Claims
- 1. A computer-implemented method for viewing a measurement system, the method comprising:
displaying a diagram on a display, wherein the diagram visually indicates a plurality of components in the measurement system, wherein each component has a plurality of possible expansion states, wherein said displaying the diagram comprises displaying each component in a first expansion state; receiving first user input to the diagram to change the expansion state of a first component; and updating the diagram to illustrate a second expansion state of the first component in response to the first user input.
- 2. The method of claim 1,
wherein the second expansion state of the first component comprises one of:
an increased expansion state relative to the first expansion state of the first component; or a reduced expansion state relative to the first expansion state of the first component.
- 3. The method of claim 1,
wherein said updating the diagram to illustrate the second expansion state of the first component does not affect the display of the components other than the first component.
- 4. The method of claim 1,
wherein said changing the expansion state of the first component does not affect the expansion states of the components other than the first component.
- 5. The method of claim 1,
wherein said displaying each component in a first expansion state comprises displaying a first icon representing each component; wherein said updating the diagram to illustrate the second expansion state of the first component comprises displaying a second icon representing the first component.
- 6. The method of claim 5,
wherein said updating the diagram to illustrate the second expansion state of the first component does not include changing the icons representing the components other than the first component.
- 7. The method of claim 1,
wherein said updating the diagram to illustrate the second expansion state of the first component comprises adjusting locations of other components relative to the first component.
- 8. The method of claim 1,
wherein said receiving first user input to the diagram to change the expansion state of the first component comprises receiving user input to the first component.
- 9. The method of claim 8,
wherein said receiving user input to the first component comprises receiving user input from a pointing device to the first component.
- 10. The method of claim 8,
wherein said receiving user input to the first component comprises receiving user input to a context menu associated with the first component.
- 11. The method of claim 1,
wherein said displaying each component includes displaying a region within the component for changing the expansion state of the component; wherein said receiving first user input to the diagram to change the expansion state of the first component comprises receiving user input to the region within the first component for changing the expansion state of the first component.
- 12. The method of claim 11,
wherein the region for changing the expansion state of the component includes a first portion for increasing the expansion state of the component and a second portion for decreasing the expansion state of the component; wherein said receiving user input to the region within the first component for changing the expansion state of the first component comprises one of:
receiving user input to the first portion of the region within the first component for increasing the expansion state of the first component; or receiving user input to the second portion of the region within the first component for decreasing the expansion state of the first component.
- 13. The method of claim 1, further comprising:
displaying information on the first component to indicate the current expansion state of the first component.
- 14. The method of claim 1, further comprising:
receiving second user input to the diagram to change the expansion state of a second component; and updating the diagram to illustrate a second expansion state of the second component in response to the second user input.
- 15. The method of claim 1,
wherein said receiving first user input to the diagram to change the expansion state of the first component comprises receiving user input to the diagram to increase the expansion state of the first component; and wherein said updating the diagram to illustrate the second expansion state of the first component comprises re-displaying the first component to indicate an increased expansion state.
- 16. The method of claim 1,
wherein said receiving first user input to the diagram to change the expansion state of the first component comprises receiving user input to the diagram to increase the expansion state of the first component; and wherein said updating the diagram to illustrate the second expansion state of the first component comprises changing the displayed first component to indicate an increased expansion state.
- 17. The method of claim 16,
wherein displaying the first component in a first expansion state indicates first information regarding the first component; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate an increased expansion state indicates second information regarding the first component; and wherein the second information includes more information regarding the first component than the first information.
- 18. The method of claim 16,
wherein displaying the first component in a first expansion state comprises displaying first visual information representing the first component; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate an increased expansion state comprises displaying second visual information representing the first component; and wherein the second visual information provides more visual detail than the first visual information.
- 19. The method of claim 16,
wherein the first component comprises a physical component with a physical appearance; wherein displaying the first component in a first expansion state comprises displaying first visual information representing the first component; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate an increased expansion state comprises displaying second visual information representing the first component; and wherein the second visual information indicates the physical appearance of the first component more accurately than the first visual information.
- 20. The method of claim 16,
wherein displaying the first component in a first expansion state comprises displaying first visual information representing the first component; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate an increased expansion state comprises displaying second visual information representing the first component; and wherein the second visual information is displayed over a larger area of the display than the first visual information.
- 21. The method of claim 20,
wherein the first visual information has a first height; wherein the second visual information has a second height; wherein the second height is greater than the first height.
