U.S. patent application number 12/206217 was filed with the patent office on 2010-03-11 for object-aware transitions.
This patent application is currently assigned to Apple Inc.. Invention is credited to James Eric Tilton.
Application Number | 20100064222 12/206217 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 41800219 |
Filed Date | 2010-03-11 |
United States Patent
Application |
20100064222 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Tilton; James Eric |
March 11, 2010 |
OBJECT-AWARE TRANSITIONS
Abstract
Techniques for accomplishing slide transitions in a presentation
are disclosed. In accordance with these techniques, objects within
the slides are identified, automatically or by a user, and each
object is individually manipulable during slide transitions. The
individual manipulation applied to each object during a transition
may also be automatically determined or specified by a user. In
certain embodiments, the persistence of an object between slides
may be taken into account in the manipulation of the object during
slide transition.
Inventors: |
Tilton; James Eric; (Austin,
TX) |
Correspondence
Address: |
APPLE INC.;c/o Fletcher Yoder, PC
P.O. Box 692289
Houston
TX
77269-2289
US
|
Assignee: |
Apple Inc.
Cupertino
CA
|
Family ID: |
41800219 |
Appl. No.: |
12/206217 |
Filed: |
September 8, 2008 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
715/732 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06T 13/80 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
715/732 |
International
Class: |
G06F 3/00 20060101
G06F003/00 |
Claims
1-20. (canceled)
21. A method comprising: identifying one or more characters as
being present in a character string on a first slide and in a
different character string in a second slide; and generating a
transition between the first slide and the second slide in which
the one or more characters remain on the screen and are animated
from the character string into the different character string.
22. The method of claim 21, wherein the one or more characters
comprise one or more of alphabetic characters, numeric characters,
symbols, or punctuation marks.
23. The method of claim 21, wherein the act of identifying is
performed by a routine implemented by a presentation application
executing on a processor-based system.
24. The method of claim 21, wherein the act of generating is
performed by a routine implemented by a presentation application
executing on a processor-based system.
25. The method of claim 21, wherein the character string and/or the
different character string comprise one or more of a word, a
phrase, a sentence, or a paragraph.
26. The method of claim 21, wherein the transition comprises an
animation sliding, rotating, and/or flipping the one or more
characters.
27. The method of claim 21, wherein the transition comprises an
animation sliding, rotating, and/or flipping the character string
to reveal the different character string containing the one or more
characters.
28. A method for generating slide transitions for a
computer-implemented slide show presentation, comprising: providing
a first computer-executable routine to a processor or to a memory
utilized by the processor, wherein the first computer-executable
routine, when executed by the processor, determines an animation
path for an object on an outgoing slide of a presentation slide
show; and providing a second computer-executable routine to the
processor or to the memory utilized by the processor, wherein the
second computer-executable routine, when executed by the processor,
animates the object along the animation path during a transition to
an incoming slide, wherein the object is animated independently of
animations applied to other objects on the outgoing slide during
the transition.
29. The method of claim 28, comprising providing a third
computer-executable routine to the processor or to the memory
utilized by the processor, wherein the third computer-executable
routine, when executed by the processor, automatically identifies
the object on the outgoing slide.
30. The method of claim 28, wherein the object comprises a
graphical object or a character object.
31. The method of claim 28, wherein the animation path comprises
one or more of a translation of the object, a rotation of the
object, a scaling of the object, or a change in opacity of the
object.
32. The method of claim 28, wherein the animation path translates
the object off of an edge of the slide.
33. The method of claim 28, wherein the object comprises an image,
a shape, or a character or character string.
34. The method of claim 28, comprising: providing a third
computer-executable routine to the processor or to the memory
utilized by the processor, wherein the third computer-executable
routine, when executed by the processor, determines a different
animation path for a different object on an incoming slide of the
presentation slide show.
35. The method of claim 34, comprising: providing a fourth
computer-executable routine to the processor or to the memory
utilized by the processor, wherein the fourth computer-executable
routine, when executed by the processor, animates the different
object along the different animation path during the transition to
the incoming slide, wherein the different object is animated
independently of animations applied to other objects on the
incoming slide during the transition.
