Patent ID: 7412365

Claim:
A computer implemented environmental impact estimation method comprising: storing information related to reuse objects and recycle objects in a memory unit; performing life cycle modeling to make a life cycle model, the life cycle modeling including reading the information related to the reuse objects and the recycle objects from the memory unit, selecting some of the reuse objects and the recycle objects which can be diverted to a new product from a recovery product using the information read, and combining the reuse objects and the recycle objects selected together to assemble the new product; predicting, as a superposition of a plurality of recovery distribution shapes, recovery quantity distribution of products used as the reuse objects by the life cycle modeling to predict a recovery quantity of the reuse objects and/or the recycle objects, using the life cycle model, at least one of the recovery distribution shapes having a peak corresponding to a product worth life or a product useful life; and generating an environmental impact and a cost involved in reuse or recycle based on prediction result obtained by the predicting.