Oyediran, H (2025) Robot-integrated 4D building information modeling (4D BIM): Framework for planning safe autonomous construction operations in dynamic environments. PhD thesis, University of Nebraska - Lincoln, USA.
Abstract
In the construction industry, the use of autonomous robots is considered a solution to overcome the heavy reliance on human workers to perform repetitive, strenuous, and hazardous tasks. While these robots offer the advantage of autonomous operation, ensuring their safe and efficient integration within construction sites requires precise planning. Such planning must account for the varying project complexities such as scope, site layout, tasks, timelines, existence of human workers, and other spatiotemporal conditions of the construction site. Currently, there are no methods to safely plan autonomous robot operations considering these factors within the overarching construction planning process. Thus, autonomous robots operating independently cannot understand and adapt to the ever-changing conditions of the construction site. 4D BIM-related technologies represent arguably the most advanced method of planning for projects considering the spatiotemporal context of the construction site. They can provide a rough simulation and visualization of how a construction project is expected to progress over time. However, they lack the capabilities to plan and simulate the elemental motions of autonomous robots. This poses a major challenge to planning robot operations for construction tasks considering their spatial coordination with human workers and site conditions. To address this challenge, the goal of this research is to create a method to plan and execute autonomous robot operations considering the spatiotemporal of the construction site. To achieve this, a prototype 4D BIM-based robot task planner will be developed to plan autonomous robot operations with the framework of 4D BIM. Subsequently, a rule-based system for detecting potentially unsafe situations during the planning process will be developed and integrated into the planner. Then, a method for mitigating the detected potentially unsafe situations is developed to ensure the planner can be used safely and efficiently plan autonomous construction robot operations. The proposed task planner is then evaluated for planning construction tasks through comprehensive case studies. The research will demonstrate the importance of planning autonomous robot operations in the context of 4D BIM.
| Item Type: | Thesis (Doctoral) |
|---|---|
| Thesis advisor: | Kim, K |
| Uncontrolled Keywords: | building information modeling; case studies; construction operations; construction planning; construction site; coordination; integration; simulation; site layout; visualization |
| Index terms: | construction industry, construction planning, coordination, planner, construction operation, building information modelling, planning process, case study, visualization, project complexity, integration, construction project, prototype, construction site, site layout |
| Subjects: | site logistics, construction operations, organizational theory, production management, profession, data collection methods, modelling and simulation, work location, construction planning, design practice, management, project controls, organizational analysis, information systems, industry analysis |
| Topics: | Roles and Professions, Research Practice, Organizational Design, Site Management, Time Control, Design Practice, Digital Applications, Project Management, Engineering Principles |
| Descriptive scope: | 4 PCTE |
N.B. Descriptive scope is a count of how many of the five facets of empirical research are indicated by the words used in title, abstract and keywords. It is not intended as a judgement on the research; merely a count of the kind of word we would expect to indicate Phenomenon, Concepts, Theoretical framing, Empirical techniques, Analytical techniques. If all five are present, then a code of “5 PCTEA” will indicate this. If you feel the coding for this record is questionable, we welcome discussion around the terms we matched or the way we categorized them. The facet you would expect may not be coded, or a facet may be coded inappropriately. This can also bear on a larger question, of which facets should be treated as defining in construction management research. Please get in touch, and we will look at it. More details here