U.S. patent application number 16/594398 was filed with the patent office on 2021-04-08 for generating two-dimensional views with gridline information.
The applicant listed for this patent is Procore Technologies, Inc.. Invention is credited to Christopher Bindloss, David McCool, Christopher Myers.
Application Number | 20210104097 16/594398 |
Document ID | / |
Family ID | 1000005476203 |
Filed Date | 2021-04-08 |
View All Diagrams
United States Patent
Application |
20210104097 |
Kind Code |
A1 |
McCool; David ; et
al. |
April 8, 2021 |
Generating Two-Dimensional Views with Gridline Information
Abstract
An example computing system is configured to extract gridline
information from a two-dimensional drawing file and determine, for
the gridline information, first coordinate information that is
based on a first datum. The computing system converts the first
coordinate information into second coordinate information that is
based on a second datum, where the second coordinate information is
used by a three-dimensional drawing file. The computing system is
also configured to receive a request to generate a two-dimensional
view of the three-dimensional drawing file, where the
two-dimensional view includes an intersection of two meshes within
the three-dimensional drawing file. The computing device generates
the two-dimensional view of the three-dimensional drawing file and
adds, to the generated two-dimensional view, (i) at least one
gridline corresponding to the gridline information and (ii)
dimensioning information involving the at least one gridline and at
least one of the two meshes.
Inventors: |
McCool; David; (Carpinteria,
CA) ; Myers; Christopher; (Oakland, CA) ;
Bindloss; Christopher; (Santa Barbara, CA) |
|
Applicant: |
Name |
City |
State |
Country |
Type |
Procore Technologies, Inc. |
Carpinteria |
CA |
US |
|
|
Family ID: |
1000005476203 |
Appl. No.: |
16/594398 |
Filed: |
October 7, 2019 |
Current U.S.
Class: |
1/1 |
Current CPC
Class: |
G06F 3/04842 20130101;
G06T 11/203 20130101; G06T 2210/21 20130101; G06T 17/20 20130101;
G06T 19/00 20130101; G06T 3/0056 20130101; G06T 2219/012 20130101;
G06T 2200/24 20130101 |
International
Class: |
G06T 19/00 20060101
G06T019/00; G06T 17/20 20060101 G06T017/20; G06T 11/20 20060101
G06T011/20; G06T 3/00 20060101 G06T003/00 |
Claims
1. A computing system comprising: at least one processor; a
non-transitory computer-readable medium; and program instructions
stored on the non-transitory computer-readable medium that are
executable by the at least one processor and thereby cause the
computing system to be configured to: extract gridline information
from a two-dimensional drawing file; determine, for the gridline
information, first coordinate information that is based on a first
datum; convert the first coordinate information into second
coordinate information that is based on a second datum, wherein the
second coordinate information is used by a three-dimensional
drawing file; receive a request to generate a two-dimensional view
of the three-dimensional drawing file, wherein the two-dimensional
view includes an intersection of two meshes within the
three-dimensional drawing file; generate the two-dimensional view
of the three-dimensional drawing file; and add, to the generated
two-dimensional view, (i) at least one gridline corresponding to
the gridline information and (ii) dimensioning information
involving (a) the at least one gridline and (b) at least one of the
two meshes.
2. The computing system of claim 1, wherein the program
instructions that are executable by the at least one processor and
thereby cause the computing system to be configured to convert the
first coordinate information into second coordinate information
comprise program instructions that are executable by the at least
one processor and thereby cause the computing system to be
configured to map the first coordinate information to the second
coordinate information based on a transformation function.
3. The computing system of claim 2, further comprising program
instructions stored on the non-transitory computer-readable medium
that are executable by the at least one processor and thereby cause
the computing system to be configured to: determine first
coordinate information for at least two reference points in the
two-dimensional drawing file, wherein the at least two reference
points have corresponding reference points in the three-dimensional
drawing file; determine second coordinate information for the
corresponding reference points in the three-dimensional drawing
file; and determine the transformation function based on the first
coordinate information and the second coordinate information.
4. The computing system of claim 1, further comprising program
instructions stored on the non-transitory computer-readable medium
that are executable by the at least one processor and thereby cause
the computing system to be configured to: before receiving the
request to generate the two-dimensional view of the
three-dimensional drawing file, insert the gridline information
into the three-dimensional drawing file based on the second
coordinate information.
5. The computing system of claim 1, further comprising program
instructions stored on the non-transitory computer-readable medium
that are executable by the at least one processor and thereby cause
the computing system to be configured to: after generating the
two-dimensional view of the three-dimensional drawing file, receive
an input selecting, within the two-dimensional view, the
intersection between the two meshes, wherein adding, to the
generated two-dimensional view, (i) the at least one gridline
corresponding to the gridline information and (ii) the dimensioning
information involving (a) the at least one gridline and (b) at
least one of the two meshes is responsive to the input selecting
the intersection.
