Automatically Generating Consistent User Interfaces for Multiple Appliances

自动为多个设备生成一致的用户界面

• 批准号: 0534349
• 负责人: Brad Myers
• 金额: $ 41.2万
• 依托单位: Carnegie-Mellon University
• 依托单位国家: 美国
• 项目类别: Continuing Grant
• 财政年份: 2005
• 资助国家: 美国
• 起止时间: 2005-12-01 至 2009-11-30
• 项目状态: 已结题
• 来源: https://www.nsf.gov/awardsearch/showAward?AWD_ID=0534349&HistoricalAwards=false
• 关键词: Automatically; Generating; Consistent; User; Interfaces

During the last four years, the PI and his students have been investigating the use of handheld devices to control all kinds of home, office and factory equipment (such as stereos, VCRs, telephones, copiers, FAX machines, and clocks), as well as the non-driving functions of automobiles (such as the air conditioning and navigation systems). They have developed a high-level XML-based language to specify an appliance's features from which a high quality user interface can be generated on a PocketPC personal digital assistant (PDA) or on a mobile phone. However, two important problems remain: to automatically generate consistent interfaces for the user across different appliances; and to automatically generate a combined user interface for multiple appliances that operate as a logical unit. No existing automatic generation system for user interfaces has addressed these problems. Solving the consistency problem would, for example, mean that people could set the time on the VCR and the time to start recording in the same way that they set their alarm clock. By providing the interface on the user's handheld, the same consistent way to set the time would be used in every place that time-setting is required on all appliances. Solving the combined interface problem would, for example, mean that for an entire entertainment system, the user would just need to press "play DVD" and the system would automatically turn on the TV, switch the TV to "input3," turn on the stereo, switch the stereo to "aux" input, turn off the cable box, turn on the DVD player, and finally cause the DVD to start playing. These are the scenarios the PI plans to tackle in this project. He will develop a system that uses the interdependencies among all of a user's connected appliances to automatically create a combined user interface. The intellectual merit of the proposed research lies in determining how to generate interfaces that are consistent with one another and how to combine interfaces for multiple appliances. For consistency, this includes the sub-problems of matching which parts of different appliances should be made consistent with each other, and then how consistency can be provided when the appliances may have more or fewer features for related functions. The PI will have to develop fundamental new knowledge about what aspects of consistency are most important to preserve across appliances, and how to embody that knowledge into rules that the handheld can use to automatically generate consistent user interfaces. For combining multiple appliances, the intellectual merit will include techniques for describing the interconnection among appliances and for combining pieces of multiple appliances' user interfaces together. Extensive user studies will inform the designs and verify the results.Broader Impacts: No one has previously tried to automatically generate consistent interfaces from specifications for different appliances or computer applications that share some or many functions. The results will be useful for all researchers and developers who are concerned with consistency across multiple user interfaces for appliances or computers. Similarly, no one has automatically created a combined user interface using models defined separately for separate appliances. The results of this research will make complex appliances much easier to use for the general public, so that they are able to make better use of their devices and also to transfer their knowledge to the operation of new, potentially more complicated, appliances.

在过去的四年中，PI和他的学生一直在调查使用手持设备来控制各种家庭，办公室和工厂设备（例如立体声，VCRS，电话，复印机，传真机和时钟），以及汽车（例如空气条件和导航系统）的非驾驶功能）。 他们已经开发了一种高级XML的语言来指定设备的功能，可以在PocketPC个人数字助理（PDA）或手机上生成高质量的用户界面。 但是，仍然存在两个重要的问题：自动为用户跨不同设备的用户生成一致的接口；并自动为多个用作逻辑单元运行的电器生成组合的用户界面。 没有现有的用户界面自动生成系统解决了这些问题。 例如，解决一致性问题将意味着人们可以在VCR上设置时间，并以与设置闹钟相同的方式开始录制的时间。 通过在用户手持台上提供接口，可以在所有设备上都需要设定时间安排的每个地方使用相同的一致方法。 例如，解决联合界面问题将意味着，对于整个娱乐系统，用户只需要按“ Play DVD”，该系统将自动打开电视，将电视切换为“ Input3”，打开立体声，将立体声切换到“ AUX”输入，打开电缆盒，打开DVD播放器，并开始播放DVD，并开始播放DVD。 这些是PI计划在该项目中解决的情况。 他将开发一个系统，该系统使用所有用户连接的设备之间使用相互依赖的系统自动创建组合的用户界面。 拟议研究的智力优点在于确定如何生成彼此一致的界面以及如何结合多个电器的接口。 为了保持一致性，这包括匹配的子问题，应该使不同的电器的哪些部分彼此一致，然后当电器可能具有更多或更少的相关功能功能时，如何提供一致性。 PI将不得不发展有关一致性的哪些方面对于跨设备保存最重要的基本知识，以及如何将这些知识体现为手持式的规则，而手持式规则可以自动生成一致的用户界面。 为了结合多个电器，智力优点将包括描述电器之间互连以及将多个电器用户界面组合在一起的互连的技术。 广泛的用户研究将为设计提供信息并验证结果。BRODER的影响：以前没有人试图自动从分享某些或多个功能的不同设备或计算机应用程序的规格中自动生成一致的接口。 结果对于所有关注设备或计算机多个用户界面一致性的研究人员和开发人员都会有用。 同样，没有人使用单独定义的单独设备定义的模型自动创建了组合用户界面。 这项研究的结果将使公众更容易使用复杂的设备，以便他们能够更好地利用自己的设备，并将其知识转移到新的，潜在的更复杂的电器的运行中。