DK177170B1 - Method and system for product development - Google Patents

Abstract

A method of supporting the production of a composite product comprising a number of components is described. The method comprises a design comprising providing a computer-implemented design tool enabling a user to generate and display a digital representation of the composite product, and a further processing step comprising generating a visual representation of at least a portion of the composite product. The method further comprises storing a number of versions of digital representations of each component, which versions have respective LODs. The design step and the further processing step each comprise: selecting an LOD to be associated with each component and providing a stored version of the digital representation of the component corresponding to the selected LOD; from the generated digital representation of the composite product and from the provided versions of digital representations of the components to generate a respective visual representation of the composite product.

Description

DK 177170 B1

Method and system file product development TECHNICAL AREA

The present invention relates to a computer-implemented method and a corresponding system and computer program to facilitate product development processes.

BACKGROUND

The product development of composite products that are assembled from a number of 10 separate components generally comprises different stages of development or stages.

Whether these steps are performed as distinct steps, e.g. sequentially and / or easily, or whether they may be performed as overlapping or intertwined processes, the various steps or stages usually focus on different aspects of the product and / or different processes related to the product , such as manufacture, assembly, marketing, operation, maintenance, etc. Several of such steps or stages may involve producing visual representations of the product or parts thereof, e.g. in order to visualize the product under design, to provide guides or manuals for assembly, operation, maintenance and / or disassembly of the product to produce marketing and / or teaching smart ale, to produce embal I age materia laugh, and so on.

The visual representations may be in the form of an image, an image 25 such as a digital image or a raster graphic image, an animation film, and / or any other type of visual representation. Often, the different stages or stages of product development may give rise to different requirements for such visual representations, e.g. in terms of speed and / or cost of production, quality, form, and so on.

30 2 DK 177170 B1

Examples of composite products comprising a large number of components include large machines, automobiles, aircraft and other vessels, buildings, as well as products sold and shipped in unassembled condition, such as furniture, small eye parts, and so on. A particular example of products made up of a large number of smaller components comprises toy building kits which include a number of collapsible toy building components.

There are various known types of models for such toy kits. In particular, module or shark module concepts are extremely popular, providing a fun and challenging play experience. Typically, these concepts provide a set of prefabricated building elements that can be built together in some predetermined manner by means of coupling elements or other coupling devices on the prefabricated elements. The prefabricated building elements can resemble 15 well-known objects adapted to a specific modification task.

Thus, for example, when building a model of a house, the building elements can look like bricks for walls, tiles, doors and windows. Choosing the building elements in this way has the advantage that the work involved in building a courage of a house is significantly reduced compared to 20 in a situation where all the details of the house must be defined each time a new model is manufactured. . However, it is the complete freedom to build a house or other object that must be sacrificed for the sake of ease of building against the elf.

25 For example, the toy builds available under the name LEGO include a number of different types of collapsible toy elements having projections and corresponding cavities as coupling elements.

Coupler emergencies are arranged according to ten regular marriage patterns, giving a wide variety of options for building the 30 building elements together.

3 DK 177170 B1

Typically, such toy building sets comprise a set of building elements suitable for producing one or more building element models, e.g. an animal, robot or other creature, a car. a plane, a spaceship, a building, or the like. In addition, a toy building kit typically includes 5 building instructions for one or more building element models that can be built from the building elements included in the toy building set. The building elements and construction road cables are typically packaged and sold in a box on which various illustrations of the building element model or models are printed. The product development of such 10 toy building kits typically involves designing the toy model based on a number of appropriate building elements. The designer typically selects the building elements from a pool of available elements; however, in some cases, new design elements may be needed to meet the needs of a new model. When designing a new toy model, the designer typically uses a computer program that allows virtual models to be built based on virtual counterparts of available building elements, resulting in a digital representation of the toy model. The digital representation can then be used along the way in subsequent prod uct stages to create 20 marketing and packaging materials and so on.

In general, for modern product development processes, an ever-increasing proportion thereof is carried out using computer-pigmented tools that support and facilitate respective phases of the 25 product development. Examples include Computer Aided Design (CAD) and CAM (Computer Aided Manufacturing) tools, as well as 3D computer graphics tools to produce visual renderings such as images and / or animations, etc.

30 3D computer graphics generally refer to graphics that use a digital representation (also referred to as a 3D model) of three-dimensional, geometric data to perform calculations and reproduce 2D-bs. This process can roughly be divided sequentially into three basic phases: a 3D model rendering phase comprising the process of shaping the shape of an object, a layout and animation phase comprising a definition of the placement and possible movement of objects in a scene. , as well as a 3D rendered image that produces an image of an object.

Apart from serving as input to the rendering process, a 3D model can be used in non-graphical computer simulations and calculations. In the context of 3D Computer Graphics, the term "rendering" generally refers to the process of generating an image or other visual representation from a 30 model using one or more computer programs. The 3D model is a description of three-dimensional objects to be rendered in a predefined language or data structure, which includes information about the 3D geometry of the object (s) to be reproduced. The model may additionally comprise 15 additional information, such as viewpoint information, material character, lighting and / or shading. An example of such a computer-implemented tool is the Integrated 3D modeling, animation, power and rendering solution marketed under the name Autodesk Maya by Autodesk tnc.

20

The different product stages in the development process also imply different requirements for the general computer-implemented tools for working with composite products and components included therein. While the aforementioned tools have increased the efficiency of product development processes, there is still a continuing need for further improvement of such tools.

An important issue related to digital reproduction of composite products comprising many components is the size of the digital representation and the computer resources and time needed to process them. For example, a model of toy building elements of the type described above may include hundreds or even thousands of individual building elements, and the computer manipulation of digital representations of such models becomes a particularly resource-intensive task.

5

Thus, it is a general problem to keep the digital representations of the composite products used by computer-implemented tools as small as possible in order to reduce the requirements of the underlying hardware, while providing the desired functionality, 10 ease of use, quality of visual representations and the provision of information needed during the respective stages of product development.

SHORT DESCRIPTION

15 discloses a computer-implemented method for supporting the production of a composite product, which composite product comprises a number of components. Embodiments of the method include; 1, at least one design step, comprising 20 - providing a computer-implemented design tool, which enables a user to select a respective digital representation from each of the number of components from a repository for components, and to place the selected components in a spatial relative to one another, so as to produce a digital representation of the composite product; and a further processing step comprising - generating a visual representation of at least a portion of the composite product for use in at least one among manufacturing, marketing, and use of the composite product.

