Systems and methods for estimation of building wall area

• US 9,599,466 B2
• Filed: 02/01/2013
• Issued: 03/21/2017
• Est. Priority Date: 02/03/2012
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: EagleView Technologies Incorporated (Eagleview Technologies, Inc. /Wa/)
• Original Assignee: EagleView Technologies Incorporated (Eagleview Technologies, Inc. /Wa/)
• Inventors: Pershing, Chris
• Primary Examiner(s): LAU, TUNG S
• Application Number:
  US13/757,694
• Publication Number:
  US 20140046627A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,509 Days
• Field of Search: 702/156
• US Class Current: 1/1
• CPC Class Codes: G01B 21/28 for measuring areas
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 10/06 Resources, workflows, human or project management; Enterprise or organisation planning; Enterprise or organisation modelling
• CPC Class Codes: G06Q 50/16 Real estate

Abstract

A wall area estimation system generates an estimated wall area measurement of a building based on the received roof measurements (e.g., those generated by, received from or found in a three-dimensional model of the roof) and a reference distance. The reference distance is a measurement indicative of a distance between the roof and a model ground surface placed on an image of the building where the walls of the building meet the ground. This reference distance may be used to determine how for down to extend the walls of the building (e.g., to a ground level) when building a three-dimensional digital model of the building to aid in generating wall area measurements. The resulting wall measurements, roof measurements, measurements of areas missing from the wall used to generate a wall estimate report, or a combined roof and wall estimate report including various different identifiers indicating the different features and measurements based on the three-dimensional model.

Claims

1. A method in a system for generating estimated wall area measurements derived at least in part from roof measurements, the system including a computer processor and a memory coupled to the computer processor, the method comprising:

receiving, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, the roof measurements of a building having a roof; and

deriving, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, the wall area measurements at least in part from the received roof area measurements, wherein the deriving the wall area measurements includes;

receiving, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, a measurement indicative of a distance between at least one reference point on the roof and a ground surface on which the building rests via a placement of a graphical user interface element representing a horizontal planar model ground surface at a position beneath a graphical user interface element representing a digital three-dimensional model of the roof;

generating, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, based at least in part on the received roof measurements and the received measurement indicative of the distance between the at least one reference point on the roof and the ground surface, an estimated wall area measurement of the building, wherein the generating the estimated wall area measurement based at least in part on the received roof measurements improves accuracy of wall area measurements; and

outputting, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, a wall estimation report having the estimated wall area measurement of the building thereon and wherein the generated wall estimation report is provided for repair and/or constructing a structure of the building.

2. The method of claim 1 wherein the model ground surface has a shape representing a footprint of the building and further comprising:

generating, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, the model ground surface based on a shape formed by an outside perimeter of the three-dimensional model of the roof; and

reducing, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, line segment lengths of the model ground surface based on sections of the roof represented by the three-dimensional model of the roof that may overhang exterior walls of the building.

3. The method of claim 1 further comprising repeating, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, the generating the estimated wall area measurement of the building for each exterior wall of the building.

4. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

subtracting, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, an amount from the estimated wall area measurement of the building corresponding to an area on a wall of the building indicated as an area missing from the wall; and

subtracting, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, an amount from the estimated wall area measurement of the building corresponding to an area on a wall of the building that is associated with being above a soffit.

5. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

receiving, by the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, an indication that a wall of the building for which the estimated wall area measurement is generated is at least partially obstructed by an object in an image of the wall used to generate the three-dimensional model of the roof;

subtracting, by the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, a predefined percentage from the estimated wall area measurement of the building corresponding to a size of the partial obstruction to account for possible areas missing from the wall which may be obstructed in the image by the object in the image; and

providing, by the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, an indication in the wall estimation report that the wall of the building for which the estimated wall area measurement is generated is at least partially obstructed.

6. The method of claim 1 further comprising:

subtracting, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, a predefined percentage from the estimated wall area measurement of the building according to an assumed percentage of non-wall area obstruction.

7. The method of claim 1, further comprising generating and delivering, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, a wall area measurement estimate report that includes multiple line drawings of the building, each from a different perspective annotated with numerical values that indicate corresponding estimated wall area measurements for walls visible in the respective perspective and shading of the walls visible in the respective perspective to differentiate the visible in the respective perspective from each other.

8. The method of claim 1 further comprising the system for generating estimated wall area measurements providing selectable user interface elements configured to be placed on areas on a rendering of the wall, the user interface elements having dimensions corresponding to areas missing from the wall.

9. The method of claim 1 further comprising the system for generating estimated wall area measurements providing a graphical user interface that includes windows each displaying different views of the three-dimensional model of the building, the windows configured to concurrently show modifications being made by a user to a location of the graphical user interface representing the model ground surface from a corresponding perspective of each of the different views.

10. The method of claim 1 further comprising the system for generating estimated wall area measurements providing a graphical user interface that includes windows each displaying different views of the three-dimensional model of the building, the windows configured to concurrently show modifications being made by a user to a location of the graphical user interface representing walls of the three-dimensional model of the building from a corresponding perspective of each of the different views.

11. The method of claim 1 further comprising the system for generating estimated wall area measurements subtracting an amount from the estimated wall area measurement of the building corresponding to an area on a wall of the building indicated as an area missing from the wall.

12. The method of claim 1 further comprising the system for generating estimated wall area measurements subtracting an amount from the estimated wall area measurement of the building corresponding to an area on a wall of the building that is associated with being above a soffit.

13. The method of claim 1 further comprising the system for generating estimated wall area measurements providing a cursor that represents a shape of an area missing from the wall which changes an angle of view of the shape of the area missing from the wall to match an angle of view of a wall on which the cursor is placed.

14. The method of claim 2 wherein the generating the estimated wall area measurement of the building includes:

generating, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, a digital three-dimensional model of the building by;

including, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, the three-dimensional model of the roof as part of the three-dimensional model of the building; and

generating, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, a wall within the three-dimensional model of the building by extending the wall from along an edge of a model roof represented by the three-dimensional model of the roof toward a model ground surface, the wall extending a distance until either intersecting a level of the model ground surface, according to the received measurement indicative of the distance between the reference point on the roof and the ground surface, or intersecting another surface of the model roof, according to the three-dimensional model of the roof; and

using, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, dimensions of the wall generated in the three-dimensional model of the building to determine an area of the wall.

15. The method of claim 4 wherein the area on the wall of the building indicated as an area missing from the wall is an area corresponding to placement of a cursor on the wall, wherein the cursor represents a shape of the area missing from the wall which changes an angle of view of the shape of the area missing from the wall to match an angle of view of a wall on which the cursor is placed.

16. The method of claim 7 wherein the wall area measurement estimate report includes roof measurements including pitch annotated on corresponding roof sections.

17. The method of claim 14 further comprising:

rendering, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, the three-dimensional model of the building within a graphical user interface; and

providing, by the computer processor of the system for generating estimated wall area measurements, selectable user interface elements within the graphical user interface configured to be placed on areas on the wall, the user interface elements having dimensions corresponding to areas missing from the wall.

18. The method of claim 17 wherein the graphical user interface includes windows each displaying different views of the three-dimensional model of the building that are configured to concurrently show modifications being made by a user to a location of the graphical user interface representing the model ground surface and to walls of the three-dimensional model of the building from a corresponding perspective of each of the different views.

19. The method of claim 17 wherein the dimensions corresponding to areas missing from the wall are those of a predefined window size or a predefined door size.