- 22. The method of claim 20,
wherein the first visual information has a first width; wherein the second visual information has a second width; wherein the second width is greater than the first width.
- 23. The method of claim 16,
wherein displaying the first component in a first expansion state comprises displaying first text information regarding the first component; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate an increased expansion state comprises displaying second text information regarding the first component; and wherein the second text information provides more detail regarding the first component than the first text information.
- 24. The method of claim 16,
wherein displaying the first component in a first expansion state comprises displaying a first wire to the first component; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate an increased expansion state comprises expanding the first wire to display a plurality of wires to the first component.
- 25. The method of claim 16,
wherein displaying the first component in a first expansion state comprises displaying a first wire from the first component; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate an increased expansion state comprises expanding the first wire to display a plurality of wires from the first component.
- 26. The method of claim 16, further comprising:
receiving second user input to the diagram to increase the expansion state of the first component; and updating the diagram to illustrate a third expansion state of the first component in response to the second user input, wherein the third expansion state indicates additional expansion beyond the second expansion state.
- 27. The method of claim 16,
wherein the first component has one or more child components; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate the increased expansion state comprises displaying the one or more child components.
- 28. The method of claim 27,
wherein the one or more child components were not visible prior to said displaying the one or more child components.
- 29. The method of claim 27,
wherein the first component comprises a hardware chassis; wherein the one or more child components comprises one or more modules installed in the hardware chassis; wherein said displaying the one or more child components comprises displaying the one or more modules.
- 30. The method of claim 27,
wherein said displaying the one or more child components comprises displaying each child component in a first expansion state; wherein the method further comprises:
receiving second user input to the diagram to increase the expansion state of a first child component; and changing the displayed first child component to indicate an increased expansion state.
- 31. The method of claim 16,
wherein the first component comprises a hardware device having one or more channels; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate the increased expansion state comprises displaying the one or more channels; wherein the one or more channels were not visible prior to said displaying the one or more channels.
- 32. The method of claim 16,
wherein the first component comprises a physical device having one or more connection points; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate the increased expansion state comprises displaying the one or more connection points; wherein the one or more connection points were not visible prior to said displaying the one or more connection points.
- 33. The method of claim 1,
wherein said receiving first user input to the diagram to change the expansion state of the first component comprises receiving user input to the diagram to decrease the expansion state of the first component; and wherein said updating the diagram to illustrate the second expansion state of the first component comprises changing the displayed first component to indicate a decreased expansion state.
- 34. The method of claim 33,
wherein displaying the first component in a first expansion state indicates first information regarding the first component; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate a decreased expansion state indicates second information regarding the first component; and wherein the second information includes less information regarding the first component than the first information.
- 35. The method of claim 33,
wherein displaying the first component in a first expansion state comprises displaying first visual information representing the first component; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate a decreased expansion state comprises displaying second visual information representing the first component; and wherein the second visual information provides less visual detail than the first visual information.
- 36. The method of claim 33,
wherein the first component comprises a physical component with a physical appearance; wherein displaying the first component in a first expansion state comprises displaying first visual information representing the first component; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate a decreased expansion state comprises displaying second visual information representing the first component; and wherein the second visual information indicates the physical appearance of the first component less accurately than the first visual information.
- 37. The method of claim 33,
wherein displaying the first component in a first expansion state comprises displaying first visual information representing the first component; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate a decreased expansion state comprises displaying second visual information representing the first component; and wherein the second visual information is displayed over a smaller area of the display than the first visual information.
- 38. The method of claim 37,
wherein the first visual information has a first height; wherein the second visual information has a second height; wherein the second height is less than the first height.
- 39. The method of claim 37,
wherein the first visual information has a first width; wherein the second visual information has a second width; wherein the second width is less than the first width.
- 40. The method of claim 33,
wherein displaying the first component in a first expansion state comprises displaying first text information regarding the first component; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate a decreased expansion state comprises displaying second text information regarding the first component; and wherein the second text information provides less detail regarding the first component than the first text information.
- 41. The method of claim 33,
wherein displaying the first component in a first expansion state comprises displaying a plurality of wires to the first component; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate a decreased expansion state comprises collapsing the plurality of wires to display a single wire to the first component.
- 42. The method of claim 33,
wherein displaying the first component in a first expansion state comprises displaying a plurality of wires from the first component; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate a decreased expansion state comprises collapsing the plurality of wires to display a single wire from the first component.