6 DK 177170 B1

Embodiments of the method further comprise: - storing a number of versions of digital representations of each component, each version of a digital representation of a component comprising geometrical information to visualize / reproduce the respective component 3 a respective degree of detail; and wherein each of the design steps and the additional processing step comprises 10 - for each component of selecting at least a portion of the composite product a degree of detail to be associated with the component, and providing a stored version of the digital representation of the component corresponding to the degree of detail chosen; and - generating a respective visual representation of at least a portion of 15 of the composite product on the basis of digital generated representation of the composite product and from the provided versions of digital representations of components.

Accordingly, the method described herein provides an effective way to facilitate computer-implemented product development processes and to visualize composite products comprising a large number of components while limiting the size of the incoming data structures. In particular, the digital representation of the composite product does not have to include the geometric definitions of all the constituent components, and the same digital representation can be reused in different development processes, since the digital representation of the composite product can be combined with respective versions of the digital representations of the incoming components, as needed for each development step. Thus, the digital representation of the composite product can be used both in connection with the production of marketing materials, where high quality graphics, even photo real in graphic graphics are required, and in the early design stages, where effective and frequent manipulation of digital representations is needed.

5 In particular, the method makes it possible to use and visualize the components in different levels of detail (LOD = Level of Detail) based on the needs for use in the current development stage. In addition, at each development stage, mafi can keep the representations of the model, including representations of the geometric shape of the components, as small as possible given the respective requirements of the corresponding development stage.

As far as 3D computer graphics are concerned, the LOD describes an element in which the detailed shape of a real-world element is displayed on a computer screen. Thus, account of the degree of detail will involve a change in the complexity of the representation of a 3D object. In 3D eomputer graphics, LOD management is used to control the complexity of a representation of a 3D object as the object moves away from the viewer, or according to other metrics such as the object's importance, eye at room speed or position, LOD techniques increase the efficiency of rendering 20 by reducing the workload in the steps where the graphics are still in the pipeline, usually vertex transfarmings. The reduced visual quality of the model often remains unnoticed because it has little effect on the appearance of the object when it is distant or moving rapidly. With a so-called discrete LOD (DLOD) approach, a certain number of object representations of different complexity are cached for use at different distances of the object from the viewer.

Thus, generating different versions of the digital representations of each component can be done offline, e.g. using a separate system or module of an integrated system, that is, without affecting the efficiency of the visualization process. The versions of the digital representations of the components can be produced by any suitable technique known per se in the art, such as polygon-red Lilding techniques or the like.

In addition, some embodiments of at least one version of each digital representation of a component comprise a display parameter for controlling visual representation of the component; and the method comprises controlling the generation of the respective visual representation of at least the portion of the composite product on the basis of the respective display parameters encompassed by the provided versions of digital representations. Thus, aspects of the visual appearance of the composite product beyond the degree of detail can be associated with each LOD.

For example, different versions of a digital representation may include different values for the display parameter. Thus, 15 respective systems of representation can be associated for each stage of development, in order to achieve a uniform appearance of the components in an efficient manner.

In some embodiments, at least one version of each digital representation of a component further comprises an attribute indicating at least one property of the component component; and wherein the additional processing step is based on the respective attributes encompassed in the provided versions of digital representations. Thus, in addition to the purely visual appearance, particular information can be stored with each component such as information about which color portions of the component 25 must have, or production information such as price or weight or similar.

Not all of this information is needed in all stages of development. By associating different types of information with different versions of a component, the amount of data needed at each stage of a development process can be significantly reduced. When each version of a component 30 has a corresponding LOD and a corresponding set of information associated therewith, the change from one development step to another can be effected in an efficient way, simply by replacing each component with a different version of component. Since the user does not necessarily have to choose both an appropriate LOD and appropriate additional attributes for a given development step, the risk of error is reduced.

5

Embodiments of the method described herein may process a digital representation of the composite product. Such digital representation can be provided by any appropriate process and a computer-implemented design tool can be used for this.

The process may involve a design "from the bottom up" based on individual components and in or an automated process for generating an appropriate initial representation, for example, a process for generating a digital representation of a building element model from one or the other. multiple images, such as images of a physical model or other object, an example of such a process is described in US 7,092,899.1, the process of which a digital representation of a building element model of an object is created from a CAD model or a Some embodiments of digital representations may include information indicating the types, position 20 and / or assembly of building elements, etc., in any appropriate data format. global fashion liata attributes, attributes of individual building elements such as a building gel element type, color, size, character box, etc.

25 One computer-implemented design tool for interactively building a virtual model of a composite product may include a computer program which, when executed on a computer, provides a graphical user interface that enables a user to manipulate 30 virtual models of composite products, including operations such as to select components, to add components to the model, to remove components from the model; to change the orientation of a component; to change the properties of a component, e.g. color, type, size and / or similar, to see a model, to store digital representation of a model, to load a digital representation of a previously saved model, etc. The 5 virtual model can thus be assembled from virtual components, the i.e., virtual components that correspond to similar physical components, that is, they have similar relative size, shape, color, etc. The COputer-implemented construction tool can also be referred to as a 3D modification tool to create a 3D -model.

10

A computer-pigmented construction tool can be configured to enforce a predetermined set of restrictions that have been imposed on the relative positions of the components relative to each other, such as the co-detection detection components. For example, the 15 restrictions correspond to the corresponding restrictions that apply to the corresponding physical components, thereby ensuring that a virtual model can actually be built up by the corresponding physical components as well.

The visual representation can take a variety of forms and serve a variety of purposes. For example, the virtual representation may be building instructions or instructions for maintaining and / or operating a product, dismantling instructions, etc., or part thereof. The visual representation can also be used for marketing material such as brochures, posters, etc., and / or for product packaging and the like.

25 The visual representation can also be used to produce the actual product.

For example, building guides can be formed as a sequence of visual representations, such as depictions. Each visual representation may include a graphic representation of a partial building element, also referred to as a sub-model, thereby providing a construction guide that is 11 11 171770 B1 8Γ neir to follow, where each visual representation corresponds to a step in the construction process, where a predetermined number of building elements is added to the model. Alternatively, the construction guide may be provided as animated sequences showing the actual assembly process.

In addition, when the method comprises providing a user interface so that one can see the visual representations, where the user interface preferably favors a user-controlled manipulation of the generated visual representations, the digital representation of the composite product may conveniently be viewed on a computer.

Because the digital representation of the model includes all the information needed to generate visual representations, such as construction guides, the digital representation can conveniently be communicated from one computer to another, e.g. stored on a storage medium, sent over a communication network, e.g. as a file attached to an email, uploaded to a Web server, or the like. A digital representation recipient can then change the degree of detail of all or all of the components and use and / or manipulate the digital representation in a second step of the manufacturing process, even if the new production stage involves different requirements for the quality of visual representations generated. based on the digital representation.

