Augmented Reality at Custom House

By Stephen Smith (COMIT Construction Chairman)

The BiDWG (Crossrail BIM in Delivery Working Group) is overseeing a trial at Custom House of using Augmented Reality technology to overlay planned construction works in the field using an iPad.

As is shown in the photo below the design model is positioned in real space on the iPad screen using the iPad camera and a combination of tracking and positioning technologies.

The model has been linked to the construction schedule so the user can step through the construction sequence in the field, helping to identify pinch points and potential problems before the works commence.

As is shown below the user can click on the construction components and view the attributes stored against that component. Additionally information,such as an installation date, can be input into the iPad application and automatically posted back to the planning team, informing them of the live status in the field.

The pilot is half way through an 8 week trial on site. The pilot is capturing data on how this method of capturing construction progress compares to the current work process. Any efficiency gains should help to justify wider roll-out of this technology.

Thanks to the Crossrail delivery site team for their support.

As they say, watch this (augmented) space!