NL2012945B1

NL2012945B1 - Method and system for dividing a number into shares.

Info

Publication number: NL2012945B1
Application number: NL2012945A
Authority: NL
Inventors: Niknam Ali; De Jong Thijs; Alexandrovich Novitsky Sergey
Original assignee: Bunq B V
Priority date: 2014-06-04
Filing date: 2014-06-04
Publication date: 2016-06-22

Abstract

A computer-implemented method of acquiring input through a touch-screen interface dividing a given total number into a given set of shares, the method comprising a) presenting a geometrical shape on the touch-screen interface and dividing the area covered by the geometrical shape into a number of subareas of equal size, each subarea corresponding to one share, b) receiving from the touch-screen interface an input indicative of enlarging a first subarea with a given amount relative to a second subarea adjacent to the first subarea, c) increasing the size of the first subarea and correspondingly decreasing the size of the second subarea in proportion to the given amount, d) upon receiving an input indicative of completion, calculating each share from the given set of shares as the size of each corresponding subarea.

Description

Method and system for dividing a number into shares

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

The invention relates to a computer-implemented method of acquiring input through a touch-screen interface dividing a given total number into a given set of shares.

The invention further relates to a device having a touch-screen interface and a computer-readable nonvolatile storage medium comprising executable code for causing the device to execute the method of the invention, and to a computer-readable nonvolatile storage medium comprising executable code for causing a computer to operate as the device of the invention.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The rise of smartphones and other mobile devices is enormous. It is estimated over 1.5 billion such devices have been sold by the end of 2013. Smartphones and other mobile devices are ubiquitous, especially thanks to the huge variety of applications (“apps”) offered for these devices. For almost any application or field there is a multitude of apps to make life easier, entertain people or provide an otherwise useful service.

The limited screen space or keyboard size creates new challenges for developers of applications for such devices. For example, entering text or numbers is generally perceived as difficult as small symbols have to be manipulated with a relatively big finger or special stylus. This is true in particular where plural numbers have to be managed, as is the case in finance-related applications.

One such application is the kind of app that supports a group of people that need to split a restaurant bill. While the basic problem of dividing a total amount by the number of people is trivial, splitting becomes much more complicated quickly once special requests are taken into account. One person may demand that his share does not take the wine into account, another has only $50 on him so cannot pay more, two others want to pay the same amount and so on. Calculating the value of the various shares in this manner on the screen of a mobile device is far from easy with current input methods for such devices.

Of course this problem is not restricted to restaurant bills: this has application in any area where a number needs to be divided into shares subject to various restrictions. Inputting such a division using a touch-screen interface is not a trivial matter.

One app that provides functionality in this area is provided by the ABN Amro bank of the Netherlands. Fig. 1(a) and 1(b) show how a total amount is entered and a number of participants are added below the total. Initially, Fig. 1(a), the total of €15,00 as shown is divided into three equal shares of €5,00 each. The user can select any participant and change that participant’s share to any amount, as shown in Fig. 1(b) where the first share is increased to €10 and the second and third shares are reduced accordingly to € 2,50 each. If an amount is changed for one participant, the shares of all other participants are recalculated as equal parts of the remainder of the total minus the changed amount.

This input method has the inherent disadvantage that if two amounts need to be changed, the first amount is recalculated after the second amount is changed, losing the original change. This disadvantage is inherent, as the app approaches the shares as essentially unrelated numbers: they just have to add up to the given total. Thus, if one share is increased, the difference must come from somewhere. In this situation, the only solution is to take equal parts of the difference from everyone else.

The developers of the ABN Amro app have added a ‘lock’ feature that is designed to avoid this behaviour. When the user changes an amount, that amount is automatically locked and does not change if further amounts are changed. The total amount of the bill, however, is not locked. So if the user changes an amount in addition to the already locked amount, and those amounts exceed the total of the (initial) bill, the total changes accordingly. This similarly applies when all shares are locked and the total of those shares do not add up to the total of the bill (that then decreases accordingly). That is not very convenient when splitting an already paid bill.