The present invention can be implemented in various ways, including by the method described above and hereinafter, by a data processing system and additional product agents, each of which provides one or more of the beneficial effects and benefits described in connection with the present invention. with the former method, each having one or more preferred embodiments corresponding to the preferred embodiments described in connection with the first method and described in the dependent claims relating to them.

12 DK 177170 B1

In particular, the features of the method described above and in the following may be implemented in software and performed on a data processing system or other processing means caused by the execution of computer executable instructions. The instructions may be programmed the means loaded into a memory, such as a RAM, from a storage medium or from another computer via a computer network,

Alternatively, the features described may be implemented by hard acting or circuitry instead of software or in combination with software.

10 [accordingly, the method further relates to a data processing system adapted to perform the method described above and in the following. The invention further relates to a computer program comprising program encoder means for performing all the steps of the method described above and in the following when the program is run on a computer. The invention further relates to a computer program product comprising program code since I am ten! to perform the procedure described above and in the following when the computer program runs the product on a computer. The program coding means 20 can be stored on a computer-readable medium and I or designed as a propagated data signal.

In some embodiments, the computer program comprises a number of different software components e.g. to generate a digital representation of the composite product, respectively, to generate visual representations of the composite product. However, it will be understood that the various processes can be integrated into a single software component or application.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWING

13 DK 177170 B1

The invention will be described more fully hereinafter in connection with an embodiment of the method and system described herein, and with reference to the drawing, in which: 1 is a schematic representation of an example of a computer system implementing the method described herein;

Ftg, 2 illustrates an example of a building element and its coupling elements for connecting the building element with other building elements.

10

Ftg. 3 shows visual representations of the building element according to FIG. 2 in three different LODs.

FIG. 4 shows embodiments of a data structure for digital representation of a built mc ntmod or the like.

FIG. 5 shows an example of a computer-aided production process.

FIG. 0 shows process diagrams of embodiments for generating a visual representation and for altering the LOD of a digital representation of a building element model, respectively.

Ftg. 7 shows a further embodiment of a data structure representing cf built in em ent.

25

Fig. 8 shows a block diagram illustrating an example of the process of loading an LOD version of a building element.

FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the process of providing a new version / LOD of an element.

14 DK 177170 B1

The invention will be explained primarily with reference to toy building models comprising a plurality of building elements as an example of a composite product comprising a plurality of components. However, it will be appreciated that the method described herein may also be used in connection with other types of composite products, other types of product development processes, and other types and uses of visual representations. In the figure, the same reference numerals will be used where this can be done by Jade, for the same or similar features, parts or steps.

10 DETAILED DESCRIPTION

In FIG. 1 schematically shows an example of a computer system.

Com pu Lersysle me L, generally designated 100, comprises a suitably programmed computer 101, e.g. a personal computer, workstation, etc., and comprising a display 120, a keyboard 121, and a computer mouse 122 15 cg or other pointing device such as a touch pad, a track ball, on light pen, a touch screen or the like. The computer system further comprises a database 102 for storing information on all available building elements, e.g. indexed for an ID for the building elements.

Database 102 can woo any convenient database system, e.g. a relational database such as an Oracle or MySQL database or the like. The computer system further comprises a file layer in direction 103 for storing geometry definitions for respective building elements in the respective LOD. The storage device may be any convenient type of remote access storage such as SMB or NFS shares, etc., and geomotride definition emo 25 can be stored in any convenient directory structure.

The database 102 and the file storage 1D3 can be accessed by the computer 101 via an appropriate computer network 104, e.g. a Local Area Network, a Wide Area Network, an Internet or similar. It will be appreciated that database 30 102 and / or file storage 103 can be accessed either directly by computer 101 or via another computer such as a server, database server and / or the like. Furthermore, it will be understood that the database 102 and / or file storage 103 can be integrated into the computer 101. It is further understood that the information about the building elements and / or the geometry files can be stored in a different way. For example, the geometry data can be stored in a database, e.g.

5 or a separate database.

The computer system 100 is designed to facilitate designing, storing, manipulating and sharing virtual building technology, as well as generating construction road cables as described herein. The computer system can be used as a stand-alone system or in conjunction with other computers. Accordingly, in some embodiments, the computer system 100 may further comprise one or more interfaces for connecting the computer to other computers via a computer network, e.g. The Internet.

15 PA FIG. 2 shows an example of a building element and its coupling elements for connecting the building element with other building elements, is shown in FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a building element 201. The building element 201 has an upper surface 202 with eight knobs 203a - h, which can engage with corresponding holes on another building element, e.g. holes in the bottom surface of a second building element. Similarly, the building element 201 comprises a bottom surface (not shown) with corresponding holes. The building element 201 further comprises side surfaces 204 which do not include any coupling elements. Building elements of the embodiment shown in FIG. 2 types are available under the name LEGO in a wide variety of shapes, sizes and colors. In addition, such building elements 25 are provided with a variety of coupling elements. It will be understood that the above building element serves solely as an example of possible building elements.

In FIG. 3, visual representations 301 - 303 of the building element according to FIG. 2 corresponding to three different versions of representations of the building element, which versions have respective LODs. As will be seen in FIG. 3, the different versions of the building elements are shown - in addition to an increase in detail in the row - with different display parameters. For example, version 303 of the build element includes a logo on each knot.

In addition, the edges of the building elements of versions 301 and 302 are shown as strokes of the S rather than as rounded edges, as is the case in version 303, as will be seen, e.g. when comparing e.g. with the edge 304. It is an advantage of the embodiments of the method described herein that the degree of detail eg the file size of the mode I representations can be adapted to the various stages of the development process. In particular, a model description with the highest degree of detail used in a development process may very well presuppose file sizes that are a factor of 10 or greater than the file sizes assuming file representations at lower LODs used at other stages of the development process.

15

A virtual building element model can comprise a number of different building elements of different shapes, sizes, colors, decoration, material and / or the like. Thus, a digital representation of a virtual building element model may comprise an appropriate data structure, e.g. a list or hierarchy of data records, where each data directory identifies a hygiene element, including an identifier identifying the type of building element, and information indicating the spatial relationship between the building element and the model, e.g. by means of coordinates relative to an appropriate coordinate system, by means of a hierarchical data structure and / or the like.

In Fig. 4, embodiments of a data structure for digital representation of a building element model are shown.

FIG. 4 shows a compact embodiment of a data structure for digital reproduction of a building element model irrespective of which version of the building elements to use. The data structure 401 may comprise one or more data records 402 s comprising global modes in parameters related to the entire model. Examples of such against electrical parameters include a beer name, a name of a model maker, a number for the 5 version of the modeling sap pi cation, a date of production, etc. The model data structure 401 further includes a list 403 or other appropriate structure of data records of building elements. In it on Hg. 4, the list N includes data delays "Building element Γ," Building element T, "Building element J" ..... "Building element N", 10 The data records of building elements will also be referred to as objects.

