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:
Jul. 19, 2011
Filed:
Dec. 10, 2004
Andreas Dieberger, Los Gatos, CA (US);
Beverly L. Harrison, Menlo Park, CA (US);
Thomas P Moran, Palo Alto, CA (US);
Andreas Dieberger, Los Gatos, CA (US);
Beverly L. Harrison, Menlo Park, CA (US);
Thomas P Moran, Palo Alto, CA (US);
International Business Machines Corporation, Armonk, NY (US);
Abstract
A partially collapsing hierarchical display system aids information navigation by providing a dynamic mechanism for labeling items with one or more states. In one embodiment, states comprise 'hidden', 'visible' and “unmarked”. An expanded list of items displays all items. A partially expanded list of items displays all visible and unmarked items, removing hidden items from the display. A further collapsed list of items displays all visible items. A completely collapsed list of items hides all items. Users customize the amount of detail displayed in a sub-tree, reducing the display size of the sub-tree. Expansion of a hierarchical structure is combined with filtering, allowing users to partially collapse or partially expand a sub-tree structure. Partially collapsed lists comprise one or more focus points, allowing users to view several relevant sections of a hierarchical structure concurrently. Displayed sizes or other visual characteristics of items within the hierarchical structure are automatically adjusted to reflect the states designated by the user.