阅读说明：本技术 电子年表 (Electronic chronology ) 是由 西奥多·伊科诺米 威廉·J·戈德伯格 达雷恩·米歇尔 于 2018-12-10 设计创作，主要内容包括：描述了用于创建、操纵和显示按时间顺序排列的事件的时间线的系统和方法,每个事件均链接到对应的一个或多个电子文件。可以创建与时间或时间范围相对应的事件。可以将一个或多个电子文件链接到该事件。可以在时间或时间范围处在图形时间线上呈现链接到一个或多个电子文件的事件。通过在图形时间线上显示的事件能够访问该一个或多个电子文件。(Systems and methods are described for creating, manipulating, and displaying a timeline of chronologically arranged events, each event linked to a corresponding one or more electronic files. Events corresponding to a time or time range may be created. One or more electronic files may be linked to the event. Events linked to one or more electronic files may be presented on a graphical timeline at a time or time range. The one or more electronic files can be accessed through events displayed on the graphical timeline.)

1. A system, comprising:

a non-transitory memory storing instructions; and

a processor accessing the memory and executing the instructions to at least:

creating an event corresponding to a time or a range of times;

linking one or more electronic files to the event;

presenting the event linked to the one or more electronic files at the time or time range on a graphical timeline, wherein the one or more electronic files are accessible through the event displayed on the graphical timeline.

2. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor executes the instructions to:

receiving another electronic file from the user; and is

Linking the other electronic file to the event based on at least a portion of metadata associated with the other electronic file,

wherein the other electronic file is accessible through the event displayed on the graphical timeline.

3. The system of claim 2, wherein the processor executes the instructions to convert the other electronic file into a format common to the one or more electronic files.

4. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor executes the instructions to:

creating another event corresponding to another time or range of times;

linking one or more further electronic files to the further event;

presenting the further event linked to the one or more further electronic files at the further time or time range on a graphical timeline, wherein the further electronic files are accessible through the further event displayed on the graphical timeline.

5. The system of claim 1, wherein the processor further executes the instructions to send to the graphical timeline for display by a display device within a graphical user interface,

wherein the graphical user interface facilitates interaction with the graphical timeline by an entity associated with the display device, and

wherein the interaction is at least one of: expanding the graphical timeline, contracting the graphical timeline, annotating electronic files associated with the event, deleting electronic files associated with the event, and deleting electronic files associated with the event from the timeline.

6. A system, comprising:

a non-transitory memory storing instructions; and

a processor accessing the memory and executing the instructions to at least:

receiving an electronic file from a user;

extracting metadata associated with the electronic file from the electronic file, wherein the metadata is stored in the non-transitory memory;

generating an event linked to the electronic file based on at least a portion of the metadata; and is

Presenting an event linked to the electronic file on a graphical timeline, wherein the electronic file is accessible through the event displayed on the graphical timeline.

7. The system of claim 6, wherein the processor executes the instructions to:

receiving another electronic file;

extracting other metadata associated with the other electronic file;

generating another event linked to the another electronic file based on at least a portion of the other metadata.

8. The system of claim 7, wherein the processor further executes the instructions to convert the electronic file and the another electronic file into a common format.

9. The system of claim 7, wherein the other event linked to the other electronic file is presented in a horizontal manner on the graphical timeline with the event linked to the electronic file based on a date associated with the other metadata and a date associated with the metadata.

10. The system of claim 6, wherein the processor further executes the instructions to send the graphical timeline for display by a display device within a graphical user interface,

wherein the graphical user interface facilitates interaction with the graphical timeline by an entity associated with the display device, and

wherein the interaction is at least one of: expanding the graphical timeline, contracting the graphical timeline, annotating electronic files associated with the event, deleting electronic files associated with the event, and deleting electronic files associated with the event from the timeline.

11. The system of claim 6, wherein the processor further executes the instructions to assign tags, people, and/or entities to the electronic file,

wherein the plurality of electronic files can be filtered according to associated tags, persons and/or entities.

12. The system of claim 11, wherein the processor further executes the instructions to apply an attribute to the electronic file,

wherein the plurality of electronic files are further capable of being filtered according to the associated attributes.

13. The system of claim 6, wherein the processor further executes the instructions to:

receiving an annotation associated with the electronic file; and is

Saving the annotation as a layer associated with the electronic file.

