Patent ID: 7636650

Claim:
A general-purpose computer-based system for designing an electrical power distribution system for a building, said system comprising: a standards database containing standards data associated with an electrical standard for buildings; a panel design module for accepting a minimum subset of panel board data for a panel, said panel having a set of panel variables that, in combination with said minimum subset of panel board data, defines said panel; a circuit design module for accepting a minimum subset of branch circuit data for each of a plurality of branch circuits, said branch circuits for distributing electrical power within said building, each branch circuit having a set of branch circuit variables that, in combination with said minimum subset of branch circuit data, defines said branch circuit; wherein said circuit design module determines branch circuit values for said branch circuit variables using said minimum subset of branch circuit data in connection with said standard data; and wherein said panel design module determines panel values for said panel variables using said branch circuit values for said plurality of branch circuits, said minimum subset of panel board data, and said standards data; and wherein said panel design module automatically recalculates at least one panel value for a corresponding panel variable in connection with said standards data when another one of said previously determined panel values is changed.