Abstract:
A method of use and apparatus for estimating repair cost, particularly applicable to cost estimation of interspaced defect damaged vehicle surfaces. The method of use of the present invention provides that a defect count be made for a predetermined representative area; that a determination of relative severity be made with respect to at least one defect within the representative area; and that the repair estimate is then based upon the defect count information and defect severity. A set of physical templates may be provided, with a first template allowing the calculation of the number of dents per surface area, and a second template for grading, comparing, or otherwise determining the size or severity of the individual dents. Additionally, the defect count data and defect severity data may be determined with an electronic scanning means. Various formulae may be employed (manually or electronically) for calculating the cost estimate to repair the damaged surface.

Description:
CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS 
     This application claims the benefit of priority pursuant to 35 USC §119(e)(1) from the provisional patent application filed pursuant to 35 USC §111(b): as Ser. No. 60/076,267 on Feb. 27, 1998. 
    
    
     FIELD OF THE INVENTION 
     The present invention relates to a method for estimating the cost to repair damaged surfaces, and more particularly to a method for estimating the repair cost of vehicles damaged by environmental action, such as hail. 
     BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
     Damage to vehicle surfaces from hail or other icy precipitation is typically manifested as randomly dispersed symmetrical and concavely-shaped depressions or dents. Motor vehicles subject to such damage may suffer a substantial loss in value, and as a result, it may be desirable to repair such a hail damaged vehicle. One approach to repairing hail damage is to simply replace a damaged panel with a new panel and finish the panel to match the existing panels. Yet another approach to repairing hail damage is to apply a hardening fill material (e.g., Bondo®) in a hail dent depression, sand and prep the defect area, and then refinish the area to match. Both of these approaches are time inefficient and expensive, since extraneous panel surface areas are refinished. Another approach to repairing hail damaged surfaces is a technique referred to as “paintless dent repair” or PDR. Using the PDR technique, a repair technician manipulates elongate tools to bias or otherwise force the dented metal back into shape from the reverse side of the panel. Most significantly, the previously damaged panel need not be refinished as the paint associated with the dent typically remains intact. 
     Paintless dent repair is an inherently labor intensive repair process, as little or no replacement of parts or additional supplies may be required during the repair. However, it has been difficult to accurately and uniformly estimate the time and cost to repair hail damaged motor vehicles using the paintless dent repair technique as the time and cost of this type of repair varies widely depending on the number and relative severity of the dents. Estimates have traditionally been “best guess” approximations, which may vary dramatically between repair facilities. At the present time, there is a need for effective and precise means for calculating an estimate of the time to repair a hail damaged vehicle. This need is particularly significant to insurers, as an insurance claim adjuster may have a very short time to review and estimate each damaged vehicle. 
     SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
     An aspect of the present invention provides a method for rapidly and reliably estimating the repair time and cost for vehicles damaged by hail. Another aspect of the present invention provides a first damage grading template that can be positioned over a portion of the damaged vehicle and which allows the user to determine the number of defects per representative unit area of the damaged surface. A second template may then be used to grade the severity of the dents within the representative area against a predetermined comparison scale. The surface area of the vehicle panels can be estimated, measured, or determined from a look-up chart with reference to the particular make and model of car. An estimate of repair time can then be based upon the number of dents of various grades within the representative area and the panel surface area data. The total repair labor cost can be calculated based upon the shop labor rate. 
     The present invention provides templates for determining damage data on a motor vehicle. In particular, the damage data may be provided by a plurality of templates: a first template for use in determining the number of dents within a representative area of a vehicle surface, and a second template for determining the relative severity of individual dents within the representative area. The estimating system is desirable to insurers since it promotes uniformity and standardization of paintless dent repair estimates among repair facilities. 
     The present invention additionally provides an electronic-based system for determining damage data on a motor vehicle. An electronic scanning means may be used to both count the number of dents within a representative area of a vehicle surface and determine the relative severity of one or more individual dents within the representative area. 
    
    
     BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
     FIG. 1 shows the perspective view of an automobile having a plurality of surface defects, which may be hail dents; 
     FIG. 2 illustrates a first defect number-calculating template of the present invention; 
     FIG. 3 illustrates a second defect size or severity grading or classifying template of the present invention; 
     FIG. 4 illustrates yet another embodiment of a defect-grading template according to the present invention; 
     FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an electronic embodiment of the present invention; and 
     FIG. 6 illustrates another embodiment of a defect-grading template according to the present invention. 
    