Each building element data record in list 403 can be identified by an element ID and carried the structure displayed by the data structure 404 for "Building Element J".

Each building element data item / object comprises a plurality of building element attributes 405 of a first type (hereinafter referred to as the "dynamic attribute or" shared attribute) which designate one or more attributes of the building element such as color, material character, decorations, etc. 3D application can add attributes to such an object or change them, for example in response to input from a user, for example when the user moves a building element to another location, changes the type of building element Dg / or the like The attributes can have different data types such as integers, queries (GB; float), strings, or even more complex types, such as arrays of data types or matrices and vectors. The attributes added by the 3D-25 application are called dynamic or 'shared' "attributes, they are used to share information across different LODs of the element and are dynamically transmitted during a LOD change. In particular, the dynamic attributes include a building element type ID, which identifies an identifier that identifies the type of building element; for use in connection with the present invention 30, such an identifier will also be designated DesignID. Issues when designing a building element model, the designer can choose 18 building elements from a set of available types of building elements, each type being identified by a unique design.

Design ID1 that can uniquely Identify some of the properties of the building element or the type of the building element. Additional examples of shared attributes 5 include the position and orientation of the object, a material ID, e.g. an integer indicating a unique identifier for the material that the building element should be made of, and a name (for example, a string) of the element that the user can assign for easier identification of the building element in a representation in list form of the stage . The dynamic attributes 405 may additionally comprise attribute data a stands representing the position and orientation of an internal coordinate system for the building element, respectively.

The position and orientation of the building element can be defined by the coordinates of a source of the internal coordinate system relative to a global - "world" coordinate system, and by the orientation of the internal 15 coordinate system relative to the global coordinate system. An example of a data format to store building element models incorporating a hierarchy of coordinate systems are described in U.S. Patent No. 6,389,375;

In addition, the construction data file of a 404 is included with a version number 20 406, indicating the LOD with which the building element must be reproduced.

In addition, the version number may indicate additional attributes of a different type (hereinafter referred to as "static attributes") associated with each LOD. Examples of static attributes will be described below. As described herein, a geometric description of the building element corresponding to version number 406 may be obtained from a predetermined location; the location can be retrieved from a database by using the version number and De sign ID as the index. Similarly, the static attributes associated with the specific version of a build element can be read from the same or a different database by using the 30 version number and DesignID'ei as an index.

19 DK 177170 B1 In fig. 4b shows another embodiment of a data structure for digitally representing a building element mode, which is useful for input to a suitable 3D modeling application such as Autodesk Maya,

Autodesk 3D Studio max, etc. The data structure 401 according to fig. 4b has an overall structure like the data structure of FIG. 4a, i.e. it comprises one or more data records 402 which comprise global model parameters related to the entire model, and a list 403 or other appropriate structure for data elements of building elements, where each data record of building elements in list 403 can be identified by an element -LD.

The FIG. 4b is different from the data structure of FIG. 4a in that the data structure of each building element is different from that of FIG.

4a, as illustrated by data structure 414 of 15 "Building Element J" In this embodiment, each building element data record includes a number of dynamic building element attributes 405 and a version number 406 as described in connection with Figure 4a. In this embodiment, the data structure 414 comprises building elements, however, are geometric description 417 of the 3D shape of the building element, for example, in the form of a polygonal mesh.The geometric description 417 describes the shape of the object with an LOD corresponding to the LOD identified with version number 406.

The building element data structure 414 may additionally comprise a number of static attributes 418 associated with the version of the building element identified with verses in nos. 406. Examples of static attributes include display parameters that control how the building element should look in a visual representation. Examples of such di-splay parameters include identifying areas of the building elements that should look a certain way, e.g. have a particular color such as black, in reproductions, an identification of edges or other contours to be drawn as black lines, areas of the building element where visual representation should be displayed, etc.

The above examples of display parameters are associated with respective S parts of the building element, while other examples of static attributes may relate to the entire building element, e.g. Attributes such as cost, weight, and or other production's related parameters that are only of interest during some development stages. Although shown as a separate block in FIG. 4b, some or all of the static attributes may in this way be stored as a part of or associated with the geometric description 417 of the building element, for example, as part of a data structure representing a polygon network.

Similarly, some or all of the dynamic attributes, though 15, may be shown as a separate block in FIG. 4b, is stored as part of or associated with the geometric description 417 of the building element. For example, an object 414 representing a building element may represent a 3D entity and have attributes such as position orientation, geometry to draw the object on the screen, as well as, optionally, another 20 dynes of measurement and / or static attributes.

As embodiments of the method and system described herein make it possible to add new, these attributes, the system is extensible to future needs. If there is a need to maintain 25 given new information about an element, a new shared attribute can be defined and used.

It will be understood that the above digital representations may be encrypted in any suitable data or file format, e.g. as a binary file, as a text file according to predetermined modulation description language, or similar. It will further be understood that alternative or additional types of data structures could be used to represent a building element model. Furthermore, it can be understood that the building element model can be represented with different data structures at different stages in the development process and I © Iler with different computer programs operating on the 5 building element model. In addition, the data structure used as a file format to store a building element mode! May be different from the internal data structure (s) used by the computer program or programs when processing a building element mode !. Examples of suitable data structures / file formats include those of U.S. Pat.

10 6,389,375 known file formats used by 3D-G raphi es system, eg Maya System from AutoDesk Ina, etc.

In FIG. Figure 5 shows an example of a computer-assisted production process. A typical development process can be divided into several steps. In the example shown in Fig. 5, the production process comprises a design step 501, an optimization / review step 502, a step for generating building instructions 503 (for end users and / or for use during production), and a marketing and packaging design step 504. It will be understood that the process may include alternative or additional steps; and / or that some of the above steps may be merged and or executed in parallel and / or in different order.

In addition, the development process may also include loops in which the process returns to a previous step for the purpose of revising the outcome of that previous step, e.g. when the optimization step 502 results in a need or desire to change the design of the model, then the process can return to step 501.

Each stage of gender includes the generation, manipulation and / or use of a digital representation of the product by respective software units executed on a data processing system, e.g. FIG. It shook 30 computer systems.

22 DK 177170 B1 For example. For example, the design step 501 can be implemented by an appropriate, interactive, virtual building system, e.g. a CAD system or a virtual reality modeling system, e.g. as described in US 6,383,375.

For example, an embodiment of a process for interactive application of a new virtual building element in a scene comprising a 3D structure is disclosed in published international application WQ04104811. Both documents are incorporated herein by reference and in their entirety.

