US5742836A
Expired / Lapsed
US
⏱️ 0.0 years remaining
Graphical programming system and methods with user interface
Assignee: Borland Software Corp
•
Filing: 1995-12-28
•
Granted: 1998-04-21
•
Expires: 2015-12-28
Abstract
Abstract A system for creation and completion of goal oriented electronic forms creates a graphical image data file which defines: a graphical image of a form for display and printing; a graphical image of tree branches, tree nodes, and conclusions in association with fields of the form; reading and writing links between form fields and data sources and destinations; and links to other forms which, with the original form, comprise a related stack of forms. The system includes a form creation mode and a run time mode. The trees are defined by an application developer using the form creation mode to establish both qualitative and quantitative relationships between the various fields on the forms thereby providing the basis for the goal oriented prompting for the application user using the run time mode.
Inventors
- 👤 William Monroe Turpin
- 👤 Kevin Lane Brown
- 👤 Steven Ward Bogrett
Bibliographic Details
Application Number
—
Jurisdiction
US
Data Source
google_patents
Last Synchronized
2026-10-29 15:37
CPC Classifications
G; G06; G06F; G06F8/00; G06F8/30; G06F8/34; G06F40/00; G06F40/10; G06F40/166; G06F40/174
Claims Analysis
Total Claims: 28
Claim 1
Independent Claim
149 words
A development system for creating application software, the system comprising: a computer having a processor and a memory; a screen display for displaying a form for presenting screen objects on a screen display; input means for placing selected ones of the objects at desired positions on the form, said objects being responsive to events occurring in the system, said objects including at least one field for receiving information; means for displaying at least one visual image graphically representing program logic to be followed in response to occurrence of particular ones of said events, said at least one visual image including an image of at least one decision tree displayed on the screen display in response to at least one event relating to said field; and means for inputting by a user the program logic to be followed by the application software by modifying said at least one visual image.
Claim 2
Dependent Claim
149 words
A development system for creating application software, the system comprising: a computer having a processor and a memory; a screen display for displaying a form for presenting screen objects on a screen display; input means for placing selected ones of the objects at desired positions on the form, said objects being responsive to events occurring in the system, said objects including at least one field for receiving information; means for displaying at least one visual image graphically representing program logic to be followed in response to occurrence of particular ones of said events, said at least one visual image including an image of at least one decision tree displayed on the screen display in response to at least one event relating to said field; and means for inputting by a user the program logic to be followed by the application software by modifying said at least one visual image.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim
12 words
The system of claim 1, wherein said events comprise user input events.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim
11 words
The system of claim 1, wherein said events comprise non-user events.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim
12 words
The system of claim 3, wherein said non-user events comprise function events.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim
36 words
The system of claim 1, wherein said at least one visual image includes an image of at least one decision tree displayed on the screen display for defining specific operations to be performed by the system.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim
17 words
The system of claim 1, wherein said screen objects include selected ones of text and graphic objects.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim
25 words
The system of claim 1, wherein said screen objects include properties, selected ones of which may be altered by a user with said input means.
Claim 9
Dependent Claim
38 words
The system of claim 1, wherein said screen objects comprise static and dynamic objects, the static objects including selected ones of text and graphic objects, and the dynamic objects including said at least one field for receiving information.
Claim 10
Dependent Claim
20 words
The system of claim 1, wherein said at least one field receives information from data entered with said input means.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim
50 words
The system of claim 1, further comprising: means for establishing a data link between said at least one field and at least one external data source; and means for reading information from said at least one external data source, wherein information read is stored in said at least one field.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim
31 words
The system of claim 1, wherein each said at least one decision tree includes a plurality of branches, each of which specifies alternate operations to be performed by the application software.
Claim 13
Dependent Claim
37 words
The system of claim 11, wherein each branch is associated with one of said at least one field and includes at least one condition specifying circumstances by which the operations of the branch are to be performed.
Claim 14
Dependent Claim
41 words
The system of claim 11, further comprising: means for associating a branch object with one of said at least one field; and means for storing with the branch object at least one condition applicable to the associated at least one field.
