3D Simulator of Modular Building Assembly by Automated Cranes

This paper presents a new construction method based of modular buildings. In this new method, the buildings are to be assembled from their modules using automatic means such as robots or/and automated cranes. A Computer Integrated Construction (CIC) architecture has been proposed to achieve the modular construction covering all aspects from the design until the assembly on site. The system is modular: design, planning and simulation tools are integrated in a graphical user interface. The 3D building design is performed by special tools developed for this purpose. Then planning tools calculate automatically the modules assembly sequence and the path to place the modules by the crane. These trajectories are animated with the developed simulation tools to ensure secure paths and to correct the erroneous ones. Finally, an automatic gantry crane developed at the Laboratory is used to test the automatic modules placement.

This paper is dedicated to describe the simulation tools. Two crane simulators for a gantry and a tower crane, a specific programming language and a program editor have been developed. A program contains a list of instructions with the trajectories that can be automatically generated by a planning tool or manually by the operator using the program editor integrated in the simulator. The user can select different velocities to run a program and can execute a program instruction by instruction or in continuous mode. A toolbar shows the position of the grasping platform at each moment and the current instruction in execution. The user can also move manually the simulator by a graphical pendant that has buttons to move each joint individually. This program can be used in the laboratory gantry crane to place the modules to assemble a particular building setup.