable textual label carrier.

26. A method according to claim 25 wherein a centre of rotation of the textual labels is located outside the screen such that the rotatable textual label carrier is intersected by at least one edge of the screen.

27. A method according to claim 24 wherein only one full textual label is in view on the screen at any one time.

28. The method of claim 24, wherein:

the group of textual labels is rotatable in correspondence with the rotation of the group of icons.