Patent ID: 8818773

Claim:
A method for rendering a simulated embroidery design image, the method comprising the steps of: obtaining by one or more processors a plurality of stitch representations for an embroidery design, each of the plurality of stitch representations associated with a corresponding stitch position in the embroidery design which is to be rendered on a rendering canvas; obtaining by one or more processors a source light illumination angle for the simulated embroidery design image; processing by one or more processors at least a plurality of the stitch representations, the processing comprising the steps of for each processed stitch representation: determining a stitch length based on the corresponding stitch representation, determining a rotational angle of the corresponding stitch position in the embroidery design; determining a relative lighting angle between the source light illumination angle and the rotational angle of the corresponding stitch position, accessing a photographic stitch image database, the photographic stitch image database comprising a plurality of photographic stitch images, each photographic stitch image being a photograph of a single stitch of an associated known stitch length and illuminated from an associated known lighting angle, the photograph including an image of a thread penetrating an embroidery substrate at each of a first end and a second end, wherein the photographic stitch image database comprises at least some photographic stitch images associated with a same stitch length but different known lighting angles, and at least some photographic stitch images associated with a same known lighting angle but different stitch lengths, selecting from the photographic stitch image database a photographic stitch image most closely corresponding to the determined stitch length and the relative lighting angle, and placing the selected photographic stitch image on the rendering canvas in its corresponding stitch position of the embroidery design.