JP3498733B2 - Tree structure display editing device - Google Patents

Description

Detailed Description of the Invention

[0001]

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 1. Field of the Invention The present invention relates to an improvement of a tree structure display / editing apparatus for editing a tree structure consisting of a plurality of objects displayed on the screen of a display means and lines connecting the objects.

[0002]

2. Description of the Related Art A tree structure (directed tree) is a directed graph that does not have a cycle and has one node (root) that does not have any branch as an end point. Has exactly one branch ending at that node.

Conventionally, the tree structure has been used to express the dependency relationship, inheritance relationship, and the like of objects. That is, the object is a node, and the dependency relationship, the inheritance relationship, and the like are expressed by branches. By the way, the tree structure display editing device displays the tree structure on the screen using an electronic computer,
It is a device that interactively deletes, creates, adds, and moves objects in a tree.

In such a tree structure display / editing apparatus,
Conventionally, when moving an object, the following operations (1) and (2) have been performed.

(1) First, an object to be moved is selected, this is copied to a buffer on the memory, and this object is deleted from the screen. Next, a desired destination is selected, and the object copied in the buffer on the memory is pasted (pasted; Nu.
manufactured by ron Data, see NexpertObject).

(2) First, the object to be moved,
Select the branch that connects the parent and delete it. next,
Connect the parents of the desired destination with branches (Japanese Patent Application No. 2-202620)
No.).

[0007]

However, in the above-mentioned operation (1), the object to be moved is once erased from the screen, so the operator has to remember which object is currently moving. Instead, it imposes an extra burden on continuing intellectual work.

Further, in the above-mentioned operation (2), the moving object is always displayed on the screen, but when moving a plurality of objects to another parent, the number of branches is equal to the number of moving objects. It is necessary to repeatedly delete and combine, which is an extra burden for continuing the intellectual work.

The present invention has been made based on the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide a tree structure display / editing apparatus capable of realizing movement of a tree structure object with a small number of steps and reducing the burden on an operator. It is what

[0010]

In order to achieve the above object, the invention according to claim 1 edits a tree structure consisting of a plurality of objects displayed on the screen of the display means and branches connecting the objects. In a tree structure display / editing apparatus that uses a pointing device, the storage unit that stores the tree structure information to be displayed on the screen of the display unit and the coordinates of a pointer that moves on the screen according to an operation from the pointing device are displayed. Coordinate calculation means for calculating, menu display means for displaying on the screen an edit menu for an object on the screen of the display means specified by the pointing device, and disconnection processing is selected from the edit menu by the pointing device. Sometimes, the coordinate position of the pointer on the screen calculated by the coordinate calculating means and On the screen and disconnect objects
And a display driving means for creating a line to be connected and providing the display of the display means.

[0011]

In the tree structure display editing apparatus according to claim 1,
Currently, when a certain object is connected to another object based on a tree structure consisting of a plurality of objects displayed on the screen of the display means and a branch connecting the objects, the menu display means causes the operator to point
On the screen of the display device specified using the reading device.
Display the edit menu for the object on the screen.
This edit menu can be used for
This includes the process of connecting to the object. This state
When the operator selects the disconnection process,
A line connects the object specified by and the pointer.

[0012]

Embodiments of the present invention will now be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

The tree structure display / editing apparatus 1a according to the first embodiment of the present invention shown in FIG. 1 controls the entire tree structure display / editing apparatus 1a based on the program memory 2 storing the operation program and the operation program. Control unit (CP
U) 3 is provided with a control means 4, and the control part 3 is connected with a keyboard 6 and an operation means 7 made up of a mouse 5 which is one of the pointing devices. Mouse 5
A selection button 5a for selecting an object, an addition button 5b for adding an object, and a menu button 5c for selecting a menu are provided. It is of course possible to use a tablet, a trackball, an eye tracker, a stylus pen or the like instead of the mouse 5.

