Course Reflection - Samuel Boyce

I think this course achieved what it set out to do, which is commendable as with the tight schedule that Drexel has it does not take much to throw a course off and cause topics to be dropped. I feel confident now that I would be able to partake in a discussion about Intelligent Buildings (IB), and even bring some of the technologies into the conversation at work. Although it was a broad course, the assignments, blog posts and final paper have helped me drill down into particular areas that I wanted. I think the course is set up well to achieve this.

Assignments

These two assignments were well utilised in order to demonstrate the power of the programs used, as well as how they interplay with IB. The Revit exercise actually inspired me to take a run at modelling my senior design project, and although I did not use it for the final project in this class, it has come out quite well. By demonstrating the principles of Revit, a good basis of knowledge was formed, where I can now watch YouTube videos of Revit tutorials and make use of them.

In terms of the database assignment, although I had created one before using Access, I was not aware of their wide ranging uses. Although some of the definitions and terminology held me up, I was able to create the database with ease once I had leaned the basic components.

Lectures

The lectures were all very useful, and I think the usage of class time to  collaborate amongst group members was well placed. The outside lecturers were great and even better was the one by someone who does not have the same pro-view of Intelligent Buildings. I was not too familiar with BIM before this course, and therefore by having industry professionals come in to discuss their usage of it was a great opportunity to see the benefits. The other lectures given were well organised, and I think the organisation of them was well set.

I have definitely learned a lot on this class, and I feel it will serve me well in the upcoming years as this technology becomes more prevalent. Although I will be working for a geotechnical contractor, I still believe there will be ample chances for the involvement of technology described in this class, especially after researching my final paper topic, wearable technology.


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Group A - B5 - Samuel Boyce

Relational Database Theory

When databases first began, they were flat. This meant that they were not stored in a table, such as that which we are used to when using Excel. The flat file, was called a tab delimited file. Information was entered into these in a way which you will be used to if you have used Matlab. In Matlab, you must enter tables/matrices in a single line, with a ";" separating the entries. The linear nature of the data meant that searches had to be performed by progressing through the whole document, and there was no way to identify records by their particular fields.

This is where relational databases come into play. This breakthrough meant that tables could be created that were accessible to those who were not specialists in computing. All the data was gathered and stored in a way that it was readily accessible. The math behind the idea ensured this. The programming meant that the computer was able to figure out how and where the information was stored. The data was linked instead of being separate instances. By storing data in rows and columns, you allow for it to be accessed very quickly. This aids the computer in manipulating the data. 

By linking the data, you are able to nest thousands of tables within one larger one. Many retail companies use this. One of which you will all be familiar with is Amazon. The advantages of this are clear. By nesting these tables, you are able to create a situation where requests for data can change often, such as when a customer requests certain items that are under $100 and over three stars. This is made possible by relational databases. 

Sources:

http://www-03.ibm.com/ibm/history/ibm100/us/en/icons/reldb/

http://web.cecs.pdx.edu/~maier/TheoryBook/TRD.html

http://computer.howstuffworks.com/question599.htm

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B4 - Samuel Boyce - Wearables - Group A

The topic that I have chosen to work on for my final project is that of wearables, specifically in relation to their usage in buildings both during construction and its operation. I only heard about this topic last year during my final co-op at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. In their newest building, as well as to some degree in their older buildings, they were installing a system known as RTLS (Real Time Location System). In essence it is a system that is used to locate people within a building, but its applications go far beyond that. One of the main functionalities of the system was integrated with the Nurse Call system. If a call was made, the nurse on duty would be located and identified. As soon as she entered the patients room, the call would be automatically turned off, ensuring efficient usage of resources. The new building had even grander plans for its RTLS system, which included patient tracking.

Although wearables relationship with Intelligent Buildings (IB) may not be immediately clear, I hope the above example has pointed you in the right direction. The applications for this range from the mundane task of ensuring hourly employees are paid justly all the way to personalised rooms that change depending on who is entering the room. As part of this paper I hope to examine not only what is available  today, but also look towards the future of wearables being used in buildings.

One challenge I foresee with this topic is the lack of diversity in current uses. To my knowledge, Hospitals are one of the few places that have adopted this RTLS technology, and off the top of my head I am not aware of any large scale uses of wearables in conjunction with a building, but I am hoping to be surprised. I also see challenges with the implication of this topic, and therefore it is something that I would like to cover as well.

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B3 - Samuel Boyce - Group A

What are the possible future problems with Revit/BIM?

Personally, I do see a couple of issues arising with Revit/BIM occurring in the future. The largest one I can envision is that if it begins to be overutilised. It was stressed to me during one of my structural analysis courses that you should never become too reliant on a computer program, at least not without knowing the calculations that are going on in the background. Although I cannot think of anything that is too complex currently with BIM that couldn't be estimated off the top of someone's head, such as total cost, I can foresee, especially with some of the technologies that we have seen in the class, this being a problem in the future. A specific example would be load calculations. In my other class I utilised SAP a lot, but not without knowing its nuances and where errors and shortfalls can occur. This is something that will have to be monitored in the future.

