Chimay J. Anumba is Professor of Architectural Engineering and Head of the Department of Architectural Engineering at The Pennsylvania State University, USA.

Xiangyu Wang is Professor of the Built Environment in the School of the Built Environment, Curtin University, Australia.

Construction researchers and industry practitioners have begun to explore the possibilities offered by mobile and pervasive computing in architecture, engineering and construction (AEC). It is expected that the construction industry will be keen to apply these technologies as they promise significant benefits in areas such as materials management, project management, distributed collaboration and information management, all leading to improvements in productivity.
This book offers a comprehensive reference volume to the use of mobile and pervasive computing in construction. Based on contributions from a mix of leading researchers and experts from academia and industry, it provides up-to-date insights into current research topics in this field as well as the latest technological advancements and practical examples. The chapters introduce the key theoretical concepts in mobile and pervasive computing and highlight the applications and solutions which are available to the construction industry. More specifically, the book focuses on the manner in which these technologies can be applied to improve practices in construction and related industries.
This book will be of particular interest to academics, researchers, and graduate students at universities and industrial practitioners seeking to apply mobile and pervasive computing systems to improve construction industry productivity.

Contributors ix
Preface xiii
Acknowledgments xvii
1 Mobile and Pervasive Computing in Construction: an Introduction 1
Chimay J. Anumba and Xiangyu Wang
1.1 Background 1
1.2 Fundamental Characteristics of Mobile Computing 2
1.3 Pervasive Computing 7
1.4 Summary 9
References 9
2 Mobile and Semantic Web-Based Delivery of Context-Aware Information and Services in Construction 11
Chimay J. Anumba, Zeeshan Aziz and Darshan Ruikar
2.1 Introduction 11
2.2 Limitations of Current Processes and Technologies 12
2.3 Integrated Service Delivery Architecture 15
2.4 Prototype System Implementation 17
2.5 Development of the Project Repository 18
2.6 OntoWise 19
2.7 Deployment Case Studies 21
2.8 Summary and Conclusions 24
References 25
3 Communication Technology in Mobile and Pervasive Computing 26
Jerker Delsing
3.1 Introduction 26
3.2 Mobile and Pervasive Devices 26
3.3 Communication Basics 27
3.4 Communication Protocols 31
3.5 Service Protocols 33
3.6 Proprietary Buses and Protocols 34
3.7 Summary 35
References 35
4 A Framework for Designing Mobile Virtual Training Systems through Virtual Modeling Technology 37
Xiangyu Wang and Phillip S. Dunston
4.1 Introduction 37
4.2 Taxonomy for Defining Virtual Training Systems 39
4.3 Relating Virtual Technologies to Training Skills 47
4.4 Conclusions and Future Work 51
References 52
5 Mobile and Pervasive Construction Visualization Using Outdoor Augmented Reality 54
Amir H. Behzadan, Suyang Dong and Vineet R. Kamat
5.1 Introduction 54
5.2 Prior Related Work in Construction Visualization 56
5.3 Main Contributions 57
5.4 Technical Approach to Create AR Animations 58
5.5 ARVISCOPE Animation Authoring Language 60
5.6 Creating an AR Animation Trace File from a DES Model 63
5.7 ARVISCOPE Language Design Issues 66
5.8 Examples of Pervasive Outdoor AR Visualization 76
5.9 Summary and Conclusions 82
Acknowledgments 83
References 83
6 Ubiquitous User Localization for Pervasive Context-Aware Construction Applications 86
Hiam M. Khoury, Manu Akula and Vineet R. Kamat
6.1 Introduction 86
6.2 Current State of Knowledge 88
6.3 User Tracking in Construction Environments 92
6.4 Validation of Accuracy in 3D Spatial User Tracking 106
6.5 Integration of GPS and Inertial Navigation 116
6.6 Summary and Conclusions 124
Acknowledgments 124
References 125
7 Person-oriented Mobile Information System Enhancing Engineering Communication in Construction Processes 128
Danijel Rebolj and Ales Magdic
7.1 Introduction 128
7.2 Considering People in Processes 131
7.3 Dynamic Communication Environment (DyCE) 134
7.4 On-site Evaluation 139
7.5 Conclusions 144
7.6 Future Work 144
References 146
8 The iHelmet: An AR-enhanced Wearable Display for BIM Information 149
Kai-Chen Yeh, Meng-Han Tsai and Shih-Chung Kang
8.1 Introduction 149
8.2 Design and Implementation of the iHelmet 153
8.3 Module Implementations 157
8.4 Discussion 163
8.5 Summary 164
References 165
9 Mobile and Pervasive Computing: The Future for Design Collaboration 169
Mi Jeong Kim, Mary Lou Maher and Ning Gu
9.1 Introduction 169
9.2 Analytical Frameworks for Understanding Collaborative Technologies in Design 170
9.3 Characterizing Early Collaborative Design Technologies 172
9.4 Understanding Mobile and Pervasive Computing in Design Collaboration 177
9.5 Towards the Future 182
9.6 Conclusion 184
References 185
10 Computer Vision and Pattern Recognition Technologies for Construction 189
Ioannis Brilakis
10.1 Structural Element Recognition 189
10.2 Construction Equipment and Personnel Recognition 193
10.3 Damage and Defects Recognition 196
10.4 Videogrammetric Surveying 199
10.5 Summary 203
References 204
11 Structural Health Monitoring using Wireless Sensor Networks 210
Jiannong Cao and Xuefeng Liu
11.1 Introduction 210
11.2 How to Realize Long-Term Monitoring with WSNs using Battery-Powered Wireless Sensor Nodes 219
11.3 How to Implement Simple and Effective SHM Algorithms 224
11.4 How to Realize Fast and Reliable Delivery of a Large Amount of Data 228
11.5 How to Deploy Sensor Nodes in WSN-based SHM System 229
11.6 How to Develop Middleware Framework for WSN-based SHM 230
11.7 Conclusion 233
Acknowledgments 233
References 233
12 Cloud Computing Support for Construction Collaboration 237
Jack C.P. Cheng and Bimal Kumar
12.1 Introduction 237
12.2 What is Cloud Computing? 239
12.3 Cloud Computing as a Construction Collaboration Enabling Technology 243
12.4 Potential Benefits of Cloud Computing in the Construction Industry 244
12.5 Challenges of Cloud Computing Adoption in the Construction Industry 247
12.6 Proposed Collaboration Framework 250
12.7 Summary 252
References 252
13 Concluding Notes 255
Chimay J. Anumba and Xiangyu Wang
13.1 Introduction 255
13.2 Summary 255
13.3 Benefits of Mobile and Pervasive Computing to Construction Sector Organizations 256
13.4 Considerations in the Effective Deployment of Mobile and Pervasive Computing in Construction 257
13.5 Future Directions 257
References 259
Index 261