6. The computing system of claim 1, further comprising program
instructions stored on the non-transitory computer-readable medium
that are executable by the at least one processor and thereby cause
the computing system to be configured to: receive an input to zoom
in on a given portion of the two-dimensional view; and in response
to the input to zoom in on the given portion, (i) zoom in on the
given portion of the two-dimensional view and (ii) add additional
dimensioning information to the given portion of the
two-dimensional view, wherein the additional dimensioning
information corresponds to one or more meshes displayed in the
given portion of the two-dimensional view.
7. The computing system of claim 6, wherein the dimensioning
information involving (a) the at least one gridline and (b) at
least one of the two meshes is initial dimensioning information,
and wherein the computing system further comprises program
instructions stored on the non-transitory computer-readable medium
that are executable by the at least one processor and thereby cause
the computing system to be configured to: in response to the input
to zoom in on the given portion, (iii) remove at least a portion of
the initial dimensioning information from the given portion of the
two-dimensional view.
8. A non-transitory computer-readable medium, wherein the
non-transitory computer-readable medium is provisioned with program
instructions that are executable by at least one processor such
that a computing system is configured to: extract gridline
information from a two-dimensional drawing file; determine, for the
gridline information, first coordinate information that is based on
a first datum; convert the first coordinate information into second
coordinate information that is based on a second datum, wherein the
second coordinate information is used by a three-dimensional
drawing file; receive a request to generate a two-dimensional view
of the three-dimensional drawing file, wherein the two-dimensional
view includes an intersection of two meshes within the
three-dimensional drawing file; generate the two-dimensional view
of the three-dimensional drawing file; and add, to the generated
two-dimensional view, (i) at least one gridline corresponding to
the gridline information and (ii) dimensioning information
involving (a) the at least one gridline and (b) at least one of the
two meshes.
9. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein
the program instructions that are executable by the at least one
processor such that the computing system is configured to convert
the first coordinate information into second coordinate information
comprise program instructions that are executable by at least one
processor such that the computing system is configured to map the
first coordinate information to the second coordinate information
based on a transformation function.
10. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 9, wherein
the non-transitory computer-readable medium is also provisioned
with program instructions that are executable by the at least one
processor such that the computing system is configured to:
determine first coordinate information for at least two reference
points in the two-dimensional drawing file, wherein the at least
two reference points have corresponding reference points in the
three-dimensional drawing file; determine second coordinate
information for the corresponding reference points in the
three-dimensional drawing file; and determine the transformation
function based on the first coordinate information and the second
coordinate information.
11. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein
the non-transitory computer-readable medium is also provisioned
with program instructions that are executable by the at least one
processor such that the computing system is configured to: before
receiving the request to generate the two-dimensional view of the
three-dimensional drawing file, insert the gridline information
into the three-dimensional drawing file based on the second
coordinate information.
12. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein
the non-transitory computer-readable medium is also provisioned
with program instructions that are executable by the at least one
processor such that the computing system is configured to: after
generating the two-dimensional view of the three-dimensional
drawing file, receive an input selecting, within the
two-dimensional view, the intersection between the two meshes,
wherein the program instructions that are executable by at least
one processor such that the computing system is configured to add,
to the generated two-dimensional view, (i) the at least one
gridline corresponding to the gridline information and (ii) the
dimensioning information involving (a) the at least one gridline
and (b) at least one of the two meshes responsive to the input
selecting the intersection.
13. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 8, wherein
the non-transitory computer-readable medium is also provisioned
with program instructions that are executable by the at least one
processor such that the computing system is configured to: receive
an input to zoom in on a given portion of the two-dimensional view;
and in response to the input to zoom in on the given portion, (i)
zoom in on the given portion of the two-dimensional view and (ii)
add additional dimensioning information to the given portion of the
two-dimensional view, wherein the additional dimensioning
information corresponds to one or more meshes displayed in the
given portion of the two-dimensional view.
14. The non-transitory computer-readable medium of claim 13,
wherein the dimensioning information involving (a) the at least one
gridline and (b) at least one of the two meshes is initial
dimensioning information, and wherein the non-transitory
computer-readable medium is also provisioned with program
instructions that are executable by the at least one processor such
that the computing system is configured to: in response to the
input to zoom in on the given portion, (iii) remove at least a
portion of the initial dimensioning information from the given
portion of the two-dimensional view.
15. A method carried out by a computing system, the method
comprising: extracting, by the computing system, gridline
information from a two-dimensional drawing file; determining, by
the computing system, for the gridline information, first
coordinate information that is based on a first datum; converting,
by the computing system, the first coordinate information into
second coordinate information that is based on a second datum,
wherein the second coordinate information is used by a
three-dimensional drawing file; receiving, by the computing system,
a request to generate a two-dimensional view of the
three-dimensional drawing file, wherein the two-dimensional view
includes an intersection of two meshes within the three-dimensional
drawing file; generating, by the computing system, the
two-dimensional view of the three-dimensional drawing file; and
adding, by the computing system, to the generated two-dimensional
view, (i) at least one gridline corresponding to the gridline
information and (ii) dimensioning information involving (a) the at
least one gridline and (b) at least one of the two meshes.
