Apple Files Patent for ‘Method and apparatus for binding user interface objects to application objects’
On December 28, the US Patent & Trademark Office published Apple’s patent application titled ‘Method and apparatus for binding user interface objects to application objects’ which was originally filed this past August.
Apple’s Summary
A graphical user interface (GUI) and accompanying functionality for binding Web page definitional elements to a back-end state (e.g., client- or server-side back-end state) and custom logic is provided. A template containing definitional elements, custom logic, and bindings is generated that defines all or a portion of a Web page.
The GUI is used to define the layout of a Web page. Definitional elements (e.g., HTML elements) are specified for inclusion in the Web page. A set of variables and methods are defined using the invention. Variables have associated classes that are used to determine a default binding. Bindings between the definitional elements and the variables and methods is performed using the invention.
A definitional element can be bound to a variable, method or constant. A default binding can be determined between the definitional element and a variable based on the class of the variable. The definitional element’s attribute that is used in the binding can be determined based on the variable’s class. Certain attributes of a definitional element can be bound to a method or constant.
To bind a definitional element and a back-end state item, a definitional element is selected from the GUI. A back-end state item (e.g., variable, constant or method) is selected from the GUI either from a list of all items or a list of possible items. A default binding is determined between an attribute of the definitional element and the back-end state item. The default binding is displayed in the GUI for viewing by the user. In most cases, the attribute of the definitional element that is bound to the back-end state item can be displayed in the graphic representation of the definitional element. Since more than one attribute of a definitional element can be bound to the back-end state, the attribute that is fundamental to specifying the definitional element is displayed in the GUI. For example, the attribute that contains the value of a string or identifies the variable that stores a text field’s input provides information that is fundamental to the specification of the string and text field definitional elements. A default binding is determined for a fundamental attribute of the definitional element and is displayed in the GUI. The user can change a default or other binding using an input screen referred to as an inspector. The inspector has input fields that can be used to input the definitional element, back-end state item and/or attribute to use in the binding. The inspector can be used to add arbitrary back-end state items in addition to the default bindings.
The invention can be used to bind a definitional element to data contained in a database. A displayGroup object used as a controller for enterprise objects can be bound to definitional elements in the Web page. Thus, data can be retrieved from one or more tables in a database and used to dynamically generate a Web page. Further, data can be retrieved from a Web page received from a Web application user and stored in the database.
Apple’s patent FIG. 2 noted above provides a functional overview of an embodiment of the invention.
Apple lists the inventors of this patent as being Paul Marcos, Arnaud Weber, Avie Tevanian, Rebecca Eades Willrich; Rebecca Eades, Stefanie Herzer and Craig Federighi.
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Written and researched by Neo.
