Eric Marks

Method for testing proximity detection and alert technology for safe construction equipment operation

The US construction industry continues to be among the leading industries for workplace fatalities after experiencing 818 fatalities in 2009. Approximately 21% of these fatalities resulted from workers being struck by an object or piece of construction equipment. The nature of construction sites often produces hazardous conditions by requiring ground workers and heavy construction equipment to operate in close proximity. The primary objective is to present a method for testing proximity detection and alert systems. Experimental trials were designed to deploy emerging radio frequency (RF) remote sensing technology to demonstrate the ability of the test method to evaluate the capability of proximity detection and alert systems to provide alerts when heavy construction equipment and workers are in too close proximity to each other. Numerous field experiments were designed and conducted to emulate typical interactions between workers on foot and construction equipment. These devices were installed on pieces of construction equipment in an outdoor environment to evaluate the test method for proximity detection and alert systems. Experimental results show that proximity detection and alert technologies can provide alerts to equipment operators at different pre-calibrated proximity alert ranges. The results suggest that the presented testing method adequately evaluated the reliability and effectiveness of the proximity detection and alert technology in the construction environment.

Laser Scanning for Safe Equipment Design That Increases Operator Visibility by Measuring Blind Spots

One-fourth of construction industry fatalities are caused by worker collisions with construction equipment. Nonvisible areas (blind spots) for equipment operators are contributing factors to many of these fatalities because equipment operators are unable to see ground personnel at certain locations around their equipment. Presented are the design and validation of a unique technique for measuring blind spots by using laser scanning data. The work demonstrates how the design of construction equipment impacts the visibility of its operator. The contribution of the developed technique to the body of knowledge is that it can precisely evaluate and compare different equipment models and design characteristics. The blind spot measurement data for several similar pieces of equipment provides design suggestions that increase operator visibility. By increasing operator visibility through advanced equipment design, safety can be promoted on construction sites and in any other work environment, particularly with nearby ground workforce equipment.

Proximity Sensing and Warning Technology for Heavy Construction Equipment Operation

The United States construction industry experienced 151 fatalities resulting from workers colliding with objects and equipment in 2009. These fatalities accounted for approximately 18% of the total construction fatalities and 3% of the total workplace fatalities experienced that year. Construction workers and equipment are often required to function at close proximity on construction jobsites. This paper evaluates the effectiveness of emerging radio frequency (RF) remote sensing technology that can promote safety in construction by providing real-time alerts for worker-on-foot and construction equipment operators when a potentially hazardous proximity situation exists. Numerous experiments designed to emulate typical interactions between workers-on-foot and construction equipment, including installing proximity sensing devices on actual construction equipment, were used to evaluate the proximity sensing technology. Results from the experiments indicate that real-time pro-active proximity sensing and warning technology can promote safety on construction jobsites.

Near-Miss Information Visualization Tool in BIM for Construction Safety

AbstractAlthough the number of fatalities experienced by the U.S. construction industry has been declining, the magnitude of the decrease has stagnated in recent years. Several improvements have been realized in visualizing construction-project information through building information modeling (BIM). One improvement in construction safety can be found in the collection, analysis, and visualization of safety-leading indicator data including near-miss events. Furthermore, the visualization of reported near misses can assist safety managers to identify high-frequency and high-severity events within a construction site for mitigation or hazard removal techniques. The objective of this research is to provide a framework for near-miss data collection and visualization within a BIM platform. A near-miss database was created in a commercially available BIM design software to allow construction-site personnel to report near misses and visualize within an existing BIM. Algorithms were created to enable filtering fo...

Real-Time Resource Location Tracking in Building Information Models (BIM)

The purposes of this research are to develop and evaluate a framework that utilizes the integration of commercially-available Radio Frequency Identification (RFID) and a BIM model for real-time resource location tracking within an indoor environment. A focus of this paper is to introduce the framework and explain why building models currently lack the integration of sensor data. The need will be explained with potential applications in construction and facility management. Algorithms to process RFID signals and integrate the generated information in BIM will be presented. Furthermore, to demonstrate the benefits of location tracking technology and its integration in BIM, the paper provides a preliminary demonstration on tracking valuable assets inside buildings in real-time. The preliminary results provided the feasibility of integrating passive RFID with BIM for indoor settings.