36. A method for animating transitions between slides of a
computer-implemented slide show presentation, comprising: providing
a first routine to a processor or to a memory utilized by the
processor, wherein the first routine, when executed by the
processor, determines a first object animation for a first object
on a slide of a slide show presentation; providing a second routine
to the processor or to the memory utilized by the processor,
wherein the second routine, when executed by the processor,
determines a second object animation for a second object on the
slide, wherein the second object animation is different from the
first object animation; and providing a third routine to the
processor or to the memory utilized by the processor, wherein the
third routine, when executed by the processor, animates the first
object in accordance with the first object animation and the second
object in accordance with the second object animation during a
slide transition.
37. The method of claim 36, comprising: providing a third routine
to the processor or to the memory utilized by the processor,
wherein the third routine, when executed by the processor,
automatically identifies the first object and the second object on
the slide by reference to one or more features of the objects.
38. The method of claim 37, wherein the one or more features
comprise one or more of a file name, a file type, a path shape, the
presence of characters or character attributes, the presence of a
visual effect, or the presence of a mask.
39. The method of claim 36, comprising: providing a third routine
to the processor or to the memory utilized by the processor,
wherein the third routine, when executed by the processor,
automatically classifies as least one of the first object or the
second object by object type.
40. The method of claim 39, wherein at least one of the first
object animation or the second object animation is determined based
in at least in part on the object type of the respective first
object or second object.
41. The method of claim 36, wherein at least one of the first
object animation or the second object animation comprises one or
more of a translation, a rotation, a scaling, or a change in
opacity of the respective first object or second object.
42. The method of claim 36, wherein at least one of the first
object animation or the second object animation is determined based
in at least in part on the location of the respective first object
or second object on the slide.
43. Computer-readable media comprising a computer program product,
the computer program product comprising: a first routine capable of
determining a first animation for a first object on a slide and a
second animation for a second object on the slide, wherein the
slide is part of a multi-slide presentation; and a second routine
capable of animating the first object in accordance with the first
animation and the second object in accordance with the second
animation when the slide transitions to a next slide of the
multi-slide presentation.
44. The computer-readable media of claim 43, the computer program
product comprising a third routine capable of identifying the first
object and the second object on the slide.
45. The computer-readable media of claim 44, wherein the third
routine is further capable of locating the first object and the
second object on the slide.
46. The computer-readable media of claim 44, wherein the third
routine is further capable of classifying the first object and the
second object as respective object types.
47. The computer-readable media of claim 43, wherein at least one
of the first animation or the second animation comprises one or
more of a translation, a rotation, a scaling or a change in opacity
of the respective first object or second object.
Description
BACKGROUND
[0001] 1. Technical Field
[0002] The present invention relates generally to transitioning
between sequential screens.
[0003] 2. Description of the Related Art
[0004] This section is intended to introduce the reader to various
aspects of art that may be related to various aspects of the
present invention, which are described and/or claimed below. This
discussion is believed to be helpful in providing the reader with
background information to facilitate a better understanding of the
various aspects of the present invention. Accordingly, it should be
understood that these statements are to be read in this light, and
not as admissions of prior art.
[0005] One use which has been found for computers has been to
facilitate the communication of information to an audience. For
example, it is not uncommon for various types of public speaking,
(such as lectures, seminars, classroom discussions, keynote
addresses, and so forth), to be accompanied by computer generated
presentations that emphasize or illustrate points being made by the
speaker. For example, such presentations may include music, sound
effects, images, videos, text passages, numeric examples or
spreadsheets, or audiovisual content that emphasizes points being
made by the speaker.
[0006] Typically, these presentations are composed of "slides" that
are sequentially presented in a specified order. Typically, to
transition between slides, a first slide would be replaced by a
second slide on the screen. In some circumstances, some form of
animation might be performed on the slides as they move on and off.
However, the slides themselves are generally static images. Due to
the prevalence of such computer-generated and facilitated
presentations, one challenge is to maintain the interest level
generated by such presentations, i.e., to keep the audience
interested in the material being presented on the screen.
SUMMARY
[0007] Certain aspects of embodiments disclosed herein by way of
example are summarized below. It should be understood that these
aspects are presented merely to provide the reader with a brief
summary of certain forms an invention disclosed and/or claimed
herein might take and that these aspects are not intended to limit
the scope of any invention disclosed and/or claimed herein. Indeed,
any invention disclosed and/or claimed herein may encompass a
variety of aspects that may not be set forth below.
[0008] The present disclosure generally relates to techniques for
providing object-aware transitions between slides of a
presentation. Such object-aware transitions may include identifying
each object on the slides being transitioned in and out. The
objects or object-types may then be individually manipulated as
part of the transition, such as by application of various effects,
That is, the transition process may account for and independently
animate or otherwise transition each of the objects or object-types
composing the different slides.
