Patent US4761565A successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
Patent US5821936A successfully refreshed from Google Patents.
← Back to Patent Explorer
US5821936A Expired / Lapsed US ⏱️ 0.0 years remaining

Interface method and system for sequencing display menu items

Assignee: SIEMENS ENTERPRISE COMMUNICATIONS Inc
•
Filing: 1995-11-20
•
Granted: 1998-10-13
•
Expires: 2015-11-20
📄 Original PDF 🌐 Google Patents 🔄 Sync Now

Abstract

Abstract A method and system of sequencing menu items of a menu-driven user/system interface includes a resequencing of the menu items in response to the frequency of selection and/or a shift in the primary responsibility of a user. In one embodiment, an initial sequence of the serially presented menu items is stored. The selection of each menu item is counted. The menu items are then rearranged to provide a frequency-based order that presents the most often selected items before the less likely to be selected menu items. The step of resequencing the menu items may be limited to input of a resequencing command by a user or may be limited to predetermined time periods. As another optional feature, the "learning" that occurs by counting the selections can be downloaded from one system and uploaded to another system. In a second embodiment, the rearrangement is task-based. Depending upon the task assigned to the user or depending upon the mode of operation of the system, the menu items are arranged, again with the goal of presenting the most often selected menu items at the beginning of the progression.

Inventors

  • 👤 Shmuel Shaffer
  • 👤 Neufito Fernandes

Bibliographic Details

Application Number —
Jurisdiction US
Data Source google_patents
Last Synchronized 2026-11-02 07:53
CPC Classifications
H; H04; H04M; H04M1/00; H04M1/247; H04M1/2477; G; G06; G06F; G06F3/00; G06F3/01; G06F3/048; G06F3/0481; G06F3/0482

Claims Analysis

Total Claims: 12
Claim 1
Independent Claim 155 words
A method of sequencing menu items of a menu-driven user/system interface comprising steps of: establishing an initial sequence for serially presenting menu items to a user for selection of at least one menu item to the exclusion of other menu items; preselecting a period of time within which said menu items are to be presented in said initial time sequence; monitoring user selection of said menu items; recording each said user selection of said menu items over said preselected period of time; reordering presentation of said menu items in response to said step of monitoring user selection such that an adapted sequence is established based upon frequency of selection of said menu items, said step of reordering said presentation being executed only after said preselected period of time; and initiating a serial presentation of said menu items in an order defined by said adapted time sequence in which all of said menu items are included.
Claim 2
Independent Claim 155 words
A method of sequencing menu items of a menu-driven user/system interface comprising steps of: establishing an initial sequence for serially presenting menu items to a user for selection of at least one menu item to the exclusion of other menu items; preselecting a period of time within which said menu items are to be presented in said initial time sequence; monitoring user selection of said menu items; recording each said user selection of said menu items over said preselected period of time; reordering presentation of said menu items in response to said step of monitoring user selection such that an adapted sequence is established based upon frequency of selection of said menu items, said step of reordering said presentation being executed only after said preselected period of time; and initiating a serial presentation of said menu items in an order defined by said adapted time sequence in which all of said menu items are included.
Claim 3
Dependent Claim 30 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said step of reordering said presentation is executed periodically, thereby defining an adapted time sequence after each passage of said preselected period of time.
Claim 4
Dependent Claim 33 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said step of reordering said presentation is executed upon a user inputting a command to initiate said reordering based upon said selections over said period of time.
Claim 5
Dependent Claim 31 words
The method of claim 1 wherein each serial presentation of said menu items includes a step of displaying menu options in a one-by-one fashion on a screen of a display telephone.
Claim 6
Dependent Claim 25 words
The method of claim 1 further comprising disabling said step of reordering said presentation, thereby re-establishing said initial sequence for serially presenting said menu items.
Claim 7
Dependent Claim 46 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said step of monitoring user selection includes storing in memory each selection of one of said menu items such that each menu item is associated with a count that is incrementally increased upon each selection of said each menu item.
Claim 8
Dependent Claim 95 words
The method of claim 1 wherein said menu items are main menu items in which selection of at least one main menu item initiates a display of a subroutine of submenu items, said method further comprising steps of: (a) serially presenting said subroutine for selection of at least one submenu item to the exclusion of other ones of said submenu items; (b) monitoring user selection of said submenu items; and (c) reordering said submenu items for subsequent serial presentations of said subroutine items, with reordering being based upon frequency of selection of said submenu items.
Claim 9
Independent Claim 156 words
A method of adaptively sequencing menu options of a user interface comprising steps of: (a) displaying menu options in a sequential manner in which less than all of said menu options are displayed at a single time; (b) for a number of different times, repeating step (a) of displaying said menu options; (c) during each of steps (a) and (b) of displaying said menu options, counting the number of times each menu option is selected; (d) based upon said step (c) of counting, arranging said menu options in a frequency-based order that is responsive to frequency of selection of said menu options, wherein said arranging of said menu options in a frequency-based order includes all of said menu options and is initiated by a first occurrence of a user-initiated command and expiration of a preselected time period; and (e) repeating steps (a), (b) and (c) such that displaying said menu options is in said frequency-based order.
Claim 10
Independent Claim 156 words
A method of adaptively sequencing menu options of a user interface comprising steps of: (a) displaying menu options in a sequential manner in which less than all of said menu options are displayed at a single time; (b) for a number of different times, repeating step (a) of displaying said menu options; (c) during each of steps (a) and (b) of displaying said menu options, counting the number of times each menu option is selected; (d) based upon said step (c) of counting, arranging said menu options in a frequency-based order that is responsive to frequency of selection of said menu options, wherein said arranging of said menu options in a frequency-based order includes all of said menu options and is initiated by a first occurrence of a user-initiated command and expiration of a preselected time period; and (e) repeating steps (a), (b) and (c) such that displaying said menu options is in said frequency-based order.
Claim 11
Dependent Claim 28 words
The method of claim 8 wherein said steps of displaying said menu options are steps of presenting said menu options on a display screen of a display telephone.
Claim 12
Dependent Claim 27 words
The method of claim 8 further comprising a step of permitting a user to disable said step (d) of arranging said menu options in a frequency-based order.

References Cited (Backward Citations)

US5420975A Cited
US5465358A Cited
US5396264A Cited
US5625783A Cited

USPTO Annuity & Maintenance Windows

Annuity Stage Window Opens Payment Deadline Surcharge Period Until Estimated Fee Status
3.5 Years (Year 4) 2001-10-12 2002-04-13 2002-10-13 $2000.00 Window Closed / Lapsed
7.5 Years (Year 8) 2005-10-12 2006-04-13 2006-10-13 $3760.00 Window Closed / Lapsed
11.5 Years (Year 12) 2009-10-12 2010-04-13 2010-10-13 $7700.00 Window Closed / Lapsed

Assigned Categories & Tags

No categories assigned to this patent yet.

Assign Category Tag