U.S. patent application number 12/313816 was filed with the patent office on 2009-03-19 for method and system of marketing and mass producing customized kitchen furniture.
This patent application is currently assigned to Richfield Inc.. Invention is credited to Paul Tung.
Application Number | 20090076932 12/313816 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 37495307 |
Filed Date | 2009-03-19 |
United States Patent
Application |
20090076932 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
Tung; Paul |
March 19, 2009 |
Method and system of marketing and mass producing customized
kitchen furniture
Abstract
A system of marketing and mass producing customized domestic
furniture includes a graphic customizing center and a service
center. The graphic customizing center has an electronic database
which contains a plurality of domestic floor plans and a plurality
of furniture kits, wherein each of the domestic floor plans, which
is simulated from a domestic environment to imitate the domestic
furniture therein, has a plurality of customized areas preset on
the domestic furniture to be customized for generating a plurality
of custom made virtual domestic environments. The service center
itemizes the furniture kits selected from the virtual domestic
environments to mass-order the furniture kits for reducing a cost
of the furniture kit in quantity manner.
Inventors: |
Tung; Paul; (City of
Industry, CA) |
Correspondence
Address: |
DAVID AND RAYMOND PATENT FIRM
108 N. YNEZ AVE., SUITE 128
MONTEREY PARK
CA
91754
US
|
Assignee: |
Richfield Inc.
|
Family ID: |
37495307 |
Appl. No.: |
12/313816 |
Filed: |
November 24, 2008 |
Related U.S. Patent Documents
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Application
Number |
Filing Date |
Patent Number |
|
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11147798 |
Jun 7, 2005 |
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12313816 |
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Current U.S.
Class: |
705/26.1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06Q 30/06 20130101;
G06Q 30/0605 20130101; G06Q 30/0643 20130101; G06Q 30/0601
20130101; G06Q 30/0621 20130101 |
Class at
Publication: |
705/27 |
International
Class: |
G06Q 30/00 20060101
G06Q030/00; G06Q 50/00 20060101 G06Q050/00 |
Claims
1. A computer-implemented method of marketing and mass producing
customized domestic furniture, comprising the steps of: (a)
computer-generating a plurality of custom made virtual domestic
environments by different home owners, wherein at least one
furniture kit is selected by each said home owner to match with
said domestic furniture in a domestic floor plan; (b) itemizing
said furniture kits from said virtual domestic environments,
wherein each of said furniture kits contains an itemized code
representing to said virtual domestic environment from said
respective home owner; (c) mass-ordering said furniture kits with
respect to said itemized code thereof; and (d) delivering each of
said furniture kits to said respective home owner in accordance
with said virtual domestic environment custom made by said home
owner.
2. The method, as recited in claim 1, wherein, in the step (a),
said domestic floor plan has a plurality of customized areas preset
on said domestic furniture to be customized for generating said
custom made virtual domestic environments
3. The method, as recited in claim 1, after the step (c), further
comprising a step of mass-producing said furniture kits ordered
from said home owners to reduce a manufacturing cost of said
furniture kit.
4. The method, as recited in claim 2, after the step (c), further
comprising a step of mass-producing said furniture kits ordered
from said home owners to reduce a manufacturing cost of said
furniture kit.
5. The method, as recited in claim 1, in step (b), further
comprising a step of assigning said itemized code to each of said
furniture kits selected in each of said virtual domestic
environments from said respective home owner such that statuses of
said furniture kits are adapted to be chased to ensure said
furniture kits being ordered correctly and delivered on time.
6. The method, as recited in claim 2, in step (b), further
comprising a step of assigning said itemized code to each of said
furniture kits selected in each of said virtual domestic
environments from said respective home owner such that statuses of
said furniture kits are adapted to be chased to ensure said
furniture kits being ordered correctly and delivered on time.
7. The method, as recited in claim 1, wherein said virtual domestic
environment with said furniture kits selected by said respective
home owner is digitally recorded with said itemized codes as a home
owner profile to assure said home owner of a corrected order of
said furniture kits.
8. The method, as recited in claim 2, wherein said virtual domestic
environment with said furniture kits selected by said respective
home owner is digitally recorded with said itemized codes as a home
owner profile to assure said home owner of a corrected order of
said furniture kits.
