Robot-oriented design for post-construction assessment

• Main Author: Soh, Bryan Weida
• Other Authors: Tiong Lee Kong, Robert
• Format: Final Year Project
• Language: English
• Published: 2016
• Subjects: DRNTU::Engineering::Civil engineering::Construction management
• Online Access: http://hdl.handle.net/10356/68184
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

Post construction defect checking is currently done manually by human assessors. Two assessors are dispatched for each assessment. They use the sampling method along with simple measuring instruments like the spirit level and L-square to identify defects. As the construction industry strives to increase productivity with technology, this method of defect identification can be found to be lacking. This paper documents a robot that is designed to detect and document defects such as cracks, unevenness, and hollowness in buildings post construction. The robot will replace one of the two human assessors and assist the remaining one. Sensors that are suitable for defect identification will be chosen after extended testing. They will then be integrated into the robot system so that they can function as one unit. The defects identified will be documented and collated into one file that will be uploaded into the cloud. The data can also be used to update the Building Information Modeling (BIM) of the building. There are 3 reports for this project. This report will focus on the methodology and document the flow and advancement of the project. Another report (Low, 2016) will focus on the design and fabrication of the trolley that houses the sensors and industrial computer. The last report (Lee, 2016) will focus on the sensor testing and integration with BIM.