16. The method of claim 15, wherein converting the first coordinate
information into second coordinate information comprises mapping
the first coordinate information to the second coordinate
information based on a transformation function.
17. The method of claim 16, further comprising: determining first
coordinate information for at least two reference points in the
two-dimensional drawing file, wherein the at least two reference
points have corresponding reference points in the three-dimensional
drawing file; determining second coordinate information for the at
least two corresponding reference points in the three-dimensional
drawing file; and determining the transformation function based on
the first coordinate information and the second coordinate
information.
18. The method of claim 15, further comprising: after generating
the two-dimensional view of the three-dimensional drawing file,
receiving an input selecting, within the two-dimensional view, the
intersection between the two meshes, wherein adding, to the
generated two-dimensional view, (i) the at least one gridline
corresponding to the gridline information and (ii) the dimensioning
information involving (a) the at least one gridline and (b) at
least one of the two meshes is responsive to the input selecting
the intersection.
19. The method of claim 15, further comprising: receiving an input
to zoom in on a given portion of the two-dimensional view; and in
response to the input to zoom in on the given portion, (i) zooming
in on the given portion of the two-dimensional view and (ii) adding
additional dimensioning information to the given portion of the
two-dimensional view, wherein the additional dimensioning
information corresponds to one or more meshes displayed in the
given portion of the two-dimensional view.
20. The method of claim 19, wherein the dimensioning information
involving (a) the at least one gridline and (b) at least one of the
two meshes is initial dimensioning information, the method further
comprising: in response to the input to zoom in on the given
portion, (iii) removing at least a portion of the initial
dimensioning information from the given portion of the
two-dimensional view.
Description
BACKGROUND
[0001] Construction projects are often complex endeavors involving
the coordination of many professionals across several discrete
phases. Typically, a construction project commences with a design
phase, where architects design the overall shape and layout of a
construction project, such as a building. Next, engineers engage in
a planning phase where they take the architects' designs and
produce engineering drawings and plans for the construction of the
project. At this stage, engineers may also design various portions
of the project's infrastructure, such as HVAC, plumbing,
electrical, etc., and produce plans reflecting these designs as
well. After, or perhaps in conjunction with, the planning phase,
contractors may engage in a logistics phase to review these plans
and begin to allocate various resources to the project, including
determining what materials to purchase, scheduling delivery, and
developing a plan for carrying out the actual construction of the
project. Finally, during the construction phase, construction
professionals begin to construct the project based on the finalized
plans.
OVERVIEW
[0002] As a general matter, one phase of a construction project
involves the creation, review, and sometimes revision, of plans of
the construction project. In most cases, these plans comprise
visual representations of the construction project that visually
communicate information about the construction project, such as how
to assemble or construct the project. Such visual representations
tend to take one of at least two different forms. One form may be a
two-dimensional technical drawing, such as an architectural drawing
or a construction blueprint, in which two-dimensional line segments
of the drawing represent certain physical elements of the
construction project like walls and ducts. In this respect, a
two-dimensional technical drawing could be embodied either in paper
form or in a computerized form, such as an image file (e.g., a PDF,
JPEG, etc.).
[0003] Two-dimensional technical drawings have advantages. For
instance, they are often set out in a universally recognized format
that most, if not all, construction professionals can read and
understand. Further, they are designed to be relatively compact,
with one drawing being arranged to fit on a single piece of paper
or in a computerized file format that requires minimal processing
power and computer storage to view (e.g., a PDF viewer, JPEG
viewer, etc.). Yet, two-dimensional drawings have disadvantages as
well. For instance, it often takes multiple drawings in order to
visually communicate an overview of an entire construction project.
This is because two-dimensional drawings tend not to efficiently
present information about the construction project from a third
(e.g., vertical) dimension. For example, a construction project may
have at least one two-dimensional technical drawing per floor of
the construction project. Thus, for a construction project
spanning, say, ten floors, the construction project will have at
least ten two-dimensional technical drawings, and likely more to
fully visually communicate the various aspects of the construction
project.
[0004] To advance over two-dimensional technical drawings,
computerized, three-dimensional technology was developed as another
form in which information about a construction project can be
visually communicated. In this respect, a three-dimensional model
of the construction project would be embodied in a computerized
form, such as in a building information model (BIM) file, with
three-dimensional meshes visually representing the physical
elements of the construction project (e.g., walls, ducts, etc.).
