Note: Descriptions are shown in the official language in which they were submitted.
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CHART DECOMPOSITION AND SEQUENCING
FOR LIMITED DISPLAY DEVICES
BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION
[0001] Field of the Invention
[0002] The present invention relates to graphics rendering in a limited
display device
and more particularly to chart rendering in a limited display device.
[0003] Description of the Related Art
[0004] The processing power of the personal computer has proven essential
in
processing chunks of data to provide fast data reduction not previously
possible with the
unaided human mind. Essential to data reduction is the visualization of the
data
reduction. As an essential form of data visualization, charts are often used
to ease
understanding of large quantities of data and the relationships between parts
of the data.
Charts can usually be read more quickly than the raw data from which they are
produced.
Certain types of charts are more useful for presenting a given data set than
others. For
example, data that presents percentages in different groups or classifications
are often
displayed in a "pie chart" or a "bar chart". A pie chart is a circular chart
divided into
sectors, illustrating numerical proportion. In comparison, a bar chart or bar
graph is a
chart with rectangular bars with lengths proportional to the values that they
represent.
Conversely, data that represents numbers that change over a period of time are
best
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shown as a line chart. A line chart or line graph is a type of chart which
displays
information as a series of data points called 'markers' connected by straight
line segments.
[0005] Displaying data visualizations in a desktop display for a personal
computer is
of no consequence and modern desktop displays are so large in size, that
multiple
concurrent displays of different data visualizations in the desktop display
can be
common. However, with the recent ubiquity of the smart phone and tablet
computing,
display space has become limited. Therefore, displaying data visualizations
within the
limited display space of a pervasive device can be quite limited. To wit, many
smart
phone end users are often compelled to engage in irritating horizontal and
vertical
scrolling in order to view a complete chart.
[0006] To account for the display of a data visualization like a chart or
graph in a
limited display device, many devices provide for the automated reduction in
size of the
chart so as to fit the full display of the chart or graph within the confines
of the limited
display. However, in doing so, detail becomes obscured so that the end user is
forced to
perform a "zoom" operation to view the very specific details of the data
visualization.
Yet, the details of the data visualization may be important to understanding
the
underlying raw data, notwithstanding the general inconvenience of viewing
anything in
the tiny display area of a conventional display device.
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BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION
[0007] Embodiments of the present invention address deficiencies of the art
in respect
to data visualization display in a limited display device and provide a novel
and non-
obvious method, system and computer program product for chart decomposition
and
sequencing in a limited display device. In an embodiment of the invention, a
method of
chart decomposition and sequencing in a limited display device is provided.
The method
includes generating a data visualization for raw data and partitioning the
data
visualization into a set of a discrete number of segments. =The method also
includes
establishing a sequence for the segments in the set. Finally, the method
includes
displaying the segments sequentially according to the sequence in a display of
the limited
display device.
[0008] In one aspect of the embodiment, the sequential display of the
segments occurs
as a slide show. In this regard, each slide of the slide show includes a
different one of the
segments, a transition between each slide occurring at after a pre-specified
time delay. In
another aspect of the embodiment, the sequential display of the segments
occurs as a
slide show, a transition between each slide occurring manually responsive to
user input at
the limited display device.
[0009] In another embodiment of the invention, a limited display data
processing
system is configured for chart decomposition and sequencing in a limited
display device.
The system includes a host computer that has memory and at least one
processor. The
system also includes a chart decomposition and sequencing module executing in
the
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memory of the host computer. The module in turn includes program code enabled
upon
execution in the memory to generate a data visualization for raw data, to
partition the data
visualization into a set of a discrete number of segments, to establish a
sequence for the
segments in the set, and to display the segments sequentially according to the
sequence in
a limited display.
[0010] Of note, the limited display can be part of the host computer.
Alternatively,
the limited display can be part of a limited display device communicatively
coupled to
the host computer over a computer communications network. In either case, the
data
visualization can be a pie chart with each segment being a different
classification of data
visualized in the pie chart. Or, the data visualization can be a bar chart
with each
segment being a different bar of the bar chart. Or, the data visualization can
be a line
graph with each segment being a different portion along an x-axis of the line
graph
bounded by specific data points in the line graph.