If the user subsequently unlocks a share, the amount thereof is recalculated as equal parts of the remainder of the new total minus the locked amount(s). This is not a very intuitive manner of preventing the disadvantage noted. It is cumbersome to have to remember to first unlock a share if you want to revisit it and want to prevent the total amount from changing. Similarly, it is difficult to recover from accidentally having filled in a wrong high amount since the total is then recalculated immediately and unlocking the share has the result that it is recalculated as equal parts of the remainder of the new total minus (other) locked amounts.

The technical problem to be solved by the invention thus is how to receive input indicative of division of a given total number into a given set of shares using a touch- screen interface, which avoids the need for recalculating all further shares upon increasing or decreasing one given share.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The invention provides a method as noted above that reduces technical complexity and facilitates the division in an intuitive and convenient manner.

First, a geometrical shape is presented on the touch-screen interface. The area covered by the geometrical shape is divided into a number of subareas of equal size, each subarea corresponding to one share. Preferably the geometrical shape is a circle and the subareas represent pie elements in the circle. This manner of presentation is colloquially known as a ‘pie chart’ and is very easy to recognize, understand and manipulate in the manner envisaged by the invention.

Next, input is received from the touch-screen interface that is indicative of enlarging a first subarea with a given amount relative to a second subarea adjacent to the first subarea. The input may for example be provided as an amount designated via a numeric spinner or typed on a numeric keyboard provided as is known on the touchscreen interface. Alternatively or in addition arrows to increase or decrease the size of subareas may be provided, or the border between two subareas itself may be moved to establish a new division.

Based on the input, the size of the first subarea is increased and the size of the second subarea is decreased in proportion to the given amount. This provides an intuitive manner of manipulating shares: increase one area by a given amount, and the next area decreases correspondingly. No other areas are affected, which reduces the impact of accidental actions. This avoids recalculating the amounts to be allocated to those other areas, saving CPU efforts. Further, no cumbersome ‘locking’ is necessary to avoid accidents. If the wrong subarea is increased, one can just decrease it.

The above input may of course be received multiple times for different first and adjacent second areas. Finally, upon receiving an input indicative of completion, each share is calculated from the given set of shares as the size of each corresponding subarea.

The invention solves the abovementioned technical problem by creating a visual relationship between two shares and exploits this relationship to allow the user to simply choose where an increase must come from. There no longer is a need to take equal parts of the difference from everyone else, as in the prior art, as it is now known which other subarea/share is to be decreased.

The choice of geometrical shape and manner in which the subareas are drawn in the shape determines how many relationships between shares can be created. When the preferred pie chart is used, each share has a relationship with two other shares.

In an embodiment in step b) the input indicative of enlarging is provided by increasing a number representing the given amount through rotation of a numeric spinner, and in step c) the size of the first and second subareas are increased and correspondingly decreased in proportion to the amount thus increased. This embodiment has the advantage that it is very easy to understand: to increase or decrease someone’s share, just rotate the numeric spinner and the corresponding area of the geometrical shape increases accordingly.

In another embodiment in step b) the input indicative of enlarging is provided by dragging a border between the first and second subarea a given distance into the second subarea, and in step c) the sizes of the first and second subareas are increased and correspondingly decreased in proportion to the given distance. This embodiment has the advantage that it is very visual: to increase or decrease someone’s share, just drag to enlarge or reduce the corresponding area of the geometrical shape. This type of input is especially easy to provide on a touch-screen interface and thus provides a natural manner for the type of input envisaged by the invention.

In a further embodiment in step c) not only the size of the second subarea is decreased in proportion to the given amount but also a third subarea that is adjacent to the second subarea. In a refinement of this embodiment not only the third subarea but also one or more further subareas connected directly or indirectly to the second subarea are decreased in proportion to the given amount. This has the advantage that one can manipulate plural subareas at once.

In a further embodiment the method further comprises in case the size of the second subarea is reduced to zero, further decreasing a third subarea that is adjacent to the second subarea in proportion to the given distance. As described above an increase of the first subarea affects the adjacent second subarea. Should this second subarea become equal to zero, it cannot be decreased in size further. Therefore it is advantageous to apply a further decrease to the third subarea.

In a further embodiment the method comprises upon receiving a predetermined further input indicative of dragging a given subarea as such over any border between that subarea and any other subarea, rearranging the locations of the given subarea and the other subarea. The invention only permits the increasing and decreasing of the sizes of adjacent subareas. This embodiment permits the rearranging of the subareas as such.

