Title of Invention: Graphical User Interface in 3D Visual Space for Electronic
Devices
FIELD OF THE INVENTION
[01] The invention invented a graphical user interface in 3-dimentional visual space, which is displayed on the display screen of electronic devices. With invented technology, thousands of applications and images are easily maintained in a single device, such as desktop and tablet computers, cell phone, game console, digital TV, etc.
BACKGROUND
[02] User interface was not new topic for years. However, with the fact of digital applications and images have been rapidly developed, and they have been deeply involved with our daily life, providing an efficient user interface to manage thousands applications and images in electronic devices, especially a small device, like cell phone, become a challenge. Some of international efforts to resolve the challenge can be found in WO2005/045756, WO2006/003588, W02009/158310, WO2011/043601, etc.
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[03] To overcome the limitation of maintaining thousands of the applications and images, this invention provided a different approach to handle them, which operates applications and images in 3-dimentional visual space. I nstead of controlling applications on screen surface, user can move a 3-dimentional space hall where thousands of applications and images are attached on its walls, like the user walks through the operation hall, and navigate the applications and images on the walls. A whole system is built with several halls. Each of the halls can be a catalog of applications and images preferred by user in the system.
SIMPLE DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[04] Figure 1 illustrates an operation hall with 4 operation walls and an end wall.
[05] Figure 2 illustrates operation cells on operation walls.
[06] Figure 3 illustrates operation cells with thumbnails, each operation cell links to an application or an image.
[07] Figure 4 illustrates the number of cells on a row of walls is adjustable.
[08] Figure 5 illustrates selecting an operation cell.
[09] Figure 6 illustrates selecting the next operation cell.
[10] Figure 7 illustrates moving an operation hall forward, backward.
[11] Figure 8 illustrates moving to the end of an operation hall.
[12] Figure 9 illustrates rotating an operation hall.
[13] Figure 10 illustrates marking an operation cell for deletion.
[14] Figure 11 illustrates marking multiple operation cells for deletion.
[15] Figure 12 illustrates confirming the deletion of the marked cells.
[16] Figure 13 illustrates switching to another operation hall.
[17] Figure 14 illustrates system Main interface with operation hall entries.
[18] Figure 15 illustrates removing all of applications and images included in an operation hall. [19] Figure 16 i llustrates opening a selected image.
[20] Figure 17 i Ilustrates switching and opening another image.
[21] Figure 18 i llustrates moving an opened image.
[22] Figure 19 i llustrates relocating an opened image.
[23] Figure 20 i llustrates moving an opened image forward.
[24] Figure 21 i llustrates moving an opened image to a full screen view.
[25] Figure 22 i llustrates moving an opened image backward.
[26] Figure 23 i llustrates opening an image in a rotated hall.
[27] Figure 24 i llustrates navigating an opened image in a rotated hall.
[28] Figure 25 i llustrates confirming the deletion of an opened image.
[29] Figure 26 i llustrates confirmingthe saving of an opened image.
[30] Figure 27 i llustrates confirming the mass saving of marked images.
[31] Figure 28 i llustrates running application import interface.
DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
This invention provides a graphical user interface that enables user be able to maintain thousands of applications and images effectively. I n this invention, application and image links are located in a 3-dimentional space hall. Using regular control devices or methods, such as keyboard, mouse, or touch screen, use can move the hall forward or backward, like they walk through the hall. I n this approach, user can quickly find an application or image in the hall. Figure 1 shows a 3-dimentional space hall with 4 flat side walls (elements 1, 2, 3 and 4) and 1 end wall (element 5). Each of the side walls is constructed with cells. A cell is a graphic image unit, which hosts a thumbnail of an application or a thumbnail of an image. It is linked with the application or the image. I n the invention, the cell is named as an Operation Cell (OC). Each of the side walls is named as an Operation Wall (OW). The 3- dimentional space hall is named as an Operation Hall (OH). An entire system is built with multiple OHs.
Figure 2 illustrates some of OCs (elements 7, 8, 9, 10). The location of OCs on OWs can be sorted or grouped. User can start an application, or open an image by selecting and opening an OC from an OW. The space gap between OCs, such as the gap between element 7 and 8, or the gap between 7 and 10, are adjustable. Figure 3 illustrates an example of an OH where OCs are with thumbnails (elements 7, 11, 12 and 13).
Figure 4 illustrates that the number of OCs on a row of OWs can be adjusted, so more OCs in small size can be included in a row (elements 7, 11, 12 and 13). As a result, more applications and images are included within a certain number of rows.
Figure 5 illustrates a selected OC. When an OC is selected, one of its attributes is changed, such as its position can be set an offset from an OW (element 14). Selecting an OC means to select an application or an image. As Figure 6 illustrated, user can select the next OC by moving the contact point to the next OC (elements 15, 16, 17, 18). After the next OC is selected, its position is changed. The previous selected OC returns to its normal position, i.e. on an OW. User can use touch device (touch pen, mouse, and finger) or keyboard to select an OC. Figure 7 illustrates an OH is moved forward (direction 19) or backward (direction 20) by a user. This kind of movement lets user find applications and images quickly. A fast moving option is built to jump few rows at one movement, so user can rapidly move through an OH with fewer movements. Figure 8 shows user reach the end of the OH by moving OH backward.
