Graphical user interface for displaying objects

• US 8,612,875 B2
• Filed: 05/24/2010
• Issued: 12/17/2013
• Est. Priority Date: 11/06/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: SAP SE
• Original Assignee: SAP AG (SAP SE)
• Inventors: Bombolowsky, Jens, Finke, Sabine
• Primary Examiner(s): LEE, TING ZHOU
• Application Number:
  US12/786,292
• Publication Number:
  US 20100235790A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,303 Days
• Field of Search: 715/766, 715/767, 715/782, 715/764, 715/781
• US Class Current: 715/766
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0481 based on specific properties of the displayed interaction object or a metaphor-based environment, e.g. interaction with desktop elements like windows or icons, or assisted by a cursor's changing behaviour or appearance

Abstract

First user-generated input is received that selects a first element in a graphical user interface identifying a work area. In response, a plurality of second elements characterizing categories of objects associated with the work area are displayed in the graphical user interface. Thereafter, second user-generated input is received that selects a second element in the graphical user interface element. Once the second element is selected, a visual representation of a plurality of primary objects associated with the category corresponding to the second element is displayed. The plurality of displayed primary objects are displayed in a first person perspective projection format with the objects being displayed in order at depths in the first person perspective projection according to values of an attribute associated with the second element. Related apparatus, systems, techniques and articles are also described.

Claims

1. An article comprising a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium embodying instructions that when performed by one or more machines result in operations comprising:

receiving first user-generated input selecting one of a plurality of first elements in a graphical user interface, each first element identifying a different work area;

displaying, in response to the first user-generated input, a plurality of second elements characterizing categories of primary objects associated with the work area corresponding to the selected first element in the graphical user interface;

receiving second user-generated input selecting one of the second elements in the graphical user interface; and

displaying, in response to the second user-generated input, a visual representation of a plurality of primary objects associated with the category corresponding to the selected second element, the plurality of displayed primary objects being displayed in a first person perspective projection format with the objects being displayed in order at depths along a depth dimension in the first person perspective projection format according to values of a first attribute associated with the second element;

wherein distances between the primary objects in the depth dimension have varying intervals that characterize a relative difference in the first attribute values along the depth dimension;

wherein the displayed primary objects are further ordered along a horizontal dimension according to values of a second attribute such that distances between the primary objects in the horizontal dimension have varying intervals that characterize a relative difference in the second attribute values along the horizontal dimension.

2. An article as in claim 1, wherein the tangible machine-readable storage medium further embodies instructions that when performed by one or more machines result in operations comprise:

displaying a first graphical user interface element associated with the depth dimension, wherein a single selection of the first graphical user interface element causes the primary objects to be arranged along the depth dimension in a reverse order as previously displayed.

3. An article as in claim 2, wherein the tangible machine-readable storage medium further embodies instructions that when performed by one or more machines result in operations comprise:

displaying a second graphical user interface element associated with the horizontal dimension, wherein a single selection of the second graphical user interface element causes the primary objects to be arranged along the horizontal dimension in a reverse order as previously displayed.

4. An article as in claim 1, wherein the tangible machine-readable storage medium further embodies instructions that when performed by one or more machines result in operations comprise:

displaying, concurrently with the primary objects, a visual representation of a plurality of secondary objects associated with a category other than the category corresponding to the second element.

5. An article as in claim 4, wherein the plurality of secondary objects are displayed in the first person perspective projection format.

6. An article as in claim 5, wherein the first person perspective projection format of the plurality of secondary objects is offset from the first person projection format of the plurality of primary objects.

7. An article as in claim 1, wherein the tangible machine-readable storage medium further embodies instructions that when performed by one or more machines result in operations comprise:

receiving user-generated input selecting one of the objects; and

increasing a display size of the selected object.

8. An article as in claim 1, wherein each displayed object comprises a graphical preview of content encapsulated within such object.

9. An article as in claim 1, wherein the plurality of primary objects are documents.

10. An article as in claim 1, wherein the plurality of primary objects are web pages.

11. An article as in claim 1, wherein the plurality of primary objects characterize data encapsulated within a business object.

12. An article as in claim 1, wherein the tangible machine-readable storage medium further embodies instructions that when performed by one or more machines result in operations comprise:

receiving user-generated input selecting one of the primary objects; and

displaying the plurality of primary objects so that a perspective termination point corresponds with the selected object so that the depth dimension extends in one direction for primary objects having first attribute values prior to the selected primary object, and the depth dimension extends in an opposite direction for primary objects having first attribute values after the selected object.