9. A system of marketing and mass producing customized domestic
furniture, comprising: an electronic database which contains a
plurality of domestic floor plans and a plurality of furniture
kits, wherein each of said domestic floor plans, which is simulated
from a domestic environment to imitate said domestic furniture
therein, has a plurality of customized areas preset on said
domestic furniture to be customized for generating a plurality of
custom made virtual domestic environments; means for itemizing said
furniture kits selected from said virtual domestic environments to
mass-order said furniture kits for reducing a cost of said
furniture kit in quantity manner; and a virtual simulator combining
said respective domestic floor plan with said selected furniture
kit thereon to convert said domestic floor plan in a viewable form
so as to simulate a virtual domestic design in said respective
virtual domestic environment.
10. The system, as recited in claim 9, wherein each of said
furniture kits selected in said virtual domestic environment is
digitally stored in said electronic database and is assigned with
an itemized code for said service center mass-ordering said
furniture kit.
11. The system, as recited in claim 9, wherein each of said
furniture kits graphically displays a specific texture and color to
be customized with said domestic furniture.
12. The system, as recited in claim 10, wherein each of said
furniture kits graphically displays a specific texture and color to
be customized with said domestic furniture.
13. A customized domestic furniture system for customizing domestic
furniture in a virtual domestic environment, comprising: a
plurality of domestic floor plans each having a plurality of
customized areas preset on said domestic furniture to be
customized, wherein each of said domestic floor plans is an
electronic floor plan simulated from a domestic environment; a
plurality of furniture kits each of which is simulated from said
domestic furniture, wherein at least one of said furniture kits is
selectively placed on said customized areas of one of said domestic
floor plans for matching said domestic furniture with said virtual
domestic environment; and a virtual simulator combining said
domestic floor plan with said selected furniture kit thereon to
convert said domestic floor plan in an viewable form so as to
simulate a virtual domestic design of said virtual domestic
environment.
14. The system, as recited in claim 13, wherein each of said
furniture kits is virtually created to match with said
corresponding floor plan, and comprises a plurality of furniture
attributes corresponding with an attribute of said domestic
furniture which is to be matched with said relevant customized
areas of said corresponding floor plan.
15. The system, as recited in claim 13, wherein said virtual
simulator comprises a processor digitally combining said selected
furniture kits on said customized areas of said respective domestic
floor plan to generate said custom made virtual domestic
environment, and a virtual viewer electrically connected with said
processor to digitally display said virtual domestic design in said
virtual environment for simulating virtual reality of said user's
own floor plan.
16. The system, as recited in claim 14, wherein said virtual
simulator comprises a processor digitally combining said selected
furniture kits on said customized areas of said respective domestic
floor plan to generate said custom made virtual domestic
environment, and a virtual viewer electrically connected with said
processor to digitally display said virtual domestic design in said
virtual environment for simulating virtual reality of said user's
own floor plan.
17. The system, as recited in claim 13, further comprising an
electronic database storing said domestic floor plans and said
furniture kits therein, wherein said domestic floor plans are
systematically categorized said floor plans into a plurality of
floor plan classes that each of said classes has a common attribute
for being selected in an organized manner, wherein said furniture
kits are categorized into a plurality of kit groups that each of
said kit groups is allowed to be selected in said particular
customized area of each of said floor plans.
18. The system, as recited in claim 16, further comprising an
electronic database storing said domestic floor plans and said
furniture kits therein, wherein said domestic floor plans are
systematically categorized said floor plans into a plurality of
floor plan classes that each of said classes has a common attribute
for being selected in an organized manner, wherein said furniture
kits are categorized into a plurality of kit groups that each of
said kit groups is allowed to be selected in said particular
customized area of each of said floor plans.
19. The system, as recited in claim 13, wherein each of said
furniture kits graphically displays a specific texture and color to
be customized with said domestic furniture.
20. The system, as recited in claim 16, wherein each of said
furniture kits graphically displays a specific texture and color to
be customized with said domestic furniture.
Description
CROSS REFERENCE OF RELATED APPLICATION
[0001] This is a divisional application that claims the benefit of
priority under 35U.S.C. .sctn.119 to a non-provisional application,
application Ser. No. 11/147,798, filed Jun. 7, 2005.
