Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system – Display driving control circuitry – Controlling the condition of display elements
Reexamination Certificate
1999-01-28
2002-03-26
Bayerl, Raymond J. (Department: 2173)
Computer graphics processing and selective visual display system
Display driving control circuitry
Controlling the condition of display elements
C345S215000, C345S215000, C345S215000, C345S215000
Reexamination Certificate
active
06362842
ABSTRACT:
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
1. Field of the Invention
This invention relates to an operation picture displaying apparatus and method thereof for displaying a GUI (graphical user interface) picture which receives an operation to a computer in response to pointing by a pointing device such as a mouse with an improved operability.
2. Related Art
A GUI which displays an operation picture (icon) on the display screen of a monitor device, moves a pointer to a target icon to select it using a pointing device such as a mouse for allowing a user to input an operation correlated to the icon to a computer has been widely used.
For example, PUPA 5-73257 and PUPA 5-298023 (references
1
,
2
) disclose a GUI of improved operability by changing the color and shape of an icon depending on the moving speed of a cursor and selecting an icon depending on the direction of movement of a pointer and the distance from the icon.
However, with the method disclosed in the reference
1
, a picture which is required for an operation is hidden by an icon which is enlarged. Even if only the color and the shape are changed without changing the size of the icon in this method, the difficulty involved when a precise manipulation such as precisely moving the pointer to a frame portion of the icon (window) is required is not different from a case where this method is not used.
The method disclosed in the reference
2
can not be applied to a case where it is desired to select a portion of an icon such as the frame of the icon (window).
A device to improve the operability of GUI includes displaying a function of an icon to which the mouse has moved in a picture called “tool tip” which looks like a balloon.
Because the tool tip is not displayed until the pointer moves to the icon, if the pointer is moved to a wrong icon despite the user wants to know the function of an aimed icon, the mouse operation required for moving the mouse is totally useless.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
This invention is conceived in view of the above described problems of the prior art and aims at providing an operation picture displaying apparatus and a method thereof which makes the operation in doing a precise work such as pointing the frame of an icon (window) easy without sacrificing other operability to improve the operability of GUI.
It is also an object of this invention to provide an operation picture displaying apparatus and a method thereof which precisely predicts an icon (window) to be selected by a user in response to the operation of a pointing device to improve the operability of GUI.
It is another object of this invention to provide an operation picture displaying apparatus and a method thereof which precisely predicts an icon (window) to be selected by a user to improve the operability of GUI so as allow an operation to be effected to a part of an area of the icon (window) according to the prediction.
It is another object of this invention to provide an operation picture displaying apparatus and a method thereof which precisely predicts an icon (window) to be selected by a user to assist users operation by correctly displaying the function of the icon (window) according to the prediction.
First Picture Displaying Device
In order to achieve the above objectives, this invention provides a first operation picture displaying apparatus comprising: operation picture displaying means for displaying one or more operation pictures each of which is correlated to an operation to a computer in a display screen, pointer picture displaying means for displaying a pointer at a pointed position in said display screen in response to an external operation pointing an arbitrary position in said display screen, moving direction/speed detecting means for detecting the direction and the speed of movement of said pointer in said display screen, and operation picture selecting means for selecting either one of said operation pictures displayed in said display screen based on said detected moving direction and moving speed.
Preferably, said picture selecting means selects only said operation picture displayed in the direction of movement of said pointer when the moving speed of said pointer exceeds a predetermined threshold speed.
Preferably, said picture selecting means cancels the selection of said selected operation picture when the duration in which the moving speed of said pointer is below the predetermined threshold speed lasts longer than a predetermined threshold time.
Preferably, operation content displaying means is further provided to display the content of said operation correlated to said selected operation picture in said display screen.
Operation of the First Picture Displaying Device
The first picture displaying device of this invention displays an operation picture for GUI (GUI picture, icon/window and the like) correlated to a computer operation such as a file operation and starting a software, and a pointer indicating (pointing) the position in the display screen pointed by a pointing device such as a mouse in a display screen.
The first picture displaying device predicts and selects an icon to be selected by a user based on the speed and the direction of movement of the pointer and displays a picture (tool tip and the like) explaining a function correlated to the selected icon in association with the icon and the like
Operation Picture Displaying Apparatus
The operation picture displaying apparatus displays a GUI picture, i.e., a picture such as an icon and a window which is correlated to an operation to a computer in the display screen of a display device of the computer.
Pointer Displaying Means
The pointer displaying means displays a picture of a pointer such as a pointer of a mouse pointer at an arbitrary position on the display screen specified by an operation of a pointing device such as a mouse by a user.
Moving Direction/Speed Detecting Means
The moving direction/speed detecting means measures the display position of a pointer at a given time interval to detect to which direction and what distance (picture elements) the pointer moved (moving speed) in a given time.
Operation Picture Selecting Means
When the operation picture selecting means detects an event that the moving speed of the pointer exceeds a predetermined threshold speed, it determines that the user increases the moving speed of the pointer in an attempt to move the pointer to a target icon, predicts that an icon existing in the direction of the moment of the pointer (for example, within an angular range of +/−&thgr; with respect to the direction of movement of the pointer) is an icon for which the user targets and selects it.
When the picture selecting means detects an event that duration in which the moving speed of the pointer is below a predetermined threshold speed lasts longer than a predetermined threshold time when the picture selecting means is selecting an icon by prediction, the picture selecting means determines that the user no longer targets the icon selected by the prediction and cancels selection of the icon which has been so far selected by the prediction.
The operation picture displaying apparatus displays a function correlated to an icon selected by the prediction in the form of a tool tip, for example, in association with the pointer or the icon to assist the user to select the icon.
When the moving speed of the pointer decreases for a period longer than a given time and the selection by the prediction is cancelled, the operation picture displaying apparatus erases the display of the tool tip and the like
Second Picture Displaying Apparatus
The second operation picture displaying apparatus of this invention comprises; operation picture displaying means for displaying one or more operation pictures each of which is correlated to an operation to a computer in a display screen, pointer picture displaying means for displaying a pointer at a pointed position in said display screen in response to an external operation pointing an arbitrary position in said display screen, moving speed/distance detecting means for detecting the speed
Ichikawa Norikazu
Matsuyama Yohichiroh
Tahara Yoshinori
Tomoda Daisuke
Bayerl Raymond J.
Drumheller Ronald L.
Nguyen Thomas T.
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