User interface with visual tracking feature

• US 20060230361A1
• Filed: 04/11/2005
• Published: 10/12/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 04/07/2005
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Microsoft Technology Licensing LLC (Microsoft Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Microsoft Corporation
• Inventors: Boyce, Douglas A., Gioconda, Thomas G., Jennings, Claire Anna, Brawley, Zoe, Jarrard, Brian, McLees, Lorraine R.
• Granted Patent: US 7,506,268 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 715/786
• 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
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning

Abstract

A user interface having a persistent graphical interface element is disclosed. The element may have an appearance of a mechanical structure that traverses one or more displayed tracks. Movement along the tracks may be animated in response to navigation commands. Selectable menu panels may be included in the interface, and may overlay displayed contents of documents being viewed and/or edited to ensure that certain menu options are always available. The menu may be given multiple distinct appearances corresponding to different display sizes.

Claims

1. A computer-readable medium having computer-executable instructions for generating a user interface, said interface comprising:

a document content portion displaying contents of a document, wherein the document includes information specifying a scroll direction interface element indicating one or more directions in which the document may be scrolled;

the scroll direction interface element displayed in a second portion; and

an interface element, the interface element including a guide element, wherein the guide element is optically coordinated with the scroll direction interface element, and wherein scrolling of the document is constrained by the scroll direction interface element.

2. The medium of claim 1, wherein the scroll direction interface element includes a plurality of tracks aligned in a common direction, and the interface element includes a plurality of guide elements each intersecting one of the tracks.

3. The medium of claim 1, wherein the scroll direction interface element includes one or more travel progress indicators.

4. The medium of claim 3, wherein the travel progress indicators include a plurality of diagonal lines.

5. The medium of claim 4, wherein the scroll direction interface element includes a plurality of tracks aligned in a common direction, and the travel progress indicators appear between two of the tracks.

6. The medium of claim 1, wherein in response to a scrolling command, the content portion is moved, and the interface element maintains a stationary position during the movement.

7. The medium of claim 6, wherein the stationary position is at a bottom of a display area used for the interface.

8. The medium of claim 6, wherein the travel progress indicators are moved in accordance with the movement of the content portion.

9. The medium of claim 1, wherein the document is an internet page.

10. The medium of claim 1, wherein the interface element further includes a feedback region, and a menu adjacent to the feedback region.

11. The medium of claim 10, wherein the menu includes a plurality of highlightable panels, and in response to a highlighting of one of the panels, the feedback region displays an indicia corresponding to the highlighted panel.

12. The medium of claim 11, wherein in response to highlighting the feedback region, the feedback region displays a further menu option leading to a predefined home internet page.

13. A method of providing a user interface to a user, comprising the steps of:

retrieving a document to be displayed, the document including a scroll direction interface element;

displaying contents of the document on a screen;

displaying the scroll direction interface element on the screen;

displaying an interface element on the screen, the interface element including a guide portion intersecting the scroll direction interface element;

scrolling the contents in response to a navigation command; and

maintaining an intersection between the guide portion and the scroll direction interface element during the scrolling.

14. The method of claim 13, wherein the interface element is a persistent element, whereby the element obscures a portion of the document'"'"'s contents.

15. The method of claim 13, wherein the scroll direction interface element is displayed as one or more tracks extending in a common direction.

16. The method of claim 14, where the common direction is vertical with respect to the screen.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising the steps of:

receiving a request to view contents of a second document, the second document including a second scroll direction interface element;

displaying the second document on the screen, wherein the second scroll direction interface element extends in a different direction from the first scroll direction interface element; and

scrolling the second document on the screen, wherein the scrolling of the second document is constrained by the second scroll direction interface element.

18. A method, comprising the steps of:

displaying a persistent user interface element on a predetermined portion of a display area on a computer screen, the persistent user interface element including a guide element;

retrieving a document to be displayed, the document including a scroll direction interface element, the scroll direction interface element including at least one travel progress indicator;

displaying the scroll direction interface element on the screen such that the guide element and the scroll direction interface element are optically coordinated;

displaying contents of said document on the screen above the interface element; and

scrolling the displayed contents, wherein the scrolling is constrained by the scroll direction interface element and the guide element such that the guide element traverses the scroll direction interface element, and during the scrolling, the interface element maintains a fixed position on the screen.

19. The method of claim 18, further comprising the step of reusing the interface element when a second document having a different scroll direction interface element is displayed.

20. The method of claim 18, further comprising the step of displaying a menu adjacent to the user interface element, the menu having a plurality of menu panels in a first state, and in response to user request, replacing the menu panels with corresponding menu panels in a second state, the first and second states differing in size.