BACKGROUND OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
[0002] 1. Field of Invention
[0003] The present invention relates to domestic furniture, and
more particularly to a customized domestic furniture system and a
method thereof which enable a user to preview a virtual domestic
design combined by an electronic floor plan and a selected
furniture kit.
[0004] 2. Description of Related Arts
[0005] During a typical furniture selection process, the customers
usually need to preview a combination of different kinds of
furniture to assess whether a particular combination of different
furniture well fit to their home environment.
[0006] Conventionally, there exist two methods of doing that.
First, retailers of furniture may provide the relevant customers
with a stack of catalogues showing different combinations of
different furniture or different appearance of a particular piece
of furniture (e.g. different colors for a piece of domestic
furniture). The customers may gain a general idea of what the
particular piece of furniture looks like in the particular
environment shown in the catalogue, and `imagine` the overall
effect that piece of furniture has if it is placed in their
homes.
[0007] The problem with this conventional practice is that the
environment demonstrated in the catalogue simply does not match
with the customers' domestic environment. As a result, the overall
effect of a particular combination of furniture may not duplicate
in the customer's home in that each combination of furniture would
have different aesthetic appeal in different environments.
[0008] Another problem with this conventional practice is that
catalogue only displays rather limited number of combinations
regarding the domestic furniture so that the customer may not be
able to see his/her desirable combination of furniture. On the part
of the seller, he/she may need to keep a huge amount of catalogues
so that he/she may best fulfill the demand of various customers.
Accordingly, the manufacturers of the furniture may need produce a
corresponding number of catalogues for showing different
combinations of features or aesthetical design.
[0009] The second method of previewing different furniture
combinations is that the retailer may prepare a plurality of
materials samples which are to be shown to the customers so as to
allow the customers to appreciate or imagine, from the relevant
materials samples, the whole picture of the combination of the
relevant furniture.
[0010] Obviously, the problem of this practice is that the
customers are really hard to extrapolate from the materials samples
to form a whole picture of the combination of the relevant
furniture. As a result, many people may experience that when the
furniture has been delivered to his/her home, the overall effect of
the combination of furniture may be totally different from what
he/she has imagined at the time when he/she placed the order. In
addition, this practice also requires the retailers to keep a large
number of materials samples in an easily retrievable manner. This
may not be possible for all furniture retailers.
[0011] For builders on the other hand, when a particular housing
estate has to be built, the furniture combination for each of the,
say, apartments, need to be individually selected. The process can
be extremely cumbersome: each of the purchasers of the apartments
have to be shown a large number of catalogues and then chooses
their favorite combination of furniture. The builders concerned
must individually collect every single combination of furniture
order and then prepare the required resources for building such
diverse combination of furniture for every single apartment. As a
result, the process can be very inefficient and ineffective. Should
there are some mistakes in the data collection procedures or
inconsistencies between what are shown on the catalogues and the
actual appearance of the combination of furniture, the builders may
then be involved in complicated disputes and this may even give
rise to legal actions brought by the individual purchasers.
SUMMARY OF THE PRESENT INVENTION
[0012] A main object of the present invention is to provide a
customized domestic furniture system and a method thereof which
enable a user to preview a domestic design combined by an
electronic floor plan and a selected furniture kit in a virtual
environment so as to gain an accurate and explicit idea of
different combinations of furniture.
[0013] Another object of the present invention is to provide a
customized domestic furniture system comprising a plurality of
furniture kits and a plurality of electronic floor plans which can
be freely selected by the user to simulate different furniture
combinations in a virtual environment so as to customize the
furniture design of the user's own domestic environment.
[0014] Another object of the present invention is to provide a
customized domestic furniture system and a method thereof, wherein
the selected electronic floor plan is capable of accurately
simulate a floor plan of the user's own domestic environment, so
that when different furniture kits are incorporated into the
selected floor plan to form the virtual domestic design, it
realistically and visually reflects a corresponding domestic
environment of the user's own domestic environment, so as to
optimally assist the user to select the most desirable combination
of furniture by using the customized domestic furniture system.
[0015] Another object of the present invention is to provide a
customized domestic furniture system and a method thereof which
eliminate the need to utilize furniture catalogues or materials
samples during a furniture selection and purchasing process, so as
to increase the efficiency thereof, and to minimize the cost of
running a furniture retail business.
