Abstract: It is determined whether a quilt design is applicable to paper piecing by determining whether all pieces of the quilt design are finally separated by separating each piece one after another by one straight demarcation line. When it is determined that the quilt design is applicable to paper piecing, demarcation lines that do not intersect other demarcation lines and that divide the quilt design into two blocks that each include a plurality of the pieces are selected. The quilt design is modified by extending the arbitrarily selected demarcation line, and deleting all demarcation lines that exist in one of blocks divided by the extended demarcation line.

Abstract: A CPU selects a line segment, whose both endpoints constructing a part of a quilt design are on a periphery, and then selects a line segment, which separates a piece from the quilt design on a piece-by-piece basis so that the separated piece will not have a line segment to become a separation line, from the selected line segments, after separation. When the line segment can be selected, a piece is separated from the quilt design at the selected line segment on a piece-by-piece basis. Then, the CPU determines that the quilt design, whose one piece has been separated, is the object to be determined, and separates pieces from the quilt design on a piece-by-piece basis. When all line segments are used for the separation, an applicability determination flag is set, because all pieces in the quilt design are separated into pieces on the piece-by-piece basis.

Abstract: A portrait drawing apparatus having image data input function for allowing the operator to select candidates of facial parts while displaying a draft image of the model to be drawn on the display screen. Comparing the candidates with the draft image makes it easy to select the most appropriate candidate of each facial part as well as to position the selected candidate where appropriate. The apparatus comprises a memory unit for storing facial part candidates with which to construct a portrait, a draft image reader for reading image data from image-bearing materials, a display unit for superimposing the draft image onto facial part candidates, and a selector for selecting the most appropriate candidate of each facial part.