Knowledge Graphs and Linked Data for the Built Environment

BIM-Enabled Infrastructure Asset Management Using Information Containers and Semantic Web

“…At the end of a construction project, the as-built model with related information and documents can be handed over as a whole data package, which also simplifies the data integration into the AMS. However, the use of ICDD information containers as a data structure and an exchange medium is only an intermediate step for overcoming the file-based data exchange issues and establishing the vision of a fully remote access of linked building data in triple stores, as proposed by Pauwels et al (2022). The platform development prototype presented here offers the possibility that users can generate queries and rules and execute these on containers for their purposes.…”

“…For validation of RDF-based data, the Shapes and Constraint Language (SHACL) has been developed and extended (Knublauch and Kontokostas 2017). Linked data and Semantic Web technologies increasingly are being researched and applied in the architecture, engineering, construction, owner, and operation (AECOO) sector (Pauwels et al 2022). The development of ifcOWL as an exact representation of the IFC STEP formats in an OWL ontology can be seen as a starting point for accessing building data in a Semantic Web context (Beetz et al 2009).…”

Leveraging Textual Information for Knowledge Graph-oriented Machine Learning: A Case Study in the Construction Industry

“…Most recently, Pauwels et al (Pauwels et al, 2022) elaborated on the notion of KGs for the built environment. In their work, researchers put a significant weight on the principles of "linked data" and "semantic web" technologies, e.g., OWL (Web Ontology Language (McGuinness and Van Harmelen, 2004)) and RDF (Resource Description Framework (Lassila and Swick, 1998)).…”

“…When incorporated into formal ontologies such as ifcOWL (buildingSMART, 2022), each pair of nodes linked via an edge (known as a triple) expresses a "fact" about the building, in an explicit and formal (machinereadable) manner. However, the inclusion of detailed geometric descriptions as well as sensory observations in KGs is associated with considerable complexities and inefficiencies (Pauwels et al, 2022). Hence, from a practical perspective, the content of the KGs that are constructed for the built environments will mainly consist of lexical and semantic descriptions.…”

“…The construction and building engineering sector have been no exception to this trend. The added value of KGs and their potential for open exchange and management of the built environment data has been most recently highlighted in (Pauwels et al, 2022).…”