Building material design support system, building material, and program for the system

{
  "publication_number": "US8082128B2",
  "country": "US",
  "kind": "B2",
  "title": "Building material design support system, building material, and program for the system",
  "abstract": "The present invention relates to a building material design support system for supporting design of a building material capable of exhibiting a random texture pattern as a whole in a state in which the building materials are installed on a building portion and exhibiting continuity of the texture of adjacent building materials, such building material and a program for use in such building material design support system. More specifically, on a building material, first convex portions #A 1 L, #A 1 R, #A 2 L, #A 2 R to be arranged next to corresponding first convex portions of an adjacent building material have a prescribed texture common to every building materials, and the second convex portions have randomly arranged textures different from each other on every building material.",
  "claims": [
    "1. A building material design support system for supporting design of a surface pattern of a building material including island-shaped convex portions and concave portions connecting the adjacent convex portions, the convex portions including first convex portions to be arranged next to corresponding first convex portions of the adjacent building material and second convex portions larger than the first convex portions and each surrounded by the concave portions, the building material design support system comprising: a computer with a recording medium for data files, the computer being able to function as the building material design support system; a surface design pattern data file configured to store surface design pattern data on arrangements of the convex portions and the concave portions; a texture pattern data file configured to store texture pattern groups including plural texture patterns of the same system, the texture pattern representing the feel of a material of the convex portion; surface design pattern selection means for selectively reading out one of the surface design pattern data stored in the surface design pattern data file; texture pattern group selection means for selectively reading out one of the texture pattern groups stored in the texture pattern data file; image composition means for allotting a prescribed texture pattern common to all of building materials among a texture pattern group selectively read out with the texture pattern group selection means to the first convex portions of the surface design pattern selectively read out with the surface design pattern selection means and for randomly allotting texture patterns from the texture pattern group to the second convex portions adjacent to the first convex portions; and display means for displaying a surface design to which the texture patterns are allotted to the surface design pattern by the image composition means."
  ],
  "description_excerpt": "This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. §119 to Japanese Patent Application No. 2005-046712 filed on Feb. 23, 2005, the entire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.\n\n1. Field of the Invention\n\nThe present invention relates to a building material design support system for supporting the design of a building material such as an exterior panel or a roof material to be installed on a building exterior portion or a roof portion, a building material and a program for use in such building material design support system. More specifically, the present invention relates to a building material design support system for supporting design of a building material capable of exhibiting a random texture pattern as a whole in a state in which the building materials are installed on a building portion and exhibiting continuity of the texture of adjacent building materials, such building material and a program for use in such building material design support system.\n\n2. Description of the Related Art\n\nThe following description sets forth the inventor's knowledge of related art and problems therein and should not be construed as an admission of knowledge of the prior art.\n\nAs a conventional house coordinate support system for simulating a building exterior appearance, the following system is known (e.g. Japanese Patent Nos. 3,002,666, and 3,002,670). In the system, several building exterior appearance patterns and several building material exterior appearance patterns are prepared in advance.",
  "cpc": [
    "B44F 11/00",
    "B66C 9/08",
    "B66C 9/14",
    "E04C 2002/007",
    "E04C 2002/008",
    "G06F 30/13",
    "Y10T 428/24479"
  ],
  "ipc": [
    "G06F 17/50"
  ],
  "assignees": [
    "Nichiha Corp"
  ],
  "inventors": [
    "Shingo Hori",
    "Hiroyuki Yamauchi",
    "Tomoyoshi Yabe"
  ],
  "filing_date": "2006-02-22",
  "publication_date": "2011-12-20",
  "grant_date": "2011-12-20",
  "priority_date": "2005-02-23",
  "application_number": "US-35874206-A",
  "family_id": "36935996",
  "cited_by_count": 0,
  "citations": [
    "US5847712A",
    "JPH11338899A",
    "JP2000067100A",
    "JP2000132577A",
    "US20040061700A1"
  ]
}