a survey of icon taxonomy used in the interface design
Many icon taxonomy systems have been developed by researchers that organise icons based on their graphic elements. Most of these taxonomies classify icons according to how abstract or concrete they are. Categories however overlap and different researchers use different terminology, sometimes to describe what in essence is the same thing. This paper describes nine taxonomies and compares the terminologies they use. Aware of the lack of icon taxonomy systems in the field of icon design, the authors provide an overview of icon taxonomy and develop an icon taxonomy system that could bring practical benefits to the performance of computer related tasks.
icon taxonomy abstract icon concrete icon combination icon