scispace - formally typeset
Search or ask a question
Journal ArticleDOI

Exploratory Study of Potential Applications of Unmanned Aerial Systems for Construction Management Tasks

01 May 2016-Journal of Management in Engineering (American Society of Civil Engineers)-Vol. 32, Iss: 3, pp 05016001-05016001
TL;DR: In this article, the authors present an exploratory case study to identify potential applications of visual assets obtained from UAVs for construction management tasks, including project progress monitoring, job site logistics, evaluating safety conditions, and quality inspections among other secondary management tasks.
Abstract: Despite studies exploring potential applications of unmanned aerial systems (UASs), the particular use and value of visual assets (photographs or video) collected with UASs for construction management tasks is not well understood. This paper presents an exploratory case study to identify potential applications of visual assets obtained from UASs for construction management tasks. The case study involved the development of a visual assets database from UAS-based images and videos collected during UAS flights at jobsites in the United States and Brazil as well as semi-structured interviews with construction project personnel. The results revealed potential applications of UASs mainly for project progress monitoring, job site logistics, evaluating safety conditions, and quality inspections among other secondary management tasks. In addition, an analysis of costs related to the use of UASs was performed. The main contribution of this case study is a better understanding of the use of UASs for construction management tasks and their regulatory and cost implications.
Citations
More filters
Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, a framework for performance-based laboratory testing of cementitious mixtures for construction-scale 3D printing is developed, where workability of a fresh "printing mixture" is studied in terms of print quality, shape stability, and printability window.

411 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this article, the authors address the technical challenges for the industrial implementation of additive manufacturing of construction materials, e.g., materials formulation standardization, and interfacial bonding quality between the deposited layers.

171 citations


Cites background from "Exploratory Study of Potential Appl..."

  • ...the utilisation of drone technology on construction sites has been investigated for applications such as safety inspection [6] and 3D modelling of the site [7]....

    [...]

Journal ArticleDOI
Yan Li1, Chunlu Liu1
TL;DR: In this article, the authors show that many fields are showing increasing interest in utilizing multi-rotor drones, such as mapping in mining and surveillance, and that many applications have shown an increase in their interest in using them.
Abstract: Multirotor drones are considered a new and innovative technology. Therefore, many fields are showing increasing interest in utilizing multirotor drones, such as mapping in mining and surveillance i...

162 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors present a review of state-of-the-art methods in a typical vision-based scheme, and discuss challenges associated with their application, aiming to guide practitioners to find suitable approaches for a particular project.
Abstract: Computer vision has been gaining interest in a wide range of research areas in recent years, from medical to industrial robotics. The architecture, engineering and construction and facility management sector ranks as one of the most intensive fields where vision-based systems/methods are used to facilitate decision making processes during the construction phase. Construction sites make efficient monitoring extremely tedious and difficult due to clutter and disorder. Extensive research has been carried out to investigate the potential to utilise computer vision for assisting on-site managerial tasks. This paper reviews studies on computer vision in the past decade, with a focus on state-of-the-art methods in a typical vision-based scheme, and discusses challenges associated with their application. This research aims to guide practitioners to successfully find suitable approaches for a particular project.

145 citations

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors assess the applicability of UAV for safety inspection on construction sites, focusing on the identification of the requirement that can be inspected and the non-compliances with the safety requirements established.

130 citations

References
More filters
Proceedings ArticleDOI
28 Oct 2013
TL;DR: This paper describes a particular operational pipeline tested on the Theaters Area of Pompeii in Italy, starting from aerial data collection to accurate 3D processing with the help of innovative co-operative technologies.
Abstract: Aerial surveying is, in the domain of archeology and architecture, an exponential field of application and interest. Beyond the increasing flying capabilities and skills of existing UAV, the operational potentiality of the aircraft oversteps the imagination of their own creators. Initially conceived for robotic civilian and military surveying applications, recent experiments have tested autonomous flight, self decision-making and multi-agent convergent tasks. Based upon 10 years of aerial surveying experience, part of the MAP activity is concerned: firstly, unmanned flight and related developments within a specific institutional partnership and secondly, advanced tool-making workflow for architecture and urban design 3D modeling and image analysis protocols. In this paper we will describe a particular operational pipeline tested on the Theaters Area of Pompeii in Italy, starting from aerial data collection to accurate 3D processing with the help of innovative co-operative technologies.

