Virtual showroom for designing a lighting plan

Apparatus to facilitate design by a consumer of a lighting plan for illuminating a room, comprising:

• (a) means for providing an electronic display of the room showing a plurality of areas thereof;
• (b) means for enabling selection by the consumer of any one from among said plurality of areas;
• (c) means for enabling selection by the consumer of any one from among a plurality of lighting arrangements available for illuminating the selected area;
• (d) means for enabling repetition by the consumer of steps (b) and (c) until a lighting arrangement has been selected for all of said plurality of areas;
• and
• (e) means for displaying said plurality of areas respectively illuminated by said selected lighting arrangements, so that the consumer can decide whether the selected lighting arrangements, constituting the lighting plan for the room, are satisfactory.

An article of manufacture for use in a computer system to facilitate design by a consumer of a lighting plan for illuminating a room, and having a computer readable code means for:

• (a) providing an electronic display of the room showing a plurality of areas thereof;
• (b) enabling selection by the consumer of any one from among said plurality of areas;
• (c) enabling selection by the consumer of any one from among a plurality of lighting arrangements available for illuminating the selected area;
• (d) enabling repetition by the consumer of steps (b) and (c) until a lighting arrangement has been selected for all of said plurality of areas;
• and
• (e) displaying said plurality of areas respectively illuminated by said selected lighting arrangements, so that the consumer can decide whether the selected lighting arrangements, constituting the lighting plan for the room, are satisfactory.

A computer data signal embodied in a carrier wave, for use to facilitate design by a consumer of a lighting plan for illuminating a room, comprising:

• (a) a first code segment for providing an electronic display of a room showing a plurality of areas thereof;
• (b) a second code segment for enabling selection by the consumer of any one from among said plurality of areas;
• (c) a third code segment for enabling selection by the consumer of any one from among a plurality of lighting arrangements available for illuminating the selected area;
• (d) a fourth code segment for enabling repetition by the consumer of steps (b) and (c) until a lighting arrangement has been selected for all of said plurality of areas;
• and
• (e) a fifth code segment for displaying said plurality of areas respectively illuminated by said selected lighting arrangements, so that the consumer can decide whether the selected lighting arrangements, constituting the lighting plan for the room, are satisfactory.