Patent Publication Number: US-2015070359-A1

Title: System and method for visualizing relationships between objects

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application is a continuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 12/494,084 filed Jun. 29, 2009, which claims priority to U.S. Provisional Patent Application No. 61/076,599, Interactive Tool for Visualizing Ordered Relationships between Two or More Entities, filed Jun. 27, 2008, the entirety of each is incorporated herein by this reference thereto. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     1. Technical Field This invention relates generally to the field of software applications for transforming data into graphical representations of relationships. More specifically, this invention relates to an interactive tool that arranges and orders relationships between entities. 
     2. Description of the Related Art 
     Many objects have complicated relationships to other objects. For example, a band makes music as a group, but then the individual members frequently produce solo albums. A diagram that illustrates the albums associated with the band and band members can be organized according to a hierarchical structure. If you add another relationship into the diagram, however, such as producers of the albums, the relationships become too complicated to represent in a hierarchy. 
     A graph can effectively represent the band albums, the individual solo albums, and producer relationships, but representing this information even on a graph becomes increasingly difficult to visualize as the number and density of the relationships increases. The resulting complexity of the networks of relationships quickly overwhelms human comprehension, which obscures important patterns and orderings within the relationships. While many interfaces for visualizing networks of relationships exist, they cannot readily reveal orderings of relationships that further clarify the connections between two objects. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     A system generates a graphical user interface that depicts ordered relationships between two or more objects. In one embodiment, a graph is generated in which the objects are represented by nodes, and relationships between the objects are represented by labeled edges connecting the nodes. A single pair of nodes may be linked by multiple edges, corresponding to multiple relationships between the corresponding pair of objects. Multiple edges can be ordered automatically or as specified by a user. Where multiple edges correspond to a sequence of related events, in one embodiment, the edges are ordered chronologically. For simplicity of viewing and comprehension, in one embodiment, multiple edges within the same class are collapsed onto a single line and labeled according to the relationship type. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a block diagram that illustrates a network architecture in which systems and methods consistent with the principles of the invention may be implemented; 
         FIG. 2  is an exemplary diagram of client hardware for storing and implementing the system according to one embodiment of the invention; 
         FIG. 3  is a graphical user interlace for representing the multiple relationships between objects as a graph according to one embodiment of the invention; 
         FIG. 4  is a graph that illustrates multiple relationships between two objects as separate edges joining two nodes according to one embodiment of the invention; 
         FIG. 5  is a graph that illustrates multiple edges collapsed onto a single line, with each edge marked as a point along the line according to one embodiment of the invention; 
         FIG. 6  is a graph that illustrates different types of relationships between two celebrities as separate edges between two nodes according to one embodiment of the invention; 
         FIG. 7  is a graph that illustrates multiple edges corresponding to relationships within one class collapsed onto a single line and an edge for a relationship within another class according to one embodiment of the invention; and 
         FIG. 8  is a flow chart that illustrates steps for generating a graphical user interface according to one embodiment of the invention. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION 
     System Architecture 
       FIG. 1  is a block diagram that illustrates an exemplary network architecture in which a server  105  stores a system for relating objects  110  according to the invention. The system for relating objects  110  transforms data into a graphical user interface that is transmitted via the network  130  to multiple clients  100 A,  100 B, and  100 N. In one embodiment, a client  100  comprises a computing platform configured to act as a client device, e.g. a computer, a digital media player, a personal digital assistant, etc. In  FIG. 1 , the system for relating objects  110  is illustrated as residing on a server  110 . Clients  100  are able to access applications and/or data on the server  105  using, for example, a web browser or other client software (not shown). It is to be understood that this is an example only, and in various embodiments this system  110  can be instantiated on a client  100 , a server  110 , or distributed between multiple clients  100  and/or servers  110 . 
     Clients  100  and servers  110  can be implemented using computer systems, such as the computer that is illustrated in  FIG. 2  and described below. The clients  100  and server  105  are communicatively coupled to a network  130 , for example via a network interface  210  or a modem  213  as described below in conjunction with  FIG. 2 . The network  130  can be a wired network, such as a local area network (LAN), a wide area network (WAN), a home network, etc., or a wireless local area network (WLAN), e.g. Wifi, or wireless wide area network (WWAN), e.g. 2G, 3G, 4G. 
