InDrone: a 2D-based drone flight behavior visualization platform for indoor building inspection

Abstract

PurposeThe purpose of this research is to explore how to visually represent human decision-making processes during the performance of indoor building inspection flight operations using drones.Design/methodology/approachData from expert pilots were collected using a virtual reality drone flight simulator. The expert pilot data were studied to inform the development of an interactive 2D representation of drone flight spatial and temporal data – InDrone. Within the InDrone platform, expert pilot data were visually encoded to characterize key pilot behaviors in terms of pilots' approaches to view and difficulties encountered while detecting the inspection markers. The InDrone platform was evaluated using a user-center experimental methodology focusing on two metrics: (1) how novice pilots understood the flight approaches and difficulties contained within InDrone and (2) the perceived usability of the InDrone platform.FindingsThe results of the study indicated that novice pilots recognized inspection markers and difficult-to-inspect building areas in 63% (STD = 48%) and 75% (STD = 35%) of the time on average, respectively. Overall, the usability of InDrone presented high scores as demonstrated by the novice pilots during the flight pattern recognition tasks with a mean score of 77% (STD = 15%).Originality/valueThis research contributes to the definition of visual affordances that support the communication of human decision-making during drone indoor building inspection flight operations. The developed InDrone platform highlights the necessity of defining visual affordances to explore drone flight spatial and temporal data for indoor building inspections.

Eyes in the Sky: Drones Applications in the Built Environment under Climate Change Challenges

“…They bridge the gap between field observations and remote sensing by providing high-quality spatial-resolution details over large areas in a cost-effective way. Moreover, the researchers [54] developed a simulation platform called InDrone to model UAV flight behavior and human-drone interactions for indoor infrastructure inspections. By visualizing the spatiotemporal relationships between UAV dynamics, sensor coverage, environment reconstructions, and operator commands, InDrone enables the analysis and optimization of collision avoidance algorithms and pilot training protocols.…”

Unmanned aerial vehicles in the construction industry - Towards a protocol for safe preparation and flight of drones

“…The development of a building information model can be used to assess the progress of a project (Julge et al, 2019), as well as to check geometric compliances (Elghaish et al, 2020). UAV, which are equipped with a thermal imaging camera, can also be used in construction thermography (Entrop and Vasenev, 2017), and after appropriate preparation, to inspect buildings in closed spaces (Eiris et al, 2021).…”

Editorial

“…Here, a real-life application of BIM in engineering is demonstrated, and its efficiency in identifying the geological risky locations of a model for further geological investigations is optimised. Eiris et al (2021) pinpoint the necessity for a visual representation of human decisionmaking processes during indoor building inspection flight operations with drones. They present their InDrone platform for collecting expert pilot data perceptions to characterise key pilot behaviours and decision-making patterns and trends for indoor building inspection flight operations.…”