13. An article as in claim 1, wherein the tangible machine-readable storage medium further embodies instructions that when performed by one or more machines result in operations comprise:

displaying, adjacent to the plurality of primary objects, a graphical user interface element that allows a user to define a range of first attribute values.

14. An article as in claim 1, wherein the tangible machine-readable storage medium further embodies instructions that when performed by one or more machines result in operations comprise:

displaying, adjacent to the plurality of primary objects, counter elements that characterize a number of primary objects having the same attribute value.

15. An article as in claim 1, wherein the tangible machine-readable storage medium further embodies instructions that when performed by one or more machines result in operations comprise:

visually modifying a rendering of a counter element when a corresponding primary object is selected.

16. A method for implementation by one or more data processors comprising:

receiving, by at least one data processor, first user-generated input selecting one of a plurality of first elements in a graphical user interface, each first element identifying a different work area;

displaying, by at least one data processor in response to the first user-generated input, a plurality of second elements characterizing categories of primary objects associated with the work area corresponding to the selected first element in the graphical user interface;

receiving, by at least one data processor, second user-generated input selecting one of the second elements in the graphical user interface; and

displaying, by at least one data processor, in response to the second user-generated input, an object work list in a first person perspective projection format with renderings of objects in the object work list being relatively positioned at varying intervals along a depth dimension according to relative values of a first attribute and the renderings of the objects in the object work list being relatively positioned along a horizontal dimension at varying intervals according to relative values of a second attribute, a size of each object rendering being based on a relative value of the corresponding first attribute.

17. A method as in claim 16, further comprising:

displaying, by at least one data processor, a first graphical user interface element associated with the depth dimension, wherein a single selection of the first graphical user interface element causes the objects to be arranged along the depth dimension in a reverse order as previously displayed.

18. A method as in claim 17, further comprising:

displaying, by at least one data processor, a second graphical user interface element associated with the horizontal dimension, wherein a single selection of the second graphical user interface element causes the objects to be arranged along the horizontal dimension in a reverse order as previously displayed.

19. An article comprising a tangible machine-readable storage medium embodying instructions that when performed by one or more machines result in operations comprising:

displaying, in a graphical user interface, (i) a plurality of primary objects in a first person perspective projection format with renderings of the primary objects being ordered along a depth dimension according to relative values of a first attribute, and (ii) a counters element portion adjacent to each depth at which a primary object is displayed that identifies how many primary objects have a same value for the first attribute;

receiving user-generated input selecting one of the primary objects, the selected primary object having a first attribute with a first value, at least one of the primary objects having attribute values less than the first value and at least one of the primary objects having attribute values greater than the first value; and

displaying, in the first perspective projection format, the primary objects excluding the selected object that have attribute values either one of (i) greater or (ii) lesser than the first attribute value, enlarging a size of the selected object so that the enlarged object replaces the selected object, and displaying, the remaining primary objects excluding the selected object, in a first person perspective diminishing projection format.

20. An article comprising a non-transitory machine-readable storage medium embodying instructions that when performed by one or more machines result in operations comprising:

receiving first user-generated input selecting a first element in a graphical user interface identifying a work area;

displaying, in response to the first user-generated input, a plurality of second elements characterizing categories of primary objects associated with the work area in the graphical user interface;

receiving second user-generated input selecting a second element in the graphical user interface; and

displaying a visual representation of a plurality of primary objects associated with the category corresponding to the second element, each primary object having a first attribute value and a second attribute value, each of the plurality of displayed primary objects being displayed in a first person perspective projection format with the objects being displayed in order at depths in the first person perspective projection according to values of their corresponding first attribute value,

wherein displayed primary objects having the same first attribute value are displayed at the same depth and wherein there at least two displayed primary objects having the same first attribute value,

wherein distances between the primary objects in the depth dimension have varying intervals that characterize a relative difference in the first attribute values along the depth dimension,

wherein each of the displayed primary objects having the same first attribute value are further ordered along a horizontal dimension according to values of their corresponding second attribute value such that distances between the primary objects in the horizontal dimension have varying intervals that characterize a relative difference in the second attribute values along the horizontal dimension.