       FIG. 2  is a block diagram of a computer system suitable for implementing a system for relating objects  110  according to the invention. Both the clients  100  and the server  105  can be implemented in the form of such computer systems. 
     As illustrated, one component of the computer system is a bus  250 . The bus  250  communicatively couples other components of the computer system, such as a processor  205 , system memory  200 , an input/output (I/O) controller  210 , a display adapter  215 , one or more interfaces, such as the storage interface  230  and the network interface  210 , a keyboard controller  225 , a host bus adapter 
     (HBA) interface card, an optical disk drive  240 , a USB receptacle  220 , and a serial port  211 . 
     A person of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that a variety of interfaces can be used to attach different devices to the bus. The display adapter  215  connects display devices, such as a display screen  217  to the bus  250 . The storage interface  230  communicatively couples at least one hard disk  232  or other forms of magnetic media to the bus  250 . The HBA is configured to connect with a Fibre Channel (FC) network  237  or a SCSI bus  238 . The keyboard controller  225  communicatively couples the keyboard  227  to the bus  250 . The USB receptacle  220  is used to connect various devices, such as a mouse  222  or other pointing device to the bus. 
     Other components (not illustrated) may be connected in a similar manner, e.g., document scanners, digital cameras, printers, etc. Conversely, all of the components illustrated in  FIG. 2  need not be present. The components can be interconnected in different ways from that shown in  FIG. 2 . 
     The bus  250  allows data communication between the processor  205  and the system memory  200 , which may include random access memory (RAM), read-only memory (ROM), flash memory, and/or flash memory. The RAM is typically the main memory into which the operating system and application programs are loaded. The ROM and/or flash memory can contain, among other code, the Basic Input-Output system (BIOS) which controls certain basic hardware operations. Application programs can be stored on a local computer readable medium, e.g., hard disk  232 , optical disk and loaded into system memory  200  and executed by the processor  205 . Application programs can also be loaded into system memory  200  from a remote location, i.e., a remotely located computer system, for example via the network interface  210  or modem  213 . In  FIG. 2 , the system for relating objects  110  is illustrated as residing in system memory  200 . The workings of the system for relating objects  110  are explained in greater detail below in conjunction with the other figures. 
     Graphical User Interface An exemplary embodiment of the invention is a visualization of relationships between objects, such as celebrities. The relationships displayed for a particular celebrity may indicate, for example: films, television productions, and plays in which the celebrity appears; professionals, such as directors or producers, who have worked with the celebrity; marriages and other personal relationships; children and other relatives of the celebrity; religions, belief systems, and philosophies espoused by the celebrity; establishments frequented by the celebrity, such as restaurants, stores, and hotels; areas, locations, and resorts where the celebrity vacations; charities supported by the celebrity; designer clothes that are favored or worn by the celebrity; and companies, including studios and modeling agencies, for which the celebrity has worked. 
       FIG. 3  is a graphical user interface (GUI) for representing the multiple relationships between objects as a graph according to one embodiment of the invention. Each object is depicted as a node  300 ,  305 ,  310 ,  315 ,  320 ,  321 ,  325 ,  330  in a graph. Relationships between the nodes are depicted as edges  302  connecting the nodes. The label  301  that describes the type of the relationship is located near or as part of the edge  302 . For example, Britney Spears  300  is connected to “Hyde”  310  through the relationship “eats at.” This is a first-degree relationship because there is a direct connection between the nodes  300   310 . Second-degree relationships have an intervening node between the featured objects. For example, Britney Spears  300  is connected to Mischa Barton  305  through many intervening nodes. Specifically, each “parties with” “Lindsay Lohan”  315  and “Paris Hilton”  320 , and each “eats at” “Hyde”  310 , “Les Deux”  325  and “Nobu”  330 . 