    
     DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS 
     Referring to FIG. 1, an automobile  10  in a damaged conditioned is illustrated having a plurality of surface defects  12 . One type of surface defects  12  may be dents or concave depressions caused by rapidly descending hail or icy precipitation. As illustrated in FIG. 1, hail damage typically results in a majority of the damage occurring on the large, generally horizontal surfaces of the vehicle  10 , e.g., the hood  14 , roof panel  16 , and rear trunk lid panel  18 . To a lesser extent, the front fenders  20 , the doors  22 , and the rear quarter panels  24  have similarly been damaged. The surface dents  12  may have varying degrees of depth and diameter, depending on the hail&#39;s speed, composition, other physical characteristics, and the vehicle&#39;s physical characteristics (construction materials, structural geometry, etc.). However, as a general rule, hail dent depth is related to its dent diameter: a “deeper” hail dent will typically present a larger diameter at the surrounding panel surface. As illustrated in the drawings, hail dents  12  are typically concavely-shaped and circular when viewed from above. Therefore, one aspect of the present invention promotes the use of hail dent diameter to provide a measure of dent grade or severity. 
     FIG. 2 illustrates a first defect guide or template  26  of the present invention. The first template  26  is illustrated as having been placed upon a damaged hood panel  14  of the vehicle  10 . The template  26  is formed with a rectangular frame  28  which encloses a transparent central region  30  through which the user may visually inspect the damaged surface  14  of the vehicle  10 . The central region  30  may be an aperture of the frame  28  and may include a transparent sheet, screen, or film. The first template  26  is preferably flexible so that it may conform to the surface of the vehicle  10  and may advantageously be made of a magnetic plastic which secures to the surface of the vehicle  10 . The central region  30  of the template  26  defines a unit reference area, or representative area which may be approximately 1 square foot. As will be described hereinafter in the description of use of the present invention, when the first template  26  is placed on a vehicle  10  surface, the user may quickly determine the number of dents  12  per representative area by simply counting the dents  12  contained within the central region  30  of the first defect template  26  positioned upon a surface of the vehicle  10 . If desired, an estimate of the total number of dents  12  on the vehicle surface may be made by multiplying the number of dents  12  per square foot (number of dents  12  within the central region  30  of the first template  26 ) by the total square footage of the vehicle&#39;s horizontal surfaces (assuming that the number of dents within the central region  30  of the positioned template  26  represents an average across the vehicle surfaces). 
     Referring now to FIG. 3, the second guide or template  32  of the present invention is illustrated. The second template  32  includes a plurality of indicia  34  for determining the relative dent severity. Since dent diameter is typically related to dent depth, the plurality of indicia  34  may be used to relate or compare dent diameter as a measure of defect severity. The determining indicia  34  may be apertures  37  in the template  32  body  38  as illustrated or other indicia (grids, scales, etc.) on transparent media, for example. The second template  32  of the present invention includes a pair of aperture arrays  36   a, b  which may be used to gage the dent diameter. A first array of apertures  36   a  includes a plurality of apertures  37   a  of substantially equal area, each of which are sized to correspond to relatively small defect severity. The second array of apertures  36   b  includes a plurality of apertures  37   b  of substantially equal area which are larger than the apertures  37   a  of the first array  36   a  and sized to correspond to relatively larger defect severity. Each array of apertures  36   a, b  is illustrated as an ‘n×n’ array of generally square-apertured elements  37 . Alternatively, the apertures  37  corresponding to small and large dent size may be arranged in a variety of configurations, i.e., linearly, etc., and the aperture shapes may assume other forms, i.e., circular, triangular, etc. A single template may include more than two aperture arrays  36 , for instance, three differently sized arrays  36  may be used to grade or classify the severity of hail dents as “small”, “medium”, or “large” defects. In one embodiment of the present invention, the dimensions of the individual apertures  37   a  of the first array  36   a  are approximately 1 inch squared while the dimension of the second array  36   b  apertures  37   b  are approximately 1.75 inches by 1.75 inches. 
     Still referring to FIG. 3, the second template  32  may be formed from a flexible, generally transparent material which the user may place on the vehicle  10  and move about the surface of the vehicle  10  to visually determine the relative size of the defects  12 . As illustrated in FIG. 3, the dent diameter of two substantially equal sized dents  40 ,  42  may be visually compared against the apertures  37  of the first and second arrays  36   a, b.  The dent  40  is larger than the apertures  37   a  of the first array  36   a,  but approximately equally sized to the apertures  37   b  of the second array  36   b.  Thus, these dents  40 ,  42  may be classified or graded as “large” dents. 