In a further embodiment the method comprises further upon calculating each share initiating payment transactions of amounts equal to each share to a given bank account. This gains the additional advantage of making it easier to take the next step: complete the visual division of shares and have the money transferred automatically.

The invention further provides for a device having a touch-screen interface and a computer-readable nonvolatile storage medium comprising executable code for causing the device to execute the method of the invention, and for a computer-readable nonvolatile storage medium comprising executable code for causing a computer to operate as the device of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE FIGURES

The invention will now be explained in more detail with reference to the figures, in which:

Fig. 1(a) and 1(b) show a prior art input method;

Fig. 2 schematically illustrates the input method of the invention;

Fig. 3(a) and 3(b) show an embodiment of the input method as shown on a touch-screen interface;

Fig. 4(a), 4(b) and 4(c) schematically illustrates a particular use case;

Fig. 5 schematically illustrates a device configured for executing the method of the invention.

In the figures, same reference numbers indicate same or similar features. In cases where plural identical features, objects or items are shown, reference numerals are provided only for a representative sample so as to not affect clarity of the figures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF CERTAIN EMBODIMENTS

Fig. 2 schematically illustrates the input method of the invention. The method starts at 200. Using the method, a given total number is to be divided into a given set of shares. Example applications of the invention include splitting a bill at a restaurant into shares which each attendant has to pay, or splitting a number of boxes to be transported into shares which each truck has to carry.

The method is computer-implemented and assumes a device having a touchscreen interface. Typical devices of this kind are smartphones, tablets and the like. In step 210, the method presents a geometrical shape on the touch-screen interface. The shape is preferably a circle, but could also be a rectangle or any other geometrical shape. The area of the shape as shown on the touch-screen interface is divided into a number of subareas of equal size. Each subarea corresponds to one of the given set of shares. For example if three people eat at a restaurant, a circular area could be divided into three equal parts in the well-known manner of the pie chart. With four trucks to be loaded with boxes, a square area could be split into four equally-sized smaller squares. A practical illustration of an embodiment is provided in Fig. 3(a). Here a total bill of € 15,00 is split into three equal shares of € 5 each. The embodiment provides for a circular shape leaving an empty area in the middle. This area may be employed for displaying additional information. The division of the shape into the three subareas SI, S2, S3 is represented visually by applying different colours to the subareas.

In step 220 an input is received from the touch-screen interface. This input is indicative of enlarging a first subarea with a given amount relative to a second subarea adjacent to the first subarea. In response to the input, in step 230 the method adapts the subarea division of the geometrical shape as presented on the touch-screen interface. The increased size of the first subarea is calculated in proportion to the given amount. The size of the second subarea is decreased correspondingly. For example, if the shape represents a total of 100, and four shares of 25 were presented in step 210, an increase of the first subarea by 10% would mean a reduction by 10% as well of the second subarea.

In a first embodiment, the input indicative of enlarging is provided by increasing a number representing the given amount through rotation of a numeric spinner. Preferably the smallest step size for the spinner is made dependent on information such as the total amount to be divided and the location of the user of the invention. For example if the amount is in the hundreds, the smallest step size could be €5 or €10 instead of the theoretical minimum of € 0,01.

To operate the spinner, the user would first have to indicate for which share the input is to be made. In one embodiment the user to this end selects a subarea, preferably by tapping on it. This highlights the subarea and initiates the presentation of the spinner input element, providing a clear indication to the user that the spinner is to be used to increase (or decrease, as the case may be) the size of the subarea onto which the user tapped. In another embodiment the user selects from a menu or set of visual representations, e.g. photos of persons who participate in the division of the amount into shares. Selecting a photo would then result in selecting the share of that person.

This embodiment is shown in Fig. 3(a) where spinner 310 is provided. As shown the spinner is at an amount of € 4,78. The spinner is a known input element for smartphones, and provides for a display of numbers which increase or decrease with a dragging motion of a finger on a touch-sensitive display. This input elements allows for precise selection of a number. In the invention, one may accept each individual increase of a number on the spinner as an input indicative of enlarging the first subarea, or wait for a predetermined action that indicates the user has selected the desired number using plural operations of the spinner.

