Mobile augmented reality in support of building damage and safety assessment

Abstract

Abstract. Rapid and accurate assessment of the state of buildings in the aftermath of a disaster event is critical for an effective and timely response. For rapid damage assessment of buildings, the utility of remote sensing (RS) technology has been widely researched, with focus on a range of platforms and sensors. However, RS-based approaches still have limitations to assess structural integrity and the specific damage status of individual buildings. Structural integrity refers to the ability of a building to hold the entire structure. Consequently, ground-based assessment conducted by structural engineers and first responders is still required. This paper demonstrates the concept of mobile augmented reality (mAR) to improve performance of building damage and safety assessment in situ. Mobile AR provides a means to superimpose various types of reference or pre-disaster information (virtual data) on actual post-disaster building data (real buildings). To adopt mobile AR, this study defines a conceptual framework based on the level of complexity (LOC). The framework consists of four LOCs, and for each of these, the data types, required processing steps, AR implementation and use for damage assessment are described. Based on this conceptualization we demonstrate prototypes of mAR for both indoor and outdoor purposes. Finally, we conduct a user evaluation of the prototypes to validate the mAR approach for building damage and safety assessment.

Evaluation of Augmented Reality-Based Building Diagnostics Using Third Person Perspective

“…With the recognition of significant efficiency boost and cost reduction, research on employing AR for facility inspection and maintenance tasks has seen increasing popularity. Kim et al [34] detailed a conceptual frame for adopting mobile AR for building damage assessment after a disaster. The study from Khalek et al [35] suggests that AR-based building information modeling (BIM) applications are conducive to better decision-making towards facility maintainability during the design phase.…”

An Efficient, Platform-Independent Map Rendering Framework for Mobile Augmented Reality

“…Its main purpose is to combine real-world and virtual information in a manner that provides real-time interaction. More precisely, users receive additional information such as images, sounds, and text that create illusions related to the real world [1,2].…”

Seismic Damage Semantics on Post-Earthquake LOD3 Building Models Generated by UAS

“…Earthquakes are unavoidable; however, disaster management has evolved through the years. When an earthquake strikes, damage assessment is the primary source for obtaining information, regarding the extent of damage and its spatial spread [13]. Ground-based and remote sensing-based assessments are the two major methods for evaluating damaged buildings.…”