Augmented Reality & BIM: A New Perspective on Field Coordination

Building information modeling (BIM) continues to transform the fields of architecture, engineering and construction (AEC). As new technologies leverage the resulting model in different ways, the model gets increasingly useful — and increasingly powerful to drive desired project outcomes.  

Even as BIM managers have long been making use of the model in the office, though, people on the jobsite have often struggled to access it. This data-rich tool too frequently gets siloed to the office. But augmented reality (AR) can change things. 

As construction professionals explore ways to use BIM and AR technology together, it’s becoming clear that the combination creates a potent pathway for field access to the BIM model. 

Overlaying Augmented Reality to Better Leverage the Model

Virtual design and construction (VDC) is by no means new, but it’s been primarily used by people behind desks. Augmented reality (AR) offers a way to change that. 

Augmented reality is technology that overlays digital information over the user’s real-world view. If they hold their phone up to a wall, for example, their phone’s camera takes in what’s happening in the real world, then adds augmented reality to the screen, too. AR can show what’s already installed on that wall, for example, plus a rendering of what still needs to be put in place. Or it can pull data from the model to digitally display the ductwork that’s installed behind a ceiling. 

In other words, combining AR with BIM introduces a way to bring the model out to the field. It allows users to see what’s been planned and the overall intention of the space. By combining as-built with planned installations, the AR overlay creates a clear understanding of what needs to happen where. Everyone can share this source of truth to drive the project forward. 

Take, for example, clash detection. While BIM has been touted for its ability to enable clash detection in a virtual space for years, it’s useful in physical space, too. When it shows what needs to be installed when and how that will interact with what’s already in the space, an AR overlay can alert installers to potential conflicts. This directly reduces the likelihood of rework. 

Different Approaches to the Virtual Realm

Lots of construction-focused software solutions are adding AR functionality. In some cases, users can even interact with the digital overlay of the real world. When this engagement is functional, it’s called mixed reality.

Some companies also use virtual reality (VR), which means fully stepping into the virtual realm rather than laying it over the tangible world. 

This level of immersion introduces safety concerns because the user can’t necessarily see, for example, where they’re stepping in real space. Still, VR has some applications to support field coordination. Specifically, it can be a useful way to virtually train teams on machinery or equipment that comes with risks when helmed by someone inexperienced in the real world. Leveraging VR training can make teams safer and more efficient when they’re in the field. 

Similarly, VR can enable better planning, allowing stakeholders to walk the space and make sure everything is where it should be. This is particularly useful in a healthcare setting like a hospital room, for example. With that diligent, VR-backed planning in place, field coordination should go more smoothly because everything will be strategically placed in the model. 

Expanding With Different Technologies

As augmented reality, mixed reality and virtual reality find additional uses in the construction project’s lifecycle, technology to leverage these virtual realms expands.

Using AR in the field largely started with phones and tablets. The device’s camera took in the real world and fed it back to the user, laying the AR data over the top.

More sophisticated technology allows this same information overlay while keeping the user hands-free. Today, some companies leverage headsets that project the AR overlay within a clear visor. This can increase safety because the user is looking at the world around them, not at a device. As they move through the space, the AR information stays accessible — but the risk of missing a nearby hazard goes down. 

How to Use AR With the Model During Construction

Whether companies use phones, tablets, visors or other AR technology, feeding data from the BIM model into an AR interface can give team members the information they need when they need it. For example: How much reinforcement is needed for that column? In AR, they can see the answer. Where should the plumbing go? The AR overlay of the model shows them precisely where. 

To provide a clearer idea of how augmented reality and BIM can work together to support better field coordination, here are a few specific ways to leverage these technologies together.

• Safety Information Overlay

  The AR readout can flag certain safety concerns, like nearby hazards. With warnings that flash on screen or in the headset or are color-coded (e.g., red, yellow), they call the user’s attention to safety issues so they can be more easily avoided. 

• Real-time Measurements

  A properly calibrated AR readout can show the user precisely what needs to be installed where. It allows for guidance on placement without the need to pull tape (and the potential for human error that introduces). 

