NIST and FIATECH Joint Workshop on The Intelligent and Automated Construction Job Site Testbed

Location: National Institute of Standards and Technology, Gaithersburg, MD
Dates: July 29 and 30, 2008
Duration: 1 ½ days

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WORKSHOP BACKGROUND

The Problem: The U.S. construction industry lags behind other industrial sectors (and possibly certain foreign construction sectors) in terms of site automation. This is partly due to the construction industry’s aversion to risk, which is brought about by the high schedule and cost constraints of typical construction projects. Therefore, new, untested technologies and automated processes take longer to penetrate the construction sector. Creating a neutral, representative, testbed environment that will enable demonstrations of new technologies and processes; generation of new knowledge in construction automation; technology transfer; and industry/academic/government collaboration is a difficult technical challenge. There are no U.S. facilities with the necessary resources and infrastructure to achieve this.

Today, universities are largely leading advanced research in new automated construction methods, communications and information technology, and management processes. These efforts have often been relatively small. A few pilot demonstrations have been fielded through organizations such as CII and FIATECH. However, none of these organizations have the resources to develop a testbed where various concepts for an integrated and automated construction jobsite may be tested. The need for a testbed was also identified at the joint NSF-NIST Advanced Building Infrastructure Testbeds (NABIT) workshop in 2006.

Testbed Objectives

Provide an environment where the performance of construction measurement methods, systems, protocols, and standards can be tested, evaluated, and refined to enable the development of the future Intelligent and Automated Construction Job Site (IACJS).

The IACJS Testbed will be used:

1. To develop metrics and procedures for evaluating the performance of new and existing construction measurement methods, systems, protocols, and standards under controlled, well characterized, repeatable, and accurately monitored conditions.
2. To test and evaluate the performance of construction systems and processes (e.g., construction equipment and tool use, onsite data collection and retrieval, material tracking, progress monitoring techniques) and measurement methods (e.g., GPS, laser-based, or ultra wideband positioning).
3. To develop simulations of various construction systems and processes that will be used as a virtual testbed
4. As a shared-use facility available for use by industry, academia, and other research organizations (including NIST) on a space-request or collaborative-project basis.

Example Technologies that Could be Implemented on the Testbed

• Site positioning and tracking systems using GPS, indoor GPS, and ultra wideband technologies
• Realtime 3D visualization and planning using 3D range cameras, supervisory software, and augmented reality
• As-built conditions monitoring using 3D imaging systems and on-site data collection
• Wireless data communications
• Control architectures using 4D/RCS for generic equipment control
• Site visualization and simulation