Further, the tree structure display / editing apparatus 1a includes a display means 8 selected from a CRT display, a liquid crystal display or the like for displaying a tree structure image. further,
A storage unit 9 that stores a large number of tree structure information to be displayed on the screen of the display unit 8 in the control unit 3 of the tree structure display editing apparatus 1a.
A coordinate calculating means 10 for calculating coordinates on the screen according to operation information from the mouse 5, and a searching means 11 for searching for another object that can be a parent of the moving object when moving the object. , Coordinate calculation means 10
Based on the information calculated by, the new tree structure information related to the selection, separation, movement and connection to other objects of each object corresponding to the operation information is edited, and the memory is stored based on the edited result. A tree structure editing unit 12 that updates the tree structure information stored in the unit 9 in correspondence with the operation information, and display pattern information is created according to the information from the search unit 11 and the editing status of the tree structure editing unit 12. The display drive means 13 is provided for displaying the display means 8.

Next, the operation of the above tree structure display / editing apparatus 1a will be described with reference to FIGS. 2 and 3 to 8. Initially, on the screen of the display means 8, as shown in FIG. 3, one base object 20 and three parent objects 21a,
21b, 21c and four child objects 22a, 22
b, 22c, 22d and three grandchild objects 23a,
23b and 23c are displayed in a state of being respectively connected by a branch 24, and the grandchild objects 23b and 23c are commonly connected to the child object 22d.

From this state, the grandchild objects 23b, 2
The following description will be made by taking the case where 3c is connected to the child object 22b as an example.

First, as shown in FIG. 4, the mouse 5 is operated, the pointer P is moved to the position of the grandchild object 23b, and the selection button 5a is pressed. Selection button 5 of this mouse 5
By pressing a, the coordinate calculation means 10 detects the coordinates of the grandchild object 23b designated by the pointer P on the screen (S1, S2), and sends the detected information to the control unit 3. As a result, the tree structure editing means 12 performs marking (coloring) indicating that the grandchild object 23b has been selected under the control of the control unit 3, separates the grandchild object 23b from the child object 22d, and Information control unit 3
To the display drive means 13 via. As a result, the display pattern is changed by the display driving means 13, and the grandchild object 23b is marked as shown in FIG. 4 to distinguish the selection (S3).

Next, the grandchild object 23c is marked by operating the add button 5b in the same manner as described above. This state is shown in FIG. That is, the state before the movement of the two grandchild objects 23a and 23b is as shown in FIG. Then, when the movement (drag) of the pointer P of the mouse 5 is started, the start information is the coordinate calculation means 10
Is detected (S4), the coordinates of movement of the pointer P are further detected (S5), and the detection results are sent to the search means 11 and the tree structure editing means 12.

The search means 11 uses the information detected by the coordinate calculation means 10 to move two grandchild objects 23b,
The nearest child object 22b to which 23c is to be connected is searched (S6), and the search result is sent to the display driving means 13. As a result, the display driving means 13 creates display pattern information of a line (dotted line) connecting the two moving grandchild objects 23b, 23c and the nearest child object 22b, and provides the display means 8 with the display. At the same time, the two moving grandchild objects 23b and 23c are also displayed on the display means 8. As a result, as shown in FIG. 7, the two moving grandchild objects 23b, 23c and the nearest child object 22b are connected by a line (dotted line) (S7, S8).

Next, the coordinate calculating means 10 detects the release of the mouse 5 (S9), and further searches for the nearest child object 22b again (S10). Based on these pieces of information, the tree structure editing means 12 has two grandchild objects 23b and 23c from the child object 22d before the movement.
Of the information of (S11), the child object 22 of the move destination
Addition of two grandchild objects 23b and 23c to b (S
12) Each editing is performed, and the coordinate calculation of all objects of the tree structure after the movement is executed (S13), and the result is sent to the display drive means 13 via the control unit 3 and stored in the storage means 9. On the other hand, the tree structure information is updated.

The display driving means 13 creates a display pattern of the tree structure after the movement and provides it to the display of the display means 8. As a result, as shown in FIG. 8, the grandchild objects 23b, 2
The tree structure after the movement in which 3c is connected to the child object 22b is displayed by the display means 8 (S14).

As described above, according to this embodiment, the grandchild objects 23b, 23 that are constantly moved with a small number of operations.
It is possible to connect to the target child object 22b while visually recognizing c, so that the intellectual labor of the operator can be reduced.

