Panel-based management of data objects from a plurality of data sources

• US 8,060,533 B1
• Filed: 07/07/2011
• Issued: 11/15/2011
• Est. Priority Date: 07/07/2011
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Google LLC (Alphabet Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Google Inc. (Alphabet Inc.)
• Inventors: Prada Gomez, Luis Ricardo, Wheeler, Aaron
• Primary Examiner(s): Hoang; Son T
• Application Number:
  US13/177,999
• Time in Patent Office: 131 Days
• Field of Search: 707/791, 707/802
• US Class Current: 707/791
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/109 Time management, e.g. calendars, reminders, meetings or time accounting
• CPC Class Codes: H04M 15/55 for hybrid networks

Abstract

A mechanism for providing panel-based management of data. In accordance with instructions on a machine-readable medium, a computing system receives data objects from various sources such as various user devices and application servers. Further, the computing system causes a device to display a graphical user interface through which a user can define panels that will be associated with various received data objects, so as to define a record, by time or subject matter, of relevant data objects. Further, the computing system allows a user to readily switch from display of one panel to display of another panel, so as to assist the user with multi-tasking and associated context switching.

Claims

1. A non-transitory computer readable medium having stored thereon instructions executable by a computing system to carry out functions for panel-based management of data comprising:

receiving data objects from a plurality of sources, and storing the received data objects, wherein each data object defines a record of information regarding at least one of a device event and a device state, and wherein each data object has a timestamp;

storing a plurality of panels each defining a respective association with a set of the received data objects, the plurality of panels including at least one of (i) a time-based panel defining an association with received data objects based on timestamps of the received data objects and (ii) a subject-matter panel defining an association with the received data objects based on subject matter of the received data objects in accordance with a subject-matter filter of the subject-matter panel;

causing a display of a device to display a graphical user interface having at least;

(a) a general data-feed component for presenting indicia of the received data objects, wherein the indicia of the received data objects presented in the general data-feed component are selectable to cause the display to present respectively indicated data objects,

(b) a panel-presentation component for presenting indicia of previously created panels, wherein the presented indicia of the previously created panels include, for each of the previously created panels, presentation of an indicium of a set of received data objects associated with the previously created panel, and

(c) a panel-definition component for receiving commands to create new panels and to further define the previously created panels, for presenting indicia of items selectable to be used as a basis to define a subject-matter filter respectively for any panel, and for receiving selection of one or more of the presented indicia, wherein the items comprise (i) one or more of the received data objects and (ii) one or more semantic objects extracted from the received data objects, and wherein a command to create a new panel is by default a command to create the new panel as a time-based panel unless and until a particular subject-matter filter is defined for the new panel;

receiving data corresponding to input defining one of the commands to create a new panel received through the panel-definition component, and responsively causing the display to present the new panel as a time-based panel to be populated with indicia of any data objects received by the computing system while the new panel is being displayed;

receiving data corresponding to input representing the selection of one or more of the presented indicia of the items to be used as the basis to define the subject-matter filter for a first panel, and responsively defining the subject-matter filter for the first panel based on one or more attributes of one or more items whose presented indicia were selected; and

determining that one or more of the received data objects defines a record that a user device presented particular information at user request, and responsively identifying an attribute of the particular information and automatically creating and storing a second panel having a subject-matter filter keyed to the identified attribute.

2. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the functions further comprise:

receiving data corresponding to input representing a request to switch between display of a particular panel and display of another panel; and

responsive to the request, causing the display to switch from displaying the particular panel to displaying the other panel.

3. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the record of information defined by each of the received data objects comprises a record of information regarding user-interface operation.

4. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the indicia of the previously created panels presented by the panel-management component are selectable to cause the display to present expanded indicia of corresponding sets of data objects associated with the indicated panels.

5. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the computing system is implemented by the device whose display is caused to display the graphical user interface.

6. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 5, wherein the plurality of sources comprise sources selected from the group consisting of (i) logic modules of the device and (ii) other devices in communication with the device.

7. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the computing system is implemented as a cloud-based computing system, wherein the plurality of sources comprise devices in network communication with the cloud-based computing system.

8. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 7, wherein the device whose display is caused to display the graphical user interface is also in network communication with the cloud-based computing system.

9. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the functions further comprise:

automatically causing the display to display the automatically created second panel.

10. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein the one or more received data objects defining the record that the user device presented the particular information at user request comprise one or more data objects defining a record that the user device presented a new window at user request, the window containing the particular information.

11. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 1, wherein the functions further comprise:

causing the display to present the indicia of the items selectable to be used as the basis to define a new subject-matter filter for the new panel.

12. The non-transitory computer readable medium of claim 11, wherein the functions further comprise:

extracting the one or more semantic objects from the received data objects; and

generating the indicia of the items selectable to be used as the basis to define the new subject-matter filter for the new panel.