• Machinery and Equipment Operation Guides

  An AR overlay can guide workers on how to properly use equipment or machinery, introducing the next step as the previous one is completed. This can shorten the training required before that person reaches the field, and lower the risk of human error during operation. 

• Support for Sequencing

  Because AR can introduce model components according to their scheduled installation, it enables easier sequencing. People in the field don’t need to guess at the order at which things should be installed or go find the schedule to reference. The AR readout can walk them through the properly sequenced process. 

• On-site Model Editing

  When sophisticated AR technology is in play, it can allow the user to edit the model based on what they’re seeing in the field. They may be able to “pick up” a model element and change its location or its finish, for example. Ideally, that feeds back into the model in the office to keep everyone on the same page. 

• Sending Information to the Office

  Even when model editability isn’t a function of the AR technology, it can facilitate better communication with the office. The AR glasses, phone, or tablet can potentially capture stills or video of an issue to relay back to the office for troubleshooting. 

• Quality assurance

  The AR overlay allows installers to compare the work they’ve done against what was planned in the model. With this technology-supported visual check, they can perform quick but thorough quality assurance. 

Using BIM and AR After Closeout

The usefulness of BIM and AR doesn’t end at handover. The work done using the model in AR can support facilities management once the project is turned over to the owner. 

If the model is handed over, the owner’s team can know, for example, precisely where a piece of serviceable equipment is behind a given wall or ceiling. With AR in play, the AR readout can even pinpoint the location of the equipment, and potentially overlay service instructions to guide the service or maintenance worker. 

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Field Coordination Challenges for AR and BIM

Because using BIM with AR is still somewhat new, it’s not without its issues. In the field, people commonly encounter the following hurdles.

• Calibration

  So that the augmented reality elements can properly fit over what the user is seeing in the real world, AR requires calibration. Different technologies have different processes here, but they can be time-consuming, particularly when a high level of precision is required. Good calibration requires strong survey site control. 

• Drift

  Even once the AR overlay is calibrated, some technologies experience a problem called drift. If the AR tool struggles to pick up reference objects to maintain its calibration, the AR overlay can drift. This introduces issues, particularly when the field team is using AR to place components for installation. 

• Access and Education

  For AR and BIM to be useful together, teams need to know how to use them in the field. This requires training and support structures that some companies are still in the process of developing. Just because a user has an AR headset, for example, doesn’t mean they know how to get to the area of the model that fits with the real-world space they’re in. Some companies install QR codes or station points throughout the site to help here, but that requires extra planning and effort. 

• Price

  Paying for the software required to create the BIM model and feed it into AR devices, along with paying for the AR devices themselves, can quickly get expensive. As a result, some companies may limit who has access to these technologies. That creates barriers to teamwide collaboration in the field. 

Benefits of BIM and AR in the Field

When teams use augmented reality technology to bring the BIM model to the field, it unlocks a number of benefits.

• Informed Decision-making

  With an AR overlay showing precisely what was planned in the model and how everything fits together, teams in the field are able to make data-driven decisions in the moment. They can see, for example, how one adjustment might have ripple effects to other model elements, and would consequently impact the project either positively or negatively. 

• Improved Efficiency

  With AR technology, there’s no need to go find drawings or specs or a device to access the model. All the data captured in the model is available within the AR interface, helping teams get to the information they need more quickly. This way, they can stay in flow while working rather than facing interruptions. 

• Risk Management

  Building information modeling goes a long way toward preventing delays and cost overruns. It catches problems in the virtual realm, when they’re easier and cheaper to solve. By then bringing the thorough planning the model represents to the field, AR enables those risk management efforts to continue as construction progresses. 

• Stronger Connections Between Office and Field

  Right now, one of the key challenges in BIM is the disconnect between the teams creating the model and the people actually doing the work of installation. Combining AR and BIM bridges that gap, allowing field teams to see the planning work and the intention for the space. Because it helps everyone align, it enables smoother collaboration between field and office teams. 

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