[0009] In some instances, such object awareness can be leveraged as
part of the transition. For example, in one embodiment, the same
object, such as a graphic, word, number, or characters in a word or
number, may be present in the outgoing and incoming slides. In one
such example, the transition may take advantage of the presence of
the common objects in the outgoing and incoming slides to provide
an effect or animations specifically for those objects present in
both slides. In this way, the presence of the object in both slides
may be used to tailor the slide transition.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0010] These and other features, aspects, and advantages of the
present invention will become better understood when the following
detailed description of certain exemplary embodiments is read with
reference to the accompanying drawings in which like characters
represent like parts throughout the drawings, wherein:
[0011] FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating an electronic
device in accordance with one embodiment of the present
invention;
[0012] FIG. 2 is a simplified block diagram illustrating components
of an electronic device in accordance with one embodiment of the
present invention;
[0013] FIG. 3 depicts a slide including objects in accordance with
one embodiment of the present invention;
[0014] FIG. 4 depicts the slide of FIG. 3 undergoing a transition
in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention;
[0015] FIGS. 5A-5F depict screenshots of an object-aware slide
transition in accordance with one embodiment of the present
invention;
[0016] FIGS. 6A-6D depict screenshots of another object-aware slide
transition in accordance with one embodiment of the present
invention;
[0017] FIGS. 7A-7I depict screenshots of a further object-aware
slide transition in accordance with one embodiment of the present
invention;
[0018] FIGS. 8A-8F depict screenshots of an additional object-aware
slide transition in accordance with one embodiment of the present
invention;
[0019] FIGS. 9A-9F depict screenshots of another object-aware slide
transition in accordance with one embodiment of the present
invention;
[0020] FIGS. 10A-10I depict screenshots of an object-aware slide
transition with persistent objects in accordance with one
embodiment of the present invention; and
[0021] FIGS. 11A-11F depict screenshots of another object-aware
slide transition with persistent objects in accordance with one
embodiment of the present invention.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF SPECIFIC EMBODIMENTS
[0022] One or more specific embodiments of the present invention
will be described below. These described embodiments are only
exemplary of the present invention. Additionally, in an effort to
provide a concise description of these exemplary embodiments, all
features of an actual implementation may not be described in the
specification. It should be appreciated that in the development of
any such actual implementation, as in any engineering or design
project, numerous implementation-specific decisions must be made to
achieve the developers' specific goals, such as compliance with
system-related and business-related constraints, which may vary
from one implementation to another. Moreover, it should be
appreciated that such a development effort might be complex and
time consuming, but would nevertheless be a routine undertaking of
design, fabrication, and manufacture for those of ordinary skill
having the benefit of this disclosure.
[0023] The application is generally directed to providing
object-aware transitions between slides of a presentation. In
particular, in accordance with the present disclosure, different
objects within each slide are identified and can be separately and
independently handled during slide transitions. In certain
embodiments, this involves identifying objects present in both and
outgoing and incoming slide and providing specific animation or
handling for those objects. With this in mind, an example of a
suitable device for use in accordance with the present disclosure
is as follows.
[0024] An exemplary electronic device 100 is illustrated in FIG. 1
in accordance with one embodiment of the present invention. In some
embodiments, including the presently illustrated embodiment, the
device 100 may be processor-based system, such as a laptop or
desktop computer, suitable for preparing and/or displaying
presentations, such as using the Keynote.RTM. software package
available from Apple Inc as part of the iWork.RTM. productivity
package. Other processor-based systems suitable for preparing
and/or displaying presentations may include servers, thin-client
workstations, portable or handheld devices capable of running
presentation software, or the like. By way of example, the
electronic device 100 may be a model of a MacBook, MacBook Pro,
MacBook Air, iMac, Mac mini, or Mac Pro available from Apple
Inc.
[0025] In the presently illustrated embodiment, the exemplary
electronic device 100 includes an enclosure or housing 102, a
display 104, input structures 106, and input/output connectors 108.
The enclosure 102 may be formed from plastic, metal, composite
materials, or other suitable materials, or any combination thereof.
The enclosure 102 may protect the interior components of the
electronic device 100 from physical damage, and may also shield the
interior components from electromagnetic interference (EMI).