[0011] Additional aspects of the invention will be set forth in part in the
description
which follows, and in part will be obvious from the description, or may be
learned by
practice of the invention. The aspects of the invention will be realized and
attained by
means of the elements and combinations particularly pointed out in the
appended claims.
It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description and the
following
detailed description are exemplary and explanatory only and are not
restrictive of the
invention, as claimed.
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BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE SEVERAL VIEWS OF THE DRAWINGS
[0012] The accompanying drawings, which are incorporated in and constitute
part of
this specification, illustrate embodiments of the invention and together with
the
description, serve to explain the principles of the invention. The embodiments
illustrated
herein are presently preferred, it being understood, however, that the
invention is not
limited to the precise arrangements and instrumentalities shown, wherein:
[0013] Figure 1 is a pictorial illustration of a process for chart
decomposition and
sequencing in a limited display device;
[0014] Figure 2 is a schematic illustration of a limited display data
processing system
configured for chart decomposition and sequencing in a limited display device;
and,
[0015] Figure 3 is a flow chart illustrating a process for chart
decomposition and
sequencing in a limited display device.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION
[0016] Embodiments of the invention provide for chart decomposition and
sequencing
in a limited display device. In accordance with an embodiment of the
invention, a data
visualization can be generated for a data set of data in a limited display
device. The data
visualization can include charts or graphs for example. Thereafter, the data
visualization
can be partitioned into a set of discrete number of segments and ordered into
a sequence.
Once partitioned and sequenced, each segment in the set can be presented in
order of the
sequence in a display of the limited display device. In this regard, the set
of segments
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can be displayed automatically as an animation of different frames in
sequence, each
frame containing one of the segments. An example of an animation is a slide
show with
each slide including an individual one of the segments, with a pre-set delay
between slide
transitions. Alternatively, the set of segments can be displayed manually,
each frame
including an individual one of the segments, each transition between the
frames occurring
responsive to user input in the limited display device. In this way, the data
visualization
can be viewed in the limited display device with as much detail as would have
been the
case in a large display of a desktop computer.
[0017] In further illustration, Figure 1 pictorially shows a process for
chart
decomposition and sequencing in a limited display device. As shown in Figure
1, a data
reduction application 120 can reduce raw data 110 into a data visualization
130¨a bar
chart 140A, a pie chart 140B, or a line graph 140C, for example. Chart
decomposition
and sequencing logic 170 in turn can process the data visualization 130 to
identify
different segments 150A, 150B, 150C, 150D. The segments 150A, 150B, 150C, 150D
can be selected as segments 150A, 150B, 150C, 150D of data of a common
characterization as in the case of a pie chart or bar chart, or data of a line
segment bound
by two different data end points of the raw data 110 as in the case of a line
graph.
Thereafter, the segments 150A, 150B, 150C, 150D can be sequenced into a set of
frames
150 of an animation, for instance a slide show of different slides, each
corresponding to a
different one of the segments 150A, 150B, 150C, 150D and with pre-determined
transitions between the frames. Finally, the set of frames 150 of the
animation can be
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provided to a computing device 160 such as a mobile device for display in
sequence in a
limited display of the device 160.
[0018] The
process described in connection with Figure 1 can be implemented within
a limited display data processing system. In yet further illustration, Figure
2
schematically shows a limited display data processing system configured for
chart
decomposition and sequencing. The system can include a host computing system
210
that can include one or more computers each with memory and at least one
processor.
The host computing system 210 can support the execution of a data reduction
application
250 programmed to reduce raw data in a coupled data store 260 to different
data
visualizations. The data visualizations produced by the data reduction
application 250
thereafter can be accessed through a browser client 240 in a client computing
device 230
from over a computer communications network 220.
[0019] Of note, a chart decomposition and sequencing module 300 can be coupled
to
the data reduction application 250. The chart decomposition and sequencing
module 300
can include program code that is enabled upon execution in the memory of the
host
computing system 210 to segment a chart or graph produced as part of a data
visualization by the data reduction application 250 into different segments.
