Method and system for providing multilingual text in an electric medical device

Claim 2

The method of claim 1 wherein the file containing the selected message expressed in each of the available languages further contains a plurality of other messages expressed in each of the available languages, and wherein the selected message expressed in each of the available languages and each of the plurality of other messages expressed in each of the available languages are each distinguished by a unique identifier, and wherein the retrieving step includes the step of identifying message expressed in the determined current language having unique identifier of the selected message.

Claim 3

The method of claim 2, further including the step of, before the step of determining that the selected message should be displayed, selecting the selected message from among the selected message and the other messages on the basis of a state of the computer program in which the message is to be displayed.

Claim 4

The method of claim 1 wherein the executable code is used by a user, further including the step of permitting the user to alter the current language.

Claim 5

In a computer program containing language-generalized executable code for controlling the operation of a electronic medical device, a method performed by the executable code for displaying one of a plurality of textual messages in any of a plurality of available languages, the method comprising the steps of: selecting a display language from among the plurality of available languages; selecting a display message for display from the plurality of textual messages, the display message reflecting the state of the computer program containing executable code; retrieving the display message in the display language from a file that contains substantially all of plurality of textual messages in substantially all of the plurality of available languages; and displaying the retrieved message.

Claim 6

The method of claim 5 in which the step of selecting a display language from among the plurality of available languages selects a display language in response to an indication from a user of the program of which of the plurality of available languages to select.

Claim 8

The method of claim 7 wherein the executable code is capable of displaying textual messages in three languages, further including the steps of: translating the text in each of the plurality of messages in the first language message file from the first language to a third language; and storing messages containing the text translated into the third language in a third language message file; and wherein the step of including steps in the executable code that reserve space for, initialize, and permit a user to change the value of a current language variable that holds the identity of one of the two languages in which text should be displayed includes the step of including steps in the executable code that reserve space for, initialize, and permit a user to change the value of a current language variable that holds the identity of one of the three languages in which text should be displayed.

Claim 9

In a computer program containing language-generalized executable code for controlling the operation of a electronic medical device, a method performed by the executable code for displaying a selected textual message in any of a plurality of available languages, the textual message containing a run-time value, the current language being any of the plurality of available languages, the method comprising the steps of: determining that the selected textual message should be displayed; in response to determining that the selected textual message should be displayed, determining the identity of a current language in which the selected message should be displayed; retrieving the selected textual message expressed in the current language from a file containing the message expressed in each of the available languages, the selected textual message expressed in the current language containing a placeholder at an arbitrary position within the selected textual message expressed in the current language; determining the current run-time value; replacing the placeholder in the retrieved message with the current run-time value; and displaying the retrieved message with the placeholder replaced by the current run-time value.

Claim 10

In a computer program containing language-generalized executable code for controlling the operation of a electronic medical device, a method performed by the executable code for displaying a selected textual message in any of a plurality of available languages, the textual message containing a plurality of run-time values, the method comprising the steps of: determining that the selected message should be displayed; in response to determining that the selected message should be displayed, identifying a current language in which the selected message should be displayed from among the available languages; retrieving the selected message expressed in the identified current language from a file containing the selected message expressed in each of the available languages, the selected message expressed in the current language containing a plurality of place holders, each placeholder associated with a run-time value and at an arbitrary position within the selected message expressed in the current language; while the retrieved message contains one or more place holders: selecting a placeholder in the retrieved message, determining the current run-time value with which the selected placeholder is associated, and replacing the selected placeholder in the retrieved message with the current run-time value; and displaying the retrieved message with the place holders replaced by the current run-time values with which the place holders are associated.

Claim 11

The method of claim 10 wherein the selected message expressed in the identified current language retrieved in the retrieving step contains the plurality of place holders occurring in a different order than the selected message expressed in a language other than the identified current language stored in the file containing the selected message expressed in each of the available languages.

Claim 12

An electronic medical device capable of displaying one of a plurality of textual messages in a plurality of available languages, the electronic medical device comprising: a memory for storing: a program for controlling the operation of the electronic medical device, therein selecting one of the plurality of textual messages to display, the plurality of textual messages in a plurality of available languages, and an indication of the available language in which to display textual messages; a user input device for setting the indication of the available language in which to display textual messages to indicate that textual messages should be displayed in a particular available language; and a display device for displaying the selected one of the plurality of textual messages in the language indicated by the indication of the available language in which to display textual messages.

Claim 13

The electronic medical device of claim 12 wherein the display device is a video monitor.

Claim 14

The electronic medical device of claim 12 wherein the user input device is a keyboard.

Claim 15

The electronic medical device of claim 12 wherein the user input device is a touch-sensitive video monitor.

Claim 16

The electronic medical device of claim 12, further including a processor for processing the program stored in the memory.

Claim 17

The electronic medical device of claim 16 wherein the memory further stores a program for inserting current information into the displayed textual message that is displayed on the display device, and wherein the processor processes the program for controlling the operation of the electronic medical device, therein selecting one of the plurality of textual messages to display and the program for inserting current information into the displayed textual message that is displayed on the display device, both stored in the memory.

Claim 18

The electronic medical device of claim 12 wherein the memory further stores a program for inserting current information into the displayed textual message that is displayed on the display device.