A method to index and retrieve images to improve reasoning during the design process

During their activity, designers use various kind of heterogeneous information presented in the data list of the design program. To solve their design problem they use "references". If by reference some writers mean every representation of a reality having an active role in the design process, in our case we have limited the reference definition to the physical parts of a building, the so-called "built work". To present these references to the designer we choose images as a media support to transmit the relevant information. More precisely we have chosen photographic images to illustrate these references because an image illustrates the graphic part of an architectural concept. For this, in this paper we present a method to organise these references to make them more easily accessible to the designer. This method, once incorporated into a retrieval engine, aims to assist the designer in his creation work.