- 43. The method of claim 33, further comprising:
receiving second user input to the diagram to decrease the expansion state of the first component; and updating the diagram to illustrate a third expansion state of the first component in response to the second user input, wherein the third expansion state indicates reduced expansion relative to the second expansion state.
- 44. The method of claim 33,
wherein the first component has one or more child components; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate the decreased expansion state comprises hiding the one or more child components; wherein the one or more child components were visible prior to said hiding the one or more child components.
- 45. The method of claim 44,
wherein the first component comprises a hardware chassis; wherein the one or more child components comprises one or more modules installed in the hardware chassis; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate the decreased expansion state comprises removing the one or more modules from view.
- 46. The method of claim 33,
wherein the first component comprises a hardware device having one or more channels; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate the decreased expansion state comprises hiding the one or more channels; wherein the one or more channels were visible prior to said hiding the one or more channels.
- 47. The method of claim 33,
wherein the first component comprises a physical device having one or more connection points; wherein said changing the displayed first component to indicate the decreased expansion state comprises hiding the one or more connection points; wherein the one or more connection points were visible prior to said hiding the one or more connection points.
- 48. The method of claim 1,
wherein the diagram displays a connection from the first component to a second component; wherein said updating the diagram to illustrate the second expansion state of the first component includes one of:
updating the diagram to illustrate more detail regarding the connection from the first component to the second component; or updating the diagram to illustrate less detail regarding the connection from the first component to the second component.
- 49. The method of claim 1,
wherein the first component comprises one of:
a physical component; or a virtual component.
- 50. The method of claim 1,
wherein the first component comprises a hardware device in the measurement system; wherein said displaying the diagram comprises displaying a first icon representing the hardware device; wherein said updating the diagram to illustrate the second expansion state of the first component comprises replacing the first icon with a second icon representing the hardware device.
- 51. The method of claim 1,
wherein the first component comprises a unit under test (UUT) in the measurement system; wherein said displaying the diagram comprises displaying a first icon representing the UUT; wherein said updating the diagram to illustrate the second expansion state of the first component comprises replacing the first icon with a second icon representing the UUT.
- 52. The method of claim 1,
wherein the first component comprises a measurement device in the measurement system; wherein said displaying the diagram comprises displaying a first icon representing the measurement device; wherein said updating the diagram to illustrate the second expansion state of the first component comprises replacing the first icon with a second icon representing the measurement device.
- 53. The method of claim 1,
wherein one or more of the components in the measurement system correspond to physical devices; wherein said displaying the diagram comprises displaying an icon representing each component in the measurement system; wherein at least a portion of the icons in the diagram visually resemble physical devices in the measurement system.
- 54. The method of claim 1,
wherein one or more of the components in the measurement system correspond to units under test (UUTs); wherein said displaying the diagram comprises displaying an icon representing each UUT in the measurement system; wherein each icon representing a UUT visually resembles the respective UUT.
- 55. The method of claim 1,
wherein one or more of the components in the measurement system correspond to hardware chassis; wherein said displaying the diagram comprises displaying an icon representing each hardware chassis in the measurement system; wherein each icon representing a hardware chassis visually resembles a hardware chassis.
- 56. The method of claim 1,
wherein the diagram illustrates a computer-controlled measurement system operable to acquire measurement information from a unit under test (UUT).
- 57. A computer-implemented method for viewing a measurement system, the method comprising:
displaying a diagram on a display, wherein the diagram includes a plurality of icons representing components of the measurement system; receiving first user input to a first icon in the diagram, wherein the first icon indicates first information regarding a first component in the measurement system, wherein the first user input indicates a desire to expand the first icon; and expanding the first icon in response to the first user input, wherein said expanding the first icon comprises re-displaying the first icon such that the first icon indicates second information regarding the first component in the measurement system, wherein the second information comprises more information than the first information.
- 58. The method of claim 57,
wherein the first component comprises a hardware device; wherein the first icon comprises an illustration of the hardware device.
- 59. The method of claim 57,
wherein said re-displaying the first icon comprises replacing the first icon with a second icon.
- 60. The method of claim 57, further comprising:
receiving second user input to the first icon in the diagram, wherein the second user input indicates a desire to expand the first icon again; and expanding the first icon again in response to the second user input, wherein said expanding the first icon again comprises re-displaying the first icon such that the first icon indicates third information regarding the first component in the measurement system, wherein the third information comprises more information than the second information.
