Cross window animation

• US 9,135,022 B2
• Filed: 11/14/2011
• Issued: 09/15/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 11/14/2011
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Inventors: Allyn, Barry Christopher, Adams, Tyler Robert
• Primary Examiner(s): HAJNIK, DANIEL F
• Application Number:
  US13/295,376
• Publication Number:
  US 20130120444A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,401 Days
• Field of Search: 345/473
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 13/00 Animation

Abstract

Animations may cross different windows. These cross window animations may include interwindow animations and/or window transition animations. Interwindow animations are used to animate elements across windows. Window transitions are used to animate moving/resizing/showing/hiding windows simultaneously. To perform these animations, an overlay window covers the animation area that includes at least a portion of two different windows. Layers may be used to represent images or visual elements that can be moved as part of an animation. These layers may be placed in the animation overlay window to move visual elements across the underlying windows. Supported underlying windows are directed to draw content directly to the overlay window during the animation. A picture of the underlying window is drawn to the animation overlay window when the underlying window is not-supported such that the underlying window is included within the animation. When the animation is complete, the animation overlay window is removed.

Claims

1. A method for cross window animation, comprising:

determining an animation area that covers a portion of different windows;

creating an overlay window that is sized to cover the animation area;

displaying the overlay window over the portion of the different windows;

performing an animation using the overlay window, further comprising;

moving a layer from a first different window into the overlay window;

moving the layer within the overlay window such that the layer appears to cross from the first different window to a second different window; and

moving the layer from the overlay window into the second different window; and

removing the overlay window when the animation is complete.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the animation is at least one of:

an interwindow animation that animates a visual element over the different windows and a windows transition animation that comprises at least one of;

changing a size of at least one of the different windows and moving at least one of the different windows.

3. The method of claim 2, further comprising receiving hints that specify information about the different windows that are affected in the windows transition animation, the hints comprising an initial window location, an initial window size, a final window location, a final window size, an initial window visibility, a final window visibility and a clipping region in the overlay window.

4. The method of claim 3, wherein the hints further comprise at least one of:

a hint that specifies that the windows content'"'"'s are a solid color, a hint that specifies that a window'"'"'s contents will not change between initial and final states, a hint that specifies that a window is a control, a hint that the window will not be seen, and a resize hint that adds extra area to the overlay region.

5. The method of claim 2, further comprising adding a layer to the overlay window to move an element in the interwindow animation.

6. The method of claim 1, further comprising changing a parent of layers of the different windows to the overlay window.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising changing the parent of layers back from the overlay window to the different windows after the animation is complete.

8. The method of claim 1, further comprising registering the different windows that are affected by the animation such that content from the registered windows is rendered to the overlay window during the animation.

9. The method of claim 1, further comprising blocking a user interface thread until at least one of:

determining the animation is complete and determining when the animation exceeds a predetermined time period.

10. A system for cross window animation, comprising:

a display;

a network connection that is coupled to tenants of a multi-tenant service;

a processor and a computer-readable medium;

an operating environment stored on the computer-readable medium and executing on the processor; and

a process operating under the control of the operating environment and operative to perform actions, comprising;

determining an animation area that covers a portion of different windows;

creating an overlay window that is sized to cover the animation area;

displaying the overlay window over the portion of the different windows; and

performing an animation using the overlay window, wherein the animation is at least one of;

an interwindow animation that animates a visual element over the different windows and a windows transition animation that comprises at least one of;

changing a size of at least one of the different windows and moving at least one of the different windows, the animation further comprising;

moving a layer from a first different window into the overlay window;

displaying the layer within the overlay window such that the layer appears to cross from the first different window to a second different window; and

moving the layer from the overlay window into the second different window.

11. The system of claim 10, further comprising

removing the overlay window when the animation is complete.

12. The system of claim 10, further comprising changing a parent of layers of the different windows to the overlay window before performing the animation and changing the parent of layers back from the overlay window to the different windows after the animation is complete.

13. The system of claim 10, further comprising blocking a user interface thread until at least one of:

determining the animation is complete and determining when the animation exceeds a predetermined time period.

14. A computing device operable for cross window animation, comprising:

a processor; and

a memory storage including instructions, which when executed by the processor are operable to provide;

determining an animation area that covers a portion of a first window and a portion of a second window;

creating an overlay window that is sized to cover the animation area, wherein the overlay window includes an opaque background displayed above the animation area;

displaying the overlay window over the portions of the first and second windows;

performing an animation using the overlay window, further comprising;

directing the first and second windows to draw content directly to the overlay window, thereby including the portion of the first window and the portion of the second window within the animation;

moving a visual element within the first window from the first window into the overlay window;

displaying the visual element within the overlay window such that the visual element appears to cross from the first window to the second window; and

moving the visual element from the overlay window into the second window.

15. The computing device of claim 14, wherein the instructions are further operable to provide removing the overlay window when performing the animation is complete.

16. The computing device of claim 14, wherein the instructions are further operable to provide:

changing a parent of the visual element from the first window to the overlay window before performing the animation; and

changing the parent of the visual element from the overlay window to the second window after the animation is complete.

17. The computing device of claim 14, wherein the instructions are further operable to provide:

registering, before performing the animation, a window that is affected by the animation; and

rendering content to the overlay window during the animation, such that content from the registered window is rendered and content from a window that is not registered is not rendered.

18. The computing device of claim 14, wherein the animation is at least one of:

an interwindow animation that animates the visual element over the first and second windows and a windows transition animation that comprises at least one of;

changing a size of at least one of the first and second windows and moving at least one of the first and second windows.

19. The computing device of claim 14, wherein the instructions are further operable to provide:

blocking a user interface thread until at least one of;

determining the animation is complete and determining when the animation exceeds a predetermined time period.

20. The computing device of claim 14, wherein the instructions are further operable to provide:

adding a layer to the overlay window to move the visual element.