The optimization / review step 502 can be implemented with the same software tool as described in connection with step 501, or with another tool. For example, a soft ware tool implementing step 502 may allow a user to generate different color variations and / or other variants of the same model and compare how these variants look in relation to each other, e.g. how they differ in visual appearance and / or price, weight, etc. The software tool implementing step 502 can additionally provide functionality to generate appropriate representations (e.g., graphic representations, material lists, and price information, weight and / or other characteristics of the model). For example, such 20 information may be communicated to a customer for the model, enabling customers to participate in the process so that they can provide feedback on the model at an early stage in the development process before it is completed,

It will also be an option to build a model or part of a model in a different way.

25

The step 503 of generating building guides can be implemented with an appropriate software application to generate visual representations of sub-models or another appropriate software system. For example, a construction guide in ng application can be adapted to read a digital imprecision of a model and to generate a construction guide based on the model data read. In addition, building wall joints can also provide a user interface for! showing sub-models according to a stored sequence of construction steps or any other appropriate output format for the generated construction instructions. The build guidance application can generate the build guide nine in an appropriate file format, e.g. in printable form or 5 as an SD animation. For example, metpub I does not describe ikaiion on "Designing Effective Step-by-Siep Assembly Instructions" by M. Agrawala et al., Retrieved from http: // graphics, Stanford, ed u / papers / assemb Iinstructions /, the design principles for efficient gathering of wiring on the basis of cognitive psychology, and in published international patent application WO 2005/1244696, an automated process for generating building guides for a virtual building fashion is described !.

Typically, a toy building kit includes printed building instructions or assembly instructions that illustrate how to build a given fashion! 15 from the building elements included in the set. Typically, the construction instructions that come with a toy building kit include a sequence of images that show, step by step, how and in what order the building elements should be built on the model. Such construction guides have the advantage that they are easy to follow, even for booms without the extensive experience 20 with toy building kits and / or without literacy. Similarly, assembly instructions for many other composite products are produced, either for use in the manufacture of the product or by the customer when the product is sold and shipped in non-assembled form. Further, it will be understood that such collection instructions can be produced in a variety of forms.

25

For the production of marketing and / or packaging materials (step 504), an appropriate 3D Graphics system, e.g. Maya System from Auto Desk Inc.

It should be noted that since the treatment system of Fig. 1 can be configured to execute all or just some of the above processes. According to some inventive forms, various of the processes can be implemented on different computers, each having access to the database 102 of building elements and the storage 103 and operating on one or on different digital representations 401 of the model.

Accordingly, and as described herein, the computer program (s) (e.g., appropriate client software) implementing or at least supporting the respective steps 501-504 may retrieve and / or store a digital representation 401 10 of the model to / from an appropriate data store or a data co mmon in cation gears see flat e. For example, all the computer programs may have access to a file system, database or other data store where digital representations of one or more building element models are stored. As mentioned above, the computer programs further have access to a database 102 which may include a graphical definition of individual building elements in one of a number of possible LODs, or at least one reference, e.g. a pointer, file name, URL, or the like to a storage location 103 where the actual graphic definition is stored. Accordingly, the computer program (s) can generate visual representations of the building element model with different LODs and process an appropriate version of the building element mode. Preferably, the above program implementation or facility step 501 - 504 is arranged to accept the same or at least a compatible format of digital representations and output the same or at least a compatible format of digital representations, thereby enabling to use the representations read out in one step in another step.

Each of the steps may involve different requirements for the digital representation.

For example, during design step 501, the designer may only work 30 with a low-resolution representation of the model because the visual aspects of the individual elements are not so important even at this stage compared to the correct placement. of the elements within the model. However, it may be. that while constructing the instructions in step 501, the visual appearance of the elements is more important, and therefore we! advantageously a 5 second LOD could be used with a more detailed, but still not photo realistical version of the element. Finally, in designing for marketing and packaging, it may be desirable for the elements to look like the real world elements, for example, when generating marketing material, animation, etc.

Consequently, in step 504, it is useful to use a very detailed version 10 of the elements for the high-quality reproduction of the entire model for boxes, posters, etc.

In addition, the different development processes may have different standards for how building element models should be visualized, e.g. how to display 15 contours such as edges, etc. For example, in the design phase and for generating building instructions, it is desirable to generate a visual representation that enables a user to easily distinguish between the individual building elements of a model. Similarly, it may be that the needs for additional product information are also 20 different at the respective development stages. For example, during the design step, the designer may need additional information about each building element, such as a cost, weight, pnoduction status, etc., in order to design the model according to given requirements or specifications. On the other hand, when generating market sentiment material and 25 construction lines, it may stir that this information is no longer necessary. Thus, by adapting both LOD and additional visual representation display parameters, and possibly also the number and bytes of additional attributes for the respective versions of representations, any given building element is able to minimize the 30 amount of data to be stored and processed in the respective development processes.

i ... · -.

2.6 DK 177170 B1

These needs can be met by a system whereby each version of a building element not only has a respective visual representation LOD associated with it, but also has a respective set of attributes, such as display parameters, ten! controlling the visual appearance of the building element and / or additional attributes, e.g. indicates the production's related data, Each version can thus be identified by a different version number number page. For use in the present description, each version can be identified at its LO Οι 0 level. However, it will be understood that in some embodiments, different versions of building elements with the same LOD may be found, where the different versions have different static attributes, e.g. various display parameters associated with it. Consequently, as the process proceeds from one of the development steps 501 - 504 to another, the computer system can change the version (for example, as identified by the corresponding LOD level} of the building elements of the model to be developed. For example, when the LOD of the building elements is changed, the process requests new versions of the building elements whose LOD needs to be changed from the database 102, and the database 20 102 provides the desired building elements (or a reference to a site where the requested building element is The central database 102 may thus contain all available building elements in all ten available LODs, as well as attributes associated with each element, such as special production data, which can be used by the client software in combination with the element, and designation means for geometry definition files that are stored in a file store 103.

In addition, the overall system can implement a separate process 505 to generate different versions of a building element, e.g. when a new building element has been developed and it has been added to the pool of building elements available for 27 DK 177170 B1. For example, the process may receive information about a new type of building element in the form of 3D data. In the case of molded building elements, for example, made of plastic, the 3D data can define which shape to use to make the building element. On the basis of this input, the process generates different versions of the build element with the corresponding attributes and stores the generated version in the database / fif repository. For example, the process of generating new elements can be performed using any appropriate 3D mode learning application such as Autodesk Maya, Autodesk 3D Studio max, 10 and so on.

In FIG. Figure 6 shows process diagrams of embodiments of methods for generating a visual representation and for altering the LOD of a digital representation of a building element, respectively.

15 In FIG. Figure 6a shows a process diagram of one embodiment of a method for generating a visual representation.

The process receives digital representation 401 of the building element, e.g.

