Application software generation device, computer program product and application software generation system

• US 8,533,583 B2
• Filed: 01/22/2010
• Issued: 09/10/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 01/30/2009
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Casio Computer Company Limited
• Original Assignee: Casio Computer Company Limited
• Inventors: Katsumura, Noriyoshi, Miyahara, Kouji, Nishitani, Koji, Takamura, Hideki
• Primary Examiner(s): Hong, Stephen S.
• Assistant Examiner(s): Vaughn, Gregory J
• Application Number:
  US12/691,983
• Publication Number:
  US 20100199163A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,327 Days
• Field of Search: 715/200, 715/212, 715/213, 715/218, 715/220
• US Class Current: 715/220
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 8/38 for implementing user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/087 Inventory or stock management, e.g. order filling, procurement or balancing against orders

Abstract

Disclosed is an application software generation device to generate an application software for a data collection device having a reading unit to read discrimination information to carry out collection of data based on the discrimination information including a table data generation unit to generate table data for defining arbitrary items, an application software generation unit to generate an application software which is executed by the data collection device in order to collect the data based on the item which is defined in the table data and a transfer unit to transfer the generated application software to the data collection device.

Claims

1. An application software generation device which generates definition data for defining data to be collected by a data collection device by operating with a program constituting an application software, and which generates the application software for the data collection device having a reading unit to read discrimination information to carry out a data collection operation based on the discrimination information, the application software generation device comprising:

a CPU, wherein the CPU operates as;

a table data generation unit to generate table data which includes a sheet in which a sheet name and an item corresponding to the data collection operation are set according to an input operation of a user;

an application software generation unit to;

(i) generate an operation application definition as the definition data of an operation application which is a program for obtaining the data based on the discrimination information, and (ii) generate an operation menu definition as the definition data of an operation menu which is a program for displaying, in a display device of the data collection device, a menu screen for selecting the operation application definition defining the operation application from among a plurality of operation application definitions; and

a transfer unit to transfer the generated operation application definition and the generated operation menu definition to the data collection device,

wherein the application software generation unit generates the operation application definition for defining the operation application and the operation menu definition for defining the operation menu based on the table data which is generated according to the input operation of the user,

wherein the application software comprises;

a function to make the display device of the data collection device display a screen to carry out an input of data by the data collection device with respect to the plurality of items which are defined in the table data,

a function to allow input to an item which is focused on in the screen, and

a function to move the focus based on a predetermined rule, and

wherein, when the item which corresponds to the data to be collected based on the discrimination information from among the plurality of items defined in the table data is not a first item to be input, the application software generation unit generates a rule to move the focus to the item when the focus is moved by the function to move the focus after the input to the item to be input before the item is finished.

2. The application software generation device according to claim 1, wherein the CPU further operates as an assigning unit to assign the item which corresponds to the data to be collected based on the discrimination information.

3. The application software generation device according to claim 2, wherein the assigning unit makes the item, which corresponds to the data to be collected based on the discrimination information, from among a plurality of items defined in the table data, to be visually discriminated from other items.

4. The application software generation device according to claim 1, wherein the CPU further operates as:

an empty data generation unit to generate an empty table data having items corresponding to a plurality of items which are defined in the table data;

a take-in unit to take in data collected by the data collection device in which the application software is executed; and

a storage unit to store the data which is taken in by the take-in unit in the empty table data.

5. The application software generation device according to claim 1, wherein the table data generation unit generates a plurality of table data, and the application software generation unit generates a plurality of application software corresponding to the plurality of table data, respectively.

6. The application software generation device according to claim 5, wherein the application software generation unit generates the plurality of application software which respectively correspond to each of the plurality of table data and also generates the operation menu to select and use any one of the generated plurality of application software, and the transfer unit transfers the plurality of application software and the operation menu to the data collection device.

7. The application software generation device according to claim 1, wherein the application software generation unit:

(i) generates the operation application definition for making the data to be collected by the data collection device and data of the item set in the sheet of the table data correspond to each other based on the table data generated by the table data generation unit for the sheet individually, and (ii) generates the operation menu definition for making a selection item to be displayed in the display device of the data collection device in which the operation menu is executed, wherein the operation application definition generated based on the sheet in the table data correspond to each other based on a number of the sheet and the sheet name of the sheet included in the table data.

8. A non-transitory computer readable recording medium having stored thereon a computer program which is operable to control a computer to generate definition data for defining data to be collected by a data collection device by operating with a program constituting an application software, and generate the application software for the data collection device having a reading unit to read discrimination information to carry out a data collection operation based on the discrimination information, wherein the computer program is executable by the computer to perform functions comprising:

generating table data which includes a sheet in which a sheet name and an item that corresponds to the data collection operation are set according to an input operation of a user;

generating an operation application definition as the definition data of an operation application which is a program for obtaining the data based on the discrimination information, and generating an operation menu definition as the definition data of an operation menu which is a program for displaying in a display device of the data collection device, a menu screen for selecting the operation application definition defining the operation application from among a plurality of operation application definitions; and

transferring the generated operation application definition and the generated operation menu definition to the data collection device,

wherein the operation application definition for defining the operation application and the operation menu definition for defining the operation menu are generated based on the table data which is generated according to the input operation of the user,

wherein the application software comprises;

a function to make the display device of the data collection device display a screen to carry out an input of data by the data collection device with respect to the plurality of items which are defined in the table data,

a function to allow input to an item which is focused on in the screen, and

a function to move the focus based on a predetermined rule, and

wherein, when the item which corresponds to the data to be collected based on the discrimination information from among the plurality of items defined in the table data is not a first item to be input, a is generated rule to move the focus to the item when the focus is moved by the function to move the focus after the input to the item to be input before the item is finished.

9. An application software generation system, comprising:

a data collection device having a reading unit to read discrimination information, and

an application software generation device which generates definition data for defining data to be collected by the data collection device by operating with a program constituting an application software, and which generates the application software for the data collection device to carry out a data collection operation based on the discrimination information, wherein the application software generation device comprises a CPU which is operable as;

a table data generation unit to generate table data which includes a sheet in which a sheet name and an item corresponding to the data collection operation are set according to an input operation of a user;

an application software generation unit to;

(i) generate an operation application definition as the definition data of an operation application which is a program for obtaining the data based on the discrimination information, and (ii) generate an operation menu definition as the definition data of an operation menu which is a program for displaying in a display device of the data collection device, a menu screen for selecting the operation application definition defining the operation application from among a plurality of operation application definitions; and

a transfer unit to transfer the generated operation application definition and the generated operation menu definition to the data collection device,

wherein the application software generation unit generates the operation application definition for defining the operation application and the operation menu definition for defining the operation menu based on the table data which is generated according to the input operation of the user,

wherein the application software comprises;

a function to make the display device of the data collection device display a screen to carry out an input of data by the data collection device with respect to the plurality of items which are defined in the table data,

a function to allow input to an item which is focused on in the screen, and

a function to move the focus based on a predetermined rule, and

wherein, when the item which corresponds to the data to be collected based on the discrimination information from among the plurality of items defined in the table data is not a first item to be input, the application software generation unit generates a rule to move the focus to the item when the focus is moved by the function to move the focus after the input to the item to be input before the item is finished.