[0026] The display 104 may be a liquid crystal display (LCD),
cathode ray tube (CRT) or other suitable display type. For example,
in one embodiment, a suitable LCD display may be based on light
emitting diodes (LED) or organic light emitting diodes (OLED). In
one embodiment, one or more of the input structures 106 are
configured to control the device 100 or applications running on the
device 100. Embodiments of the portable electronic device 100 may
include any number of input structures 106, including buttons,
switches, a mouse, a control or touch pad, a keyboard, or any other
suitable input structures. The input structures 106 may operate to
control functions of the electronic device 100 and/or any
interfaces or devices connected to or used by the electronic device
100. For example, the input structures 106 may allow a user to
navigate a displayed user interface or application interface.
[0027] The exemplary device 100 may also include various input and
output ports 108 to allow connection of additional devices. For
example, the device 100 may include any number of input and/or
output ports 108, such as headphone and headset jacks, video ports,
universal serial bus (USB) ports, IEEE-1394 ports, Ethernet and
modem ports, and AC and/or DC power connectors. Further, the
electronic device 100 may use the input and output ports 108 to
connect to and send or receive data with any other device, such as
a modem, external display, projector, networked computers,
printers, or the like. For example, in one embodiment, the
electronic device 100 may connect to a scanner, digital camera or
other device capable of generating digital images (such as an
iPhone or other camera-equipped cellular telephone) via a USB
connection to send and receive data files, such as image files.
[0028] The electronic device 100 includes various internal
components which contribute to the function of the device 100. FIG.
2 is a block diagram illustrating the components that may be
present in the electronic device 100 and which may allow the device
100 to function in accordance with the techniques discussed herein.
Those of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate that the various
functional blocks shown in FIG. 2 may comprise hardware elements
(including circuitry), software elements (including computer code
stored on a machine-readable medium) or a combination of both
hardware and software elements. It should further be noted that
FIG. 2 is merely one example of a particular implementation and is
merely intended to illustrate the types of components that may be
present in a device 100 that allow the device 100 to function in
accordance with the present techniques.
[0029] In the presently illustrated embodiment, the components may
include the display 104 and the I/O ports 108 discussed above. In
addition, as discussed in greater detail below, the components may
include input circuitry 150, one or more processors 152, a memory
device 154, a non-volatile storage 156, expansion card(s) 158, a
networking device 160, and a power source 162.
[0030] The input circuitry 150 may include circuitry and/or
electrical pathways by which user interactions with one or more
input structures 106 are conveyed to the processor(s) 152. For
example, user interaction with the input structures 106, such as to
interact with a user or application interface displayed on the
display 104, may generate electrical signals indicative of the user
input. These input signals may be routed via the input circuitry
150, such as an input hub or bus, to the processor(s) 152 for
further processing.
[0031] The processor(s) 152 may provide the processing capability
to execute the operating system, programs, user and application
interfaces, and any other functions of the electronic device 100.
The processor(s) 152 may include one or more microprocessors, such
as one or more "general-purpose" microprocessors, one or more
special-purpose microprocessors and/or ASICS, or some combination
thereof. For example, the processor 152 may include one or more
instruction processors, as well as graphics processors, video
processors, and/or related chip sets.
[0032] As noted above, the components may also include a memory
154. The memory 154 may include a volatile memory, such as random
access memory (RAM), and/or a non-volatile memory, such as
read-only memory (ROM). The memory 154 may store a variety of
information and may be used for various purposes. For example, the
memory 154 may store firmware for the electronic device 100 (such
as a basic input/output instruction or operating system
instructions), other programs that enable various functions of the
electronic device 100, user interface functions, processor
functions, and may be used for buffering or caching during
operation of the electronic device 100.
[0033] The components may further include the non-volatile storage
156. The non-volatile storage 156 may include ROM, flash memory, a
hard drive, or any other suitable optical, magnetic, or solid-state
storage medium, or a combination thereof. The non-volatile storage
156 may be used to store data files such as media content (e.g.,
music, image, video, and/or presentation files), software (e.g., a
presentation application for implementing the presently disclosed
techniques on electronic device 100), wireless connection
information (e.g., information that may enable the electronic
device 100 to establish a wireless connection, such as a telephone
or wireless network connection), and any other suitable data.
[0034] The embodiment illustrated in FIG. 2 may also include one or
more card slots. The card slots may be configured to receive an
expansion card 158 that may be used to add functionality to the
electronic device 100, such as additional memory, I/O
functionality, or networking capability. Such an expansion card 158
may connect to the device through any type of suitable connector,
and may be accessed internally or external to the enclosure 102.
