Methods for manipulating web pages

• US 9,348,938 B2
• Filed: 12/06/2006
• Issued: 05/24/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 12/07/2005
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: RPX Corporation
• Original Assignee: ZiiLabs Inc., Ltd. (Creative Technology Ltd.)
• Inventors: Murphy, Nick, Leow, Chon Hock
• Primary Examiner(s): VU, THANH T
• Application Number:
  US11/567,689
• Publication Number:
  US 20070130525A1
• Time in Patent Office: 3,457 Days
• Field of Search: 715/744, 715/745, 715/746, 715/747, 715/864
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9577 Optimising the visualization of content, e.g. distillation of HTML documents
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/143 Markup, e.g. Standard Generalized Markup Language [SGML] or Document Type Definition [DTD]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 40/154 Tree transformation for tree-structured or markup documents, e.g. XSLT, XSL-FO or stylesheets
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 2207/30176 Document
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 3/047 Fisheye or wide-angle transformations
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 3/18 Image warping, e.g. rearranging pixels individually
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 7/0002 Inspection of images, e.g. flaw detection
• CPC Class Codes: H04L 67/02 based on web technology, e.g. hypertext transfer protocol [HTTP]

Abstract

A method of filtering a web page or other computer file is provided. A web page is analyzed and segmented into regions or segments. At least one of the regions is selected for display. Selected regions are manipulated to enhance the visibility of preferred regions of the web page. In one embodiment, the manipulation comprises presenting the image of the page in accordance with a selected mathematical transform.

Claims

1. A method of modifying a presentation of a web page, the method comprising:

receiving a web page;

analyzing an image of the web page to segment and identify a plurality of coherent regions from the image of the web page, wherein analyzing the image of the web page comprises using an image processing technique to segment and identify the plurality of coherent regions from the image of the web page; and

automatically selecting, by a processor, a first coherent region of the plurality of coherent regions to be redrawn for presentation on a display screen and filtering out a second coherent region entirely, wherein automatically selecting the first coherent region includes automatically identifying a user'"'"'s web page usage habits, wherein the processor is configured to learn characteristics and locations of regions typically rejected by the user.

2. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising enhancing at least one of the plurality of regions in redrawing the web page.

3. The method as recited in claim 1 further comprising mapping each of the plurality of coherent regions to corresponding markup language code portions for the web page.

4. The method as recited in claim 3 further comprising presenting a redrawn web page using a browser to render the markup language code for a plurality of identified regions.

5. The method as recited in claim 4 wherein at least one of the plurality of regions is enhanced when redrawn.

6. The method as recited in claim 5 wherein the enhancement comprises presenting a first portion of the data corresponding to the region sequentially in time in relation to a second portion of the data corresponding to the region.

7. The method as recited in claim 6 wherein the presenting comprises scrolling the data associated with the region in a window of the display screen.

8. The method as recited in claim 6 further comprising providing a user controlled parameter for controlling the speed of the scrolling.

9. The method as recited in claim 6 wherein the scrolling direction is horizontal and wherein the window of the display screen wherein the selected region is displayed is horizontal.

10. The method as recited in claim 5 wherein the enhancement is a transformation comprises presenting a central portion of the region in a normal size and proportion and wherein a periphery of the region is compressed.

11. The method as recited in claim 5 wherein the enhancement is a transformation comprising presenting a central section of the region in a magnification corresponding to a spherical obloid shape.

12. The method as recited in claim 5 wherein the enhancement is a transformation comprising continuously scrolling of the information presented in the region.

13. The method as recited in claim 5 wherein the enhancement is a transformation comprising presenting a focus portion of the region in a minimally distorted manner and providing a context area outside of the focus area, said context area generated by applying a non-linear warp to the region.

14. The method as recited in claim 13 wherein the focus portion is at a periphery of the redrawn region.

15. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein analyzing the image of the web page to segment and identify the plurality of coherent regions from the image of the web page is performed without resorting to the web page'"'"'s code.

16. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein analyzing the image of the web page to segment and identify the plurality of coherent regions from the image of the web page comprises segmenting and identifying the plurality of coherent regions by common background color, blocks of text, use of text headings, borders, and/or identifying images.

17. The method as recited in claim 1, wherein the plurality of coherent regions form together the entire image of the web page.

18. A method for processing a web page comprising:

receiving data corresponding to a web page;

rendering the data to generate an image;

applying an image processing technique to automatically segment and identify from the image a plurality of coherent content segments;

mapping the plurality of coherent content segments to a respective plurality of computer code segments associated with the web page; and

redrawing the web page by reformatting a first computer code segment of the plurality of computer code segments and filtering out a second computer code segment entirely, wherein redrawing includes automatically selecting the first computer code segment, wherein automatically selecting the first computer code segment includes automatically identifying, via a processor, a user'"'"'s web page usage habits, wherein the processor is configured to learn characteristics and locations of regions typically rejected by the user.

19. The method as recited in claim 18 wherein at least one of the coherent content segments is repositioned in the redrawn display.

20. The method as recited in claim 18 wherein the reformatting comprises one of magnification, spherization, reduction, and dynamic scrolling.

21. A method of modifying a presentation of a web page, the method comprising:

translating markup language code for a web page to a rendered image representation;

segmenting and identifying automatically from the rendered image representation a plurality of coherent regions by analyzing the image using an image processing technique to automatically segment and identify the plurality of coherent regions from the rendered image representation;

automatically selecting and assigning, by a processor, a first coherent region of the plurality of coherent regions to a window in a redrawn image appearing on a display and filtering out a second coherent region entirely, wherein automatically selecting the first coherent region includes automatically identifying a user'"'"'s web page usage habits, wherein the processor is configured to learn characteristics and locations of regions typically rejected by the user; and

redrawing the web page on the display to generate an image having at least one window.