13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 12, wherein a given one of the received data objects represents a message, and wherein extracting the semantic objects comprises:

for the given data object, extracting as at least one of the semantic objects an identity of a sender or recipient of the message.

14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 11, wherein defining the new subject-matter filter for the new panel based on the one or more attributes of the one or more items whose presented indicia were selected comprises:

identifying the one or more attributes of the one or more items whose presented indicia were selected; and

defining the new subject-matter filter of the new panel to limit to any of the received data objects that have the one or more identified attributes.

15. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 14, wherein the functions further comprise:

after defining the subject-matter filter for the new panel, causing the display to display the new panel as a subject-matter panel including an indicium of a set of data objects matching the new subject-matter filter defined for the new panel.

16. A method for panel-based management of data comprising:

receiving into a computing system, from a plurality of devices, data objects each representing one or more of device event information and device state information;

the computing system extracting semantic objects from the received data objects;

the computing system causing a display of a device to display indicia of (i) a plurality of the received data objects and (ii) a plurality of the semantic objects extracted from the received data objects;

the computing system receiving data corresponding to input representing a selection of one or more of the displayed indicia, and the computing system responsively using the selection as a basis to define a first subject-matter filter for a first panel, wherein the selection comprises selecting of the one or more of the displayed indicia of the plurality of received data objects, and wherein using the selection as the basis to define the first subject-matter filter comprises adopting as one or more attributes of the first subject-matter filter one or more attributes of one or more data objects whose indicia were selected;

the computing system causing the display to present the first panel;

the computing system (i) receiving additional data objects, (ii) determining that the received additional data objects match the first subject-matter filter of the first panel, and (iii) responsive to the determining, causing the display to present indicia of the received additional data objects in association with the presented first panel;

the computing system determining that one or more of the received data objects defines a record that a user device presented particular information at user request, and the computing system responsively identifying an attribute of the particular information and automatically creating and storing a second panel having a second subject-matter filter keyed to the identified attribute;

the computing system causing the display to present the second panel;

the computing system receiving data corresponding to input defining a command to create a new panel, wherein, unless and until a particular subject-matter filter is defined for the new panel, the command to create the new panel is by default a command to create the new panel as a time-based panel that defines an association with the received data objects based on timestamps of the received data objects; and

responsive to receiving the data corresponding to the input defining the command to create the new panel, the computing system causing the display to present the new panel as a new time-based panel to be populated with indicia of any data objects received by the computing system while the new panel is being displayed.

17. The method of claim 16, further comprising:

the computing system storing the first panel in association with the received additional data objects;

the computing system causing the display to discontinue presentation of the first panel; and

the computing system subsequently receiving data representing input defining a request to re-present the first panel, and the computing system responsively causing the first panel to be re-presented.

18. A non-transitory computer-readable medium having stored thereon instructions executable by a computing system to carry out functions for panel-based management of data comprising:

receiving from a plurality of devices data objects each representing one or more of device event information and device state information;

extracting semantic objects from the received data objects;

causing a display of a device to present indicia of (i) a plurality of the received data objects and (ii) a plurality of the semantic objects extracted from the received data objects;

receiving data corresponding to input representing a selection of one or more of the presented indicia, and using the selection as a basis to define a first subject-matter filter for a first panel, wherein the selection comprises selecting of the one or more of the presented indicia of the plurality of received data objects, and wherein using the selection as the basis to define the first subject-matter filter comprises adopting as one or more attributes of the first subject-matter filter one or more attributes of one or more data objects whose indicia were selected;

causing the display to present the first panel;

receiving one or more additional data objects, determining that the one or more received additional data objects match the first subject-matter of the first panel, and responsive to the determining, (i) associating the first panel with the one or more received additional data objects and (ii) causing the display to present indicia of the one or more received additional data objects in association with the presented first panel;

storing the first panel in association with the received additional data objects;

determining that one or more of the received data objects defines a record that a user device presented particular information at user request, and responsively identifying an attribute of the particular information and automatically creating and storing a second panel having a second subject-matter filter keyed to the identified attribute;

causing the display to present the second panel;

receiving data corresponding to input representing a request to create a new panel, wherein, unless and until a particular subject-matter filter is defined for the new panel, the request to create the new panel is by default a request to create the new panel as a new time-based panel that defines an association with the received data objects based on timestamps of the received data objects;

in response to receiving the data corresponding to the input representing the request to create the new panel, creating and causing the display to present the new time-based panel;

while the display is presenting the new time-based panel, receiving one or more further data objects and automatically causing the display to present the one or more received further data objects in association with the presented new time-based panel; and

storing the new time-based panel in association with the one or more received further data objects.