For example, in one embodiment, the expansion card 158 may be flash
memory card, such as a SecureDigital (SD) card, mini- or microSD,
CompactFlash card, Multimedia card (MMC), or the like.
[0035] The components depicted in FIG. 2 also include a network
device 160, such as a network controller or a network interface
card (NIC). In one embodiment, the network device 160 may be a
wireless NIC providing wireless connectivity over any 802.11
standard or any other suitable wireless networking standard. The
network device 160 may allow the electronic device 100 to
communicate over a network, such as a Local Area Network (LAN),
Wide Area Network (WAN), or the Internet. Further, the electronic
device 100 may connect to and send or receive data with any device
on the network, such as portable electronic devices, personal
computers, printers, and so forth. Alternatively, in some
embodiments, the electronic device 100 may not include a network
device 160. In such an embodiment, a NIC may be added into card
slot 158 to provide similar networking capability as described
above.
[0036] Further, the components may also include a power source 162.
In one embodiment, the power source 162 may be one or more
batteries, such as a lithium-ion polymer battery. The battery may
be user-removable or may be secured within the housing 102, and may
be rechargeable. Additionally, the power source 162 may include AC
power, such as provided by an electrical outlet, and the electronic
device 100 may be connected to the power source 162 via a power
adapter. This power adapter may also be used to recharge one or
more batteries if present.
[0037] With the foregoing discussion in mind, various techniques
and algorithms for implementing aspects of the present disclosure
on such devices 100 and accompanying hardware and memory devices
are discussed below. Turning to FIG. 3, a slide 180 having graphic
objects 182 and character objects 184 (i.e., text and/or numbers or
strings of text and/or numbers) is depicted. Such a slide is
typically one part of a presentation that typically includes many
slides that are sequentially displayed. For example, such a
presentation (and the individual slides of the presentation) may be
composed in an application (such as Keynote.RTM. available from
Apple Inc.) suitable for generating and displaying presentations on
processor-based system such as a computer.
[0038] The presentation application may provide multiple modes of
operation, such as an edit mode and a presentation mode. In such an
embodiment, when in the edit mode, the presentation application may
provide a convenient and user-friendly interface for a user to add,
edit, remove, or otherwise modify the slides of a slide show, such
as by adding text, numeric, graphic, or video objects to a slide.
To display a created slide or a sequence of slides in a format
suitable for audience viewing, a presentation mode of the
presentation application may be employed. In some embodiments, the
presentation application may provide a full-screen presentation of
the slides in the presentation mode, including any animations,
transitions, or other properties defined for each object within the
slides.
[0039] As used herein, the term "object" refers to any individually
editable component on a slide of a presentation. That is, something
that can be added to a slide and/or be altered or edited on the
slide, such as to change its location or size or to change its
content, may be described as an object. For example, a graphic,
such as an image, photo, line drawing, clip-art, chart, table,
which may be provided on a slide may constitute an object.
Likewise, a character or string of characters may constitute an
object. Likewise, an embedded video clip may also constitute an
object that is a component of a slide. Therefore, in certain
embodiments, characters and/or character strings (alphabetic,
numeric, and/or symbolic), image files (.jpg, .bmp, .gif, .tif,
.png, .cgm, .svg, .pdf, .wmf, and so forth), video files (.avi,
.mov, .mp4, .mpg, .qt, .rm, .swf, .wmv, and so forth) and other
multimedia files or other files in general may constitute "objects"
as used herein.
[0040] In one embodiment, the objects provided on the slides of a
presentation are identified, automatically or by a user, allowing
each object to be independently manipulated, such an animated, when
transitioning between slides. That is, for a slide being
transitioned out, each object may be separately handled, so that
different objects or types of objects may undergo a different
effect as part of the transition. For example, turning to FIG. 4,
text and numeric objects 184 on the slide may fade out as graphic
objects 182 are animated off the edges of the slide. Likewise,
objects or object types on the incoming slide may also be
independently handled, such as by fading in text on the incoming
slide and animating the entrance of images of the incoming slide
from above or from the sides.
[0041] By identifying each object on a slide, effects for
transitioning an object on or off the screen may be specified
(automatically or by a user) for each object or each type of object
(such as graphics files, text boxes, videos, etc.) independently of
one another. The effect used in transitioning an object may depend
on some characteristic of the object, such as a file type, location
on the slide, color, shape, size, and so forth. For example, how
close an object is to an edge may be a factor in determining
whether the object will be animated on to or off of a slide and, if
such an animation is selected, which edge the animation will occur
relative to, how fast the animation will occur, and so forth. While
the transition effects for different objects or object types may be
handled automatically in one embodiment (such as based upon the
factors described above), in other embodiments, a user may specify
what effects are associated with the transition of an object on or
off the screen. For example, a user may use a presentation
application interface screen to specify properties of one or more
objects on a slide, including transition effects for moving the
object on or off the screen.