     The system simplifies a visually complex graph by arranging the objects that are related to only one of the featured objects (i.e., objects involved only in first-degree relationships with the featured objects) around the perimeter. For example, the nodes corresponding to objects that are not related to both Britney Spears and Mischa Barton are each arranged in areas around the perimeter of  FIG. 3 . The nodes around the perimeter can be arranged and ordered, for example, by grouping together all the relationships of type “is in movie” and then ordering those in chronological order. Alternatively, all the nodes that share a relationship with only to Mischa Barton (and not Britney Spears) can be arranged alphabetically (according to relationship type) around the perimeter. A person of ordinary skill in the art will recognize that there are a variety of ways to organize the relationships. 
     The following nodes and labels are associated with Britney Spears: she “rehabbed” for “Cocaine,” “is in movie” “Austin Powers,” “is in movie” “Crossroads,” “has religion” “Baptist,” etc. The following nodes and labels are associated with Mischa Barton: she “is friends with” “Nicole Richie,” “Ashley Tisdale,” and “Rachel Zoe”; she “dated” “Sean Harris” and “Brett Simon”; one of her “locations” is in “Cannes, France”; she “has religion” “Catholic”; she “supports” “TRAID”; she “abused” “Marijuana”; she was “in the tv show” “The O.C.,” “Fastiane,” “Once and Again,” “Kablaml,” and “All My Children”; and she “eats at” “CaféStella.” Correspondingly, the second-degree relationships involving both of the featured objects (and an intervening node) are arranged near the center of  FIG. 3 , between the two featured objects. 
     The interface can use a variety of different mechanisms for displaying data about particular objects of interest to a user.  FIG. 3  shows, for example, two text boxes  335  and  340  for entering the names of celebrities. The filter icon  343  is used to limit the number of objects displayed. For example, a user may only want to one type of relationship (e.g., “dated”) or one class of relationships (e.g., “professional” relationships). Alternatively, a user may only want to see particular objects (e.g., restaurants and television shows). The filters are entered either manually or by selection from a preloaded list. 
     In addition, the “+” icon  345  enables a user to add a new object or a new relationship to the database of information. In this manner, the database is populated as a collaborative effort in which anyone can input objects and create new relationships between objects. In one embodiment, upon creation of a new relationship, the user identifies the source of the supporting information. 
     Permissions, Review, and Duplicate Prevention 
     As with any system, there must be some type of monitoring or confirmation system that verifies the accuracy of the data added by a user. For example, the users must register before having permission to input data, an administrator reviews all the information, etc. This helps avoid the introduction of inaccurate information into the system and avoids duplication. In one embodiment, when a user inputs a new relationship, the type of relationship is selected from a preloaded list to avoid redundant relationship types. For example, instead of having one relationship type “is in television show” and another relationship type “appeared in television show” it is only necessary for one of these relationship types to appear in the preloaded list for selection. 
     Ordered and Collapsed Edges 
     As noted above, each relationship is characterized by a relationship type indicated by a label applied to the edge representing the relationship. Relationship types may be further assigned to a relationship class incorporating relationships of a similar nature. When multiple relationships that are of the same class are shared between the featured objects, in one embodiment, the user interface orders the edges between the nodes according to an ordering of the relationship types within the class. The ordering may be determined manually or automatically, as in the case of relationships corresponding to a series of chronologically orderable events. 
     For example, one way to organize the relationships between objects in the invention is to place relationships in chronological order.  FIG. 4  is a graph that illustrates multiple relationships between two objects as separate edges joining two nodes  400  and  405 . In this case, the relationships are in the relationship class “events”, with each relationship type corresponding to a particular incident linking the two objects. The edges corresponding to the relationships are therefore labeled as types “Event 1” 410, “Event 2” 415, etc. The edges are arranged in order (e.g., top-to-bottom) based on the chronological ordering of the relationship types within the class (i.e., Event 1 happened before Event 2, etc.), 
     The visualization of the relationships between the two objects can be further improved by collapsing the relationships on a single line.  FIG. 5  is a graph that illustrates the multiple edges representing the multiple relationships collapsed onto a single line  500 , with each relationship marked by a point along the line  600  and ordered according to the chronology of the events. 