Next, a tree structure display editing apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to FIGS. 9 to 16. FIG. 9 is a block diagram of the tree structure display / editing apparatus 1b according to the second embodiment of the present invention. This embodiment is different from the first embodiment in that the searching means 11 of the first embodiment is different from the first embodiment.
The display of the screen based on the search means 11 is omitted, and the menu display means 21 and the connection means 22 are added. The menu display means 21 adds an edit screen, which means selection, separation, movement, connection to another object, and editing of a tree structure of each object on the screen of the display means 8 to the tree structure and displays it on the screen. . The connecting means 22 is
A pointer (index) P indicating the coordinate position on the screen of the mouse 5 when the object is separated and the separated object are connected by a line. Since the other configurations are almost the same as those of the first embodiment shown in FIG. 1, those having the same functions as those shown in FIG. 1 in FIG. Is omitted.

The operation of this embodiment will be described below with reference to the flowchart of FIG. 10 and FIGS. 11 to 16 as an example of the case where the grandchild objects 23b and 23c are connected to the child object 22b as in the first embodiment. I will explain.

Initially, as shown in FIG. 11, the display means 8
It is assumed that a tree structure similar to that shown in FIG. 3 is displayed on the screen. First, operate the mouse 5 to move the pointer P to the position of the grandchild object 23b to be moved,
When the menu button 5c is depressed, the depression of the menu button 5c is detected (S21), the coordinates of the depression position of the menu button 5c are detected (S22), and the node on which the menu button 5c is depressed is searched (S23). ), On the screen of the display means 8, as shown in FIG.
0 is displayed (S24).

In this state, the tree structure editing means 12 detects the menu selected by the operator with the pointer P (S25), and judges the content of the detected menu (S2).
6). When “select this node” is selected in step 26, the grandchild object 23 is displayed as shown in FIG. 12 in order to distinguish the selected object from other objects.
b is marked (colored) (S27), and it is determined in step 28 whether the menu button 5c has been pressed. In step 28, the mouse 5 is operated to move the position of the pointer P to a position other than the object or the branch, and the menu button 5c is pressed down.
And the menu is displayed. Then, the position where the menu is selected is detected by the menu button 5c (S2
5) Further, the content of the detected menu is judged (S).
26).

Next, when “separate from parent” in the menu is selected in step 26, the process proceeds to step 29,
The line (branch 24) connecting the grandchild object 23b and the child object 22d is deleted, and further, the movement of the pointer P is detected (S30), and the grandchild object 23b separated from the pointer P is displayed as shown in FIG. The line connecting (dotted line)
Is drawn by the connecting means 22 (S31). And
In step 32, it is determined whether the menu button 5c has been pressed. Here, when the same operation is performed on the grandchild object 23c, the display on the display means is in a state where the pointer P and the two grandchild objects 23b and 23c are connected by a dotted line, as shown in FIG.

In this way, the two grandchild objects 2
When the menu button 5c is pressed down in step 32 after separating 3b and 23c from the child object 22d, the process proceeds to step 24 and the menu is displayed.
Then, the position where the menu is selected by the menu button 5c is detected (S25), and the content of the detected menu is determined (S26).

When "Connect to this node" is selected by the pointer P as shown in FIG. 15 in step 26, the process proceeds to step 33, in which it is judged whether or not there is a separated object, and if there is a separated object, Is
Information on the two grandchild objects 23b and 23c is deleted from the child object 22d before the movement (S34), and the two grandchild objects 23b and 23b on the child object 22b at the movement destination.
The information of 23c is added (S35), each editing is performed, the coordinate calculation of all objects of the tree structure after movement is executed (S36), and these results are sent to the display drive means 13. The display drive means 13 creates a display pattern of the tree structure after the movement and provides the display of the display means 8. This allows
As shown in FIG. 16, the moving tree structure in which the grandchild objects 23b and 23c are connected to the child object 22b is displayed by the display means 8 (S31). Incidentally, step 33
If it is determined that there is no object separated by,
The process ends.

As described above, according to this embodiment, it is possible to connect the grandchild objects 23b and 23c to the intended child object 22b with a small number of operations and while referring to the menu screen, thereby reducing the intellectual effort. You can

After step 26, it is possible to perform other processing by selecting another operation (S36) from the menu.

