Patent ID: RE42439

Claim:
A computer system , having data storage means and a memory , for determining sunlight exposure of an area, said system including: input means for receiving and storing in the memory area data entries which define a size and shape of the area and a first and at least one second predetermined location , input means for receiving and storing in the memory temporal data entries defining a time and date range , and input means for receiving and storing in the memory obstruction data entries defining a size and relative position of at least one sunlight obstructing object ; processing means for performing sun calculations which determine multiple solar positions of the sun in the sky based on the temporal data entries and the area data entries , processing means for performing shadow calculations for each solar position, said shadow calculations determining a size, shape and position relative to the area of a shadow cast by the or each sunlight obstructing object , and processing means for determining for each square unit of the area a sunlight exposure time based on the shadow calculations ; output means for generating shadow calculation results and portraying a representation of the shadow calculation results , and output means for generating sun calculation results and portraying a representation of the sun calculation results.