Something else I believe may occur, that is of a similar vein to the issue of over-reliance, is as models complexity increases, more errors may occur in the model. The parametric modelling is great, but if one dimension isn't locked or checked, then it could propagate through the project. Now this isn't a serious concern, but it will cause an increase in time spent on these models, where it might be worth examining the payoff to see if there is a point where the extra work is not worth it.

Another point, which was raised in tonight's class was the issue with file sizing. Already the models can be complex enough that they need to be broken off into smaller projects by both discipline and area. This creates a larger need for bookkeeping than before. With the addition of more and more add-ons and external tools, this need will only increase. This may just be an issue that Revit sees however, as Bentley AECOsim is already capable of handling large projects as "one" file.

Another issue as laid out in the referenced article is the adoption of BIM by all parties involved. Currently it seems quite staggered, as either the architect, construction manager or owner chooses it for a project, and then everyone else has to play catch up. At my last co-op there was actually BIM coordinators in all three parties, but the newness of the program and processes showed in issues that arose.

Reference:
http://ecmweb.com/design/growing-pains

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B2: Group A - Samuel Boyce

This chapter aims to look at the difference between Building Information Model (BIM) and Computer Aid Drafting (CAD) software. BIM software evolved from CAD as certain industries, particularly the aerospace industry, saw improvements that could be made that they would stand to benefit from. The key development is the addition of parametric modelling. Not only does this allow 3D models to be created, it also allows the addition of non-spatial data.

Firstly I would like to discuss how the parametric modelling has influenced the ability to create 3D models. Modern BIM software comes with preloaded items that can be utilized, but users are also allowed to create their own units, and along with it the appropriate data. In terms of spatial data, typically the entered data is a definition of the shape, its own local coordinates, and its global coordinates. The local coordinates define the size of the shape, but the real importance lies in the global coordinates. These global coordinates locate the shape with regards to everything else in the drawing. It is these global coordinates where BIM really comes into its own. By utilizing these, local changes in turn have a global impact. A great example is shown in Chapter 2 where a change made to the skin of the façade results in the panels and skeleton shifting in relation to this. This ability is in stark contrast to 2D CAD programs, where there is connectivity between objects and changes on a global scale must be propagated manually.

Another part of BIM that this chapter covers, and one that I would like to draw special attention to, is the inclusion of non-spatial data. This data can range from simple financial figures to mechanical data. I would again like to emphasis that this data can be used on a global scale. For example the financial data can be tallied in order to get cost figures for the model. This ability was being utilized at my last co-op with the construction of their new building. The entire building was being modelled in BIM, and this included all of the systems. There were many reasons for doing this. Firstly there is the simple ability to just view where everything is in relation to other components. In their older buildings, ceiling tiles would have to be removed and walls surveyed in order to know exactly where systems were. Now it is simple as opening a computer file and the entire building can be manipulated and decisions made at a lesser cost. Another reason for doing this is to help maintenance staff. This plays off the first reason. A maintenance worker can enter this program and select a system, and the parametric data entered for that system would populate the screen. This includes Operations and Maintenance manuals. This means work can be planned out before setting foot in the building. Training can also be carried out using this system. Finally, as mentioned before, the global parametric data allows tallies of the financial data, water, electric, and gas capacity to be easily visualized.

Reference

Eastman, C. M. (2011). BIM Handbook : A Guide to Building Information Modeling for Owners, Managers, Designers, Engineers and Contractors. Hoboken, NJ: Wiley.


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B1 - Group A: Samuel Boyce

Artificial intelligence as a term was first coined in 1955, but as with a lot of computer technology the development speed has been exponential; therefore large gains have been made since entering this millennium. Many of you will have seen that IBM created a question answering machine that was able to defeat two humans at a game of Jeopardy!. Although it could be said that this is somewhat of a gimmicky development for the field of AI, that was just the start. Watson has already gone on to be used in the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center in order for lung cancer treatment decisions to be made. Now the real implications for this technology can be seen. This is why I chose the article “IBM’s Watson shown to enhance-computer co-creativity, support biologically inspired design” as the article to look at. The AI in our smartphones pales in comparison to what Watson can accomplish; but like all technology, it will only get cheaper and more accessible as time goes on. It is hard to draw any negatives from this. In this article, Watson is being trained in order to answer questions that relate to biomimetic, which biologically inspired design. The idea is hypotheticals could be run by Watson and an expert answer provided, saving both on time and money. This naturally leads into the discussion that Watson could be the best research assistant you will ever work with, as it is able to absorb knowledge well beyond a human capability.

