Automated geometry quality assessment of precast concrete elements using 3D laser scan data

Abstract

Precast concrete elements are popularly adopted in buildings and civil infrastructures because they provide well-controlled quality, reduced construction time, and less environmental impact. To ensure the performance of complete precast concrete structures, individual precast concrete elements must be cast according to the as-designed blueprints. Any inconsistency between the as-built and as-designed dimensions can result in assembly difficulty or structure failure, causing delay and additional cost. Therefore, it is essential to conduct quality assessment for precast concrete elements before they are shipped to the construction sites. Currently, the quality assessment of precast concrete elements is still relying on manual inspection, which is time-consuming and labor-intensive. Besides, due to tedious work, manual inspection is also error-prone and unreliable. Thus, automated, efficient, and accurate approaches for quality assessment of precast concrete elements are desired. Nowadays, 3D laser scanning has been widely applied to the quality assessment of buildings and civil infrastructures. However, existing research of laser scanning based quality assessment is mainly focused on simple-geometry elements. There has been limited research on the quality assessment of precast concrete elements with complex shapes. To tackle the limitations, this research aims to develop automated, efficient, and accurate techniques for the quality assessment of precast concrete elements using 3D laser scan data. The quality assessment includes dimensional quality assessment, surface flatness and distortion assessment, and rebar position assessment. This research provides automated approaches for the quality assessment of precast concrete elements, which are able to greatly save the labor cost and time for quality assessment. In addition, the quality of precast concrete structures can be improved due to the faster and more economical quality assessment, thereby further promoting the adoption of precast concrete elements in the construction industry.