- 61. The method of claim 57,
wherein the diagram further comprises a plurality of connection icons visually indicating coupling relationships between components of the measurement system, wherein each connection icon connects two icons on the diagram.
- 62. The method of claim 57, further comprising:
creating the diagram in response to user input.
- 63. A computer-implemented method comprising:
displaying a first component of a measurement system, wherein the first component has one or more child components, wherein the first component has a plurality of possible expansion states, wherein said displaying the first component comprises displaying the first component in a first expansion state, wherein said displaying the first component in the first expansion state does not include displaying the one or more child components of the first component; receiving first user input to the first component to expand the first component; and expanding the first component in response to the first user input, wherein said expanding the first component comprises displaying at least a subset of the one or more child components of the first component.
- 64. The method of claim 63,
wherein the first component comprises a hardware chassis; wherein the one or more child components comprise one or more modules in the hardware chassis; and wherein said expanding the first component comprises displaying at least a subset of the one or more modules.
- 65. The method of claim 63,
wherein the first component comprises a hardware device; wherein the one or more child components comprise one or more channels of the hardware device; and wherein said expanding the first component comprises displaying at least a subset of the channels.
- 66. The method of claim 63,
wherein the first component comprises a subsystem of the measurement system; wherein the one or more child components comprises one or more components in the subsystem.
- 67. The method of claim 63,
wherein said displaying the first component in the first expansion state comprises displaying a first wire connected to the first component; and wherein said expanding the first component further comprises expanding the first wire to display a plurality of wires, wherein each wire in the plurality of wires is connected to one of the displayed child components.
- 68. The method of claim 63,
wherein said displaying the at least a subset of the one or more child components of the first component includes displaying a first child component of the first component; wherein the method further comprises: receiving second user input to the first child component to expand the first child component; and expanding the first child component in response to the second user input, wherein said expanding the first child component comprises re-displaying the first child component so that additional information regarding the first child component is visible.
- 69. The method of claim 68,
wherein said displaying the first child component comprises displaying a first wire connected to the first child component; wherein said expanding the first child component comprises:
displaying a plurality of child components of the first child component; and expanding the first wire to display a plurality of wires, wherein each wire in the plurality of wires is connected to one of the displayed child components of the first child component.
- 70. The method of claim 68, further comprising:
receiving third user input to the first component to collapse the first component; collapsing the first component in response to the third user input, wherein said collapsing the first component comprises removing child components of the first component from view.
- 71. The method of claim 70,
wherein the first child component is in a first expansion state after said expanding the first child component in response to the second user input; wherein the method further comprises saving state information specifying the first expansion state of the first child component in response to the third user input to the first component to collapse the first component; wherein the state information is usable to restore the first child component in the first expansion state in the event that subsequent user input to re-expand the first component is received.
- 72. The method of claim 71, further comprising:
receiving fourth user input to the first component to expand the first component; and expanding the first component in response to the fourth user input, wherein said expanding the first component includes displaying the first child component of the first component in the first expansion state.
- 73. The method of claim 63,
wherein the first component comprises a physical component with a physical appearance; and wherein said displaying the first component in the first expansion state comprises displaying an illustration indicating the physical appearance of the first component.
- 74. The method of claim 73,
wherein the one or more child components of the first component comprise physical components having physical appearances; and wherein said displaying the at least a subset of the one or more child components comprises displaying illustrations indicating the physical appearances of the at least a subset of the one or more child components.
- 75. The method of claim 63, further comprising:
displaying a plurality of other components of the measurement system; and displaying one or more connections from the first component to one or more of the other components of the measurement system.
PRIORITY INFORMATION
[0001] This application claims the benefit of priority of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/403,135, titled “Icon to Represent Unspecified Component in a Measurement System,” whose inventors were Kamran Shah, Jeffrey L. Kodosky and David W Fuller III, filed on Aug. 13, 2002.
[0002] This application also claims the benefit of priority of U.S. Provisional Application No. 60/403,822 titled “Icon to Represent Unspecified Component in a Measurement System,” whose inventors were Kamran Shah, Jeffrey L. Kodosky, David W Fuller, Brian Sierer and Jeff Correll, filed on Aug. 15, 2002.
Provisional Applications (2)
|
Number |
Date |
Country |
|
60403135 |
Aug 2002 |
US |
|
60403822 |
Aug 2002 |
US |