Source: Ashok Goel, Brian Creeden, Mithun Kumble, Shanu Salunke, Abhinaya Shetty, Bryan Wiltgen. Using Watson for Enhancing Human-Computer Co-Creativity Procs. AAAI 2015 Fall Symposium on Cognitive Assistance. Nov. 2015. (open access)

My second tag to look at, computers, ties into Watson as computers for now will be our access route to the knowledge base that Watson holds. The main goal for computing is to get faster and smaller, as evidenced by looking at the development from the first computers to what we have for phones today. We are rapidly moving to a day and age where computers will be everywhere, the “Internet of Things”. This is discussed in the article “Why It Matters”. The company Freescale has managed to create a computer that is two millimeters square. Discussions are made in the article that the aim of this minicomputer is create a wireless enabled computer that can be swallowed, thus really ensuring the “Internet of Things”. There is even talks of harnessing energy from heat, radio waves or light in order to ensure complete independence of the microprocessors.

Source: http://www.technologyreview.com/news/514101/wanted-for-the-internet-of-things-ant-sized-computers/

Moving on to yet another related tag, software, we begin to see the ever increasing importance of having computers, and especially those that are sized correctly and powerful enough for the applications required of them. The article in question is “Five Lessons the Buildings Industry Can Learn From the Wearable Tracker Craze”. These are summarized as follows:

1.      Use wearables that can track even more than just a step count, in order to ensure effective running of the building.

2.      Create friendly competition between building occupants by allowing shared access to data in order for people to improve themselves

3.      Create positive targets for people to achieve and receive reward

4.      Use multiple data points in order to ensure efficiency of data applications and correct inferences

5.      Make use of the data in a constructive way

This is somewhat similar to technology that is being implemented at the new Ambulatory Care Center at the Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia. They are using wearables on all patients and staff that will be tracking their location in the hospital, in order to ensure their location and timely treatment. Their entire appointment can be tracked throughout and this data can be utilized in order to increase efficiency of patient care, as well as see where deficiencies exist in the patient care model.

Source: http://blog.rmi.org/blog_2015_07_07_five_lessons_building_industry_can_learn_from_wearable_tracker_craze

And now finally, a look towards the future. I had mentioned earlier that there is this concept that exists which is known as the Internet of Things. All the technologies previously discussed will be a part of this. As discussed in the article, “Future computing: The Internet of Things”, there is a goal of making life simpler too. This can even be down to the mundane task of checking where the gas level in your barbecue is at. Now this isn’t necessarily going to save the world, but just think that this could be also be applied to the oxygen tank levels of a hospital. We begin to see that there are many applications for this small computer based sensors, from security, to health care to automobiles. However, there is a dark side to all of this, which is that by connecting everything, you open yourself to attack; such as when a man was able to hack into a plane’s cockpit while sat in his seat, using the in-flight entertainment system. It should be hoped for that the rapid advancements in technology do not come without some forethought into what could happen if things go wrong.

Source: http://windowssecrets.com/newsletter/future-computing-the-internet-of-things/

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Week 1 videos

What changed between the first and second?

There seemed to be a large difference between the first and second in terms of the fluidity of the motion. The first structure relied on precise movements, whereas the second flowed in relation to both the ropes and the other drones. The second structure also showed greater promise for teamwork, with both drones working in close proximity of each other. These three improvements combine to create a more feasible building process, however it did lean heavily on human constructed elements.

What implications does this have for the future of our industry?

• Speed up time 
• React to environment
• More feasible structure
• Safer, possibility of creating tethers for harnesses
• Can work at great heights 
• Inspection work, not necessarily construction

Samuel Boyce

Hello, my name is Samuel Boyce. I am a Senior in Civil Engineering in the BS/MS program. My MS concentration is in Structural Engineering. I would like to get out of this course a base understanding of intelligent buildings (specifically BIM) that will help me down the line when these technologies become more common.

I would say my first definition is that an intelligent building is less of an "inanimate object" and more of an autonomous building that in becoming so will improve its durability and sustainability. I also gather from my last co-op that BIM is a key tool to be used when creating an intelligent building, as it is a powerful tool to be utilised with regard to building systems.

Student Names - To Create Tags

Here are the names of the students in AE-510 as of 12/30/2015.  This post is mostly here to create the tags for labeling posts by students.  A second one will be necessary because blogger limits the length of tags that can be added at one time.

Alexis Aikins

Mohammed Al Qallaf

Hamad Al-Hajri

Faisal Alghati

Cristian Almendariz

Hatim Amiji

Maria Ayon

Danielle Beynon

Eduardo Borja

Samuel Boyce

Nikita Chauhan

Mridul Chulet

Sean Coffey

Alexandria Crouthamel

Bryan Cummings

Cathlene Farnelli

Katherine Flint

Bridget Frasca

Laura Hill

Adrian Kuzniarowicz

Yuanjin Li

Mark Lodato

Rebecca Lynch

Alex Palma

James Redus

Gary Reiff

Danielle Schroeder

Yuyang Shi

Yasmina Shields

Karan Sagar Sinha

Jonathan Swartz

Janet Tran

Dianna Vogel

Kai Waechter

William Whitesell

Laura Worley

Haoying Ye

Matthew Zabiega

Derek Zaccheo