Abstract
Building Information Modeling (BIM) and Virtual reality (VR) have attracted growing attention within the architecture, engineering, and construction (AEC) industry in recent years. Integration of BIM and VR technology can develop workflow efficiency through enhanced common understanding and prepare students in architecture and engineering programs to become leaders of the AEC industry. However, the current shortage of AEC professionals trained in BIM and VR is still a barrier to collaborative working practice in this industry. This paper reviews previous work on the BIM, VR, and BIM-into-VR in AEC education/training to bridge this gap. It also presents an advanced framework to clarify creating and using the BIM model into VR workflow in the AEC industry through the integrated definition function (IDEF0) model. The authors further evaluated the BIM-into-VR applications in literature and real-life by surveying students’ learning performance in terms of eight characteristics relevant to the VR environment and students’ performance within two projects, one involving the “NASA Mars Habitat Project” and the other involving the “Norris Center Project” at Northwestern University. The results confirmed that BIM-into-VR usability and efficiency in improving students’ main learning performance characteristics: Learnability, Interoperability, Visualization, Real-world, Interaction, Creativity, Motivation, and Comfort. This study addresses the advantages of using BIM-into-VR in AEC programs. It also offers suggestions to AEC educators and students in implementing BIM-into-VR in different courses and creating a roadmap for their future as professionals in the AEC industry.
Highlights
Recent technological advances in visualization and analytics have helped academic and industrial researchers take tangible steps toward improving design and construction projects’ quality and efficiency and succeed on projects’ cost and schedule
Like Building information modeling (BIM), which works with BIM Execution Plan (BEP), the Virtual Reality (VR) needs to work based on a comprehensive workflow
Believed that the advent of new visualization platforms such as building information modeling (BIM), virtual reality (VR), and gaming technologies provides a unique opportunity for the AEC students to see and experience the new ways of design, implement, and manage safety
Summary
Recent technological advances in visualization and analytics have helped academic and industrial researchers take tangible steps toward improving design and construction projects’ quality and efficiency and succeed on projects’ cost and schedule. Recent new technologies in Virtual Reality (VR) headsets and software have led researchers to experiment and view n-D BIM content [8,9]. This innovation allows for immersive virtualization of a BIM model. As one of the most significant disruptive technologies, VR headsets have been tried for a range of challenges inherent in the AEC industry [10] These challenges include decision-making during initial conceptual design and planning processes, design coordination, clash detection, facility management, industry [10]. BIM research and VR in the aAEC industry and to explain the methods of generating using the BIM-into-VR model for design and education/training environment wereand reviewed.
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