In this embodiment in step 230 the size of the first subarea is increased in proportion to the number thus provided using the spinner. The size of the second subarea is correspondingly decreased in proportion to this number. Fig. 3(b) shows a result of increasing the first subarea from €5 to €7,50: the second subarea is reduced to a size corresponding to €2,50.

This embodiment requires a predetermined arrangement for the selection of the second subarea relative to the first subarea. In embodiments with circular shapes, each share has two other shares adjacent to it. Preferably the area next to it clockwise is chosen. This is an intuitive choice for humans. Thus, an increase in SI would always reduce S2, an increase in S2 would always reduce S3 and an increase in S3 would always reduce S1. In a rectangle, the area to the right of the subarea being increased would be preferable.

Of course the method may also involve decreasing a subarea. The operations are exactly the same as above, but the question again arises which subarea to increase upon such decrease. A preferred choice is to again have the area clockwise next to it increase. In the example of Fig. 3(a), a decrease in SI would cause S2 to increase and a decrease in S3 would cause S1 to increase.

In a second embodiment, the input indicative of enlarging is provided by dragging a border between the first and second subarea a given distance into the second subarea. In this embodiment the size of the first and second subareas are increased and correspondingly decreased in proportion to the given distance that the border has been dragged. This embodiment provides for a visual operation on the geometrical shape itself. In practical terms, the user would press and hold on the border and perform a dragging motion onto the second subarea, releasing the pressure upon reaching the desired new location for the border. Preferably the effect of such dragging is shown in real time, which allows the user to immediately see the subarea ‘grow’ as he performs the dragging motion.

In this embodiment no particular choice needs to be made as to which subarea would be affected by the dragging of a border of the first subarea: the border by definition identifies the second subarea.

The method continues until in step 240 an input indicative of completion is received. In response, the method calculates in step 250 each share from the given set of shares as the size of each corresponding subarea. The method then ends in 260, providing the desired division of the total into the shares.

In a preferred embodiment, having calculated each share the method continues by initiating payment transactions of amounts equal to each share to a given bank account. In this manner the invention may find use in financial applications, such as personal finance management software allowing a person to split a restaurant bill and receive payments from his or her fellow attendees to the restaurant.

Various improvements and variations on the above may be thought of. For example, one might want to manipulate more than one subarea at once. In an embodiment therefore not only the size of the second subarea is decreased in proportion to the given amount but also a third subarea that is adjacent to the second subarea. Again, assume that the total area is 100 and four subareas of initial size of 25 each are provided. In this embodiment, an increase of the first subarea to 35 would imply a decrease of the second and third subareas to 20 each: the increase is 10 and the proportional decrease for each of these two subareas therefore is 5.

In a refinement of this embodiment not only the third subarea but also one or more further subareas connected directly or indirectly to the second subarea are decreased in proportion to the given amount. The number of further subareas can be chosen arbitrarily. One logical choice is all the other subareas. Taking the same example, an increase of the first subarea to 40 would then cause all the other subareas to reduce their size by 5 each, three areas of 5 being in proportion to an increase by 15 in the first area. In the application of splitting a restaurant bill, this refinement would be useful if a single member of the party wants to pay less: decreasing his share then increases the share of all others, keeping their mutual proportions intact.

It may be desirable to avoid increasing or decreasing a particular subarea. For example, if a particular amount has been selected and it is known that this number need not change, e.g. one restaurant visitor who only needs to pay a token €1. In an embodiment to this end, the method additionally comprises receiving a predetermined further input indicative of a relatively long actuation of a given subarea. In response to this further input, care is taken to prevent any border between that subarea and any other subarea from being dragged in any direction. Preferably if a dragging attempt on such a border is made, the entire area is moved and a subsequent area adjacent to that subarea is decreased in size instead. The so-called “long press” is a well-known input method for touch-screen interfaces, indicative of applying a special action to the area onto which it is applied. Here it is employed to allow the user to completely lock a subarea, preventing accidental dragging of borders of that subarea.