20 a digital representation of that type. described in connection with Fig. 4a. in step 610, the process initializes an output data structure, e.g. an output file 630 to accommodate a representation of a scene comprising the model and which is appropriate as an input to an appropriate 3D mode in learning application such as Autodesk Maya, Autodesk 3D Studio max, 25 etc. It will be understood that in addition to the building element model, the stage further includes other objects, for example, a 3D world to which the model is placed. have a structure as shown in FIG. 4b.

The process then loops through all the building element directory 30 of the digital representation 401 and adds the respective building elements to the file 630. In step 611, the process mainly favors the Design I D'et or other identifier that uniquely identifies the type of building element from In. The process also provides the desired LOD, for example, from the input representation 401, as a user input and / or the like. In the subsequent step 613, the process requests the database 102 for a file name of {or other reference to) a graphics file. corresponding to the building element with the obtained DesigriD and the desired LOD. Database 102 stores information about all available building element types.

In the subsequent step 614, the process retrieves the identified file from the data store 103 and imports the geometric description from the file as a new object into the scene. As described above, objects represent 3D entities and may have attributes such as position, orientation, geometry to draw the object on the screen. In a scenario, all elements are typically stored with different orientation and position. Thus, importing may include opening a file containing 3D data (e.g., triangles or polygons) representing the element to be added to the stage so that it "Appears" in the 3D worlds and adds the element to the stage at a predetermined initial position, e.g. a source of a coordinate system, center of the 3D world or the like.

In step 615, the process copies all dynamic / shared attributes of the corresponding record in the data structure 401 and into the newly imported object. For example, copying the position and orientation attributes causes the newly added object to be positioned in the correct position and with the correct orientation. Furthermore or! instead, a number of dynamic attributes associated with respective types of building elements can be stored in the database 102 and indexed using 30 Design! The. An example of such a dynamic may be a mate ria le ID

or similar. Alternatively or further, attributes relating to respective building elements may be required and are only required during certain stages of the development process, e.g. cost, weight, delivery times and in or product inventory data are treated as shared attributes stored in database 102 which are retrieved only in response to a user query or a request from a software application, e.g. when creating material lists, calculations are made of the total weight or cost of the model, etc.

In step 617, the process (for example, by executing a program) controls the visual appearance of the building element based on the shared attributes. For example, when a building element is imported into the stage, it has no material associated with it. The material is defined by one of the shared attributes, called Material ID. Therefore, in step 617, a program selects the hue selector for the 3D geometry according to the shared attribute that defines the material for the build element. For example, a building element has a material ID indicating that the material is dark raw plastic, then a nuance selector corresponding to this material ID is assigned to the 3D geometry of objects in order to simulate the appearance of '' dark raw '' plastic in the scene . Another example includes applying images to parts of the geometry to simulate decorations, such as stickers.

In step 618, the process finds out whether all the building elements have been processed. If not, the process returns to step 611 so that the next build element is processed; otherwise, the process proceeds in 20 steps 019 to step 619, the process generates a graphical representation of the scene from oufput file 630. For example, the process may generate an output file 631 in an appropriate file format, e.g. a PDF file which is useful for displaying, printing, or otherwise reproducing an image of the scenery which includes the building element.

Thus, with the above example, a process is provided which generates a visual representation from a compact. LOD-independent digital representation, such as the one shown in FIG. 4a. It will be appreciated that other 5 examples of the above process may receive a digital representation as an input that already includes 3D geometry data, e.g. in the embodiment of FIG. 4b. If the process receives such a digital representation that includes building elements In the desired version, the process can generate the graphics output 631 on the basis of the representation received alone, ie.

10, without having to bring data from database 102 and file 103. Otherwise, in the event that the input presentation represents building elements in another LOD, it may be necessary to update the version of some or all of the building elements.

15 In FIG. eb shows a progress diagram of an embodiment of a method for changing the LOD of a digital representation of a building according to a mod e I. As described above, a change in the LOD can be triggered by a user command giving the user control over which representation and what attributes to use. The user of the 20 computer program implementing or facilitating one or more steps in the product development process can trigger the process of updating the LOD by selecting the building elements to be changed and the new LOD to update the selected building elements. For example, the selection of building elements can be carried out by appropriate operation with a designation device, e.g. by clicking on individual building elements and I or by dragging a box around the building element (s) to be selected and f or by issuing an "select all * command.

For each selected building element, the computer program can subsequently execute the one shown in FIG. 6b. As Input, the process receives an identified building element and a desired LOD level. As described above, the identified building element of model 401 is represented by a data object, ie. a data structure representing the geometry of the building elements ng a number of attributes. As described herein, the attributes may include static and dynamic attributes. The object representing the version of the element currently being introduced in the model is also referred to as the current object. 6b, it is assumed that the process operates on a digital representation 401 as shown in FIG.

4h, i.e. which is available for the process in internal or external memory of the computer system 101. The digital representation 410 may include the building element alone or be part of a larger scenario comprising other objects, e.g. In the initial step 601, the DesignID process obtains the building element whose version needs updating from the digital representation 401, or another identifier that uniquely identifies the type of building element.

In the subsequent step 603, the process sends a query to the database 102 for a file name of, or other reference 10, a graphic file corresponding to the building element with the Design ID obtained and the desired LOD. In the database 102, information about all available building type types is stored.

In the subsequent step 604, the process retrieves the identified data file from the data layer 103 and imports the geometric description from the file as a new object into the scene represented by the digital representation 401. In one scene, all elements are typically stored with different orientation. and position. Thus, the import step may include opening a file containing 3D data (e.g., triangles or polygons) representing part element to be added to the stage so that it 'appears' in the 3D worlds and adds the element for the stage of a 32 DK 177170 B1 initial position and orientation.The initial position may be the center of the 3D world.

in step 605, the process copies all shared attributes from the old object 5 to be replaced by the imported new object to the new object. Copying the shared attributes includes iteration of all shared attributes of an existing object and copying information therein! the new object (the replacement of the first). In this way, it is ensured that all necessary Information is preserved throughout the development process.

10 In step 606, the process deletes the old object, since the static attributes associated with the old object are not copied from the old object to the new object, they are deleted at the same time as the deletion of the old object. Because the static attributes are only useful (for example, because they relate to the actual grid in the given LOD) or desirable in connection with a given LOD. deleting them will reduce the file si arre Ice of the updated LOD, where the old static attributes are no longer needed. For example, some identified (e.g., enumerated) faces of the geometry of an LOD are marked as having a predetermined property (e.g., marked as a decoration area to which a user can attach a sticker), the same area's response to a another surface list in another LOD.

In step 607, the process (e.g., by executing a program) changes the visual appearance of the building element based on the shared attributes as described in connection with step 617 of the above tig. 6a.

