Context-sensitive views

• US 9,557,882 B2
• Filed: 04/01/2014
• Issued: 01/31/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 08/09/2013
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Palantir Technologies Incorporated
• Original Assignee: Palantir Technologies Incorporated
• Inventors: Goldenberg, Joshua, Ngo, Brian, Dwyer, Bill, Menon, Parvathy, Martin, Gregory, Bush, Zach, Chang, Allen, Boland, Mike
• Primary Examiner(s): Angkool, David Phantana
• Application Number:
  US14/242,559
• Publication Number:
  US 20150046870A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,036 Days
• Field of Search: 715/781
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/00 Information retrieval; Database structures therefor; File system structures therefor
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 16/904 Browsing; Visualisation therefor for navigating the web G06F16/954; browsing optimisation for the web G06F16/957
• 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 3/04812 Interaction techniques based on cursor appearance or behaviour, e.g. being affected by the presence of displayed objects
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/0482 Interaction with lists of selectable items, e.g. menus
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04845 for image manipulation, e.g. dragging, rotation, expansion or change of colour
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04847 Interaction techniques to control parameter settings, e.g. interaction with sliders or dials
• CPC Class Codes: G06F 3/04855 Interaction with scrollbars

Abstract

A context-sensitive viewing system is disclosed in which various data visualizations, also referred to a contextual views, of a common set of data may be viewed by a user on an electronic device. Data in the system may comprise data objects and associated properties and/or metadata, and may be stored in one or more electronic data stores. As a user of the system views and manipulates a first contextual view of a set of data objects, one or more other contextual views of the same set of data objects may be updated accordingly. Updates to the secondary contextual views may, in various embodiments, happen real-time. Further, the secondary contextual views may be visible to the user simultaneously with the primary contextual view. A user may switch from one view to another, and may manipulate data in any view, resulting in updates in the other views.

Claims

1. A computer system comprising:

an electronic database configured to store a plurality of data objects and properties associated with each of the data objects; and

one or more hardware processors in communication with a computer readable medium storing software instructions that are executable by the one or more hardware processors in order to cause the computer system to;

generate a primary contextual view including a primary visualization of a set of data objects and associated properties;

generate one or more secondary contextual views distinct from the primary contextual view, wherein;

each secondary contextual view includes respective secondary visualizations of the set of data objects,

each of the secondary visualizations is distinct from the primary visualization,

the one or more secondary contextual views comprise contextual previews,

the one or more secondary contextual views are viewable in at least one of a section, drawer, or scrollbar on a user interface, and

the one or more secondary contextual views are selectable by a user; and

in response to receiving a user input modifying the primary contextual view, modify one or more of the secondary contextual views based at least in part on the user input.

2. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the software instructions are executable by the one or more hardware processors in order to further cause the computer system to:

further in response to receiving the user input modifying the primary contextual view, determine which of the one or more of the secondary contextual views to modify.

3. The computer system of claim 2, wherein modifying one or more of the secondary contextual views comprises modifying all of the one or more secondary contextual view.

4. The computer system of claim 2, wherein modifying one or more of the secondary contextual views comprises modifying any of the one or more secondary contextual views that are currently viewable by a user.

5. The computer system of claim 2, wherein modifying one or more of the secondary contextual views comprises modifying any of the one or more secondary contextual views that are immediately adjacent to the primary contextual view.

6. The computer system of claim 1, wherein each of the primary visualization and/or the secondary visualizations include at least one of a graph, a map, a table, a timeline, a histogram, a list, a reader interface, or a postboard interface.

7. The computer system of claim 1, wherein the one or more secondary contextual views are substantially the same size as the primary contextual view.

8. The computer system of claim 7, wherein the one or more secondary contextual views are configured to be accessible by a user through the use of a scrollbar.

9. The computer system of claim 8, wherein the scrollbar includes at least one of tick marks indicating the locations of the one or more secondary views or contextual previews accessible in pop up windows.

10. The computer system of claim 7, wherein the one or more secondary contextual views are positioned laterally to the primary contextual view, and wherein the secondary contextual views are accessible by a user through a user input including at least one of a mouse cursor or a touch input.

11. The computer system of claim 1, wherein a user input modifying the primary contextual view comprises at least one of adding data objects, removing data objects, modifying data objects, moving data objects, modifying properties associated with data objects, or modifying and/or manipulating links between data objects.

12. A computer system comprising:

one or more hardware processors in communication with a computer readable medium storing software instructions that are executable by the one or more hardware processors in order to cause the computer system to;

display a first data visualization of a set of data objects and properties associated with data objects of the set of data objects;

provide one or more secondary data visualizations of the set of data objects, wherein;

the one or more secondary data visualizations are distinct from the first data visualization,

the one or more secondary visualizations comprise contextual previews,

the one or more secondary visualizations are viewable in at least one of a section, drawer, or scrollbar on a user interface, and

the one or more secondary visualizations are selectable by a user; and

in response to receiving a user input modifying the first data visualization, implement modifications to at least some of the one or more secondary data visualizations based at least in part on the user input.

13. The computer system of claim 12, wherein further in response to receiving the user input modifying the first data visualization the software instructions are executable by the one or more hardware processors in order to cause the computer system to:

determine which of the one or more of the secondary data visualizations are currently displayed to the user; and

implement modifications to the determined secondary data visualizations based at least in part on the user input.

14. The computer system of claim 12, wherein further in response to receiving the user input modifying the first data visualization the software instructions are executable by the one or more hardware processors in order to cause the computer system to:

determine which of the one or more of the secondary data visualizations are adjacent to the first data visualization, and

implement modifications to the determined secondary data visualizations based at least in part on the user input.

15. A computer-implemented method of updating multiple contextual views, the method comprising:

accessing an electronic database configured to store a plurality of data objects and metadata associated with each of the plurality of data objects;

generating, by a computing system having one or more computer processors, based at least in part on the plurality of data objects and associated metadata, a primary contextual view and one or more secondary contextual views, wherein;

the one or more secondary contextual views are distinct from the primary contextual view,

the one or more secondary contextual views comprise contextual previews,

the one or more secondary contextual views are viewable in at least one of a section, preview drawer, or scrollbar on a user interface, and

the one or more secondary contextual views are selectable by a user;

receiving, via an input device of the computing system, a user input modifying the primary contextual view;

determining, by the computing system, based on the received user input, modifications of the one or more secondary contextual views that correspond to the modification of the primary contextual view;

modifying at least some of the one or more secondary contextual views based on the determined modifications.

16. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, further comprising:

providing, on an electronic display of the computing system, the generated primary contextual view and one or more of the secondary contextual views in the preview drawer.

17. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, further comprising:

providing, on an electronic display of the computing system, the generated primary contextual view; and

providing, on the electronic display of the computer system, the scrollbar that enables a user to scroll to any of the one or more of the secondary contextual views and view any of the one or more of the secondary contextual views on the electronic display.

18. The computer-implemented method of claim 15, wherein modifying at least some of the one or more secondary contextual views based on the determined modifications comprises modifying any secondary contextual views that are immediately viewable by a user.