Masaaki Ikeda

Situational awareness of construction equipment using GPS, wireless and web technologies

Situational awareness refers to the ability by equipment operators to sense their environment with the objective of increasing safety and improving productivity on construction sites. This paper reports on research related to situational awareness of construction equipment using differential Global Positioning System (DGPS), wireless and web-based technologies. In this investigation, the researchers developed and implemented technologies for vehicle tracking, and collision detection. The paper concludes with a summary of these applications, along with a discussion of the limitations of current implementations, and the required augmentation by other technologies.

Resource-based simulation libraries for construction

Abstract Discrete event simulation modeling has been used successfully in a wide range of industrial and manufacturing applications. In construction applications, even though simulation has been applied, it still is extremely limited in terms of wide deployment in construction projects. Several reasons limit the effective implementation of this technology in construction. Chief among them is the time needed to develop the simulation model. While developing models for industrial applications is just as time consuming, the perpetual nature of manufacturing activities, may make this investment worthwhile. However, this is not the case in construction. In this research, the authors approach the problem through the development of a library of preprogrammed construction resources. The user need only select the required resources, and specify the project logic by linking these resources together. Benefits of this approach are the increased communication between the members of the construction team. Also the potential application of simulation tools in unforeseen construction situations where the time associated with hiring a simulation programmer may not available and a quick response is required.

GPS-Based Wireless Collision Detection of Construction Equipment

This paper reports on research related to avoiding collisions in construction sites using differential GPS technology. In this project, the researchers developed and implemented a system where GPS technology was used in tracking a single vehicle and relaying its information to a central server. Using another simulated vehicle, the server evaluated collision scenarios and sent cautionary messages to the roving vehicle if a collision is impending. The paper concludes with a summary of the application, along with a discussion of the limitations of GPS technology and the required augmentation by other technologies.

An Object-Oriented Environment for the Construction Planning of High-Rise Buildings

New buildings are experiencing a continuous increase in the sophistication of their building systems and methods of construction. This situation creates a need for a planning tool that is capable of serving one or more of the complex set of activities during the project life phases. Several researchers have devised methods for the modeling of buildings in an attempt to develop a representation that is capable of supporting a collaborative environment for engineering and construction. Some of these modeling approaches attempt to enable the user to use the same model for conceptual and detailed design, while others target primarily the construction activities. Other models have also attempted to cover the design and construction interface. This paper will describe a modeling environment for the construction planning of high rise buildings. Issues covered include the development of an object-oriented CAD environment that enables the construction planner to evaluate potential construction sequences using both graphical, attribute, and knowledge-based inputs. The manuscript will conclude with other approaches described in the literature, problems that have limited their implementation, then extensions to this research.

An automated environment for soils- and terrain-dependent applications

This paper explains the development of an integrated information environment that is designed specifically for applications dependent on information related to soil types and terrain of the project site. This covers a wide variety of applications such as shallow and deep foundations, trenching, earthmoving and tunneling. The design of this environment takes into consideration the typical requirements of the project team with an emphasis on integrating requirements for both design and construction. The environment reported here is comprised of three main modules, a relational database for the storage and display of soil borelog information, a geographic information system that displays the geographical locations of soil studies, and a module that is used to develop a three-dimensional profile of the soil layers between any number of borelogs. The user may also develop cross sections of soil layers in any direction. This paper reports on the hardware and software used and concludes with a discussion of future extensions to the system.

A Topology Deduction System for the Design and Construction of Buildings

Constructed facilities or buildings are comprised of many components, each of which is usually represented in product data models by their spatial information including three dimensional (3-D) geometry and topology. Geometrical data describes the facility components’ dimensions and locations, whereas topological data represents information about spatial relationships (e.g. connectivity, adjacency, containment, etc.) between the facility components. In A/E/C (Architecture, Engineering, and Construction) area, information about topological relations are essential. This paper describes a computerized building data framework being developed in a solid modeling environment, which is capable of automatically extracting topological information of building components to support various aspects in building design such as constructability analysis, construction planning, and building code compliance checking.