14. The system of claim 13, wherein the annotation is received in response to a request to annotate the electronic file.

15. A method, comprising:

creating, by a system comprising a processor, an event corresponding to a time or a time range;

linking, by the system, one or more electronic files to the event;

presenting, by the system, the events linked to the one or more electronic files at the time or time range on a graphical timeline, wherein the electronic files are accessible through the events displayed on the graphical timeline.

16. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

receiving, by the system, another electronic file from the user; and

saving, by the system, the other electronic file in a repository common to the one or more electronic files and/or in a format common to the one or more electronic files;

linking, by the system, the other electronic file to the event based on at least a portion of the metadata associated with the other electronic file,

wherein the other electronic file is accessible through the event displayed on the graphical timeline.

17. The method of claim 15, further comprising:

creating, by the system, another event corresponding to another time or range of times;

linking, by the system, one or more additional electronic files to the other event;

presenting, by the system, the another event linked to the one or more additional electronic files at the another time or time range on a graphical timeline, wherein the additional electronic files are accessible through the another event displayed on the graphical timeline.

18. The method of claim 15, further comprising: displaying the graphical schedule on a graphical user interface associated with a display device,

wherein the graphical user interface facilitates interaction with the graphical timeline by an entity associated with the display device, and

wherein the interaction is at least one of: expanding the graphical timeline, contracting the graphical timeline, annotating electronic files associated with the event, deleting electronic files associated with the event, and deleting electronic files associated with the event from the timeline.

19. The method of claim 15, wherein the one or more electronic files are each associated with:

one or more tags, persons and/or entities, and/or

One or more attributes.

20. The method of claim 19, wherein the one or more electronic files are filterable based on the associated one or more tags, people, and/or entities and/or the associated one or more attributes.

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates generally to electronic chronology, and more particularly to a system and method for creating, manipulating, and displaying a graphical timeline of chronologically arranged events, where each event is individually linked to one or more corresponding electronic files.

Background

The timeline provides a visualization tool that can be used to present a chronology of events in chronological order of their occurrence. There are many tools that claim to help users create timelines, but these all rely on users to enter events and arrange them in the chronological order in which they occurred. Relying on the user to input events and rank them is most time consuming and impractical, but impossible in the worst case. For example, in the legal world, schedules may be compelling but can only be created by an individual's memory of events, which may be erroneous.

In the electronic age, electronic files are time-stamped with creation date, access date, and editing date. The time stamps of these electronic files provide a new mechanism to create a reliable timeline with disputable dates. However, using these electronic files to create a horizontal, visually appealing timeline can be very difficult because these electronic files are typically saved in different formats and thus require different programs to open. Currently, electronic files may be listed sequentially based on a timestamp. Additionally, current timeline creation tools may create a graphical timeline of events that is arranged with respect to time. However, there is no tool that can link an electronic file to an event in the graphical timeline, let alone make the electronic file accessible through the event displayed on the graphical timeline.

Disclosure of Invention

In one aspect, the present disclosure may include a system that may create, manipulate, and display a graphical timeline of chronologically ordered events linked to corresponding electronic files. The system includes a non-transitory memory storing instructions and a processor accessing the memory and executing the instructions. Events corresponding to a time or time range may be created. One or more electronic files may be linked to the event. Events linked to the one or more electronic files may be presented on a graphical timeline at a time or time range. The one or more electronic files may be accessed through events displayed on the graphical timeline.

In another aspect, the present disclosure may include another system that may create, manipulate, and display a graphical timeline of chronologically-arranged events linked to corresponding electronic files. The system includes a non-transitory memory storing instructions and a processor accessing the memory and executing the instructions. An electronic file may be received from a user. Metadata associated with the electronic file may be extracted from the electronic file and stored in non-transitory memory. An event linked to the electronic file may be generated based on at least a portion of the metadata. The event may then be presented on a graphical timeline and linked to an electronic file. The electronic file may be accessed through an event displayed on the graphical timeline.

In another aspect, the present disclosure may include a method for creating a graphical timeline of chronologically-arranged events linked to respective electronic files. The following steps of the method may be performed by a system including a processor. Events corresponding to a time or time range may be created. One or more electronic files may be linked to the event. Events linked to one or more electronic files may be presented on a graphical timeline at a time or time range. One or more electronic files may be accessed through events displayed on the graphical timeline.

