The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document.
The patent badge is an abbreviated version of the USPTO patent document. The patent badge covers the following: Patent number, Date patent was issued, Date patent was filed, Title of the patent, Applicant, Inventor, Assignee, Attorney firm, Primary examiner, Assistant examiner, CPCs, and Abstract. The patent badge does contain a link to the full patent document (in Adobe Acrobat format, aka pdf). To download or print any patent click here.
Patent No.:
Date of Patent:
Sep. 19, 2000
Filed:
Oct. 17, 1997
David A Kenney, N. Attleboro, MA (US);
John Anthony Pantone, Birdsboro, PA (US);
Randall K Wolf, Reading, PA (US);
Lucent Technologies Inc., Murray Hill, NJ (US);
Abstract
A user interface for a graphical application tool is disclosed. A graphical application tool is a software program, such as a computer-aided design (CAD) tool, a spreadsheet package, or a graphics drawing package, that graphically provides a user with a set of commands, tools and icons, which a user can graphically manipulate to generate, modify or analyze a work product in a work space area. The graphical application tool includes a graphical user interface (GUI) to provide users with a repositionable menu of available commands, tools and icons. The menu provides access to the commands, tools and device offerings without interfering with the user's work space area. In the illustrative computer-aided design (CAD) tool embodiment, the menu preferably provides a user with access to core and custom commands and circuit component offerings. Core commands presented in a core command section of the menu are preferably context-determined so that commands appropriate to the current operating mode of the graphical application tool are presented. Circuit component offerings presented in the device offering section of the menu are preferably technology-determined so that device offerings appropriate to the specified technology are presented. In other words, when the graphical application tool is initiated, the user is preferably queried for the type of technology the user will be designing with.