Grants and Contributions:

Grant or Award spanning more than one fiscal year. (2017-2018 to 2022-2023)

Envisioned is an automated system that bridges the gap between real field conditions and the virtual world. Indoor construction, which relates to new construction and renovations, is especially difficult to track automatically due in part to congestion in confined spaces, variable light conditions, and continually changing work environment. At the end of the workday, the envisioned system will examine the digital design and schedule model, known as 4D building information models or 4D-BIMs, of the construction project to identify and prioritize locations for progress and quality inspections. After determining the most efficient path to visit each location, an unmanned aerial vehicles (UAV) will be dispatched. An innovative UAV navigation system will be developed specific to indoor environments to allow autonomous, resilient, and safe operation of UAV, thereby allowing the UAV to know where it is, where it needs to go, and how to get there efficiently and safely. The information extracted about the location, quantity, and quality of progress of construction will then be communicated back to the 4D-BIM. Further, it is proposed that this information can be visualized in animating and interactive display technologies such as digital caves. This cyclic process continues throughout the construction stage and ensures smooth, interoperable, and accurate integration of real-world conditions into design models. The research challenges related to this proposal are the development and integration of an autonomous navigation system for UAV in confined spaces, a real time path planning and data capture prioritization method, and a generalized software-independent framework to communicate with visualization tools.

The outcomes of this interdisciplinary research can improve the accessibility of technology for project managers on the site. The potential to allow the user to directly interact with and make changes in a BIM design, such as moving or changing the direction of swing of a door, through an immersive environment, such as digital caves or google glasses, is exciting. Tracking the state of progress in construction – what has been built and what has not – can have a major impact on the construction industry. Real time data can support the owner and the contractor with evidence-based decision making and innovation. This envisioned system would facilitate complete situational awareness, streamlining collection, analysis, and visualization of construction data.