[0016] Another object of the present invention is to provide a
customized domestic furniture system and a method thereof, wherein
the electronic floor plans and the furniture kits can be freely
updated so as to allow the present invention to accord with the
most up-to-date furniture design and fashions. In other words, the
present invention is adapted to be utilized in a rapidly changing
field of furniture and interior design.
[0017] Another object of the present invention is to provide a
system and method of marketing and mass producing customized
domestic furniture, wherein the system and the method enable a
purchaser of land (whether a freeholder or a leaseholder) to
preview a domestic design combined by an electronic floor plan and
a selected furniture kit in a virtual environment so as to gain an
accurate and explicit idea of different combinations of furniture,
and to provide the relevant builder with accurate and reliable
information of furniture order.
[0018] Accordingly, in order to accomplish the above objects, the
present invention provides a method of marketing and mass producing
customized domestic furniture, comprising the steps of:
[0019] (a) generating a plurality of custom made virtual domestic
environments by different home owners, wherein at least one
furniture kit is selected by each the home owner to match with the
domestic furniture in a domestic floor plan;
[0020] (b) itemizing the furniture kits from the virtual domestic
environments, wherein each of the furniture kits contains an
itemized code representing to the virtual domestic environment from
the respective home owner;
[0021] (c) mass-ordering the furniture kits with respect to the
itemized code thereof; and
[0022] (d) delivering each of the furniture kits to the respective
home owner in accordance with the virtual domestic environment
custom made by the home owner.
[0023] Moreover, the present invention provides a system of
marketing and mass producing customized domestic furniture,
comprising:
[0024] a graphic customizing center having an electronic database
which contains a plurality of domestic floor plans and a plurality
of furniture kits, wherein each of the domestic floor plans, which
is simulated from a domestic environment to imitate the domestic
furniture therein, has a plurality of customized areas preset on
the domestic furniture to be customized for generating a plurality
of custom made virtual domestic environments; and
[0025] a service center itemized the furniture kits selected from
the virtual domestic environments to mass-order the furniture kits
for reducing a cost of the furniture kit in quantity manner.
[0026] These and other objectives, features, and advantages of the
present invention will become apparent from the following detailed
description, the accompanying drawings, and the appended
claims.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0027] FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram of a system of market and mass
producing customized domestic furniture according to a preferred
embodiment of the present invention.
[0028] FIG. 2 is a flow diagram of a method of marketing and mass
producing customized domestic furniture according to the above
preferred embodiment of the present invention.
[0029] FIG. 3 is a schematic diagram of a customized domestic
furniture system according to the above preferred embodiment of the
present invention.
[0030] FIG. 4 is a flow diagram of a method of customizing domestic
furniture in a virtual domestic environment according to a
preferred embodiment of the present invention.
[0031] FIG. 5 is a schematic diagram of examples of the floor plans
according to the above preferred embodiment of the present
invention.
[0032] FIG. 6 is a perspective view of the floor plan according to
the above preferred embodiment of the present invention,
illustrating that no furniture kits are selected.
[0033] FIG. 7 is a perspective view of the floor plan according to
the above preferred embodiment of the present invention,
illustrating that a plurality of furniture kits have been selected
to customize the domestic furniture.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT
[0034] Referring to FIG. 1, FIG. 5 to FIG. 7 of the drawings, a
system of marketing and producing customized domestic furniture
according to a preferred embodiment of the present invention is
illustrated, in which the system of marketing and mass producing
customized domestic furniture comprises a graphic customizing
center 10, and a service center 20.
[0035] The graphic customizing center 10 has an electronic database
11 which contains a plurality of domestic floor plans 12 and a
plurality of furniture kits 13, wherein each of the domestic floor
plans 12, which is simulated from a domestic environment to imitate
the domestic furniture therein, has a plurality of customized areas
121 preset on the domestic furniture to be customized for
generating a plurality of custom made virtual domestic
environments.
[0036] The service center 20 itemizes the furniture kits 13
selected from the virtual domestic environments to mass-order the
furniture kits 13 for reducing a cost of the furniture kits 13 in
quantitative manner.
[0037] According to the preferred embodiment of the present
invention, the furniture kits 13 selected in the virtual domestic
environment is digitally stored in the electronic database 11 and
is assigned with an itemized code for the service center 20 to
order the furniture kits 13 in a large quantity so as to maximum
business efficiency of the builders/furniture dealers utilizing the
present invention.