40 citations

01 Jun 2008

39 citations


"Exploratory Study of Potential Appl..." refers background in this paper

  • ...2004), avalanche control (McCormack and Trepanier 2008), aerial assessment of road surface condition (Zhang and Elaksher 2012), bridge inspection (Metni and Hamel 2007; Morgenthal and Hallermann 2014), and safety inspection on jobsites (Irizarry et al....

    [...]

Journal ArticleDOI
TL;DR: In this paper, the authors demonstrate a method for UAV-based structure from motion mapping and show it to be a viable option for large scale, high resolution terrain modeling, and discuss issues of flight path planning and propose an algorithm to assist in the generation of these paths.
Abstract: We demonstrate a method for unmanned aerial vehicle based structure from motion mapping and show it to be a viable option for large scale, high resolution terrain modeling. Current methods of large scale terrain modeling can be cost and time prohibitive. We present a method for integrating low cost cameras and unmanned aerial vehicles for the purpose of 3D terrain mapping. Using structure from motion, aerial images taken of the landscape can be reconstructed into 3D models of the terrain. This process is well suited for use on unmanned aerial vehicles due to the light weight and low cost of equipment. We discuss issues of flight path planning and propose an algorithm to assist in the generation of these paths. The structure from motion mapping process is experimentally evaluated in three distinct environments: ground based testing on man-made environments, ground based testing on natural environments, and airborne testing on natural environments. Ground based testing on natural environments was shown to be extremely useful for camera calibration, and the resulting models were found to have a maximum error of 4.26 cm and standard deviation of 1.50 cm. During airborne testing, several areas of approximately 30,000 m 2 were mapped. These areas were mapped with acceptable accuracy and a resolution of 1.24 cm.

32 citations

Proceedings ArticleDOI
10 Apr 2007
TL;DR: Small unmanned vertical take off and landing vehicles are used to provide the eye-in-the-sky alternative to monitoring and regulating traffic dynamically, overcomes limitations of existing traffic simulation models.
Abstract: Small unmanned vertical take off and landing vehicles are used to provide the eye-in-the-sky alternative to monitoring and regulating traffic dynamically. Spatial-temporal visual data are collected in real time and they are used to generate traffic-related statistical profiles, serving as inputs to traffic simulation models. Generated profiles, which are continuously updated, are used to calibrate traffic model parameters, to obtain more accurate and reliable simulation models, and for model modifications. This method overcomes limitations of existing traffic simulation models, which suffer from outdated data, poorly calibrated parameters because of outdated data, questionable accuracy and poor predictions of traffic patterns.

30 citations

06 May 2014
TL;DR: This study introduces a variety of UAS applications in traffic management, transportation and construction disciplines related to DOTs, such as the ability to get real time, digital photographs/videos of traffic scenes, providing a "bird’s eye view" that was previously only available with the assistance of a manned aircraft.
Abstract: This project explored the feasibility of using Unmanned Aerial Systems (UASs) in Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) operations. The research team conducted 24 interviews with personnel in four GDOT divisions. Interviews focused on (1) the basic goals of the operators in each division, (2) their major decisions for accomplishing those goals, and (3) the information requirements for each decision. Following an interview validation process, a set of UAS design characteristics that fulfill user requirements of each previously identified division was developed. A “House of Quality” viewgraph was chosen to capture the relationships between GDOT tasks and potential UAS aiding those operations. As a result, five reference systems are proposed. The UAS was broken into three components: vehicle, control station, and system. This study introduces a variety of UAS applications in traffic management, transportation and construction disciplines related to DOTs, such as the ability to get real time, digital photographs/videos of traffic scenes, providing a "bird’s eye view" that was previously only available with the assistance of a manned aircraft, integrating aerial data into GDOT drawing software programs, and dealing with restricted or complicated access issues when terrain, area, or the investigated object make it difficult for GDOT personnel to conduct a task. The results of this study could lead to further research on design, development, and field-testing of UAVs for applications identified as beneficial to the Department.

25 citations