Drawings

The foregoing and other features of the present disclosure will become apparent to those skilled in the art to which the present disclosure relates upon reading the following description with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:

FIG. 1 is a diagram of a system that illustrates a timeline of time-ordered events that may be created, manipulated, and displayed linked to corresponding electronic files in accordance with an aspect of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram of a cloud-based system that may be used by the system in FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method for creating, manipulating and displaying a graphical timeline of time-ordered events linked to corresponding electronic files in accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure;

FIG. 4 is a process flow diagram illustrating a method for adding a new electronic file to a graphical timeline created in accordance with the method of FIG. 3 in accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure;

FIG. 5 is a process flow diagram illustrating another method for creating, manipulating and displaying a graphical timeline of time-ordered events linked to corresponding electronic files in accordance with another aspect of the present disclosure; and

FIG. 6 is a diagram illustrating an example timeline of example events with electronic files accessible through some of the example events.

Detailed Description

I.Definition of

Unless defined otherwise, all technical terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by one of ordinary skill in the art to which this disclosure belongs.

As used herein, the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" may include the plural forms as well, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise.

As used herein, the terms "comprises" and/or "comprising" may specify the presence of stated features, steps, operations, elements, and/or components, but do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, steps, operations, elements, components, and/or groups thereof.

As used herein, the term "and/or" can include any and all combinations of one or more of the associated listed items.

As used herein, the terms "first," "second," and the like, shall not limit the elements described by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish one element from another. Thus, a "first" element discussed below could also be termed a "second" element without departing from the teachings of the present disclosure. The order of operations (or acts/steps) is not limited to the order presented in the claims or figures unless specifically indicated otherwise.

As used herein, the term "chronology" may refer to events arranged in the order in which they occur in time (e.g., in a timeline).

As used herein, the term "electronic chronology" may refer to an electronic file linked to events arranged in their chronological order of occurrence (e.g., in a timeline).

As used herein, the term "timeline" may refer to a display of a chronologically displayed list of events. As an example, a timeline may be a graph showing a list of events corresponding to chronologically arranged dates. The term "graphical timeline" may be used interchangeably with "timeline".

As used herein, the term "electronic file" may refer to a computer resource for discretely recording data in a computer-readable form within a non-transitory computer-readable storage medium (e.g., memory). For example, the electronic file may be a digital file (e.g., a picture file, a graphics file, a document file, etc.), a media file (e.g., an audio file, a video file, etc.), and so forth.

As used herein, the term "metadata" may refer to information stored with an electronic file that may provide basic information about the electronic file. The basic information may include, for example, a manner in which the electronic file was created, a purpose of the electronic file, a time and date of creation of the electronic file, a creator or author of the electronic file, a location in a computer network where the electronic file was created, Global Positioning Satellite (GPS) coordinates where the electronic file was created, a standard used to create the electronic file, a size of the electronic file, a quality of the electronic file, a source of the electronic file, and a process for creating the electronic file, etc.

As used herein, the term "event" may refer to an occurrence at a single time or within a range of times (e.g., the range may extend from a start time to an end time). For example, an event may be related to a legal case, a medical case, a human resources project, an accounting project, a statistics project, a history project, an education project, a news story, a family history, and the like.

As used herein, the term "link" may refer to a relationship between two things (e.g., two electronic documents) that may be established to make a cross-reference between the two things.

As used herein, the term "non-transitory" when used with respect to memory, media, storage media, etc., may refer to any type of computer memory that is not a transitory signal.

As used herein, the term "cloud" may refer to a network of one or more remote computing devices (e.g., servers) designed to store and manage data, run applications, and/or deliver content or services.

As used herein, the term "module" may refer to a distinct unit capable of executing a program and/or a portion of a process. A plurality of modules may together form a program and/or process.

II.Overview

File management applications can be used to manipulate and edit electronic files, but these applications do not provide any simple, user-friendly visualization platform to access electronic files. In contrast, timeline creation tools may provide a user-friendly visualization platform that displays a graphical timeline of a chronology of events, but these timeline applications cannot be used for file management. At the heart of this disclosure is a user-friendly visualization platform that links the file management capabilities of a file management application to the graphical timeline provided by the timeline creation tool.

The systems and methods described herein may extract topics as events (and/or allow a user to create events) for any topic, link one or more electronic files to the events, and then present the events linked to the one or more electronic files to the user in a user-friendly manner. For example, events linked to one or more electronic files may be displayed in a graphical timeline. By clicking on the event, the user can access (e.g., view, playable, scalable, scrollable, etc.) one or more electronic files. Further, the graphical timeline may be displayed as a horizontal timeline, which may be zoomed in/out and scrolled horizontally (left/right). The systems and methods described herein may allow people to zoom out to see high-level events over many years, and also zoom in (by extending the timeline) to reduce the optimal temporal resolution to milliseconds or less, while the associated electronic files are exactly in the same relative position with respect to time.

