Towards the Use of 3D Thermal Models in Constructions (original) (raw)

Non-invasive 3D Thermal Modeling for Buildings

International Conference on Sustainable Design and Construction , 2011

In the area of infrared building inspection, 2D thermal imaging cameras are the latest and most promising technological innovation with the capability to detect commercial as well as residential buildings heat variations. However, 2D thermal images have the limited perception in visualizing the buildings. As an ongoing research, this paper aims at creating 3D energy performance model using 3D Light Detection and Ranging (LIDAR) system integrated with a thermal imaging camera. Methodologies of avoiding image distortion, data acquisition, and data fusion are also presented in this paper. 3D energy performance model will be an influential tool for representing and visualizing building conditions that is utilized by architects, builders, and contractors. The created model consists of point clouds, in which each point contains coordinates, temperature, and other information. A preliminary field experiment on a building is introduced in this paper and has shown promising results.

3D-TTA: A Software Tool for Analyzing 3D Temporal Thermal Models of Buildings

Remote Sensing, 2020

Many software packages are designed to process 3D geometric data, although very few are designed to deal with 3D thermal models of buildings over time. The software 3D Temporal Thermal Analysis (3D-TTA) has been created in order to visualize, explore and analyze these 3D thermal models. 3D-TTA is composed of three modules. In the first module, the temperature of any part of the building can be explored in a 3D visual framework. The user can also conduct separate analyses of structural elements, such as walls, ceilings and floors. The second module evaluates the thermal evolution of the building over time. A multi-temporal 3D thermal model, composed of a set of thermal models taken at different times, is handled here. The third module incorporates several assessment tools, such as the identification of representative thermal regions on structural elements and the comparison between real and simulated (i.e., obtained from energy simulation tools) thermal models. The potential scope of...

Automatic 3D Thermal Zones Creation for Building Energy Simulation of Existing Residential Buildings

Construction Research Congress (CRC), 2014

Existing buildings now represent the greatest opportunity to improve building energy performance. Building energy simulation is becoming increasingly important because the simulation results can assist the decision makers to quickly make the solution for improving building energy efficiency and reducing environmental impacts. However, most of the time there is no available as-is 3D building models for the existing buildings to conduct energy simulation. Nowadays, it is a common practice to obtain point clouds of existing buildings through using 3D laser scanning technologies for as-is building modeling. Current methods using point clouds need manual processes to prepare thermal zones based on point clouds data which is very time consuming and labor intensive. This paper introduces an automated thermal zone creation method to create both a building zone and room zones. A building thermal envelope was extracted from 3D point clouds. Then, 2D building floor plans were used as references to accurately determine the location and size of each thermal zone. A preliminary experiment has been conducted on a residential house to validate the proposed method, and the created building components and thermal zones were successfully imported into a building energy simulation program and ready for various energy analyses.

As-Is 3D Thermal Modeling for Existing Building Envelopes Using a Hybrid LIDAR System

ASCE Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering, 2013

This paper introduces a hybrid method for rapidly measuring thermal data and three-dimensional (3D) geometries of buildings, allowing " virtual " representations of the energy and environmental performance of existing buildings. The 3D thermal models can be further used for many applications by building occupants, owners, and outside consultants to make retrofit decisions. Existing buildings represent the greatest opportunity to improve building energy efficiency and reduce environmental impacts. This research aims to help decision makers improve their buildings by providing reliable, visual information about their buildings' energy performance using the developed hybrid light detection and ranging (LIDAR) system. The 3D thermal model described consists of point clouds of building geometry with thermal data on each point, including temperature values (°C) and thermal color generated on the basis of the temperature value. Window detection algorithms were developed in this study to create virtual thermal points on window glasses because a LIDAR system is unable to collect geometric data from transparent objects. The system's technical feasibility has been successfully demonstrated through intensive lab and field experiments on residential and small commercial buildings.

X3D Sensor-based Thermal Maps for Residential and Commercial Buildings

There are many building energy simulation systems on the market today; however, most of them rely on theoretical thermal models to make decisions on the building structural design and modifications. Sustainable methods of construction have made tremendous progress in the recent decades. The example of the German Energy-Plus-House technology uses a combination of (almost) zero-carbon passive heating technologies. A web-enabled X3D simulation system coupled with a cost-effective set of temperature/humidity sensors can provide valuable insights into building design, materials and construction that can lead to significant energy savings, an improved thermal comfort for residents and improved efficiency. We propose a cost effective hardware-software prototype system that can provide real data driven 3D thermal maps for residential buildings. The system can easily scale to provide 3D thermal maps for large commercial buildings.

3D Thermal Modeling for Existing Buildings using Hybrid LIDAR System

ASCE International Workshop on Computing in Civil Engineering, 2011

This paper introduces an ongoing research that develops a hybrid thermal LIDAR system for rapid thermal data measurement and 3D modeling of buildings, which will allow " virtual " representations for the energy and environmental performance of existing buildings. The modeled building is created for retrofit decision-support tools for the decision makers such as occupants, owners, and outside consultants of the buildings. Existing buildings represent the greatest opportunity to improve building energy efficiency and reduce environmental impacts. This research aims to stimulate the decision makers to improve their buildings by providing reliable and visualized information of their building's energy performance using the developed hybrid thermal LIDAR system. The created 3D model contains point clouds of building envelop and thermal data on each point including temperature (C) and thermal color generated from the infrared camera. The developed system has successfully demonstrated its technical feasibility through intensive lab tests and a field experiment on residential house modeling.

3D Thermal Mapping of Architectural Heritage - Up-To-Date Workflows for the Production of Three-Dimensional Thermographic Models for Built Heritage NDT

2020

The combination of thermographic and geometric recording has always been an issue for architectural heritage diagnostic investigations. Multidisciplinary projects often require integrating multi-sensor information including metric and temperature data to extract valid conclusions regarding the state-of-preservation of historical buildings. Towards this direction, recent technological advancements in thermographic cameras and three-dimensional (3D) documentation instrumentation and software have contributed significantly, assisting the rapid creation of detailed 3D thermal-textured results, which can be exploited for non-destructive diagnostical surveys. This paper aims to briefly review and evaluate the current workflows for thermographic architectural 3D modeling, which implement state-of-the-art sensing procedures and processing techniques, while also presenting some applications on case studies of significant heritage value to help discuss current problems and identify topics for...