Hold down left mouse button to rotate the model. Hold down right mouse button to move the model. Use middle mouse button to zoom in or zoom out.
Use filtering options to hide or show elements. Use explode / upexplode option to explore the tectonics of the building.
Introduction
In recent years, the web has gained power of 3D displaying and manipulation. With the emerging of new technology such as HTML5 and WebGL, the web has transformed from a content sharing platform to a web application platform.
In the BEC (Building Engineering Construction) industry, BIM (Building Information Model) has become a prevalent industry standard. It is widely adopted in the life circle of a building, from conceptual design to post-occupancy management. Currently, the BIM platform is implemented through sophisticated desktop-based application, which has limited access to the general public and stake-holders of a building. There will be great potentials in the development of web application based on BIM platform. This project introduces a framework of web application utilizing BIM.
To develop the web application, the LEED Platinum-certified Lewis Integrative Science Building(LISB) at University of Oregon was selected for demonstration.
About The Web App
Building Visualization
The initial function of the web application is 3D building visualization. With WebGL, 3D building models can be uploaded to the web space. In the EXTERIOR page of the web app, users can interact with the model like in desktop-based modeling tools such as Rhino, Sketchup. The public, stake-holders and design professionals will have access to the 3D building models as long as they have internet connection.
The INTERIOR page of the web app allows users to walk around in the building and view the spaces in 3D. Users can use key-board controls and mouse controls to inspect the interior space on the web.
Future development will be incorporating Virtual Reality head-set such as Oculus Rift with the 3D space. Another direction will be allowing users to have parametric control of the building geometries.
Environment and Energy Data Visualization
The TEMPERATURE and ENERGY page of the web app provide two ways of data visualization based on 3D building spaces. By connecting data with building spaces, occupants in the building can see the building performance intuitively. This will encourage occupants to take actions to reduce energy usage of the building. Currently, the data used in the project are randomly generated and stored in separate JSON files.
Future development will be monitoring the performance of the building in real-time and connecting the visualization model with data-base. Analysis of the accumulative data will help in building performance optimization and sustainable design validation.
Indoor Navigation and User Activity Study
The NAVIGATION page of the web app allow users to search for a room and navigate through the space with 3D floor plans. To search for a room, users can type in a room name. The searched room will be marked red in the floor plans, thus allowing people to locate the room quickly. Future development will be in detecting user's current position by wifi-connection and calculating indoor routes.
The goal of the USER ACTIVITY page is tracking user's activity in the virtual space and studying the pattern of space usage in a building. User can move around in the virtual space and the activity will be tracked and stored into datasets. The OUTPUT button will allow users to view the activity data including room occupied, starting time, ending time, length of time. Accumulating and analyzing the activity data will provide insights for future design and energy management.
The tool now is very conceptual. Future development will include multi-user interaction, communication among users, real-time database updating. The tool can evolve into a platform of social network based on physical space, connecting people in a building or in a community together and promoting collaboration and sharing.