Specialized software is configured to access the BIM file and
render a three-dimensional view of the construction project from
one or more perspectives. This provides some advantages over
two-dimensional technical drawings, namely that a construction
professional could often get a more complete overview of the
construction project based on a single three-dimensional view and
thus may not have to shuffle through multiple two-dimensional
drawings in order to conceptualize what the construction project
looks like. In addition, the specialized software allows a
construction professional to navigate throughout the
three-dimensional view of the BIM file and focus on elements of
interest in the construction project, such as a particular wall or
duct.
[0005] However, existing technology for presenting visual
representations of construction projects has several limitations.
For example, one such limitation is that existing software tools
for rendering three-dimensional views of construction projects do
not provide all the information about a construction project that
may be available on certain two-dimensional technical drawings. For
instance, dimensioning information for certain physical elements of
a construction project may not be presented on a three-dimensional
view of a construction project as doing so may clutter or obscure
the three-dimensional presentation. Such information is more aptly
displayed on an appropriate two-dimensional drawing.
[0006] In many cases, gridlines for a construction project are
established by an architect or engineer during the design process.
The gridlines may be established at regular intervals (e.g., every
20 feet) and are usually based on a datum, or set of coordinates,
referred to as "universal coordinates." Universal coordinates are
generally independent of the construction project and derive from
one or more universal location sources such as a particular
latitude/longitude, or one or more GIS benchmarks, etc. The
gridlines and are then calculated using offsets from a universal
origin point that is based on the universal coordinates.
Accordingly, some construction files may reflect the location of
elements within the construct project (e.g., walls, ducts, etc.)
with dimensional references to the gridlines by overlaying the
gridlines on various two-dimensional views of the construction
project.
[0007] However, the software tools that use BIM files to generate
three-dimensional views of the construction project typically will
not reflect the location of these gridlines, nor do the BIM files
themselves. This is because BIM files are often based on a
construction-project specific datum, sometimes referred to as
"virtual coordinates," rather than the universal coordinates
discussed above. Virtual coordinates typically set a point within
the construction project as the origin (e.g., a building corner, or
a property boundary of the construction project, etc.) and then the
location of the various construction elements within the BIM file
are determined based on this origin point.
[0008] Yet another limitation with existing technology for
presenting visual representations of construction projects is that,
in some situations, neither a two-dimensional technical drawing nor
a three-dimensional view readily provides the particular
information about the construction project that is needed. For
instance, consider a scenario where construction plans call for a
plumbing layout that includes a pipe passing through a wall. A
construction professional that is installing the wall--before the
pipe is present--might wish to locate the intersection between the
wall and the eventual pipe so as to create a penetration through
the wall in the correct location. The horizontal and/or vertical
dimensioning information for doing so might not be included on any
two-dimensional technical drawings or in any two-dimensional views
of a BIM file.
[0009] In scenarios like these, the construction professional would
typically derive this information based on his or her own
calculations, accounting for, among other things, the dimensions of
the pipe, the designed pitch of the pipe, if any, and the distance
of the pipe/wall intersection from another point where the vertical
elevation of the pipe is known. Such manual calculations can be
time-consuming, can create the possibility for errors, both of
which are issues that are multiplied with each calculation that
must be performed.
[0010] To address these problems and others, disclosed herein is a
software application that enables a computing device to plot the
location of gridlines within two-dimensional views that are
generated based on a three-dimensional BIM file, and then provide
dynamic dimensioning information that is based on the gridlines. In
this respect, the disclosed software technology provides a flexible
solution that can readily provide needed information about a
construction project.
[0011] At a high level, the disclosed software application enables
a construction professional to generate a two-dimensional view of a
three-dimensional drawing file, such as a BIM file, that includes
gridline information from a related two-dimensional drawing file
and dimensioning information based thereon. This may facilitate the
efficient location of physical elements within a construction
projection.
[0012] The processes discussed herein may involve extracting
gridline information from a two-dimensional drawing file and
inserting the gridline information into a two-dimensional view that
is generated from a three-dimensional BIM file. For instance, the
software application may translate the gridline information from a
first coordinate system used in the two-dimensional drawing file to
a second coordinate system used by the three-dimensional BIM file.
The software application may also add dimensioning information to
the generated two-dimensional view of the BIM file that can use the
gridlines as a reference point. Further, the software application
may dynamically update the dimensioning information in the
two-dimensional view in response to a user adjusting the view by,
for example, zooming in or out. Each of these processes, which may
take various forms and may be carried out in various manners, are
described in further detail below.
