Procedural toolbar user interface
US6456304B1 · kind B1 · utility
Assignee
Inventors
Key dates
| Filing date | Jun 30, 1999 |
| Grant date | Sep 24, 2002 |
| Priority date | — |
| Expiry date | Jun 30, 2019 |
Classification
- Technology area (CPC G)Physics
- CPC primaryG06F3/0481
- WIPO fieldComputer technology
- WIPO sectorElectrical engineering
Abstract
A user interface toolbar and associated method for enabling a user to make a series of selections in a procedural order that can be used to assign properties to a component object in an application program document. The toolbar contains a plurality of selection controls, each containing a control value and a dropdown menu. The menu options that drop down in successive selection controls change in context with the menu choices made in a previous selection control. A user typically fills selection controls from left to right (or top to bottom) in a procedural fashion. As the user makes selections to fill in the controls, the menus corresponding to the selection controls that are downstream (to the right of or below) the last filled selection control are updated based on the content of the previous selections. The toolbar allows a user to select and change any selection previously made, as desired, with the resultant changes effecting the selections and menus to the right of or below the changed selection. The toolbar also allows a user to enter a secondary set of control values in the selection controls. Properties may be assigned to a component object in an application program docum…
Source: USPTO / EPO open patent data. Objective bibliographic and citation counts.