Application programming interfaces for synchronization

• US 9,183,661 B2
• Filed: 09/06/2013
• Issued: 11/10/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 01/07/2007
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Original Assignee: Apple Inc.
• Inventors: Platzer, Andrew, Harper, John
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Phu K
• Application Number:
  US14/019,739
• Publication Number:
  US 20140098106A1
• Time in Patent Office: 795 Days
• Field of Search: 345/473, 345/474, 345/475, 345/522, 715/723, 715/746
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1616 with folding flat displays, e.g. laptop computers or notebooks having a clamshell configuration, with body parts pivoting to an open position around an axis parallel to the plane they define in closed position
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1624 with sliding enclosures, e.g. sliding keyboard or display
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1626 with a single-body enclosure integrating a flat display, e.g. Personal Digital Assistants [PDAs]
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1684 Constructional details or arrangements related to integrated I/O peripherals not covered by groups G06F1/1635 - G06F1/1675
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1694 the I/O peripheral being a single or a set of motion sensors for pointer control or gesture input obtained by sensing movements of the portable computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 1/1698 the I/O peripheral being a sending/receiving arrangement to establish a cordless communication link, e.g. radio or infrared link, integrated cellular phone details of antennas disposed inside a computer H01Q1/2266
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2200/1637 Sensing arrangement for detection of housing movement or orientation, e.g. for controlling scrolling or cursor movement on the display of an handheld computer
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 2203/04806 Zoom, i.e. interaction techniques or interactors for controlling the zooming operation
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0416 Control or interface arrangements specially adapted for digitisers
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0485 Scrolling or panning
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04883 for inputting data by handwriting, e.g. gesture or text
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 9/451 Execution arrangements for user interfaces
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 13/00 Animation
• CPC Class Codes: G06T 13/80 2D [Two Dimensional] animation, e.g. using sprites

Abstract

The application programming interface operates in an environment with user interface software interacting with multiple software applications or processes in order to synchronize animations associated with multiple views or windows of a display of a device. The method for synchronizing the animations includes setting attributes of views independently with each view being associated with a process. The method further includes transferring a synchronization call to synchronize animations for the multiple views of the display. In one embodiment, the synchronization call includes the identification and the number of processes that are requesting animation. The method further includes transferring a synchronization confirmation message when a synchronization flag is enabled. The method further includes updating the attributes of the views from a first state to a second state independently. The method further includes transferring a start animation call to draw the requested animations when both processes have updated attributes.

Claims

1. In an environment with a device having a display with multiple views and user interface software interacts with multiple software applications that alter the multiple views, a method comprising:

setting attributes of the multiple views independently with a first view being associated with a first software application and a second view being associated with a second software application of the multiple software applications; and

transferring a synchronization call to synchronize animations for the multiple views of the display, wherein the synchronization call comprises an identification of the synchronization of the first and second software applications, wherein the first software application is different than the second software application.

2. The method of claim 1, wherein the synchronization call comprises a number of software applications that are requesting animation of the multiple views, wherein the identification comprises an integer value.

3. The method of claim 1, further comprising:

transferring a synchronization confirmation message when a synchronization flag is enabled based on the multiple software applications being synchronized; and

updating the attributes from a first state to a second state independently; and

transferring a start animation call to draw the requested animations.

4. The method as in claim 1, wherein transferring the synchronization call is either one of issuing, initiating, invoking or receiving the synchronization call, wherein the synchronization call comprises a list of first and second software applications.

5. A machine readable non-transitory storage medium storing executable program instructions which when executed cause a data processing system having a display with multiple views to perform a method comprising:

independently setting a set of attributes with a first attribute of a first view being associated with a first software application and a second attribute of a second view being associated with a second software application; and

transferring a synchronization call to synchronize animations for the multiple views of the display, wherein the synchronization call comprises an identification of the synchronization of the first and second software applications, wherein the first software application is different than the second software application.

6. The machine readable non-transitory storage medium of claim 5, wherein the synchronization call comprises a number of software applications that are requesting animation of the multiple views, wherein the identification comprises an integer value.

7. The machine readable non-transitory storage medium of claim 5, the method further comprising:

transferring a synchronization confirmation message when a synchronization flag is enabled based on the multiple software applications being synchronized; and

updating the attributes from a first state to a second state independently; and

transferring a start animation call to draw the requested animations.