     Referring now to FIG. 4, another embodiment of the second defect-grading template  52  of the present invention is illustrated. The second template  52  includes an indicia  54  for determining the relative dent severity. Since dent  12  diameter is typically related to dent  12  depth, the indicia  54  may be used to relate or compare dent  12  diameter as a measure of defect severity. The determining indicia  54  may be cross-hair members  56  in the template  52  body  58 . In one embodiment, the template  52  may be made from a transparent media. The cross-hair members  56  of the template  52  includes markings  60 ,  62 ,  64  associated with the center of the template  52  which may be used to gage the dent  12  diameter. The markings  60 ,  62 ,  64  may be color-coded and include a first colored marking  60  which is sized to correspond to relatively small dent severity, a second colored marking  62  which corresponds to a relatively larger dent, and a third colored marking  64  which corresponds to a yet relatively larger dent. Dent severity may be determined by centering the template  52  on a hail dent  12 , as illustrated in FIG. 4, and visually comparing the dent  12  with the indicia  54 , including the markings  60 ,  62 ,  64 , of the cross-hair members  56 . The dent  12  of FIG. 4 may be characterized as a “medium” sized dent as it falls within the second marking  62 . 
     Referring now to FIG. 5, another embodiment of the present invention is illustrated. A scanning means  60  and associated computer or microprocessor may be used to determine both the count data (number of dents per representative area  30 ) and the dent severity data for one or more dents within the representative area  30 . As will be described hereinafter, the templates of this embodiment may be ‘virtual’ templates, i.e., the scanning means and associated computer or microprocessor establish and define the representative area without the use of physical templates  26 ,  34 . 
     To calculate an estimate of the time and cost associated with paintless dent repair of a hail damaged vehicle according to the present invention, the following procedure may be used: 
     The first estimating template  26  is placed upon the damaged panel to determine the number of dents  12  per representative square foot area. The user may place the first template  26  over a pre-selected area which has a representative or “average” amount of hail damage. The user may then visually count the number of dents  12  within the representative area (within the central region  30 ). An average dent  12  count may be determined by sampling at two or more pre-selected areas. Alternatively, as illustrated in FIG. 5, the number of dents may be counted with an electronic means  60 , e.g., an optical scanner. Such an optical scanner  60  may be a hand-held or stationary scanner as well known to those skilled in the art. This information of dent count per representative area obtained from either a visual count or an optical scanner  60  count may be recorded on a manual or electronic worksheet or database. Next, the second estimating template  32 ,  52  is used to determine the relative size of the dents  12  within the pre-selected unit area  30 . The second template  32 ,  52  is positioned over a dent  12  within the pre-selected unit area with the determining indicia  34 ,  54  centered over the top of the dent  12  to allow the user to visually determine whether the dent  12  is a small or large dent. Alternatively, with reference to the electronic embodiment of the present invention in FIG. 5, the electronic scanning means  60  may be used to determine the relative severity of hail dents. It may be desirable to measure and record only the largest dents  12  on a given panel. Accordingly, not every dent  12  within the preselected area or surrounding region need be graded. This information (dents per unit area and relative size of dents) is subsequently used to compute the damage cost estimate. Additional data, including the surface area of the various body panels, may be measured or otherwise obtained, e.g., via an electronic database. Since the top (horizontal) surfaces  14 ,  16 ,  18  of the vehicle  10  are damaged to a greater extent than the side surfaces  20 ,  22 ,  24 , a plurality of estimation formulae have been devised to account for this difference. 
     HORIZONTAL SURFACE DAMAGE REPAIR ESTIMATION 
     Using the first template  26  to determine the number of dents  12  within a preselected square foot area  30  and the second template  32  (or second template  54 ) to determine the relative size of the larger dents  12  within the preselected area, one can determine whether the panel has “light,” “medium,” or “heavy” damage. Representative, though not necessarily limiting, examples of light, medium, or heavy damage may be determined as follows: 
     Light damage: two or fewer small dents per pre-selected representative square foot area (and no large dents). 
     Medium damage: three to five total dents per pre-selected representative square foot area with less than one dent per square foot. 
     Heavy damage: six to ten total dents with not more than two large dents per pre-selected representative square foot area. 
     If there are fewer than one small dent  12  per pre-selected representative square foot area, it may be desirable to use the side surface estimation formula below. If there is more than two large dents per square foot area, the damage vehicle surfaces  14 ,  16 ,  18  may not be a suitable candidate for the paintless dent repair method. Replacement of the panel may be necessary. 
     The next step in the process is to measure the total surface area of a damaged panel  14 ,  16 ,  18 , i.e the square footage of panel. An approximate calculation can be made by multiplying the panels&#39; length and width dimensions. Alternatively, total surface area of panels may be determined from a look-up table, local or remote electronic database, third party vendor, etc. 
     The final step in the cost estimation process for damaged top surfaces involves applying an appropriate cost formula. The applicant has determined that the equations below, which while achieving satisfactory results, should not be construed as precise or limiting in value and that a range of multiplier values or even other formulas or equations may be readily appreciated by those skilled in the art. 
     