[0042] Such object, or content, aware transitions differ from
traditional approaches to transition between slides in which each
slide is represented by a static image (and, therefore, treated as
a single unit) and transitions would generally be an animation
between the static images. However, individual objects on the
slides were not individually manipulated, such as animated, during
transitions. Thus, object-aware transitions, in the present
context, are transitions that have access to the different
individual objects of which the slides or slides are composed, and
where each object can be animated or otherwise manipulated
independent of the others.
[0043] In terms of the various effects that each object can be
subjected to in such object-aware transitions, virtually any
animation and/or manipulation that can be performed on the
respective type of object may be suitable. By way of example,
turning now to FIGS. 5A-5F, a sequence of screenshots depicting an
example of an animated slide transition is depicted. In this
example, the animation may be characterized as a "rotate and slide"
animation in which a graphic object 182, here a circle, is
"rotated" while "sliding" off of the right side of the slide from
the center. Independent of the graphic object 182, a character
object 184, here the text string "Circles", is also rotated and
slid off the right of the slide. The character object 184, while
rotating and sliding to the right of the slide, is also slid upward
from beneath the circle to the vertical center of the slide while
being animated off of the slide. Thus, the character object 184 and
the graphic object 182 are animated independently of one another
such that one object undergoes a different animation, i.e.,
vertical sliding, in the transition. It is also worth noting that
the selected transition, such as "rotate and slide", may be used to
animate in the objects of the next sequential slide. For example,
in an incoming slide, a graphic object and character object may be
rotated and slid in from the vertical center of the left side of
the next slide, with one or both objects also undergoing an upward
or downward animation to achieve the desired presentation location
on the slide.
[0044] In practice, the identification of the graphic and character
objects in the slide may be accomplished automatically, such as by
an algorithm of a presentation application that identifies such
objects by file type extensions or other indicators, or by user
designation that the slide component is an object for purposes of
object-aware transitions. Once the objects are identified and a
transition effect, such as "rotate and slide", is selected for the
slide by the user, the manner in which the selected effect is
applied to each object in the slide may be determined
automatically. For example, it may be automatically determined that
all objects will rotate and slide the off of the slide from the
vertical center of the slide, and the animation of each object may
be determined accordingly. Alternatively, in other embodiments, the
user may be able to specify particular effects or animations for
each object of the slide, or to specify the manner in which an
effect is accomplished, such as with or without vertical centering
for an individual object.
[0045] In another example, turning now to FIGS. 6A-6D, a sequence
of screenshots depicting another animated slide transition is
provided. In this example, the animation may be characterized as a
"dissolve and flip" animation in which a graphic object 182, here a
square, and a character object 184, here the text string "Squares",
are rotated in place, i.e., flipped, while dissolving or fading
from view, such as by progressively increasing the transparency of
the objects. As in the previous example, the character object 184
and the graphic object 182 are animated independently of one
another. As noted above, the "dissolve and flip" transition may
also be used to animate the objects of the next sequential slide to
introduce those objects, though obviously in such an
implementation, the objects will not be dissolving but appearing or
materializing.
[0046] In yet another example, a sequence of screenshots depicting
another animated slide transition is depicted in FIGS. 7A-7I. In
this example, the animation may be characterized as an "isometric"
animation in which, as depicted in FIGS. 7A-7F, a first graphic
object 200, here a circle, and a first character object 202, here
the text string "Circles", are subjected to an isometric
transformation and moved off the top and left edges, respectively,
of a slide. As in the previous example, the first character object
202 and the first graphic object 200 are animated independently of
one another, of other objects in the slide, and/or of other objects
in the next slide. In addition, the sequence of screenshots
depicts, in FIGS. 7D-7I, the animation onto the screen of a second
graphic object 204, here a square, and a second character object
206, here the text string "Squares". In the incoming transition of
the second graphic object 204 and the second character object 206,
these objects under go the reverse isometric transformation and
slide in from opposite respective sides of the screen as their
first slide counterparts. As noted above, the "isometric"
transition for the incoming slide may also be applied to each
object of the incoming slide in an independent manner and/or
without regard for the objects of the previous slide.