The program
code further can be enabled to include each of the segments in a different
frame and to
sequence the frames for presentation in the browser client 240 as an
animation, for
instance a slide show. Finally, the program code can be enabled to define
automated
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transitions between each frame in the animation during playback of the
animation in the
browser client 240.
[0020] In even yet further illustration of the operation of the
chart decomposition and
sequencing module, Figure 3 is a flow chart illustrating a process for chart
decomposition
and sequencing in a limited display device. Beginning in block 310, a chart
type can be
selected for visualizing data in a data set. In block 320, the data set can be
loaded and in
block 330, the data can be classified, for example by type, by range of
values, or by
frequency of occurrence, to name only three examples. Thereafter, in block
340, a
segment of the selected chart can be generated for the data set according to a
first
classification of the data. In block 350, the generated segment can be
inserted into a
frame of an animation.
[0021] In decision block 360, it can be determined whether or not
additional
classifications remain from which corresponding segments of the chart can be
generated.
If so, in block 370 a next segment of the selected chart can be generated for
the data set
according to a next classification of the data. Again, in block 350, the
generated segment
can be inserted into a frame of the animation. In decision block 360, when no
additional
classifications remain from which corresponding segments of the chart can be
generated,
in block 380 the transitions between each frame can be established and in
block 390, an
animation can be created with the frames in sequence and transitions disposed
therebetween. Finally, in block 400 the animation can be displayed in the
device.
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[0022] The present invention may be embodied within a system, a method, a
computer
program product or any combination thereof The computer program product may
include a computer readable storage medium or media having computer readable
program instructions thereon for causing a processor to carry out aspects of
the present
invention. The computer readable storage medium can be a tangible device that
can
retain and store instructions for use by an instruction execution device. The
computer
readable storage medium may be, for example, but is not limited to, an
electronic storage
device, a magnetic storage device, an optical storage device, an
electromagnetic storage
device, a semiconductor storage device, or any suitable combination of the
foregoing.
[0023] A non-exhaustive list of more specific examples of the computer
readable
storage medium includes the following: a portable computer diskette, a hard
disk, a
random access memory (RAM), a read-only memory (ROM), an erasable programmable
read-only memory (EPROM or Flash memory), a static random access memory
(SRAM),
a portable compact disc read-only memory (CD-ROM), a digital versatile disk
(DVD), a
memory stick, a floppy disk, a mechanically encoded device such as punch-cards
or
raised structures in a groove having instructions recorded thereon, and any
suitable
combination of the foregoing. A computer readable storage medium, as used
herein, is
not to be construed as being transitory signals per se, such as radio waves or
other freely
propagating electromagnetic waves, electromagnetic waves propagating through a
waveguide or other transmission media (e.g., light pulses passing through a
fiber-optic
cable), or electrical signals transmitted through a wire.
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[0024] Computer readable program instructions described herein can be
downloaded
to respective computing/processing devices from a computer readable storage
medium or
to an external computer or external storage device via a network, for example,
the
Internet, a local area network, a wide area network and/or a wireless network.
The
network may comprise copper transmission cables, optical transmission fibers,
wireless
transmission, routers, firewalls, switches, gateway computers and/or edge
servers. A
network adapter card or network interface in each computing/processing device
receives
computer readable program instructions from the network and forwards the
computer
readable program instructions for storage in a computer readable storage
medium within
the respective computing/processing device.
[0025] Computer readable program instructions for carrying out operations of
the
present invention may be assembler instructions, instruction-set-architecture
(ISA)
instructions, machine instructions, machine dependent instructions, microcode,
firmware
instructions, state-setting data, or either source code or object code written
in any
combination of one or more programming languages, including an object oriented
programming language such as Smalltalk, C++ or the like, and conventional
procedural
programming languages, such as the "C" programming language or similar
programming
languages. The computer readable program instructions may execute entirely on
the
user's computer, partly on the user's computer, as a stand-alone software
package, partly
on the user's computer and partly on a remote computer or entirely on the
remote
computer or server. In the latter scenario, the remote computer may be
connected to the
user's computer through any type of network, including a local area network
(LAN) or a
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wide area network (WAN), or the connection may be made to an external computer
(for
example, through the Internet using an Internet Service Provider). In some
embodiments,
electronic circuitry including, for example, programmable logic circuitry,
field-
programmable gate arrays (FPGA), or programmable logic arrays (PLA) may
execute the
computer readable program instructions by utilizing state information of the
computer
readable program instructions to personalize the electronic circuitry, in
order to perform
aspects of the present invention.
