Patent US 7,039,486

A method and device for viewing, archiving and transmitting a garment model over a computer network. The method comprises photographing a physical mannequin from several different directions, the mannequin being a copy of a virtual human model which is representative of the target consumer. The virtual mannequin viewing layers and the garment model are generated from digital images of the naked or clothed mannequin which is suspended from the photography stand. A laser beam is used to determine the exact position of the mannequin. Subsequently, crop marks and recorded reference lines can be used to merge the viewing layers and the model precisely. The data are archived in a base and transmitted over an intranet, an extranet or the Internet for the purpose of remote viewing. The method and device are particularly suitable for the design, manufacture and inspection of clothing samples in the clothing industry.