8. The machine readable non-transitory storage medium as in claim 5, wherein transferring the synchronization call is either one of issuing, initiating, invoking or receiving the synchronization call, wherein the at least one of the first and second synchronization calls comprises a list of first and second software applications.

9. In an environment with a user interface software interacting with multiple software applications, an apparatus, comprising:

means for setting a set of attributes independently with a first view being associated with a first software application of the multiple software applications and a second view being associated with a second software application of the multiple software applications; and

means for transferring a synchronization call to synchronize animations for the multiple views of the display, wherein the synchronization call comprises an identification of the synchronization of the first and second software applications, wherein the first software application is different than the second software application.

10. In an environment with a device having a display with multiple views and with multiple software applications, a method for operating through an application programming interface (API), comprising:

setting a set of attributes of the multiple views independently with a first attribute of a first view being associated with a first software application and a second attribute of a second view being associated with a second software application of the multiple software applications; and

receiving a synchronization call to synchronize animations for the multiple views of the display, wherein the synchronization call comprises an identification of the synchronization of the first and second software applications, wherein the first software application is different than the second software application.

11. The method of claim 10, wherein the identification comprises an integer value.

12. The method of claim 11, further comprising:

receiving a synchronization confirmation message when a synchronization flag is enabled based on the multiple software applications being synchronized; and

updating the set of attributes associated with each view; and

receiving a start animation call to draw the requested animations.

13. A machine readable non-transitory storage medium storing executable program instructions which when executed cause a data processing system to perform a method comprising:

setting a set of attributes of multiple views independently with a first view being associated with a first software application and a second view being associated with a second software application of multiple software applications;

receiving a synchronization call to synchronize animations for multiple views of a display, wherein the synchronization call comprises a number of the first and second software applications which are requesting animation of the multiple views, wherein the first software application is different than the second software application.

14. The machine readable non-transitory storage medium of claim 13, wherein the synchronization call comprises an identification of the synchronization of the multiple software applications which are associated with the multiple views, wherein the identification comprises an integer value.

15. The machine readable non-transitory medium of claim 14, further comprising:

receiving a synchronization confirmation message when a synchronization flag is enabled based on the multiple software applications being synchronized; and

updating the set of attributes; and

receiving a start animation call to draw the requested animations.

16. A computer readable non-transitory storage medium containing executable instructions, comprising:

program code configured, when executed, to set attributes of first and second views independently with a first view being associated with a first software application and a second view being associated with a second software application of multiple software applications; and

program code configured, when executed, to transfer a synchronization call associated with the first view through an application programming interface to synchronize at least two animations, wherein the synchronization call comprises an identification of the first and second software applications which are associated with the first and second views respectively, wherein the first software application is different than the second software application.

17. The computer readable non-transitory storage medium as in claim 16, wherein transferring the synchronization call is either one of issuing, initiating, invoking or receiving the synchronization call, wherein the identification comprises an integer value.

18. A platform for synchronizing animations, comprising:

a processing unit coupled to an input panel;

a memory coupled to the processor; and

one or more programs, wherein the one or more programs are stored in the memory and configured to be executed by the processing unit, the programs including;

instructions to set attributes of views independently with a first view being associated with a first software application and a second view being associated with a second software application of multiple software applications;

instructions to transfer a synchronization call associated with the first view through an application programming interface to synchronize at least two animations, wherein the synchronization call comprises an identification of at least one of the first and second software applications which are associated with the first view and the second view respectively, wherein the first software application is different than the second software application.

19. The platform as in claim 18, wherein transferring the synchronization call is either one of issuing, initiating, invoking or receiving the synchronization call.

20. A framework for synchronizing animations, comprising:

a library for storing one or more software programs in a memory;

a processing unit to execute instructions; and

a directory for storing resources associated with the one or more software programs, wherein the programs contain instructions that when executed provide an application programming interface to specify a synchronization of at least two animations comprising;

setting a set of attributes of views independently with a first view being associated with a first software program and a second view being associated with a second software program; and

transferring a synchronization call associated with the first view through the application programming interface to synchronize the at least two animations associated with the first and second views of a display, wherein the synchronization call comprises an identification of at least one of the first and second software programs which are associated with the first and second views, wherein the first software application is different than the second software application.