[0038] Each of the furniture kits 13 graphically displays a
specific texture and color to be customized with respect to the
domestic furniture so that the user of the present invention is
able to choose a particular furniture kit 13 for customizing the
domestic furniture in the virtual domestic environment. As such,
the user of the present invention is able to choose his/her
favorite combination of furniture kits 13 by customizing specific
textures and colors of different furniture kits 13 within the
virtual domestic environment.
[0039] Referring to FIG. 2 of the drawings, a method of marketing
and mass producing customized domestic furniture is illustrated,
wherein the method comprises the steps of:
[0040] (a) generating a plurality of custom made virtual domestic
environments by different home owners, wherein at least one
furniture kit 13 is selected by each home owner to match with the
domestic furniture in a domestic floor plan 12;
[0041] (b) itemizing the furniture kits 13 from the virtual
domestic environments, wherein each of the furniture kits 13
contains an itemized code representing to the virtual domestic
environment from the respective home owner;
[0042] (c) mass-ordering the furniture kits 13 with respect to the
itemized code thereof; and
[0043] (d) delivering each of the furniture kits 13 to the
respective home owner in accordance with the virtual domestic
environment custom made by the home owner.
[0044] Step (a) comprises the steps of:
[0045] (a.1) graphically displaying the domestic floor plans 12
simulated from the virtual domestic environments to imitate the
domestic furniture therein, wherein each of the domestic floor
plans 12 has a plurality of customized areas 121 preset on the
domestic furniture to be customized;
[0046] (a.2) selecting the furniture kit 13 by the home owner to
place on the customized area 121 of the domestic furniture in the
domestic floor plan 12 so as to match the domestic furniture to
generate the virtual domestic environment in a custom made manner;
and
[0047] (a.3) previewing the domestic floor plan 12 with the
selected furniture kit 13 on the domestic furniture to simulate a
virtual domestic design of the domestic furniture in the virtual
domestic environment for the home owner to confirm.
[0048] Moreover, step (b) further comprises a step of assigning the
itemized code to each of the furniture kits 13 selected in each of
the virtual domestic environments from the respective home owner
such that statuses of the furniture kits 13 are adapted to be
chased to ensure the furniture kits 13 being ordered correctly and
delivered on time.
[0049] The method of marketing and mass producing customized
domestic further comprises a step after step (c) of mass-producing
the furniture kits 13 ordered from the home owners to reduce a
manufacturing cost of the furniture kit 13. Accordingly, the
virtual domestic environment with the furniture kits 13 selected by
the respective home owner is digitally recorded with the itemized
codes as a home owner profile to assure the home owner of a
corrected order of the furniture kits 13.
[0050] Referring to FIG. 3, FIG. 5 to FIG. 7 of the drawings, a
customized domestic furniture system for customizing domestic
furniture in a virtual domestic environment is illustrated.
According to a preferred embodiment of the present invention, the
customized domestic furniture system comprises plurality of
domestic floor plans 12, a plurality of furniture kits 13, and a
virtual simulator 30.
[0051] The plurality of domestic floor plans 12 each has a
plurality of customized areas 121 adapted to be customized, wherein
each of the domestic floor plans 12 is an electronic floor plan
simulated from the virtual domestic environment which is preferably
generated by utilizing a computer.
[0052] The plurality of furniture kits 13 each of which is
simulated from the domestic furniture, wherein at least one of the
furniture kits 13 is selectively placed on the customized areas 121
of one of the domestic floor plans 12 for matching the domestic
furniture in the virtual domestic environment.
[0053] The virtual simulator 30 combines the relevant domestic
floor plan 12 with the selected furniture kit 13 thereon to convert
the domestic floor plan 12 in a viewable form so as to simulate a
virtual domestic design in the virtual domestic environment. As
such, a user of the present invention is able to visually
appreciate the virtual domestic deign in the virtual domestic
environment so as to customize the domestic furniture to the most
favorable or optimal aesthetic appeal.
[0054] Each of the domestic floor plans 12 is adapted to simulate a
predetermined design of a general domestic environment, such as a
kitchen, a bathroom, a living room, or the likes. Accordingly, each
of the customized area 121 of the domestic floor plans 12 is
virtually created to simulate particular domestic furniture within
the corresponding floor plan 12, such as a cupboard, a countertop,
floor tiles, or the likes.