In FIG. 7 illustrates another example of a data structure representing a building element. The building element data structure 404 has a set of attributes associated with it. In particular, the building element data structure has a set of static 30 attributes 406 and a set of dynamic attributes 405 associated with it. The static attributes 406 depend on the LOD, viz. the static attributes change together with the LOD, as shown in FIG. 7 with three LOD levels. LOD1, LOD2 and LOD3 respectively, corresponding to LOD 301-303 shown in FIG. 4. Accordingly, version LOD1 of a building element has the static attributes 704 associated with it, version LOD2 of a building element has the S static attributes 705 associated with it, and version LOD3 of a building element has the static attributes 705 associated with it. The static attributes are stored in conjunction with the LOD of the elements, e.g. in the geometric description file stored in the corresponding file stored in free storage 103 and not shared by all LODs. Thus, the static attributes 406 may be LOD-specific (e.g., identifying parts of the geometry to be addressed in a particular way), or they may only be required at a specific stage in the development process (e.g., the weight of the element). The dynamic attributes 405 are shared throughout all stages of development and describe the final appearance of the element. Examples of dynamic attributes include the DesignID of the element, the position and orientation of the building element in the model, the reconfiguration of the element, the applied decorations and / or the like. Still other examples of dynamic attributes include Information about a model's hierarchy, for example, a hierarchical • grouping of building elements into parts of the model.

20 represents a figure, it can be grouped into, for example, a head, body, left arm, right arm, left leg and right leg. These groups can be further subdivided into other groups. the "left arm" has a subgroup called "forearm" and this can have a subgroup "hand" and so on. If the LOD of an element is changed, the process ensures that the imported elements are correctly placed in the model hierarchy.

In the embodiment of FIG. 7, LOD versions 704 - 705 of an element have respective attributes associated with those which indicate the visual appearance of the building elements. In this example, in particular, the LOD1 and LOD2 enclosures each have an attribute associated with them which produces a drawing process 34 to display the building elements with edges that appear as black bars. The LOD2 version has, in addition to an attribute associated with it, which produces a drawing process to show the side surfaces of the projections of the building elements in black. The LOD3 version has an attribute associated with 5 itself which causes a drawing space to draw the projections as separate objects, thereby enabling the process to delete projections from the scene that are invisible. Examples of different visual appearances of different versions of a building element are shown in FIG. 3, 10 When an element is added to a model, for example, by a computer-implemented design tool or other interactive virtual modeling application, the process assigns an element ID to this geometry that identifies the element, even when its LOD is changed. . Thus, the element ID is another example of a dynamic / shared attribute. As described above, other dynamic attributes of the elements may need to be transferred during the LOD change, for example, the description of what material to use or what decorations to apply to the element being be manufactured. LOD-specific (i.e., static) attributes, on the other hand, can be automatically deleted during an LOD update.

20 In FIG. 8 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the process of loading an LOD version of a building element. In particular, FIG. 8 two software modules that are executed on the computer 101: a server application 810 and a client application 811. The client application 811 may be a 3D-25 application which provides a user interface and functionality which facilities one or more of the development stages of a product development. In process as described above. For example, client pp I in the cation may be a 3D ap pi in cation to generate, manipulate and / or view visual representations of the construction coin model, e.g. on the basis of a digital representation of 30 building elements against the electric, for example, as described in connection with FIG. 4. The client application is in communication, e.g. via a socket interface, with the server application S10. Server applications provide cationic functionality and services to the client application, e.g.

database access, rendering, etc. The server application is in communication with the database 102 and the file storage 103, 5 The client application is in communication with the file storage 103. a digital representation such as that described in connection with FIG. 4. The digital representation may comprise a representation of the geometric shape of the individual building elements as described in connection with FIG. 4b. However, the digital representation received according to other embodiments (for example, as shown in Fig. 4a) may not include such representation, but only a reference thereto in the form of a version number. In other situations, the digital representation may include a representation of the shape of the building element in a version other than the one requested by the user.

Thus, in the situations described above for the 3D application, it may be necessary to provide the representations of one or more of the building elements with the desired LOD in order to generate a visual representation and / or to replace an existing representation of the building elements in the model with the desired version.

An embodiment of such processes was described above in connection with FIGS. 6th

A process of obtaining and loading an element with a requested LOD with the 3D-25 application to generate a visual representation or to replace the current version of the element with another version will now be described with reference to FIG. S. The process can be divided into five steps as indicated by arrows 801 - 805 in FIG. 8: 30 DK 177170 B1

Step S01: 3 D-ap pli cation 811 communicates over a network socket with server application 810 and requests file name one of the version with a given Design! D and a given LOD.

Step 802: The service application 810 sends a query file to the database 102 where the file name is stored and receives a corresponding response which includes the requested ff In avn.

Step 803: After receiving the response from the database, the server application 810 retrieves information about the file from the file store, e.g. file size, file date, etc.

Step 804: The server application 810 sends the collected information back to the 3D application island 811 in response to the request in step 801.

15

Step 805: The 3D application 811 can now access file store 103 directly and open the file from there.

The file store can be any remote access store such as SMB or NFS-20 shares. For example, the versions of the building elements can be stored in a traditional directory structure, e.g. where each element is stored ΐ its own directory. The directory can be named after a unique ID for the element-LOD combination retrieved from the database 102 when the element is generated and loaded.

25 In FIG. 9 is a block diagram illustrating an example of the process of providing a new version / LOD of an element. The system architecture shown in FIG. 9 is the same as that shown in FIG. 8, However, it will be understood that the client application may be another application, e.g. a 30 specific application for designing new building elements and creating geometric specifications therefor. Examples of such an application include any 3D modeling application such as Autodesk Maya, Luxology Mod o or Robert McWeel & Associates Rhinoceros 3D.

A method of adding a new geometry to the system will now be described with reference to FIG. 9:

Step 901: The 3D application 811 generates and stores the new geometric definition, for example, on the local hard drive, and sends a query to the server application p in the cation B1Q, which includes the file name of the new geometric definition as well as information about it corresponding to the LOD and the Design ID.

Step 902: The server application 810 sends a query to the database 102 and asks for a new unique ID for the file. The server application receives the file ID in response.

15

Step 903: Server application 810 stores the generated file on file storage 103 using the received unique file ID. The file can, for example. is stored in a new folder, which is named in the same way as the unique ID of the file.

20

All geometric files can be saved in an appropriate file format that is compatible with the 3D graphics applications that use the files, such as in a TnayaBinary71 file when using the AutoDesk Maya program.

In summary, a memory-efficient compute rimpement element is described herein and a system for building even very large products out of a large number of individual components / elements, while providing all the information (including visual) required during the various stages of a development process.