[0026] Aspects of the present invention are described herein with reference
to
flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams of methods, apparatus (systems),
and
computer program products according to embodiments of the invention. It will
be
understood that each block of the flowchart illustrations and/or block
diagrams, and
combinations of blocks in the flowchart illustrations and/or block diagrams,
can be
implemented by computer readable program instructions.
[0027] These computer readable program instructions may be provided to a
processor
of a general purpose computer, special purpose computer, or other programmable
data
processing apparatus to produce a machine, such that the instructions, which
execute via
the processor of the computer or other programmable data processing apparatus,
create
means for implementing the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or
block
diagram block or blocks. These computer readable program instructions may also
be
stored in a computer readable storage medium that can direct a computer, a
programmable data processing apparatus, and/or other devices to function in a
particular
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manner, such that the computer readable storage medium having instructions
stored
therein comprises an article of manufacture including instructions which
implement
aspects of the function/act specified in the flowchart and/or block diagram
block or
blocks.
[0028] The computer readable program instructions may also be loaded onto a
computer, other programmable data processing apparatus, or other device to
cause a
series of operational steps to be performed on the computer, other
programmable
apparatus or other device to produce a computer implemented process, such that
the
instructions which execute on the computer, other programmable apparatus, or
other
device implement the functions/acts specified in the flowchart and/or block
diagram
block or blocks.
[0029] The flowchart and block diagrams in the Figures illustrate the
architecture,
functionality, and operation of possible implementations of systems, methods,
and
computer program products according to various embodiments of the present
invention.
In this regard, each block in the flowchart or block diagrams may represent a
module,
segment, or portion of instructions, which comprises one or more executable
instructions
for implementing the specified logical function(s). In some alternative
implementations,
the functions noted in the block may occur out of the order noted in the
figures. For
example, two blocks shown in succession may, in fact, be executed
substantially
concurrently, or the blocks may sometimes be executed in the reverse order,
depending
upon the functionality involved. It will also be noted that each block of the
block
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=
diagrams and/or flowchart illustration, and combinations of blocks in the
block diagrams
and/or flowchart illustration, can be implemented by special purpose hardware-
based
systems that perform the specified functions or acts or carry out combinations
of special
purpose hardware and computer instructions.
[0030] Finally, the terminology used herein is for the purpose
of describing particular
embodiments only and is not intended to be limiting of the invention. As used
herein, the
singular forms "a", "an" and "the" are intended to include the plural forms as
well, unless
the context clearly indicates otherwise. It will be further understood that
the terms
"comprises" and/or "comprising," when used in this specification, specify the
presence of
stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but
do not
preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers,
steps,
operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.
[0031] The corresponding structures, materials, acts, and
equivalents of all means or
step plus function elements in the claims below are intended to include any
structure,
material, or act for performing the function in combination with other claimed
elements
as specifically claimed. The description of the present invention has been
presented for
purposes of illustration and description, but is not intended to be exhaustive
or limited to
the invention in the form disclosed. Many modifications and variations will be
apparent
to those of ordinary skill in the art without departing from the scope and
spirit of the
invention. The embodiment was chosen and described in order to best explain
the
principles of the invention and the practical application, and to enable
others of ordinary
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skill in the art to understand the invention for various embodiments with
various
modifications as are suited to the particular use contemplated.
100321 One or more currently preferred embodiments have been described by way
of
example. It will be apparent to persons skilled in the art that a number of
variations and
modifications can be made without departing from the scope of the claims as
purposively
construed. In construing the claims, it is to be understood that the use of a
computer to
implement the embodiments described herein is essential.
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