Of course the same manners of input can be provided to allow a decrease of the first subarea relative to the second subarea. Then in step 220 from the touch-screen interface an input is received indicative of reducing the first subarea with a given amount. The size of the first subarea is then decreased and the size of the second subarea is increased correspondingly in proportion to the given amount.

It may occur that the size of the second subarea is reduced to zero. Preferably this subarea is not removed completely from view. A simple indication, such as a one-pixel line may be provided to indicate to the user that this subarea technically still exists albeit covering an area of zero. This indication allows the user to remember that this particular share is set at zero yet the share as such exists. It also allows the user to select this share of zero size for the purpose of inputting an increase of the share.

In the event the second subarea is zero, and the user wishes to further increase the first subarea, in an embodiment a third subarea that is adjacent to the second subarea is decreased in proportion to the given distance. This proportion should take into account a predetermined size, preferably the original size, of the second subarea. For example, if the first subarea is 25 and the second and third subareas are 15 each, an increase of the first subarea by 15 would reduce the second to zero. A further increase of the first subarea by 5 would reduce the third subarea to 10.

Fig. 4 schematically illustrates the situation where the size of the second subarea is zero and the user decreases the size of the first subarea. Here the total area again is a circular shape, where three subareas SI, S2 and S3 are present. Subarea S2 however is of zero size, visually indicated by a thicker line than above between SI and S3. Subarea SI has actually been increased into the area previously occupied by S3 as well. Dotted lines dl and d2 indicate the original equal division between the three subareas.

If normally an increase to the first subarea would mean a decrease to the second subarea, it now appears logical that a decrease to the first subarea should create an increase of the second subarea. In Fig. 4(a), this would mean that moving, e.g. dragging, the thick line where S2 is located causes S2 to grow into area previously occupied by SI. This is shown in Fig. 4(b): subarea S2 now occupies a small space between the unchanged subarea S3 and the reduced SI.

However a surprisingly attractive alternative is to first increasing the third subarea, adjacent to the second in proportion to the given amount. Only once the third subarea has been increased to a given predetermined size, such as its original size, does the second subarea increase from zero. This is illustrated in Fig. 4(c): subarea S3 has increased in size to its original size, having its border at the location dl, and only next has subarea S2 started to grow. The loss in size for SI is equal in Fig. 4(b) and 4(c) but the increase in S2 is much smaller now.

In a further embodiment the method additionally provides for rearranging the locations of the subareas. It may be desirable upon receiving a predetermined further input indicative of dragging a given subarea as such over any border between that subarea and any other subarea, rearranging the locations of the given subarea and the other subarea.

Fig. 5 schematically illustrates a device 500 for performing the method of the invention. Device 500 comprises a touch-screen display interface 570 for displaying visual information and receiving input through touch. Device 500 further comprises a processor 580 for processing inputs and creating outputs. A non-volatile storage medium 590 stores executable instructions for use by the processor 580.

In accordance with the invention, the device 500 comprises area generator 510, input processor 520, area adjuster 530, finalizer 540 and result calculator 550. Area generator 510 is configured for presenting a geometrical shape on the touch-screen interface 570, corresponding to step 210 of the method. Input processor 520 is configured for receiving an input from the touch-screen interface 570, corresponding to step 220 of the method, and for an input indicative of completion, corresponding to step 240 of the method.

Area adjuster 530 is configured for adapting the subarea division of the geometrical shape as presented by area generator 510 on the touch-screen interface 570, corresponding to step 530 of the method. Finalizer 540 is configured for being triggered by the input processor 520 upon receipt of the input indicative of completion, and for triggering result calculator 550 which is configured for calculating each share from the given set of shares as the size of each corresponding subarea, corresponding to step 250 of the method.

The result calculator 550 may be configured for displaying the result on the touch-screen interface 570 and/or for supplying the calculated shares to another part of device 500 and/or to another external device.

The device 500 may be implemented as a mobile phone, tablet or similar device provided with a computer program, colloquially known as an app, to provide the functionality recited above.

CLOSING NOTES

The above provides a description of several useful embodiments that serve to illustrate and describe the invention. The description is not intended to be an exhaustive description of all possible ways in which the invention can be implemented or used. The skilled person will be able to think of many modifications and variations that still rely on the essential features of the invention as presented in the claims. In addition, well-known methods, procedures, components, and circuits have not been described in detail.

