Creating engaging and intuitive user experiences is key to modern enterprise applications, and animations and transitions play a vital role in achieving this goal. In SAP UI5, animations help provide visual feedback, improve user interaction, and enhance the overall look and feel of applications. This article explores how to effectively work with animations and transitions in SAP UI5 to create smooth, responsive, and delightful UI experiences.
Animations guide users’ attention, indicate state changes, and make applications feel more natural and dynamic. Properly implemented animations can:
SAP UI5 offers several ways to integrate animations and transitions, leveraging both built-in features and standard web technologies.
SAP UI5 includes helper APIs to animate UI controls easily.
Example: Using sap.ui.core.Animation
sap.ui.core.Animation.animate(
oControl.getDomRef(),
{opacity: 0},
{opacity: 1},
500, // duration in ms
null,
function() {
console.log("Animation completed");
}
);
This fades in a control by animating its opacity from 0 to 1 over 500 milliseconds.
Since SAP UI5 controls render as HTML elements, standard CSS can be applied for complex animations and transitions.
Example: Adding a CSS class with transition
.fadeIn {
opacity: 0;
transition: opacity 0.5s ease-in-out;
}
.fadeIn.active {
opacity: 1;
}
Toggle the class in JavaScript to trigger the fade effect:
var oControlDom = oControl.getDomRef();
oControlDom.classList.add("fadeIn");
setTimeout(function() {
oControlDom.classList.add("active");
}, 10);
Some SAP UI5 controls come with inherent animation effects, such as:
sap.ui.core.tween for Complex AnimationsFor more advanced scenarios, SAP UI5 provides tweening utilities through sap.ui.core.tween to interpolate values and create complex animation sequences.
transform and opacity which are GPU-accelerated.var oButton = new sap.m.Button({
text: "Click Me",
press: function(oEvent) {
var oDomRef = oEvent.getSource().getDomRef();
sap.ui.core.Animation.animate(oDomRef, {scale: 1}, {scale: 1.2}, 200)
.then(function() {
return sap.ui.core.Animation.animate(oDomRef, {scale: 1.2}, {scale: 1}, 200);
});
}
});
This code scales the button up and back down on press, providing a tactile feedback effect.
Animations and transitions in SAP UI5 are powerful tools for improving user experience by making interfaces more engaging and responsive. By leveraging SAP UI5’s built-in animation APIs, CSS capabilities, and control-specific effects, developers can create smooth, professional-grade animations that complement their applications. Properly implemented, animations not only delight users but also enhance usability and navigation.