III.System for controlling a power supply

One aspect of the present disclosure may include a system 10 (fig. 1) that the system 10 may create, manipulate and display a graphical timeline of chronologically ordered events linked to corresponding electronic files. The graphical timeline may provide a visualization of the chronology of various events (and such visualization may be zoomed in or out, shifted in time, etc. without affecting the overall graphical timeline). In addition to the visualization of the chronology, the graphical timeline may provide a user-friendly mechanism to access one or more electronic files associated with various events. Using electronic files accessible through the graphical timeline, a user may view, play, zoom, scroll, or provide any other functionality associated with the electronic files directly from the graphical timeline. The graphical timeline may be considered as a new way of providing access to data, rather than a traditional vertical list of electronic files, providing a user-friendly horizontal display of events from which electronic files may be accessed.

The system 10 may include a cloud-based system 20 and one or more user computing devices 14 (e.g., user computing devices a-C, which may be smart phones, tablet computing devices, smart watches, notebook computers, desktop computers, etc.) connected to the network 12. Each of the one or more user computing devices 14 may include at least a non-transitory memory (M), a processor (P), and a display (D). By way of example, the display (D) may include a graphical user interface that facilitates display and interaction with the graphical timeline. Each of the one or more user computing devices 14 may also include one or more components (e.g., a transmitter, a receiver, a transceiver, etc.) that facilitate communication across the network 12. One or more user computing devices 14 may be located in the same location and/or in different locations. The network 12 may be implemented as a public network (e.g., a wide area network such as the internet), a private network (e.g., a local area network), or a combination of public and private networks. Cloud-based system 20 may include one or more computing devices accessible to one or more user computing devices 14 over network 12.

The cloud-based system 20 may collect electronic files and corresponding metadata, organize the electronic files, and provide the graphical timeline with events at various times or time ranges corresponding to one or more electronic files. In other words, for any topic that requires such a graphical timeline, the cloud-based system may extract the topic as an event (and/or allow a user of a particular user computing device to create the event), link one or more electronic files (provided by one or more user computing devices 14) to the event, and then present the event linked to the one or more electronic files to the user in a user-friendly manner. The graphical timeline may be a browser-based horizontal technique that displays events linked to one or more electronic files, providing access to the one or more electronic files in an efficient and interactive manner, while being easy to create and having a visual impact.

The cloud-based system 20, which may collect electronic files related to the graphical timeline, organize the electronic files and the graphical timeline, and present the graphical timeline, is shown in more detail in FIG. 2. It should be understood that although the cloud-based system 20 is illustrated in fig. 2 as a single computing device (e.g., a single server), the cloud-based system 20 may actually include multiple computing devices (in the same or distributed locations), each of which includes at least a portion of fig. 2. The cloud-based system 20 may include at least one non-transitory memory 21, at least one processor 22 (or processing resource), at least one I/O23, and optionally at least one legacy display 24. Non-transitory memory 21 may store machine-executable instructions and electronic data. Examples of non-transitory memory 21 may include volatile memory (e.g., RAM), non-volatile memory (e.g., hard disk, flash memory, solid state drive, etc.), or a combination of both. Processor 22 may include, for example, one or more processing cores, which may, for example, access non-transitory memory 21 and implement the functionality of cloud-based system 20. I/O23 may provide communication with one or more user computing devices 14 and/or other devices (e.g., other servers within cloud-based system 20) over network 12. The I/O23 may, for example, receive an electronic file as input and provide a graphical timeline with accessible electronic files as output.

Within the non-transitory memory 21, various modules may be stored. For example, the event creation 25 module may create or access events corresponding to a time or time range. The link 26 module may link one or more electronic files to an event. The link 26 module may link one or more electronic files to an event based on information included in metadata associated with the one or more electronic files. For example, the metadata may include information about the time of creation or the time of editing, and the link 26 module may match the time within the metadata to a time or range of times associated with the event. The output generation 27 module may present events linked to one or more electronic files at a time or time range on the graphical timeline. One or more electronic files may be accessed through events displayed on the graphical timeline.

