Low Cost Augmented Reality Framework for Construction Applications

Abstract

-Augmented Reality can be of immense benefit to the construction industry. The oft-cited benefits of AR in construction industry include real time visualization of projects, project monitoring by overlaying virtual models on actual built structures and onsite information retrieval. But this technology is restricted by the high cost and limited portability of the devices. Further, problems with real time and accurate tracking in a construction environment hinder its broader application. To enable utilization of augmented reality on a construction site, a low cost augmented reality framework based on the Google Cardboard visor is proposed. The current applications available for Google cardboard has several limitations in delivering an AR experience relevant to construction requirements. To overcome these limitations Unity game engine, with the help of Vuforia & Cardboard SDK, is used to develop an application environment which can be used for location and orientation specific visualization and planning of work at construction workface. The real world image is captured through the smart-phone camera input and blended with the stereo input of the 3D models to enable a full immersion experience. The application is currently limited to marker based tracking where the 3D models are triggered onto the user's view upon scanning an image which is registered with a corresponding 3D model preloaded into the application. A gaze input user interface is proposed which enables the user to interact with the augmented models. Finally usage of AR app while traversing the construction site is illustrated.

Contextualizing benefits and limitations reported for augmented reality in construction research

“…Several papers specifically reported on how much time and effort is required to apply AR in a certain environment. Many researchers agree that implementing AR in a construction setting is one of the technology's limitations (Schall et al, 2013;Hou et al, 2015;Kodeboyina and Varghese, 2016;Piroozfar et al, 2018), particularly when markers are to be used on site (Kwon et al, 2014;Zhou et al, 2017;Fazel and Izadi, 2018). Researchers reported that the use of markers on site was not practical nor efficient because construction sites, specifically tunnelling sites, are not predictable in terms of their layout (Zhou et al, 2017).…”

“…The actual cost of implementing AR is frequently addressed in many different publications, but it often leads to different viewpoints about whether it is comparatively expensive or inexpensive. While many studies mention the high cost of AR as a limitation (Hou et al, 2015;Agarwal, 2016;Kodeboyina and Varghese, 2016;Omar and Nehdi, 2016;Piroozfar et al, 2018), other studies find the cost of implementing AR in the construction field as an advantage (Adăscăliţei and Bălţoi, 2018;Chu et al, 2018;Fazel and Izadi, 2018). The diverging opinion on cost of AR is largely intuitive when considering the very broad range of available AR devices, with varying prices in the market.…”

“…There can be advantages and disadvantages to using expensive and inexpensive options during development. Leveraging inexpensive hardware and software options can encourage widespread application of AR, but this can also provide challenges in developing a seamless AR experience (Kodeboyina and Varghese, 2016). The variations in claims about AR being expensive or inexpensive is likely related to one of several contextual factors that differed between studies.…”

Impact of BIM-based augmented reality interfaces on construction projects: protocol for a systematic review

“…In a study by Kodeboyina and Varghese (2016) the fundamental requirements to develop AR systems are input devices, sensors, processor and display which are mostly integrated on modern handheld equipment such as smartphones and tablets. Chi, Kang and Wang (2013) and determine that AR technology evolved from marker-based applications towards markerless systems, although more recent advances in context-aware tools such as Wikitude, Google's Project Tango, and more recently ARCore, may expedite the technology used on mobile devices.…”

“…However, limitations may be found while managing higher amounts of data, such as the case of BIM-based AR systems Gheisari & Irizarry, 2016;Patti et al, 2017;. Additionally, research has documented limitations that still hamper the implementation of AR for construction-related activities such as the accuracy of tracking technologies (Rankohi & Waugh, 2013;Bae, Golparvar-Fard, & White, 2014;Kodeboyina & Varghese, 2016), and precise alignment (Agarwal, 2016).…”