[0047] In a further example, a sequence of screenshots depicting
another animated slide transition is depicted in FIGS. 8A-8F. In
this example, the animation may be characterized as an "object
push" animation in which, as depicted in FIGS. 8A-8D, a first
graphic object 200, here a circle, and a first character object
202, here the text string "Circles", are "pushed" in from the left
side of the slide. In the depicted example, the first graphic
object 200 and the first character object 202 are pushed in at
different speeds, e.g., the first graphic object 200 is lagging,
though, at the end of the push in animation, the first graphic
object 200 is aligned over the center of the first character object
202. Thus, the first character object 202 and the first graphic
object 200 move independently of one another, of other objects in
the slide, and/or of other objects in the next slide. In addition,
the sequence of screenshots depicts, in FIGS. 8E-8F, the first
graphic object 200 and the first character object 202 being pushed
off the right side of the slide at different speeds, i.e., the
graphic is lagging relative to the text, and a second character
object 206 associated with the next slide is being pushed onto the
slide from the left side. As with the previous slide, the "object
push" transition for the incoming slide may also be applied to each
object of the incoming slide in an independent manner (such as each
object moving at a different speed or entering from a different
direction) and/or without regard for the objects of the previous
slide.
[0048] In another example, a sequence of screenshots depicting
another animated slide transition is depicted in FIGS. 9A-9F. In
this example, the animation may be characterized as an "object
zoom" animation in which, as depicted in FIGS. 9A-9D, a graphic
object 182, here a circle, and a character object 184, here the
text string "Circles", arise out of the slide. In the depicted
example, the graphic object 182 and the character object 184 rise
up or appear at different times, i.e., the character object 184 is
discernible first. Thus, the character object 184 and the graphic
object 182 are animated independently of one another, of other
objects in the slide, and/or of other objects in the next slide. In
addition, the sequence of screenshots depicts, in FIGS. 9E-9F, the
exiting transition of the graphic object 182 and the character
object 184 from the slide. In this outgoing transition the graphic
object 182 and the character object 184 rise off the surface of the
slide until they disappear, with the character object 184
disappearing first. As with the previous slide, the "object zoom"
transition for the outgoing objects may be applied to each object
in an independent manner (such as each object moving, appearing, or
disappearing at a different speed) and/or without regard for the
objects of the next slide.
[0049] The preceding examples are illustrative of the manner in
which individual objects on a slide may be differentially or
independently manipulated, e.g., animated, without regard to other
objects in a slide. The preceding examples, however, are not
exhaustive, and it is to be understood that any animation or
manipulation suitable for an object identified in a slide may be
applied to that object without regard to the other objects in the
slide or the objects in the previous or next slides in certain
object-aware transition embodiments.
[0050] Further, as previously noted, the identification and
assignment of animations may be largely automatic in some
embodiments. For example, a user may design two or more sequential
slides, such as by placing the desired objects on each slide in the
desired locations. The user may then simply select a type of
transition, such as the above-described isometric transition, for
transitioning between two or more of the slides. In an automated
implementation, the presentation application may, knowing only the
selected transition and the type and location of the objects on the
slides, assigns suitable animation direction, speeds, effects,
translucencies, and other animation effects to each object being
transitioned in and out.
[0051] The preceding discussion describes implementations in which
the transitions between slides do not take into account what the
objects are that are in the slides or whether the same object is
present in both the outgoing and incoming slide. However, in
certain embodiments, the object aware transition may take such
object persistence in to account. For example, in certain
implementations where the same object, be it a text, numeric,
graphic, and/or video object, is present in consecutive slides, an
animation or manipulation may be applied to the object while
maintaining the object on the screen. Thus, in one implementation,
an object may be present in consecutive slides (though it may be in
different locations, orientations, or at a different scale in the
two slides) and an animation may be applied to the object such that
the object appears to move, turn, resize, and so forth to reach the
appropriate size, location, and/or orientation in the second slide
after the transition.
