The Use of Augmented Reality in Collaboration Within the Construction Industry

Abstract

Site visitation is a crucial aspect of civil engineers’ job scope as it provides them with first-hand construction data. However, due to the recent COVID-19 pandemic, construction site visitations are restricted, making the tasks of a civil engineer impossible to achieve. The main objective of this research is to find out and suggest a remedy to the problems commonly faced by civil engineers through the help of Augmented Reality (AR). Hence, the study’s objective is to analyse AR’s functionalities and suggest its best application to communicate spacious awareness via visual feedback for civil engineers. For maximum usability, an integrated software suite is proposed that provides access to AR worksites, measured data, and allows peer communication. This addressed the whole spectrum of problems faced by civil engineers with the switch to remote working. However, with the COVID-19 pandemic, the limitation of this project is that testing could not be executed to determine the efficacy of the said solution. Furthermore, the proposed solution has limitations, such as requiring pre-constructed infrastructure in applicable construction sites. Therefore, regular quality assurance (QA) and quality control (QC) are required to ensure proper functionality. In the future, AR LiDAR sensors could be a possibility as it provides increased accuracy of AR measurements which is critical in engineering.

Errors and Omissions in Concrete Formwork and Technology Solutions

“…Numerous devices such as AR glasses, smartphones, tablets, and HoloLens facilitate the use of AR technology. AR has the potential to revolutionize onsite construction by providing various applications, such as improving communication and collaboration, enhancing project monitoring and documentation, and reducing risks throughout the construction process (Sivanesan et al, 2021). For example, improving the digital fabrication process using onsite visual holographic technology 3D provides contextual, scaled, and tangible descriptions of intuitive targets for onsite projects, unlike traditional 2D drawings (Song et al, 2021).…”