Configurable model for real-time crane erection visualization

• We developed a configurable crane model for real-time construction visualization.
• The proposed model divided a crane into three configurable modules.
• The proposed model was defined using multibody structure that can be easily adapted to existing physics engine.
• We implemented a real cooperative crane erection scenario to test the proposed modeling method.

Detailed simulation and visualization of crane activities have been recently introduced to help engineers identify potential problems with critical erection tasks; however, the development of real-time erection visualizations for different types of cranes and lifting objects is time-consuming, and usually requires a certain amount of effort in modeling and setting up the environment. This research proposes a configurable model which is reusable, fast-prototyping, and extendable to support real-time visualization of the erection process. The developed model of the crane is divided into three modules which can be reconfigured for different erection tasks. Each module is defined using multiple rigid bodies and the joint constraints of multibody dynamics. The proposed modeling method can also be easily adapted to existing physics engines. To evaluate the feasibility of the proposed method, we observed the processes involved in a common erection activity and compared this with the visualization results obtained using proposed method. We also simulated a cooperative cranes scenario taken from an actual construction project to demonstrate its usability. We found that the proposed modeling method was easily able to visualize various erection activities with different cranes and configurations.