A Technological Prospect for a Diagnostic Model in HBIM

Abstract

Historic Building Information Modeling (HBIM) and BIM Collaboration Format (BCF) offer new possibilities for recording damage and pathologies, since semantic data can be associated with a BIM model. This study investigates the potential of HBIM for the diagnostic documentation of modern cultural heritage via a case study carried out in the E1 Building, at the University of São Paulo, Brazil. Aiming at a Diagnostic Model, this study investigates the use of BCF rather than a Damage Map produced in two-dimensional representation systems. A BCF platform was chosen to evaluate the available resources and their limitations. The main contribution of this research consists in showing that BIM use is feasible to develop diagnostic documentation. Although not all expected functionalities were identified in the selected platform, we confirmed that BCF is an open data format with the potential to semantically enrich an HBIM model. For future research projects, guidelines are suggested for developing specific HBIM software for the diagnostic documentation of cultural heritage.