Database management program, database management apparatus and database ...

FOREIGN PATENT DOCUMENTS JP 9-179892 7/1997

OTHER PUBLICATIONS

Machine Translation for IDS document: JP 09-179892 A.* http://WWW.mutoh.co.jp/it/products/3dsearchit/index.htrn; Jul. 29, 2002.

http ://WWW.research. ibm. com/trl/proj ects/3dWeb/Simsearchie. htrn; Sep. 30, 1999.

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Primary Examiner * Vikkram Bali Assistant Examiner * Michelle Entezari (74) Attorney, Agent, or Firm * Staas & Halsey LLP

(57) ABSTRACT

A database management program, a database management apparatus and a database management method can determine the sameness of shape data at high speed. The program causes a computer to execute a first edge line acquisition step that acquires the edge lines of the first shape data, an information registration step that generates information shoWing the characteristics of the edge lines acquired by the first edge line acquisition step as first edge line characteristic information, associates the first edge line characteristic information With the first shape data and registers them in a database, a second edge line acquisition step that acquires the edge lines of the second shape data shoWing the requirements of retrieval, an information generation step that generates edge line characteristic information of the edge lines acquired by the second edge line acquisition step as second edge line characteristic information and a retrieval step that retrieves the third shape data that is the part of the first shape data that agrees With the second shape data according to the first edge line characteristic information and the second edge line characteristic information.

20 Claims, 17 Drawing Sheets