Patent ID: 8185892

Claim:
A graphic display editor for use in creating a user interface display that represents operation of one or more entities within a process plant, the graphic display editor comprising: a repository storing a library of graphic objects, each graphic object including a visual representation of a physical or a logical entity within the process plant; a processor coupled to the repository and programmed to execute a plurality of routines including: a graphically based editor canvas routine that enables a user to define an executable graphic display by placing one or more visual representations of the graphic objects from the library of graphic objects onto an edit canvas to define a manner in which the one or more visual representations of the graphic objects will be displayed on a display device to a user during execution of the graphic display; a property definition canvas routine enabling a user to define a property associated with at least one of the plurality of graphic objects; a binding definition routine enabling a user to specify a binding between the property and a runtime environment within the process plant; and an action definition routine enabling a user to interact with the graphic display to perform a function using the graphic display, wherein the action definition routine enables a user to access from the graphic display a further graphic display in a sequential manner, and wherein the further graphic display includes at least one graphic object with a visual representation placed onto the editor canvas to define the graphic display, and wherein the at least one graphic object is depicted by a different graphic visualization in the further graphic display than the at least one graphic object is defined in the graphic display.