The non-transitory memory 21 may include a memory 28 module for storing one or more electronic files. Each electronic file may be stored in association with metadata, one or more tags, a user identifier (e.g., a person or entity), and/or one or more annotations. The metadata, one or more tags, a user identifier, and/or one or more annotations may be used to search for and/or match one or more electronic files to corresponding events. For example, memory 28 may include a library or other storage mechanism in which a plurality of electronic files may be stored regardless of format. In some cases, at least a portion of a plurality of one or more electronic files may be converted into a format common to other one or more electronic files. For example, different text documents in email messages and document formats can be saved in a common format like Adobe PDF. The memory 28 module may also provide security (e.g., encryption) for the electronic file, thereby managing users who are allowed to view, edit, annotate, and/or access the electronic file (e.g., different levels of authentication/access may be provided based on login credentials, thereby allowing different users to have different levels of access to different subsets of the electronic file).

When another electronic file (e.g., any type of digital content, media content, etc.) is received via I/O23 at the receive new electronic file 29 module, the other electronic file may be saved in the memory 28 module. Metadata may be mined from the new file and stored in the memory 28 module with the new file. At the time of storage or at a later time, one or more tags, user identifiers (e.g., people or entities), and/or one or more annotations may be associated with another electronic file in the memory 28 module. The link 26 module may link the other electronic file to the event or another event based on metadata associated with the other electronic file such that the other electronic file is accessible through the event or other event displayed on the graphical timeline. Events and other events may be displayed on the graphical timeline in chronological order according to an associated time or time range. The I/O23 may output the graphical timeline to one or more user computing devices 14 such that the electronic file may be accessed through corresponding events on the graphical timeline.

In some cases, a new event may be generated based on one or more electronic files. Metadata, tags, user identifiers, and/or annotations associated with one or more files may cause cloud-based system 20 to generate new events. As an example, metadata associated with an electronic file may be used to automatically generate a new specific temporal event. The new specific temporal event may be displayed on a graphical timeline having one or more electronic files accessible through the new specific temporal event.

The non-transitory memory may include a module to be used in conjunction with one or more electronic files. The extract metadata 30 module may be used to extract or separate metadata from one or more electronic files. The add-tag 31 module may facilitate the addition of tags to one or more electronic files. The tags may be standard tags (common to subject matter) and/or user-defined tags. The user-defined tags may include any text-based identifier for one or more electronic files. For example, the label "airplane" may be added (by a user or automatically) to one or more electronic files related to the design of a boeing 737 airplane. As another example, the label "2015 bill" (by the user or automatically) may be added to one or more electronic files related to purchases made during 2015 years. An electronic file relating to the purchase of boeing 737 aircraft in 2015 may be associated with both tags "aircraft" and "2015 bill". The add tag 31 module may also associate people and/or entities with one or more electronic files. The person may be the person who uploaded the electronic file and/or the person who is mentioned within and/or has any association with the electronic file. For example, the electronic file may be uploaded by John Doe, but the electronic file may be an email from John Doe to Jane Smith; in this case, the electronic file may be associated with both John Doe and JaneSmith. Using the same example, the electronic file uploaded by John Doe may also be associated with an entity (e.g., Acme corporation) that hires John Doe and/or Jane Smith. The add attribute 32 module can facilitate adding one or more attributes to the electronic file. One or more electronic files may be filtered according to tags and/or attributes. For example, when searching the memory 28, a query for 2015 bills and Acme company may be generated and all files with both tags "2015 bills" and "Acme company" provided as results.

The add annotations 33 module may be used to add annotations to one or more electronic files. Notably, the add annotation 33 module may provide one or more additional layers of electronic files to annotate. This allows the original electronic file or files to remain intact when annotations are made on the electronic file or files. The add note 33 module may provide a request to prompt the user to add a note to the electronic file. The add comment 33 module may receive a comment in response to the request. As described, annotations may be saved as an additional layer associated with one or more electronic files.

IV.Method of producing a composite material

Another aspect of the present disclosure may include methods 40, 50, and 60 (fig. 3, 4, and 5) for creating, manipulating, and displaying a graphical timeline of chronologically-arranged events linked to a respective electronic file. Rather than a vertical list of traditional electronic files, the graphical timeline, which provides a user-friendly horizontal display of events from which electronic files may be accessed, may be considered a new way of providing data access. Methods 40, 50, and 60 may be performed using system 10 shown in fig. 1 and/or cloud-based system 20 shown and described above.

Methods 40, 50 and 60 are shown as process flow diagrams in flow chart examples. For simplicity, methods 40, 50, and 60 are shown and described as being performed serially; it is to be understood and appreciated, however, that the present disclosure is not limited by the illustrated order, as some steps may occur in different orders and/or concurrently with other steps from that shown and described herein. Moreover, not all illustrated aspects of methods 40, 50, and 60 may be required to be practiced.