[0013] Accordingly, in one aspect, disclosed herein is a method
that involves (1) extracting gridline information from a
two-dimensional drawing file; (2) determining, for the gridline
information, first coordinate information that is based on a first
datum; (3) converting the first coordinate information into second
coordinate information that is based on a second datum, wherein the
second coordinate information is used by a three-dimensional
drawing file; (4) receiving a request to generate a two-dimensional
view of the three-dimensional drawing file, wherein the
two-dimensional view includes an intersection of two meshes within
the three-dimensional drawing file; (5) generating the
two-dimensional view of the three-dimensional drawing file; and (6)
adding, to the generated two-dimensional view, (i) at least one
gridline corresponding to the gridline information and (ii)
dimensioning information involving the at least one gridline and at
least one of the two meshes
[0014] In another aspect, disclosed herein is a computing system
that includes a network interface, at least one processor, a
non-transitory computer-readable medium, and program instructions
stored on the non-transitory computer-readable medium that are
executable by the at least one processor to cause the computing
system to carry out the functions disclosed herein, including but
not limited to the functions of the foregoing method.
[0015] In yet another aspect, disclosed herein is a non-transitory
computer-readable storage medium provisioned with software that is
executable to cause a computing system to carry out the functions
disclosed herein, including but not limited to the functions of the
foregoing method.
[0016] One of ordinary skill in the art will appreciate these as
well as numerous other aspects in reading the following
disclosure.
BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS
[0017] Please note that this patent or application file contains at
least one drawing executed in color. Copies of this patent or
patent application publication with color drawing(s) will be
provided by the Office upon request and payment of the necessary
fee.
[0018] FIG. 1 depicts an example network configuration in which
example embodiments may be implemented.
[0019] FIG. 2 depicts an example computing platform that may be
configured to carry out one or more of the functions of the present
disclosure.
[0020] FIG. 3 depicts an example two-dimensional drawing file.
[0021] FIG. 4 depicts an example three-dimensional drawing
file.
[0022] FIG. 5 depicts an example flow chart that may be carried out
to facilitate generating two-dimensional views with gridline
information.
[0023] FIG. 6A depicts an example two-dimensional view of a
three-dimensional drawing file, in accordance with one embodiment
of the present disclosure.
[0024] FIG. 6B depicts another example two-dimensional view of the
three-dimensional drawing file shown in FIG. 6A.
[0025] FIG. 7A depicts another example two-dimensional view of a
three-dimensional drawing file, in accordance with one embodiment
of the present disclosure.
[0026] FIG. 7B depicts another example two-dimensional view of the
three-dimensional drawing file shown in FIG. 7A.
[0027] FIG. 8 depicts an example flow chart that may be carried out
to facilitate dynamically displaying dimensioning information.
[0028] FIG. 9A depicts an example two-dimensional view of a
three-dimensional drawing file, in accordance with one embodiment
of the present disclosure.
[0029] FIG. 9B depicts an example two-dimensional, zoomed-in view
of the three-dimensional drawing file shown in FIG. 9A.
DETAILED DESCRIPTION
[0030] The following disclosure makes reference to the accompanying
figures and several example embodiments. One of ordinary skill in
the art should understand that such references are for the purpose
of explanation only and are therefore not meant to be limiting.
Part or all of the disclosed systems, devices, and methods may be
rearranged, combined, added to, and/or removed in a variety of
manners, each of which is contemplated herein.
I. Example System Configuration
[0031] As described above, the present disclosure is generally
directed to an improved software application that enables a
computing system to plot the location of gridlines within
two-dimensional views that are generated based on a
three-dimensional BIM file, and then provide dynamic dimensioning
information that is based on the gridlines. This may facilitate the
layout and construction of a given project in a more accurate and
convenient manner.
[0032] As one possible implementation, this software technology may
include both front-end software running on client stations that are
accessible to individuals associated with construction projects
(e.g., contractors, project managers, architects, engineers,
designers, etc.) and back-end software running on a back-end
platform (sometimes referred to as a "cloud" platform) that
interacts with and/or drives the front-end software, and which may
be operated (either directly or indirectly) by the provider of the
front-end client software. As another possible implementation, this
software technology may include front-end client software that runs
on client stations without interaction with a back-end platform.
The software technology disclosed herein may take other forms as
well.
[0033] In general, such front-end client software may enable one or
more individuals responsible for a construction project to perform
various tasks related to the management and construction of the
project, which may take various forms. According to some
implementations, these tasks may include: rendering
three-dimensional views of the construction project, navigating
through the various three-dimensional views of the construction
project in order to observe the construction project from various
perspectives, and using the software to generate two-dimensional
drawings, which may be based on two-dimensional views of a
three-dimensional drawing file, as some non-limiting examples.
Further, such front-end client software may take various forms,
examples of which may include a native application (e.g., a mobile
application) and/or a web application running on a client station,
among other possibilities.
[0034] Turning now to the figures, FIG. 1 depicts an example
network configuration 100 in which example embodiments of the
present disclosure may be implemented. As shown in FIG. 1, network
configuration 100 includes a back-end platform 102 that may be
communicatively coupled to one or more client stations, depicted
here, for the sake of discussion, as three client stations 112.