[0052] As in the previously described embodiments, the
identification of the object may be performed automatically or
based on user inputs. In addition, the determination that the
object is present in consecutive slides, though perhaps with
different size or location properties, may be performed
automatically. For example, the object may be a .jpg or a .gif
image which is referenced by a common file name or location (such
as an image gallery or library) when placed on the first and second
slides or may be a text or numeric object that contains the same
characters. Thus, an automated routine may determine that the same
image file or character string (word, phrase, sentence, paragraph,
and so forth) is present in both slides, even if it is at different
locations in the slides or at different sizes. The presentation
application may then also evaluate different attributes of the
common object, such as size, position, color, rotation, font, and
so forth, to determine if any of these attributes that differ
between slides would preclude animation from one to the other. If
however, the differences are susceptible to a transitional
animation, the presentation application may automatically determine
an animation for the transition between slides such that the common
object appears to be moved, scaled, rotated, and so forth into the
proper location for the incoming slide. Thus, in this embodiment,
the user may do no more than design two sequential slides with one
or more objects in common and the presentation application will
identify the common objects on the sequential slides and provide
appropriate animated transitions for the common objects when going
from the first slide to the second.
[0053] For example, turning now to FIGS. 10A-10I, a sequence of
screenshots depicting a slide transition is depicted. In this
example, a graphic object 182, here a stand, is present in both the
outgoing and incoming slides. However, the graphic image 182 is at
a different size and location in the first slide relative to the
second slide. In addition, a character object 184, here the text
string "Keynote", is introduced in the second slide which is not
present in the first slide. In the depicted example, the graphic
object 182 is animated to appear to shrink and to move upward on
the screen as part of the transition between slides. In addition,
the character object 184 is added during the transition. As in
previous embodiments, the graphic object 182 and character object
184 may be animated or manipulated independently of one
another.
[0054] In another embodiment of an object-aware transition that
takes into account the persistence of objects between slides, a
character-based example is provided. In this example, the actual
characters, be they letters, numbers, punctuation, etc., on a slide
may be evaluated for persistence between slides. That is, the
characters within a text and/or numeric string may be considered to
be the objects in the present context. In an automated
implementation, when evaluating the character objects to determine
if the character object is present in consecutive slides, the
presentation application may evaluate different attributes of the
character, such as the letter or number itself, the font, the font
size, the color, the presence of certain emphasis (highlight,
underlining, italics, bold, strikethrough, and so forth) and other
attributes that may affect the similarity of the perceived
character in consecutive slides. In certain embodiments, the
character might be identical across the evaluated attributes to be
retained or animated between slides. In other embodiments, certain
attributes, such as color changes, emphases, and so forth, may
still allow animation and retention of the character between
slides.
[0055] In this example, while the characters may be present in
consecutive slides, they need no be used in the same words or
numbers, and therefore need not remain in the same order. Turning
to FIGS. 11A-11F, a sequence of screenshots depicting a slide
transition is depicted. In this example, the character string
"Reduce" is initially displayed though, after the slide transition,
the character "Reuse" will be displayed. Thus, the persistent
character objects 210 "R", "e", and "u" are present in both the
first and second slide, though there is an intervening "d" in one
slide but not the other.
[0056] In the depicted example, the non-persistent characters are
slid away and faded form view as part of the transition while the
persistent character objects 210 remain in view and are slid into
their new positions consistent with the word displayed on the
second slide. As in previous embodiments, the character objects 210
may be animated or manipulated independently of one another. As
will be appreciated, the present example depicts letters, however
the characters may also be numbers, symbols, punctuation and so
forth. In addition, though the present example described sliding
and fading (or retaining) of the characters, in other embodiments
other types of character animation may be employed. For example,
instead of sliding on the screen, the transition animation may
instead rotate or flip the word about a vertical or horizontal
axis, with the changes to the word being accomplished during the
rotation or flip of the word. Indeed, any suitable form of
character animation may be employed in manipulating characters in
such an embodiment.
[0057] As will be appreciated, the present techniques allow for
identification of objects on slides of a presentation and the
independent manipulation, such as animation, of the objects during
slide transitions. As described herein, in some embodiments, no
weight is given as to whether the same object or objects are
present in consecutive slides. However, in other embodiments, the
presence of an object or objects in consecutive slides may be noted
and manipulation of the objects during slide transition may take
advantage of the persistence of the objects. In certain
embodiments, as described herein, the identification of objects
and/or the transitional manipulation of the identified objects may
be automatically derived, such as by a presentation application
executing on a processor-based system.
[0058] While the invention may be susceptible to various
modifications and alternative forms, specific embodiments have been
shown by way of example in the drawings and have been described in
detail herein. However, it should be understood that the invention
is not intended to be limited to the particular forms disclosed.
Rather, the invention is to cover all modifications, equivalents,
and alternatives falling within the spirit and scope of the
invention as defined by the following appended claims.
* * * * *