[0055] Thus, the predetermined numbers of floor plans 12 is
pre-created so that a user of the present invention may choose the
floor plan 12 which is the most similar to his/her own domestic
environment. Alternatively, the user may specifically create a
floor plan having the customized area 121 which is corresponding to
his/her own domestic environment for optimally customizing the
domestic furniture thereof.
[0056] Each of the furniture kits 13 are virtually created to match
with the corresponding floor plan 12, and comprises a plurality of
furniture attributes corresponding with an attribute of the
domestic furniture which is to be matched with the relevant
customized areas 121 of the corresponding floor plan 12. The
furniture attributes are preferably embodied as physical attributes
of the domestic furniture, such as color, cabinet finishing,
materials, surface roughness etc. According to the preferred
embodiment of the present invention, each of the furniture kits 13
graphically displays a specific texture and color to be customized
with said domestic furniture.
[0057] For example, where a customized area 121 of a floor plan 12
is a countertop in a kitchen, the furniture kits 13 corresponding
with this customized area 121 can have a furniture attribute
embodied as materials, wherein the material may contain a selection
of marble, stones, plastics, etc. As another example, the furniture
attribute may be embodied as color, so that this attribute contains
a selection of colors such as yellow, red, blue, etc.
[0058] The virtual simulator 30 comprises a processor 31, such as a
typical 3D graphics processor, adapted to generate the virtual
environment, and a virtual viewer 32 electrically connected with
the processor to electronically display the virtual domestic design
in the virtual environment, wherein the virtual domestic design
incorporates selected domestic floor plan 12 and the furniture kits
13 for simulating virtual reality of the user's own floor plan so
as to allow the user to select the most suitable or favorable
combination of the domestic furniture. Accordingly, the virtual
simulator 30 further comprises a selection database 33 which is
arranged to store the floor plans 12 and the furniture kits 13 and
allow retrieval by the user of the present invention for
customizing the domestic furniture design.
[0059] According to the preferred embodiment of the present
invention, the virtual simulator 30 is embodied as a computer so
that the processor 31 is embodied as the CPU of the computer, while
the virtual viewer 32 is embodied as the monitor of that computer
for displaying the virtual domestic design in the virtual
environment. In other words, the present invention is preferably
implemented by a computer so as to rapidly and accurately customize
the furniture kits 13 with the selected floor plan 12.
[0060] It is worth mentioning that the present invention may be
provided as a self-containing system installed in the retailers'
computer so as to allow their customers to select and customize the
virtual domestic design before purchasing furniture. Alternatively,
the processor 31 may be provided in a central server linked with a
plurality of virtual viewers 32 owned by the retailers respectively
so that the retailers can operate the present invention through
Internet. As such, individual retailers may subscribe this
customized domestic furniture system with a central organizer, such
as a manufacturer of furniture.
[0061] Referring to FIG. 4 of the drawings, a method of customizing
domestic furniture in a virtual environment according to a
preferred embodiment of the present invention is illustrated, in
which the method comprises the steps of:
[0062] (a) selecting one of domestic floor plans 12 stored in an
electronic database 11, wherein the domestic floor plan 12, which
is simulated from a domestic environment to imitate the domestic
furniture therein, has a plurality of customized areas 121 preset
on the domestic furniture to be customized so as to generate a
custom made virtual domestic environment;
[0063] (b) selecting a furniture kit 13 stored in the electronic
database 11 to place on the customized area 121 of the domestic
floor plan 12 so as to match the domestic furniture with the
virtual domestic environment, wherein the furniture kit is
simulated from the domestic furniture; and
[0064] (c) previewing the domestic floor plan 12 with the selected
furniture kit 13 thereon to simulate a virtual domestic design of
the domestic furniture in the virtual domestic environment.
[0065] Step (a) through step (c) are preferably performed with the
assistant of the above-mentioned virtual viewer 32 so that the user
is able to visualize the selection process and preview the virtual
domestic design.
[0066] The method of customizing domestic furniture further
comprises the steps, prior to step (a), of:
[0067] (1) providing an electronic database 11;
[0068] (2) creating a plurality of floor plans 12 each of which has
a plurality of customized areas 121;
[0069] (3) creating a plurality of furniture kits 13; and
[0070] (4) storing the floor plans and the furniture kits in the
electronic database 11 for a user to select.