[0035] In general, back-end platform 102 may comprise one or more
computing systems that have been provisioned with software for
carrying out one or more of the platform functions disclosed
herein, including but not limited to functions related to the
disclosed process of plotting the location of gridlines within
two-dimensional views that are generated based on a
three-dimensional BIM file, and then providing dynamic dimensioning
information based thereon. The one or more computing systems of
back-end platform 102 may take various forms and be arranged in
various manners.
[0036] For instance, as one possibility, back-end platform 102 may
comprise computing infrastructure of a public, private, and/or
hybrid cloud (e.g., computing and/or storage clusters) that has
been provisioned with software for carrying out one or more of the
platform functions disclosed herein. In this respect, the entity
that owns and operates back-end platform 102 may either supply its
own cloud infrastructure or may obtain the cloud infrastructure
from a third-party provider of "on demand" computing resources,
such include Amazon Web Services (AWS) or the like. As another
possibility, back-end platform 102 may comprise one or more
dedicated servers that have been provisioned with software for
carrying out one or more of the platform functions disclosed
herein. Other implementations of back-end platform 102 are possible
as well.
[0037] In turn, client stations 112 may each be any computing
device that is capable of running the front-end software disclosed
herein. In this respect, client stations 112 may each include
hardware components such as a processor, data storage, a user
interface, and a network interface, among others, as well as
software components that facilitate the client station's ability to
run the front-end software disclosed herein (e.g., operating system
software, web browser software, etc.). As representative examples,
client stations 112 may each take the form of a desktop computer, a
laptop, a netbook, a tablet, a smartphone, and/or a personal
digital assistant (PDA), among other possibilities.
[0038] As further depicted in FIG. 1, back-end platform 102 is
configured to interact with one or more client stations 112 over
respective communication paths 110. Each communication path 110
between back-end platform 102 and one of client stations 112 may
generally comprise one or more communication networks and/or
communications links, which may take any of various forms. For
instance, each respective communication path 110 with back-end
platform 102 may include any one or more of point-to-point links,
Personal Area Networks (PANs), Local-Area Networks (LANs),
Wide-Area Networks (WANs) such as the Internet or cellular
networks, cloud networks, and/or operational technology (OT)
networks, among other possibilities. Further, the communication
networks and/or links that make up each respective communication
path 110 with back-end platform 102 may be wireless, wired, or some
combination thereof, and may carry data according to any of various
different communication protocols. Although not shown, the
respective communication paths 110 with back-end platform 102 may
also include one or more intermediate systems. For example, it is
possible that back-end platform 102 may communicate with a given
client station 112 via one or more intermediary systems, such as a
host server (not shown). Many other configurations are also
possible.
[0039] The interaction between client stations 112 and back-end
platform 102 may take various forms. As one possibility, client
stations 112 may send certain user input related to a construction
project to back-end platform 102, which may in turn trigger
back-end platform 102 to take one or more actions based on the user
input. As another possibility, client stations 112 may send a
request to back-end platform 102 for certain project-related data
and/or a certain front-end software module, and client stations 112
may then receive project-related data (and perhaps related
instructions) from back-end platform 102 in response to such a
request. As yet another possibility, back-end platform 102 may be
configured to "push" certain types of project-related data to
client stations 112, such as rendered two-dimensional or
three-dimensional views, in which case client stations 112 may
receive project-related data (and perhaps related instructions)
from back-end platform 102 in this manner. As still another
possibility, back-end platform 102 may be configured to make
certain types of project-related data available via an API, a
service, or the like, in which case client stations 112 may receive
project-related data from back-end platform 102 by accessing such
an API or subscribing to such a service. The interaction between
client stations 112 and back-end platform 102 may take various
other forms as well.
[0040] In practice, client stations 112 may each be operated by
and/or otherwise associated with a different individual that is
associated with a construction project. For example, an individual
tasked with the responsibility for creating project-related data,
such as data files defining three-dimensional models of a
construction project, may access one of the client stations 112,
whereas an individual tasked with the responsibility for reviewing
and revising data files defining three-dimensional models of a
construction project may access another client station 112, whereas
an individual tasked with the responsibility for physically
constructing the elements shown in the drawings, such as an on-site
construction professional, may access yet another client station
112. Client stations 112 may be operated by and/or otherwise
associated with individuals having various other roles with respect
to a construction project as well. Further, while FIG. 1 shows an
arrangement in which three particular client stations are
communicatively coupled to back-end platform 102, it should be
understood that a given arrangement may include more or fewer
client stations.
[0041] Although not shown in FIG. 1, back-end platform 102 may also
be configured to receive project-related data from one or more
external data sources, such as an external database and/or another
back-end platform or platforms. Such data sources--and the
project-related data output by such data sources--may take various
forms.
[0042] It should be understood that network configuration 100 is
one example of a network configuration in which embodiments
described herein may be implemented. Numerous other arrangements
are possible and contemplated herein. For instance, other network
configurations may include additional components not pictured
and/or more or less of the pictured components.
