Use of a Mobile BIM Application Integrated with Asset Tracking Technology Over a Cloud

Abstract

Over the last decade, BIM and tracking have been explored by many researchers. Despite the extensive efforts in these domains, they have been mostly individually studied, and limited effort was made to fully integrate them into a single system. This study proposes a new development of a virtual mobile BIM platform for an on-site application by integrating the three systems: Building information modeling (BIM), Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE), and inertial measurement units (IMU). The proposed system is created by 1) developing a low-cost tracking system using BLE and IMU, 2) developing a mobile BIM platform, and 3) integrating the developed components over a cloud. The tracking system is comprised of BLE-sensors, IMU sensors, and map knowledge. The mobile BIM platform is developed through data extraction from BIM and then integration into the tracking system. The study conducts a field experiment to demonstrate the capability of the system with respect to the real-time tracking information, the corresponding virtual BIM view, and communication. The test results show that the integration of the system is successful between the tracking system and the mobile BIM system, and that a new on-site communication tool using BIM and tracking is successfully implemented. In conclusion, the study advances the use of BIM and tracking with system integration that can improve the overall project management and coordination.