Oracle Corporation
AUTOMATIC LAYOUT OF ELEMENTS IN A PROCESS FLOW ON A 2-D CANVAS BASED ON REPRESENTATIONS OF FLOW LOGIC

Abstract:

Layouts for elements of a flowchart or flow diagram may use recursive algorithms that trace along each parent-child pathway to ensure that child elements always occur after parent elements in a horizontal spacing. Vertical spacing requirements may then be calculated for each element, along with a vertical space above a center line and a vertical space below a center line for each element. These vertical spacing requirements may then be used by a recursive algorithm to assign vertical positions to each of the elements. The vertical spacing may ensure that lanes created for each branch element are not crossed by later elements in the process flow, which ensures that connections between elements may be clearly distinguished from each other.