From Figure 1 to Figure 7, a rectangle cube hall that has 5 flat walls is used to demonstrate the principle of this invention. The invention is also applicable to any other 3-dimentional space hall, such as cylinder, sphere, etc... Also, the wall shape is not limited to be a flat surface. It can be any curved surfaces, such as the curved surface on a cylinder or sphere shape.
I n this invention, an OH is rotatable. It like that user looks around by turning their head. Figure 9 illustrates right-rotated view. At the position, user is able to manipulate applications and images, which was illustrated by Figure 4, Figure 5 and Figure 6.
Figure 10 illustrates the first way of two ways to delete an OC. To delete an OC means to remove it from an OW and remove the link to application or image. First, user marks an OC for deletion (element 14). Its face colour is changed. Secondary, user need to confirm the deletion. Figure 12 illustrated the confirmation screen.
Figure 11 illustrates multiple OCs (elements 19, 20, 21, 22) are marked for deletion. User can mark multiple OCs, and remove them together, or user can mark one and remove one. After the OCs are removed, the remained OCs are reorganized to fill the empty spots. The size of OW is adjusted. No empty row is left on OWs. Figure 13 illustrates to move from one OH to another OH. The left OH is the current OH. User can move into next OH quickly. Arrow 23, 24 shows the moving directions. An entire system are built with multiple OHs. User can quickly move between these OHs.
Figure 14 illustrates the Main entry interface for a system, which is the start point of an application. At the interface, OH entries are built in a similar layout as the OCs described early. User selects an OH entry cell (element 25) at the interface, and moves into an OH that is linked to the entry cell (such as the one in Figure 4). The thumbnail displayed on the entry cell is the thumbnail from the image on the end wall in the OH (element 5 in Figure 8). If an entry cell has a thumbnail, like elements, 25, 26, and 27 in Figure 14, it means the linked OH has contents, i.e. applications or images. Otherwise, a system default image is shown on an entry cell, like element 28, which means an empty OH. After importing applications and images, the system default image is replaced.
Figure 15 illustrates the deletion of the applications and images in an OH. As described in Figure 10, 11, 12, user can delete multiple applications and images inside an OH. From system entry interface, user can delete all the applications and images in an OH by selecting the OH entry cell, and delete the linked image after confirmation. The linked OH becomes an empty OH after the deletion. The number of OHs for a system is configured when setting up the system.
Figure 1 to Figure 15 demonstrates the core principle of this invention. As mentioned above, the invention provides a different way to handle thousands of applications and images in electronic devices. Following sections illustrates a real system that is built with the basic functionalities of the invention. The system is an application for maintaining images. The system includes other features which are developed for manipulating images in the system.
Figure 16 illustrates an opened image (element 29) that is selected in Figure 5. I n Figure 5 the thumbnail of an image was shown on OC. When user opens the selected OC, the linked image opens. The initial position and size of the image are configurable. As long as an image opened, the colour of all OCs on background are changed to dark colour.
Figure 17 illustrates the swapping of an opened image, i.e. move to next image, open it (element 30) and close the opened image (element 29). User has option to swap images manually when they wanted, or to swap images by program automatically with an adjustable time period.
Figure 18 illustrates a moving image (element 29). There is option to move the opened image on screen at a predefined movement pattern. This option can be combined with the swapping option, i.e. opening an image, moving it, and swapping it with next image with an adjustable time period.
Figure 19 illustrates the relocation of an image (element 29). User can relocate an image manually even when the image is moving.
Figure 20, 21, 22 illustrates to move an opened image forward to the end of an OH, or backward to user. As shown in the Figures, the view of image becomes smaller view (Figure 20), full screen size view (Figure 21), or detail view (Figure 22). All of the navigations illustrated in Figure 17 to 22 are combinable, i.e. when an opened image is moving or swapping, user can also relocate it, move it forward or backward.
Figure 23, 24 illustrates opening and navigating an opened image in a rotated OH. User can open an image in the rotated OH. After the image is opened, user can navigate the image with all the actions illustrated in Figure 17, 18, 19, 20, 21 and 22.
Figure 25 illustrates the second way of two ways to remove an image OC from OW, i.e. open the image and delete it.
Figure 26 illustrates the way of saving the opened image to an user defined local folder in a device. After the image is saved to local folder, the image will close, but its OC is still kept on an OW. User can mark multiple images, and to savethem together ( Figure 27 ).
Figure 28 illustrates a file import interface for the system. When user select an OC (element 31) that is linked to File I mport I nterface, it opens the interface (element 32). User can select images (elements 33, 34) from current folder, or move the other folders to select images. After importing, the thumbnails created from the imported images are attached to new OCs, and the OCs are added to OWs in the current OH.