Exciting News
Posted on 17th July 2023 at 10:46
Start of something exciting....... This is going to be the 1st in a series of posts on a project we have been involved with since 2020
We are attending site in Knaresborough on Friday to assist with a LIDAR scan of a compact site with restricted access between existing buildings.
We are working with a local to us company called PQS Tech to scan the courtyard where we have engineered a two storey light gauge steel domestic residence to fit inside this relatively compact space. The site is accessed via 'ginnel' off the main High Street in a very busy market town in North Yorkshire, in the UK.
To the left is a screen grab of the entrance to the site, from the Ginnel off the high street. Tight isn't it!
Once the scan is completed and modlled by PQS Tech Ltd and the #LGS structure modelled inside the scan model by Vega Construction Group Ltd we will be able to show the client using Trimble Connect AR - Augmented Reality, as opposed to ‘Virtual’ Reality.
The difference being that the computer generated images are projected over what you see with your eyes….. Sounds really weird and sci fi like, but is actually deceptively simple to use! The user either uses an ipad (or Android based pad) to ‘look’ at the site and the software ‘overlays’ the model onto what the camera see’s and then displays on the screen. It moves with you / the pad so you can zoom, pan, and walk around without tripping over things!
Alternatively, and this is where the equipment can get expensive, is users use ‘Holo lens’ goggles / over glasses. While this particular kit might feel relatively expensive it is robust, readily available and relatively affordable today and is , for me, like waking in a sci film like the minority report!
The benefits are NOT just limited to the construction industry – though they start with intelligent but not construction experienced clients such as yourself – but the follow on industries such as maintenance and repair. When the wiring needs changing or you want to change the heating system it will be brilliant to know exactly where the services, pipes, wires, etc. are and the structure. Using this technology the technicians at that stage can ‘see’ where things are ‘through the walls’ quite literally! No guessing / hoping you don’t hit a pipe or wire or chasing out massive area’s of wall trying to find terminations, etc.
Yes, the original installer can still ‘do it wrong’, but the best bit of this technology – the Holo Lens – is, though this might feel a little ‘Big Brother’ to some, is that the technology not only shows the technician what to do but also records what they did! This is great for Warranty Providers, insurers and Building Control as they all have access to a permanent record of what was done all the time by who, checks they were qualified and trained to do what they did and proves was done correctly. From an employers view point it also shows the user / technician the best way of doing so that all staff are as efficient as each other.
I last touched on the subject of Augmented Reality and Joined up Design on another of our blogs that you might find interesting
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