Referring now to FIG. 3, a method 40 for creating, manipulating, and displaying a graphical timeline of chronologically-arranged events linked to corresponding electronic files is shown. The graphical timeline may provide a visualization of the chronology of various events (and the visualization may zoom in or out, shift in time, etc. without affecting the overall graphical timeline). In addition to the visualization of the chronology, the graphical timeline may provide a user-friendly mechanism to access one or more electronic files associated with various events. Using electronic files accessible from the graphical timeline, a user may view, play, zoom, scroll, or provide any other functionality associated with the electronic files directly from the graphical timeline.

At 42, an event corresponding to a time or time range may be created (e.g., by an event creation 25 module of the cloud-based system 20). For example, the event corresponding to the time may be the receipt of an email. As another example, the event corresponding to the time range may be a length of employment time. The receipt of the email may be at a single point during the entire length of the employment. At 44, one or more electronic files may be linked to the event (e.g., by a link 26 module of the cloud-based system 20). The link may be created based on one or more tags, user identifiers (e.g., people or entities), and/or one or more annotations associated with one or more electronic files. For example, the content of the email, as well as any attachments, may be linked to the event "receipt of email" based on one or more tags, user identifiers (e.g., people or entities), and/or one or more annotations associated with the email. At 46, the events linked to the one or more electronic files may be presented on a graphical timeline (e.g., by the output generation 27 module of the cloud-based system 20).

FIG. 4 illustrates a method 50 with respect to another electronic file extension method 40. At 52, another electronic file may be received from the user (e.g., by the receive new electronic file 29 module of the cloud-based system 20). Alternatively, other electronic files may be retrieved from the location based on instructions from the user and/or automatically. At 54, other electronic files may be saved (e.g., in a memory 28 module of the cloud-based system 20). Other electronic files may be associated with one or more tags, a user identifier (e.g., a person or entity), and/or one or more annotations. At 56, other electronic files may be linked (e.g., by link 26 modules of cloud-based system 20) to the event based on metadata related to the other electronic files. However, the link may also be based on one or more tags, user identifiers (e.g., people or entities), and/or one or more annotations associated with other electronic files.

Referring now to FIG. 5, another method 60 for creating, manipulating, and displaying a graphical timeline of chronologically-arranged events linked to corresponding electronic files is shown. At least a portion of method 60 is performed automatically by cloud-based system 20. At 62, an electronic file may be received from the user (e.g., by a receive new electronic file 29 module of the cloud-based system 20). At 64, metadata may be extracted from the electronic file (e.g., by an extract metadata 30 module of the cloud-based system 20). At 66, an event may be generated based on at least a portion of the metadata (e.g., by an event creation 25 module of the cloud-based system 20) and linked to the electronic file (e.g., by a link 26 module of the cloud-based system 20). At 68, events linked to the electronic file may be presented on the graphical timeline. The electronic file may be accessed from an event on the graphical timeline.

V.Examples of the invention

The systems and methods described herein may be used in conjunction with any number of subject matter. For example, the theme for which the graphical timeline is used can be broadly constructed, from law to fitness to science, to photos, to games, to government, to life, to finance, to children, to bills, to history, to education, to human resources, to social events, to law enforcement, to weather, to medicine, to compliance, to production, to pedigree, to home, to compliance, to statistics, to news, to health, or anything in between. FIG. 5 shows an example timeline that may be presented in a browser-based horizontal technique that may be used in the legal field to display electronic files and dates associated with Bob Sanders' employment discrimination case. The example timeline provides an organized case chronology that is presented for legal cases in a clear and comprehensive manner.

Employment by Bob Sanders at J & J home (which starts at 8/9/2016 and ends at 30/12/2016) is shown as an event on a graphical timeline. Events that occur during and after his hire are shown on the timeline graphic corresponding to the date. Events that occur after termination of employment are also displayed on the graphical timeline.

Each event may be associated with a respective electronic file accessible through the graphical timeline. As shown, three example electronic files are accessed from events at three different dates: a discriminative video from a policy conference held 16/10/2016, a harassing email received 3/11/2016 and another harassing email received 9/11/2016. The arrows in fig. 5 show the electronic files corresponding to the events. The electronic file may serve as a corroboration that the event occurred on that date.

From the above description, those skilled in the art will perceive improvements, changes and modifications. Such improvements, changes and modifications are within the skill of the art and are intended to be covered by the appended claims.