Patent ID: 6897860

Claim:
A graphics processing apparatus comprising: display means for displaying a stereographic image of three dimensional graphic elements; input means for inputting an operation regarding the stereographic image displayed on said display means; geometric information storage means for storing, when a first graphic element and a second graphic element are selected by said input means, geometric information relating to the selected first and second graphic elements; first reference determination means for determining a projection reference for the first graphic element in accordance with the first-graphic-element geometric information; second reference determination means for determining a projection reference for the second graphic element in accordance with the second-graphic-element geometric information; viewing-direction storage means for storing a viewing direction from which the image displayed on said display means is viewed; projection-plane determination means for determining a projection plane onto which the first and second graphic elements are projected in accordance with the viewing direction, the first-graphic-element projection reference, and the second-graphic-element projection reference; projection means for projecting the first graphic element and the second graphic element onto the projection plane; and arithmetic computing means for computing a distance between the first graphic element and the second graphic element in accordance with the graphic elements projected onto the projection plane.