Some or all aspects of the invention may be implemented in a computer program product, i.e., a collection of computer program instructions stored on a computer readable storage device for execution by a computer. The instructions of the present invention may be in any interpretable or executable code mechanism, including but not limited to scripts, interpretable programs, dynamic link libraries (DLLs) or Java, PHP or Objective C classes. The instructions can be provided as complete executable programs, as modifications to existing programs or extensions (“plugins”) for existing programs.

Moreover, parts of the processing of the present invention may be distributed over multiple computers or processors for better performance, reliability, and/or cost.

Storage devices suitable for storing computer program instructions include all forms of non-volatile memory, including by way of example, semiconductor memory devices, such as EPROM, EEPROM, and flash memory devices, magnetic disks such as the internal and external hard disk drives and removable disks, magneto-optical disks and CD-ROM disks. The computer program product can be distributed on such a storage device, or may be offered for download through HTTP, FTP or similar mechanism using a server connected to a network such as the Internet. Transmission of the computer program product by e-mail is of course also possible.

When constructing or interpreting the claims, any mention of reference signs shall not be regarded as a limitation of the claimed feature to the referenced feature or embodiment. The use of the word “comprising” in the claims does not exclude the presence of other features than claimed in a system, product or method implementing the invention. Any reference to a claim feature in the singular shall not exclude the presence of a plurality of this feature. The word “means” in a claim can refer to a single means or to plural means for providing the indicated function.

Claims

A computer-implemented method for obtaining input from a touch-screen interface, which input divides a given total number into a given number of parts, which method comprises a) Presenting a geometric shape on the touch-screen interface and dividing the area covered by the geometric shape into a number of sub-sections of equal size, each sub-section corresponding to one part, b) Receiving the touch-screen interface an input indicative of enlarging a first sub-area by a given amount at least with respect to a second sub-area immediately adjacent to the first sub-area, c) Increasing the size of the first sub-area and correspondingly reducing the size of the second sub-area in proportion to the given amount, d) After receiving an input, indicative of completion calculate each part of the given set of parts as the size of the corresponding subareas.

The method of claim 1, wherein in step b) the input indicative of increasing is supplied by increasing a number that the given amount by rotation of a numeric turner, and in step c) the magnitude of the first and second subregions are enlarged and correspondingly reduced proportionally to the amount thus increased.

The method of claim 1, wherein in step b) the input indicative of the magnification is provided by dragging a boundary between the first and second sub-regions a given distance within the second sub-region, and in step c) the magnitude of the first and second subareas are enlarged and correspondingly reduced proportionally to the given distance.

The method of claim 1, wherein in step c) not only is the size of the second sub-area reduced in proportion to the given amount, but also a third sub-area adjacent to the second sub-area.

The method of claim 4, wherein not only the third subarea but also one or more further subareas that are directly or indirectly connected to the second subarea are reduced in proportion to the given amount.

The method of claim 1, further comprising in the case the size of the second sub-area is reduced to zero, further reducing a third sub-area adjacent to the second sub-area in proportion to the given amount.

The method of claim 1, further comprising steps d) receiving the touch screen interface, an input indicative of decreasing the first sub-area by a given amount and e) decreasing the size of the first sub-area and correspondingly increasing the size of the second sub-area in relation to the given amount.

The method of claim 7, further comprising in the case the size of the second sub-area is zero, firstly increasing a third sub-area in proportion to the given amount and only increasing the second sub-area in proportion to the given amount after the third sub-area is increased to a predetermined amount.

The method of claim 1, wherein the geometric shape is a circle and the sub-regions represent pie points in the circle.

The method of claim 1, further comprising upon receipt of a predetermined further input indicative of dragging a given subarea as such over a boundary between that subarea and any other subarea, rearranging the locations of the given subarea and the other sub-area.

The method of claim 1, further comprising after calculating each portion starting payment transactions for amounts equal to the portions to a given bank account number.

A device provided with a touch screen interface and a computer-readable non-volatile storage medium comprising executable instructions to cause the device to perform the method of claim 1.

A computer-readable non-volatile storage medium comprising executable code to make a computer function as the device of the preceding claim.