       
         Light damage formula: (0.5)×(square footage)×(body labor rate)=cost estimate 
       
     
     
       
         Medium damage (0.7)×(square footage)×(body labor rate)=cost estimate 
       
     
     
       
         Heavy damage: (0.8)×(square footage)×(body labor rate)=cost estimate 
       
     
     Similar calculations are made for each damaged panel of the vehicle. 
     Side Surface Damage Repair Cost Estimation 
     Still another estimation approach can be utilized for damaged side surfaces (quarter panels  24 , doors  22 , fenders  20 , etc.). The first step of the estimation process requires that the number of dents  12  on each side surface  20 ,  22 ,  24  be counted. An appropriate side surface cost formula may then be applied: 
     $x.00 per panel plus $y.00 per each additional dent or a maximum of $z.00 per panel. 
     Exemplary values for x, y, and z are: $50.00, $25.00, and $300.00. Again it is appreciated that these formulas and values are functional examples, not requirements or limiting with regard to practice of the present invention. 
     Yet another estimation approach can be utilized for side surface  20 ,  24 ,  26  repair calculations: 
     1.0 hour per minimum 
     0.2 for each additional dent 
     0.3 added to the total for each dent measured to be large according to the second estimating template  32 ,  52 . 
     Repair costs are then determined according to the hourly shop labor rate. 
     Once the top surface and side surface cost estimations have been determined as disclosed above, the total repair cost can be obtained by adding the total top surface estimates for all top surface panels with the total side surface panel estimates. 
     Referring again to FIG. 5, an electronic embodiment of the present invention is illustrated. An optical scanning means  60  may be used to determine the number of hail dents  12  within a representative area  30  and/or the relative severity of hail dents  12  within the representative area  30 . Such scanning devices  60  and associated software are well known to those skilled in the art. In such an electronic embodiment, a first ‘template’ defining the representative area  30  may be a ‘virtual’ template  62  implemented by software, etc. In this manner, the scanning system  60  would determine the number of hail dents  12  within a representative area  30  without the use of a physical template  26 , but would ‘create’ or define a ‘template’  62  by software or otherwise to delineate a representative area  30 . Similarly, the second template  34  for grading dent  12  severity may be a virtual template, with the system software comparing, measuring, or otherwise determining relative dent  12  severity using known software or other techniques. As will be readily appreciated, the computation of horizontal and side surface damage estimates may be made with software, an embedded microprocessor, or related digital computer based implementations (local or remote) known to those skilled in the art. 
     Now referring to FIG. 6, which illustrates another second defect severity grading or classifying template  32  where the defect indicia  34  represents light-to-heavy rust scale. This second template  32  may be used in a similar manner to estimate the repair costs for rust repairs on vehicle surfaces. It is appreciated that similar templates may be designed to facilitate other estimation tasks for surface repair, for example, such as barnacle or other sea-life damage on ships or vessels, corrosion damage on aircraft, etc. 
     While preferred embodiments of the present invention have been described above, other embodiments will be apparent to those skilled in the art, and thus the scope of the present invention is to be limited solely by the terms of the following claims.