II. Example Computing Device
[0043] FIG. 2 is a simplified block diagram illustrating some
structural components that may be included in an example computing
device 200, which could serve as, for instance, the back-end
platform 102 and/or one or more of client stations 112 in FIG. 1.
In line with the discussion above, computing device 200 may
generally include at least a processor 202, data storage 204, and a
communication interface 206, all of which may be communicatively
linked by a communication link 208 that may take the form of a
system bus or some other connection mechanism.
[0044] Processor 202 may comprise one or more processor components,
such as general-purpose processors (e.g., a single- or multi-core
microprocessor), special-purpose processors (e.g., an
application-specific integrated circuit or digital-signal
processor), programmable logic devices (e.g., a field programmable
gate array), controllers (e.g., microcontrollers), and/or any other
processor components now known or later developed. In line with the
discussion above, it should also be understood that processor 202
could comprise processing components that are distributed across a
plurality of physical computing devices connected via a network,
such as a computing cluster of a public, private, or hybrid
cloud.
[0045] In turn, data storage 204 may comprise one or more
non-transitory computer-readable storage mediums, examples of which
may include volatile storage mediums such as random-access memory,
registers, cache, etc. and non-volatile storage mediums such as
read-only memory, a hard-disk drive, a solid-state drive, flash
memory, an optical-storage device, etc. In line with the discussion
above, it should also be understood that data storage 204 may
comprise computer-readable storage mediums that are distributed
across a plurality of physical computing devices connected via a
network, such as a storage cluster of a public, private, or hybrid
cloud.
[0046] As shown in FIG. 2, data storage 204 may be provisioned with
software components that enable the platform 200 to carry out the
platform-side functions disclosed herein. These software components
may generally take the form of program instructions that are
executable by the processor 202 to carry out the disclosed
functions, which may be arranged together into software
applications, virtual machines, software development kits,
toolsets, or the like, all of which are referred to herein as a
software tool or software tools. Further, data storage 204 may be
arranged to store project-related data in one or more databases,
file systems, or the like. Data storage 204 may take other forms
and/or store data in other manners as well.
[0047] Communication interface 206 may be configured to facilitate
wireless and/or wired communication with other computing devices or
systems, such as one or more client stations 112 when computing
device 200 serves as back-end platform 102, or back-end platform
102 when computing device 200 serves as one of client stations 112.
Additionally, in an implementation where the computing device 200
comprises a plurality of physical computing devices connected via a
network, communication interface 206 may be configured to
facilitate wireless and/or wired communication between these
physical computing devices (e.g., between computing and storage
clusters in a cloud network). As such, communication interface 206
may take any suitable form for carrying out these functions,
examples of which may include an Ethernet interface, a serial bus
interface (e.g., Firewire, USB 3.0, etc.), a chipset and antenna
adapted to facilitate wireless communication, and/or any other
interface that provides for wireless and/or wired communication.
Communication interface 206 may also include multiple communication
interfaces of different types. Other configurations are possible as
well.
[0048] Although not shown, computing device 200 may additionally
include one or more interfaces that provide connectivity with
external user-interface equipment (sometimes referred to as
"peripherals"), such as a keyboard, a mouse or trackpad, a display
screen, a touch-sensitive interface, a stylus, a virtual-reality
headset, speakers, etc., which may allow for direct user
interaction with computing device 200.
[0049] It should be understood that computing device 200 is one
example of a computing device that may be used with the embodiments
described herein. Numerous other arrangements are possible and
contemplated herein. For instance, other computing devices may
include additional components not pictured and/or more or fewer of
the pictured components.
III. Example Two- and Three-Dimensional Drawings
[0050] As mentioned above, one aspect of managing a construction
project involves the creation, review, and sometimes revision, of
plans for the construction project. The plans assist construction
professionals in carrying out the construction project. For
example, some plans include written statements, such a punch list
or submittal log, which may communicate, for instance, what
materials are needed during construction. Other plans may include
visual representations of the construction project that visually
communicate to the construction professionals how to assemble or
construct the project.
[0051] Depending on the type of construction project, these visual
representations tend to take one of two different forms. As one
possibility, these visual representations may take the form of a
set of two-dimensional technical drawings, such as architectural
drawings, engineering plans, or construction blueprints, etc. From
these two-dimensional technical drawings, the construction
professionals can determine how to construct the project. As
another possibility, these visual representations may take the form
of a computerized, three-dimensional visual representation of the
construction project. Construction professionals can use a
corresponding software tool to review the three-dimensional visual
representation, often in conjunction with a review of
two-dimensional technical drawings, as an aid during the
construction process. Set forth below is a short overview of each
of these types of visual representations of construction
projects.