       FIG. 6  depicts multiple relationships between two celebrities as separate edges. Here, not all relationships types are within a single class. Celebrity A is related to Celebrity B by several types of relationships in the “personal” class—“dated,” “engaged,” “married,” and “divorced.” The celebrities are further related by a relationship of type “co-worker of” in the “professional” class. 
     When the relationships in  FIG. 6  are collapsed, the types of relationships within a common class are collapsed onto a single line.  FIG. 7  is a graph that illustrates a collapsed version of the graph in  FIG. 6 . The “personal” relationships between the two celebrities are collapsed along a single line. The labels formerly applied to the collapsed edges are applied to the single line according to the ordering of the relationship types within the relationship class. The single relationship within the class “professional,” however, remains unmodified. 
     As noted above and as shown in the above figures, collapsed relationships are labeled on the single line according to an ordering of the relationships types within the relationship class. The ordering may be determined automatically or specified manually by a user. When relationships are ordered automatically, the ordering may be explicitly chronological and determined based on a timestamp associated with the relationship.  FIGS. 4 and 5  are examples of relationships in which the ordering is explicitly chronological. In other embodiments, the ordering is implicitly chronological, with the labels applied according to a logical ordering defined for the types within the class.  FIGS. 7 and 8  are block diagrams that illustrate examples of relationships where the ordering is implicitly chronological. For example, a person could conclude that a marriage precedes a divorce and that a hiring precedes a firing. 
     In another embodiment, the ordering of edges that are collapsed onto a single line is specified manually. For example, a user manually orders the labels along a single line by clicking and dragging the labels along the line with a mouse or other pointing device. Alternatively, the ordering of the relationships is entered in a text form. Orderings for future collapse operations may also be specified by the user. For example, the user can modify or extend the logical orderings for a class described above. In one embodiment, the ordering specified for a class need not be the only mechanism for ordering objects. If the types within a class are partially ordered, the edges are collapsed and the labels ordered in conformance with the partial ordering, optionally allowing the remaining labels to be adjusted by the user. 
     In one embodiment, the spacing of labels along the single line is uniform. Alternatively, in the case of explicitly chronologically ordered labels, the spacing is proportional to the time elapsed between the labels. 
     The user can toggle off the co lapsed rendering of the relationships to restore a visualization in which separate relationships are each assigned a separate edge. For example, a user expands the single line into its component edges by using a mouse to double-click or right-click along the single line. 
     A user can delete or remove individual labels from the single line. In one embodiment, the user grabs an associated handle and drags it off the end of the single line to either remove the labels from the single line or delete the relationship entirely. If the label is removed from the single line, a single edge for the removed label is restored. 
     Flow Diagram 
       FIG. 8  is a flow chart that shows the steps for generating a graphical user interface (GUI) according to one embodiment of the invention. A database is populated ( 800 ) with objects and the relationships that are associated with the objects. In one embodiment, the database is stored on the same server  105  as the system for relating objects  110 . In another embodiment, the database is stored in another location, such as a server (not shown) that is accessible via the network  130 . 
     The system  110  receives ( 805 ) a request to generate a graph that displays at least one relationship between at least two objects. The system  110  transforms ( 810 ) each object into a node. The system  110  transforms ( 815 ) each relationship between the two objects into an edge. Each edge is labeled with the relationship type. The system  110  transforms ( 820 ) each object that is associated with only one of the requested objects into nodes that are arranged in an outer edge of the GUI. The system  110  collapses ( 825 ) at least two edges onto a single line. The system  110  expands ( 830 ) a single line into individual edges. The system  110  receives ( 835 ) information about a new object or a new relationship from a user. The system  110  updates ( 840 ) the GUI to display the new object as a node or the new relationship as an edge. 
     As will be understood by those familiar with the art, the invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics thereof. For example, instead of using celebrities as objects, the graphical user interface could depict other types of relationships, such as the relationships between diseases and treatments for the diseases. Likewise, the particular naming and division of the members, features, attributes, and other aspects are not mandatory or significant, and the mechanisms that implement the invention or its features may have different names, divisions and/or formats. Accordingly, the disclosure of the invention is intended to be illustrative, but not limiting, of the scope of the invention, which is set forth in the following Claims.