The present invention is not limited to the above-mentioned embodiments, but various modifications can be made within the scope of the invention. For example, in the above two embodiments, the case where the grandchild object is moved has been described, but the child object may be moved. In this case, if the child object has a grandchild object, the grandchild object is also moved. Further, although the nearest child is selected as the target object to be connected, the present invention is not limited to this, and the target object to be connected may be selected based on the coordinate position of the pointer, the moving speed, and the like.

[0033]

As described above in detail, according to the present invention, since it is possible to connect to a target object while observing the editing screen with a small number of operations, it is possible to reduce intellectual labor. A structure display editing device can be provided.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of a tree structure display editing apparatus according to a first embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a flowchart showing the operation of the first embodiment device.

FIG. 3 is an explanatory diagram showing a state before selecting an object on a display unit in the first embodiment device.

FIG. 4 is an explanatory diagram showing an object selection state of a display unit in the first embodiment device.

FIG. 5 is an explanatory diagram showing a state in which two objects are selected by the display means in the apparatus of the first embodiment.

FIG. 6 is an explanatory diagram showing a state before moving two objects on the display unit in the first embodiment device.

FIG. 7 is an explanatory diagram showing a moving state of two objects on the display unit in the first embodiment device.

FIG. 8 is an explanatory diagram showing a state after movement of two objects on the display means in the apparatus of the first embodiment.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram of a tree structure display editing apparatus which is a second embodiment of the present invention.

FIG. 10 is a flowchart showing an operation of the second embodiment device.

FIG. 11 is an explanatory diagram showing a state before selecting an object in the apparatus of the second embodiment.

FIG. 12 is an explanatory diagram showing an object separation screen in the apparatus of the second embodiment.

FIG. 13 is an explanatory diagram showing a state after object separation in the apparatus of the second embodiment.

FIG. 14 is an explanatory diagram showing a state after separating two objects in the apparatus of the second embodiment.

FIG. 15 is an explanatory diagram of a state when two objects are connected to a movement destination in the device of the second embodiment.

FIG. 16 is an explanatory diagram of a state after moving two objects in the apparatus of the second embodiment.

[Explanation of symbols]

1a, 1b Tree structure display / editing device 4 Control means 5 mice 7 Operation means 8 display means 9 storage means 10 Coordinate calculation means 11 Search method 12 Tree structure editing means 13 Display drive means 21 Menu display means 22 Connection means

─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of front page (56) References JP-A-4-24733 (JP, A) JP-A-61-105673 (JP, A) (58) Fields investigated (Int.Cl. ⁷ , DB name) G06F 9/44 G06F 3/00 G06T 11/80

Claims (4)

(57) [Claims] 1. A tree structure display editing apparatus which edits a tree structure comprising a plurality of objects displayed on the screen of the display means and branches connecting the objects using a pointing device, wherein the screen of the display means is displayed. A storage unit that stores the tree structure information to be displayed, a coordinate calculation unit that calculates the coordinates of a pointer that moves on the screen in response to an operation from the pointing device, and a screen of the display unit designated by the pointing device. Menu display means for displaying the edit menu for the object on the screen, and when the disconnection process is selected from the edit menu by the pointing device, the coordinate position of the pointer on the screen calculated by the coordinate calculation means, and the disconnection It said the objects to create a line that connected by on the screen Tree structure display editing apparatus characterized in that a display drive means for providing a display of the shown section. 2. The display driving means is a pointer on a screen.
Connected the coordinate position of and the separated object with a line
After that, for another object on the screen of the display means
Then, the detach process was selected again from the edit menu.
Sometimes the pointer on the screen calculated by the coordinate calculation means
The line between the coordinate position of and the newly separated object
Tree structure display editing apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the coupling. 3. Connected to one or more objects
The object specified by the
Then, when the concatenation process is selected from the edit menu, the
Child object of the object specified by the interface
One or more objects concatenated with pointers as
Edit processing to connect the
Tree structure editing means for updating the tree structure information stored in the means
The tree structure according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising:
Display editing device. 4. The display drive means is the tree structure editor.
A tree structure after moving the object based on the edited result of the column
Is displayed on the screen of the display means.
A tree structure display editing apparatus according to claim 3.