Patent Document ID: 5577185
Application ID: 08337946

Base Claim:
1. A computer implemented method for connecting three-dimensionally appearing structural members represented on a display screen, the method comprising the steps of: displaying within a region of a display screen a menu containing one or more types of structural members having a first and second end and a middle therebetween; displaying a background region for placement by a user of selected ones of such structural members on the screen; placing a first selected structural member in a desired location within such background region; positioning a second selected structural member in a desired location within such background region; determining whether an end of the second selected structural member is proximal to such first selected structural member within a predefined proximity; and, if so, then applying a graphical object joinder on the background region between such proximal end of the second selected structural member and such first selected structural member; and wherein such background region is divided into a grid of cells and the structural members span a line of adjacent cells.

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Claim 5:
5. The method of claim 1, wherein the ends of the structural members are each represented by bitmaps placed in end cells at the ends of the line of adjacent cells.