30 38 DK 177170 B1

The method and system described herein provide an easy update of elements in models once the element itself has been changed.

Thus, each mode in can be boldly updated by updating the elements. With this system it is even possible to have different elements with 5 different LODs in the same model. It can be an advantage during playback to save memory and playback time. Elements close to the camera can thus use a more detailed LOD than those far away.

Claims (18)

39 DK 177170 B1 p§ign 1 k raV A co-imputed implementation method for supporting the production of a composite product comprising a plurality of components, the method comprising: at least one design step comprising - providing a computed implemented co-operation tool eye by which a user is enabled to select a respective digital representation from each of the number of components from a repository for components, and to place the selected components in a spatial relation to each other so as to produce a digital representation of the composite product; And a further processing step comprising - generating a visual representation of at least a portion of the composite product for use in at least one among the manufacture, marketing and use of the composite product, characterized in that the method comprises - storing a number of versions of digital representations of each component, each version inheriting a digital representation of a component comprising information on geometry to visualize / reproduce that component in a respective degree of detail; and that each of the design steps and further processing steps comprises: - for each component of at least a portion of the composite product, selecting a level of detail to be associated with the component, and providing a stored version of the , digital representation of the component corresponding to ten! the degree of detail chosen; and - generating a respective visual representation of at least a portion of the composite product on the basis of the generated digital representation of the composite product and from the provided versions of digital representations of components. The method of claim 1, wherein at least one version of each digital representation of a component further comprises a display parameter for controlling visual representation of the component; and wherein the method comprises controlling the generation of the respective visual representation of at least a portion of the composite product on the basis of the respective display parameters encompassed by the provided versions of digital representations. 15 The method of claim 2, wherein different versions of a digital representation comprise different values for d i p i aypara mete clean, A method according to any of claims 1 to 3, wherein at least one version of each digital representation of a component further comprising an attribute indicating at least one property of the component; and wherein the further processing step is on the basis of the respective attributes encompassed in the provided versions of digital representations. 5, A method according to claim 4, wherein the attribute indicates at least one among a weight, a cost of production, a material of the component. 30 41 DK 177170 B1 The method of claim 4 or 5, wherein different versions of a digital representation comprise different values for the attribute. The method of any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the digital representation of the composite product comprises a respective type of identifier for each component of the composite structure; and wherein providing a stored version of a digital representation of a component corresponding to a selected degree of detail comprises providing the version based on the type of identifier and the degree of detail. The method of any one of claims 1 to 7, wherein the components are mutually building equal building elements from a toy building system; and whereby the composite product is a 15th egg-building model that can be built from the building elements. The method of any of claims 1 to 8, wherein the digital representation comprises respective position coordinates for each of the components relative to a predetermined coordinate system. 20 The method of any one of claims © 1 to 9, wherein the additional processing step comprises generating guides for at least one assembly, operation, maintenance and disassembly of the composite product; which guide comprises at least one image 25 of at least part of the composite product The method of claim 10, wherein the guide comprises a sequence of images illustrating respective steps in a process for at least one of assembly, operation, maintenance and disassembly of the composite product. 42 DK 177170 B1 A method according to any one of the preceding claims, wherein the digital representation of the composite product comprises one or more respective delta attributes for each component of the composite product, one or more respective shared attributes having the same values independent of the versions of the digital representation of the corresponding component; and wherein each version of a digital representation of a component comprises group of specific attributes specific to the corresponding version. The method of claim 12, wherein the group of specific attributes comprises one or more display parameters, A data processing system in which are stored program coding means adapted to cause the data processing system to perform the steps of the method according to any one of claims 1 to 13, when program code ids are executed by the data processing system A computer program product comprising program coding means adapted to cause a data processing system to perform the steps of the method according to any one of claims 1 to 13 when the program coding means is executed on the multicast processing system. The computer program product of claim 15, comprising a computer readable medium on which said code coders are stored, 25 A computer data signal included in a carrier representing sequences of instructions which, when executed by a data processing system, causes the data processing system to perform the steps of the method of any one of claims 1 to 30, L / 6. DK 177170 B1 120 -x_ 1-, 101 ^ • ................................. I_ '; 103 / "102 ~ · '~~ ^, _ 122 / __ \ ^ Jiir" r ~ i — ir-ι il i J_y j L · 1 ^ - · - · f' ~ li J v J 121 __ΖΖΞΓ "" {- l., ..... "" -104 Fig, 1 203d —v 203b -x2C-3c 203h 202 - ^ 201 203a (<ΘΤ 203s 204 ^ \ ^ <2Q3e Fig, 2 y ^ - ^ 304¾¾ ^ :: ^ '; · Λ ·;?; ^^ 3 ^' · ^; V '"· Vyh'; iv · '-" ^^ ·:':, 4,;. ^ ..;: '·.: 1 · ΊΜ ^ Μ '· Μ) Κίί! Ϊ́jaa ^ ·' IX? . ^ L'tiS Fr ^.? .3 * - · -.- 51- * IJ ··.! f. >. *, J y 1- * ytz. - J -.! ..- jl -> -. · -_ -r ^. I ·: ^,. ·: · -. ψ J η- »- '•, · · · tb - * 7v -.- ·. -.X. j, 401 2/6 DK 177170 B1 - 404 M ° part 402 / r405 / ', ___ / /' A} Mcdelp parameters? Building element J _ ^ i; Bragaetemeni2 / Dynamic Building Element Attributes 403 ________________ / - QesignlD _ - Color, Decoration, etc. n V, .. s - Positive Building Element Ni x N - Orientation \ .............. .. _ LOD FIG. 4a \ _ Vv_4Q6 - 401 β Γ "- 404 M ° part« 2 / / «s Towards electrical parameters? Building element. J / (Building element 1 / Dynamic building element attributes / I Building element 2 / Design ID 403 - <------ ----------_ / - Color, decoration, etc. Building element J · v. Building element N 'p' Orientation \ ______________ _____ - V LOD 406 · —- ---—- 4Ί7 palygonal mesh Fig. 4b 418 —— ^ ———-—-- Static Attributes 3 / fi DK 177170 B1 -: - 501 I-► Design: -Π ----------------- ..................................... π-1 — i _v * II; - q, 502: 401 m — ► Review /.! .. 1 “! /> <___ 'i: i / * ......................... .................................................. .....................................: i m r. oi Build- 503 _L / ► Guides' / x L · ........................................... ................................. ► -J packaging χ "504 - '--J iaa / - 505 ^ Creation of elements in different degrees of detail is Fig. 5 DK 177170 B1 Q Create Visual · Rep (LQD) ^ | _i_ n ............... i -------- ► I nit —-- ►! 630 i --T -—, -! : I-1-► '-ei °! in! ! 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