Web4D: Challenges and Practices for Construction Scheduling (2001)
article⁄Web4D: Challenges and Practices for Construction Scheduling (2001)
abstract⁄Research has demonstrated that fourdimensional computer aided design 4D CAD, in which a threedimensional 3D CAD model is animated through time, is useful in helping professionals understand the construction schedule. However, cumbersome processes to update a 4D CAD model, which involve changing geometry representations, changing schedules and bar charts, linking the geometry to the scheduling information, and generating animations, may discourage professionals from using 4D CAD in actual construction projects. A software prototype implementing 4D CAD in a Web environment overcomes limitations of current 4D CAD tools. This software permits editing of the construction schedule over the Internet and shows the revised construction sequence visually on a Web browser using 3D computer graphics. This software is composed of a database on a server, Active Server Pages ASP scripts, and a Java applet that was developed using Java 3D Application Programming Interface API and Java JDBC. The Java applet retrieves the 4D model at the appropriate level of completion over the Internet and allows users to navigate around the model on the Web browser. Web4D visualization software can help professionals to expedite the schedule updating process by involving designers and constructors in collaborative decision making.