Claim 15
Dependent Claim
48 words
The system of claim 13, further comprising: means for testing a condition of the branch object upon storage of information in the associated at least one field; and means for performing operations specified by the branch of the associated at least one field if the condition holds true.
Claim 16
Dependent Claim
132 words
An improved method for creating application software, the improvement comprising; displaying a form for presenting screen objects on a screen display; in response to first user input, placing selected objects at desired positions on the form, said objects including at least one field for receiving information; in response to second user input, creating and displaying a visual image graphically representing a decision tree associated with a given field, the decision tree representing program logic to be followed in connection with determining a value to be stored in the given field; and in response to third user input that modifies the visual image graphically representing the decision tree associated with the given field, modifying the program logic to be followed in connection with determining a value to be stored in the given field.
Claim 17
Dependent Claim
132 words
An improved method for creating application software, the improvement comprising; displaying a form for presenting screen objects on a screen display; in response to first user input, placing selected objects at desired positions on the form, said objects including at least one field for receiving information; in response to second user input, creating and displaying a visual image graphically representing a decision tree associated with a given field, the decision tree representing program logic to be followed in connection with determining a value to be stored in the given field; and in response to third user input that modifies the visual image graphically representing the decision tree associated with the given field, modifying the program logic to be followed in connection with determining a value to be stored in the given field.
Claim 18
Dependent Claim
26 words
The method of claim 15, further comprising: for a selected field, defining an event tree specifying actions to be taken in response to occurrence of events.
Claim 19
Dependent Claim
18 words
The method of claim 16, wherein said events include selected ones of mouse event and a keyboard event.
Claim 20
Dependent Claim
15 words
The method of claim 17, wherein said mouse event includes at least one mouse click.
Claim 21
Dependent Claim
14 words
The method of claim 16, wherein said actions include at least one event function.
Claim 22
Dependent Claim
21 words
The method of claim 19, wherein said at least one event function performs a linking function for modifying an external database.
Claim 23
Dependent Claim
25 words
The method of claim 19, wherein at least one of said actions performs a menu customization function for modifying a menu of the application software.
Claim 24
Dependent Claim
22 words
The method of claim 19, wherein at least one of said actions includes executing a routine from a dynamically linked library (DLL).
Claim 25
Dependent Claim
31 words
The method of claim 15, wherein each said at least one decision tree includes a plurality of branches, each of which specifies alternate operations to be performed by the application software.
Claim 26
Dependent Claim
37 words
The method of claim 23, wherein each branch is associated with one of said at least one field and includes at least one condition specifying circumstances by which the operations of the branch are to be performed.
Claim 27
Dependent Claim
37 words
The method of claim 23, further comprising: associating a branch object with one of said at least one field; and storing with the branch object at least one condition applicable to the associated at least one field.
Claim 28
Dependent Claim
44 words
The method of claim 25, further comprising: testing a condition of the branch object upon storage of information in the associated at least one field; and performing operations specified by the branch of the associated at least one field if the condition holds true.
References Cited (Backward Citations)
US4956773A
Cited
US4813013A
Cited
US4710763A
Cited
US4733354A
Cited
EP0211151A2
Cited
US4831580A
Cited
US4912669A
Cited
US4984180A
Cited
US4866634A
Cited
US4821211A
Cited
US5091868A
Cited
US4982344A
Cited
US5008810A
Cited
US5047960A
Cited
US5208907A
Cited
US5297250A
Cited
US5179652A
Cited
US5367619A
Cited
US5327529A
Cited
US5293615A
Cited
US5600778A
Cited
USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows
| Annuity Stage | Window Opens | Payment Deadline | Surcharge Period Until | Estimated Fee | Status |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 3.5 Years (Year 4) | 2001-04-20 | 2001-10-20 | 2002-04-21 | $2000.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 7.5 Years (Year 8) | 2005-04-20 | 2005-10-20 | 2006-04-21 | $3760.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |
| 11.5 Years (Year 12) | 2009-04-20 | 2009-10-20 | 2010-04-21 | $7700.00 | Window Closed / Lapsed |