A Framework for Developing an As-built Virtual Environment to Advance Training of Crane Operators

Although hands-on practices are considered as the most effective training method for crane operators, they are always expensive and dangerous to be performed in the real world. As an alternative, virtual reality and simulator technology provide a close-to-reality experience in lifting operation while minimizing costs and hazards. However, the virtual environment in current training systems are static and designed ahead of time rather than representing an as-built construction site with its dynamic construction resource (workers, equipment, materials). Such drawback greatly limits the effectiveness of virtual training systems. To advance virtual training for crane operators, this research presents a framework towards constructing as-built virtual training environments by integrating Building Information Modeling (BIM) and real-time location tracking technology in a virtual environment. Implementing the proposed framework, a virtual training system for lifting tasks at an actual construction site was developed. The results of a pilot test show that such approach can effectively construct as-built work scenarios and potentially assess and improve operator proficiency in a virtual training environment.

Near Miss Reporting Program to Enhance Construction Worker Safety Performance

Construction safety performance in the past decade has stagnated where only marginal improvements have occurred. Past safety performance has been driven by lagging indicators including capturing safety data only after an illness, injury, or fatality occurred. A significant improvement can be realized through effective use of leading indicators, such as near miss data reporting, collection, and analysis. The primary objective is to identify best practices associated with a near miss reporting program for construction companies. A near miss reporting program was created from results of a review of literature and investigating established near miss reporting programs of many construction companies. The created near miss reporting program was implemented on construction projects of companies that previously failed to collect near miss data. Project safety managers and workers were surveyed periodically throughout the duration of the construction project to capture benefits, limitations, lessons learned, and suggestions from the implemented near miss reporting program. Results indicate near miss data can be reported, collected, and analyzed by construction personnel. Research deliverables including near miss reporting program guidelines, reporting flowchart, employee orientation presentation, and reporting materials can be used to implement a near miss reporting program or enhance an existing program for construction companies.

Hazardous Proximity Zone Design for Heavy Construction Excavation Equipment

AbstractThe construction industry continues to be among the leading industries for workplace fatalities in the United States. After experiencing 824 fatal injuries in 2013, the construction industry ranks as one of the most dangerous work environments when compared with other private industrial sectors in the United States. Conditions of construction sites often produce hazardous proximity situations by requiring pedestrian workers and heavy equipment to operate at close proximity. Injury and fatality statistics indicate that current safety practices of construction workers have proven inadequate. The research aims to design hazard zone around pieces of heavy construction equipment in which site personnel should not enter during construction operations. The scope is limited to construction sites and equipment at a horizontal grade and hazards between heavy construction excavation equipment and workers-on-foot. A framework for creating the hazard zone around a piece of construction equipment is presented i...

Hazardous proximity zone design for heavy construction equipment

The construction industry continues to be among the leading industries for workplace fatalities in the U.S. After experiencing 824 fatal injuries in 2013, the construction industry continues to rank as one of the most dangerous work environments when compared to other private industrial sectors in the U.S. Conditions of construction sites often produce hazardous proximity situations by requiring ground workers and heavy equipment to operator at close proximity. The gathered injury and fatality statistics indicate that current safety practices of construction workers have proven inadequate. The objective is to design hazard zone around pieces of heavy construction equipment in which ground personnel should not enter during construction operations. The scope is limited to construction sites and equipment at a horizontal grade and hazards between heavy construction equipment and workers-on-foot. A framework for creating the hazard zone around any piece of construction equipment is presented including detailed methodology discussions for each step. The hazard zone for a dump truck, excavator, and backhoe are shown using the created framework. Construction resource tracking data was used to validate the created hazard zone around a dump truck. Results indicate that hazard zones for ground workers can be created around construction equipment to increase hazard awareness for workers. Furthermore, additional safety standards can be formulated based on the ability to design and eventually implement hazard zones on construction equipment.

Mobile Proximity Sensing Technologies for Personnel and Equipment Safety in Work Zones

This paper introduces a new proximity alarming technology for roadway work zones. Roadway work zones are dynamic in nature and offer workers with limited work space, contributing to dangerous work environments for construction workers who are constructing and maintaining the infrastructure. Hazardous proximity situations can be encountered especially when the ground workers operate in close proximity to heavy construction equipment. Past research effort has been made in aiming at providing proximity sensing technologies for construction workers. These technologies, however, still have limitations that defer extensive deployment, which include accuracy, cost, required hardware, and ease of use. This study focuses on creating and evaluating a feasible technology that overcomes the drawbacks found in other technologies. Using Bluetooth sensing technology, a proximity detection and alert system was created. Experimental results demonstrate the created system’s ability to provide alerts to equipment operators and pedestrian workers at pre-calibrated distance in real-time. The proximity detection and alert device demonstrated its capabilities to provide, with an appropriate alarm, an additional layer of hazard avoidance to pedestrian workers in roadway work zone environments.