Multidimensional structured data visualization method and apparatus, text visualization method and apparatus, method and apparatus for visualizing and graphically navigating the world wide web, method and apparatus for visualizing hierarchies

• US 7,373,612 B2
• Filed: 10/20/2003
• Issued: 05/13/2008
• Est. Priority Date: 10/21/2002
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Battelle Memorial Institute
• Original Assignee: Battelle Memorial Institute
• Inventors: Hatley, Wes L., Risch, John S., Dowson, Scott T., Hart, Michelle L.
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen; Cao (Kevin)
• Application Number:
  US10/690,307
• Publication Number:
  US 20040090472A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,667 Days
• Field of Search: 715/523, 715/713, 715/848, 715/754, 715/853, 715/851, 715/850
• US Class Current: 715/850
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/34 Browsing; Visualisation therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/9038 Presentation of query results
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/954 Navigation, e.g. using categorised browsing

Abstract

A method of displaying correlations among information objects comprises receiving a query against a database; obtaining a query result set; and generating a visualization representing the components of the result set, the visualization including one of a plane and line to represent a data field, nodes representing data values, and links showing correlations among fields and values. Other visualization methods and apparatus are disclosed.

Claims

1. A method of displaying correlations among information objects, the method comprising:

receiving an information collection including a plurality of information objects;

generating a first visualization illustrating relationships between the information objects and displaying first visual information representing all the information objects of the collection, the first visualization being selected from a plurality of different available visualization types, wherein at least two of the visualization types can selectively be used simultaneously; and

selectively displaying second visual information representing each of a subset of the information objects in response to a query, the second visual information being different than the first visual information.

2. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 1 and further comprising selectively switching between visualization types so as to selectively display relationships within one information collection in multiple possible ways.

3. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 1 wherein at least three different visualization types are available.

4. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 1 wherein at least four different visualization types are available.

5. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 1 wherein at least five different visualization types are available.

6. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 1 wherein the selectively displaying comprises selectively displaying the second visual information instead of displaying the first visual information.

7. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 1 wherein the selectively displaying comprises selectively displaying the second visual information in addition to displaying the first visual information.

8. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 1 wherein the relationships comprise first relationships and the second visual information illustrates a plurality of second relationships between the information objects of the subset, the second relationships being different than the first relationships.

9. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 1 wherein the subset of the information objects satisfy the query and the only information objects of the plurality represented by the second visual information are information objects of the plurality that belong to the subset.

10. A method of displaying correlations among information objects, the method comprising:

receiving an information collection including information objects; and

generating a visualization representing relationships between the objects, the visualization being selected from at least six available visualization types including a type useful for demonstrating field/value pair co-occurrences, a type useful for demonstrating free-text similarity, a type useful for demonstrating temporal relationships, a type useful for demonstrating parent-child relationships, a type useful for demonstrating network relationships, and a type useful for demonstrating geospatial relationships.

11. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 10 and further comprising selectively switching between visualization types so as to selectively display relationships within one information collection in multiple possible ways.

12. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 10 and further comprising generating the visualization from information objects residing in separate databases.

13. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 10 and further comprising generating the visualization from information objects of different types residing in separate databases.

14. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 10 wherein two of the visualization types can be selectively displayed simulataneously.

15. A method of displaying correlations among information objects, the method comprising:

receiving a query against a database;

obtaining a query result set comprising information objects, the information objects individually comprising a data field and a data value associated with the data field; and

generating a visualization, selected from a plurality of available visualization types, representing the information objects of the result set, the visualization including glyphs representing the information objects, one of a plane and line to represent the data field, nodes representing the data values, and links showing correlations among the data field, the information objects, and the nodes.

16. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 15 and further comprising displaying labels, showing field names and data values.

17. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 15 and further comprising using a plane for fields that are unordered, for the one of a plane and a line.

18. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 15 and further comprising using a line for fields that are ordered, for the one of a plane and a line.

19. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 15 wherein generating a visualization comprises displaying a lowermost plane that contains the glyphs and displaying the one of a plane and a line above the lowermost plane.

20. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 15 and further comprising generating the visualization from information objects residing in separate databases.

21. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 15 and further comprising generating the visualization from information objects of different types residing in separate databases.

22. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 15 wherein a field value may be inspected by brushing over a node with a cursor.

23. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 15 wherein the visualization is contained in a dialog box and wherein a field value may be inspected by opening a separate dialog box, the separate dialog box being configured to show all of the field values in the result set for a plane.

24. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 15 wherein the visualization is contained in a dialog box and wherein a field value may be inspected by opening a separate dialog box, the separate dialog box being configured to show all of the field values in the result set for a plane.

25. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 15 wherein, in response to a node being selected, at least one line is displayed that ties together all field and value pairs that are semantically associated with a pair represented by the selected node in combination with an associated at least one of a plane and a line.

26. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 15 wherein the data value comprised by one of the information objects is different than the data value comprised by another one of the information objects.

27. A method of displaying correlations among information objects in accordance with claim 26 wherein individual ones of the links connect a glyph representing an individual one of the information objects, the plane or line representing the data field, and the node associated with the data value comprised by the individual information object.

28. A computer readable medium embodying computer program code which, when loaded in a computer, causes the computer, in operation, to:

receive a query against a database

obtain a query result set comprising information objects, the information objects individually comprising a data field and a data value associated with the data field; and

generate a visualization, selected from a plurality of available visualization types, representing the information objects of the result set, the visualization including one of a plane and line to represent the data field, nodes representing the data values, and links showing correlations among the data field, the information objects, and the nodes.

29. A computer readable medium in accordance with claim 28 wherein the computer program code is further configured to cause the computer to display labels, show field names, and show data values.

30. A computer readable medium in accordance with claim 28 wherein the computer program code is further configured to cause the computer to use a plane for fields that are unordered, to define the one of a plane and a line.

31. A computer readable medium in accordance with claim 28 wherein the computer program code is further configured to cause the computer to use a line for fields that are ordered, to define the one of a plane and a line.

32. A computer readable medium in accordance with claim 28 wherein generating a visualization comprises displaying a lowermost plane that contains representations of information objects returned by the query and displaying at least one of a plane and a line above the lowermost plane that represent field members of the objects.

33. A computer readable medium in accordance with claim 28 wherein the computer program code is further configured to cause the computer to generate the visualization from information objects residing in separate databases.

34. A computer readable medium in accordance with claim 28 wherein the computer program code is further configured to cause the computer to generate the visualization from information objects of different types residing in separate databases.

35. A computer readable medium in accordance with claim 28 wherein a field value may be inspected by brushing over a node with a cursor.

36. A computer readable medium in accordance with claim 28 wherein the visualization is contained in a dialog box and wherein a field value may be inspected by opening a separate dialog box, the separate dialog box being configured to show all of the field values in the result set for a plane.

37. A computer readable medium in accordance with claim 28 wherein the visualization is contained in a dialog box and wherein a field value may be inspected by opening a separate dialog box, the separate dialog box being configured to show all of the field values in the result set for a plane.

38. A computer readable medium in accordance with claim 28 wherein, in response to a node being selected, at least one line is displayed that ties together all field and value pairs that are semantically associated with a pair represented by the selected node in combination with an associated at least one of a plane and a line.