[0071] The floor plans 12 are specifically designed to simulate
various domestic environments of a typical residential structure.
The furniture kits 13 are designed to reflect one of the attributes
of the furniture simulated in the corresponding customized areas
121. As a result, the method further comprises a step (5) after
step (4) of periodically updating the floor plans 12 and the
furniture kits 13 so as to allow the user of the present invention
to select the optimal floor plan 12 and the most recent development
of furniture design. In other words, when the new design of
furniture is developed and supplied for sale, the relevant
retailers may be able to update the electronic database 11 to
broaden the range of selection for their customers.
[0072] In order to customize the virtual domestic design of the
domestic furniture, the method of customizing domestic furniture
further comprises the steps of:
[0073] (d) re-selecting and replacing at least one of the selected
furniture kits 13 with the corresponding number of the furniture
kits 13 stored in the electronic database 11 when the virtual
domestic design does not achieve optimality as considered by the
user of the present invention.
[0074] In this circumstance, the furniture kits 13 for different
customized areas 121 may be re-selected and replaced for the user
to customize the virtual domestic design corresponding with his/her
own domestic environment. Since the viewer 32 accurately reflects
the domestic environment from which the virtual environment
simulates, the user is imparted with certainty how the domestic
furniture will look like when it is delivered and installed to
his/her own domestic environment. This substantially minimizes any
guesswork as to the actual aesthetic appeal of the relevant
furniture during a conventional furniture transaction.
[0075] It is also worth mentioning that the furniture manufacturers
and the retailers no longer need to keep a large number of
catalogues and materials samples in order to demonstrate the
overall aesthetic effect of a combination of furniture features.
This substantially reduces the running cost of furniture industry,
while allowing the customers to acquire a more accurate, reliable,
and flexible appreciation of domestic furniture design from the
virtual domestic design generated by the present invention.
[0076] For sophisticated application of the present invention, the
floor plans 12 are categorized into a plurality of floor plan
classes based on one or certain common attributes of each of the
floor plans 12. For example, the floor plans may be categorized
based on a style of design of each of the floor plans 12. For
example, the floor plans 12 may be divided into `Western style`,
`Chinese style`, Mediterranean style`, so on and so forth. The
floor plans 12 belonging to each of these categories may possess
particular features, such as the presence of one or more customized
area 121.
[0077] Likewise, the furniture kits 13 can also be categorized into
a plurality of kits groups according to the furniture attributes,
or by the customized area 121 on which the relevant furniture kit
13 is attached. These categorizations of the floor plans 12 and the
furniture kits 13 are necessary where there exists a large number
of floor plans 12 and the furniture kits 13 for the customers to
choose.
[0078] In other words, the method of customizing domestic furniture
in a virtual environment, before step (a), further comprises the
steps of:
[0079] computer-generating a plurality of fixed areas of the
domestic furniture in the virtual environment as the customized
areas 121 in each of the floor plans 12 respectively,
[0080] categorizing the furniture kits 13 into a plurality of kit
groups such that each of the kit groups contains at least one the
furniture kit 13, wherein each of the kit groups is allowed to be
selected in the particular customized area 121 of each of the floor
plans 12.
[0081] Moreover, the method further comprises a step of
systematically categorizing the floor plans 12 into a plurality of
floor plan classes, wherein the floor plans 12 in each of the
classes has a common attribute for being previewed so as to allow
the user to select the floor plans 12 in an organized manner.
[0082] From the forgoing descriptions, it can be shown that the
above-mentioned objects have been substantially accomplished. The
present invention provides a customized domestic furniture system
and a method thereof which enable a user to preview a virtual
domestic design combined by an electronic floor plan and a selected
furniture kit.
[0083] One skilled in the art will understand that the embodiment
of the present invention as shown in the drawings and described
above is exemplary only and not intended to be limiting.
[0084] It will thus be seen that the objects of the present
invention have been fully and effectively accomplished. It
embodiments have been shown and described for the purposes of
illustrating the functional and structural principles of the
present invention and is subject to change without departure from
such principles. Therefore, this invention includes all
modifications encompassed within the spirit and scope of the
following claims.
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