[0052] A. Two-Dimensional Technical Drawings
[0053] As mentioned, one way to visually represent information
about a construction project is through two-dimensional technical
drawings. Generally, a two-dimensional technical drawing serves to
visually communicate a limited amount of information about the
construction project in order to aid in the construction, or the
further design, of the project. To illustrate, FIG. 3 depicts one
example of a two-dimensional technical drawing 300 in the form of
an architectural floor plan of a building, which may visually
communicate how the construction project is laid out. An
architectural drawing, such as architectural drawing 300, may
comprise a scaled drawing depicting certain structural elements of
the construction project (e.g., floors, walls, ceilings, doorways,
and support elements), with perhaps visual indications of
additional relevant aspects of these structural elements, such as
measurements, dimensions, materials, etc.
[0054] FIG. 3 also shows a set of gridlines 301 overlaid on the
two-dimensional technical drawing 300. As noted above, the
gridlines 301 shown in the drawing 300 may be based on gridline
information that is established by the architect or engineer with
reference to a universal location source that is not specific to
the construction project. For example, the universal location
source may include a set of benchmarks and/or other geographic
control data that is maintained at a city or county-wide level, and
which can be used for any number of construction projects within
that locale. In this way, even unrelated construction projects
within the area may utilize a consistent datum. Further, such city
or county-wide location sources may be based on one or more
national or global location sources, such as a nationwide
horizontal datum (e.g., NAD83), a nationwide vertical datum (e.g.,
NAVD88), one or more latitude or longitude coordinates, or GPS
coordinates, among other examples.
[0055] As shown in FIG. 3, the gridlines 301 may form a uniform,
two-dimensional grid over the construction project, with the
individual gridlines repeating every 20 feet, for instance.
Accordingly, some two-dimensional drawing files may reflect the
location of elements within the construct project (e.g., walls,
ducts, etc.) with dimensional references to the nearest
gridline(s). Gridlines 301 can provide a useful reference for
construction professionals in the field when laying out and
constructing elements shown in a two-dimensional drawings, such as
the drawing 300.
[0056] Another example of a two-dimensional technical drawing is a
drawing that visually communicates how the heating, ventilation,
and air conditioning (HVAC) ductwork is routed throughout the
building. Like the architectural drawing shown in FIG. 3, this
schematic may visually communicate the HVAC ductwork routing
through the use of a scaled depiction of the ductwork along with
indications of other relevant aspects of the ductwork, such as
measurements, dimensions, materials, etc. Other two-dimensional
drawings, often but not necessarily corresponding to separate
design aspects of the construction project are also possible, such
as plumbing drawings, electrical drawings, fire protection
drawings, and so on. In each case, the drawings may display the
gridlines 301, which can be used to provide a common reference from
which a construction professional may lay out and construct the
different elements of the construction project.
[0057] Because technical drawings such as these are limited to two
dimensions, multiple technical drawings may be used when there is a
need to visually communicate aspects from a third (e.g., vertical)
dimension. For instance, a building in a construction project may
comprise multiple floors and the design of the project may call for
changes in the shape or structure of the building from floor to
floor, in addition to changes in the routing, location, and sizing
of utilities from floor to floor. Thus, there may be multiple
technical drawings for each floor of a building in the construction
project.
[0058] Similarly, the engineering design of the exterior site may
include technical drawings corresponding to underground utilities,
stormwater management and erosion control, site grading, roadway
and paving design, landscaping plans, and other aspects which may
be impractical to including in a single technical drawing. For
these reasons, a single construction project may involve the use of
tens, hundreds, or perhaps thousands of technical drawings. As
noted above, the gridlines 301 may be reflected on some or all of
these two-dimensional drawings.
[0059] Generally, two-dimensional technical drawings, like the
examples described above, are created at the outset of a
construction project by architects, designers, engineers, or some
combination thereof. Traditionally, these professionals would
design such two-dimensional technical drawings by hand. But today,
professionals typically design two-dimensional technical drawings
with the aid of computer-assisted design (CAD) software, such as
existing CAD software known and used by professionals in the
industry.
[0060] Two-dimensional technical drawings have advantages. For
instance, a single two-dimensional technical drawing can visually
communicate vast amounts of useful information. In some cases,
construction professionals can get an overview of an entire area of
a construction project by referring to a single technical drawing.
Moreover, once completed and put into final form, technical
drawings require a relatively small amount of computer storage and
processing power to store and view. Construction professionals can
often review finished technical drawings with off-the-shelf
software document viewers, such as portable document format (PDF)
software viewers.
[0061] Yet two dimensional technical drawings also have
disadvantages. Because these technical drawings are typically
created at the outset of the construction project--that is, well
before physical construction has actually begun--these drawings
generally will not reflect changes to the project that happen
during, say, the construction phase. When a change to the
construction project happens after the technical drawings are
completed, architects, designers, or engineers may be called upon
to revise the existing technical drawings or create new drawings
altogether to reflect the change.
[0062] Additionally, technical drawings that are generated at the
outset of the construction project may not always visually
communicate the specific information desired by the construction
professional who later accesses the technical drawings. For
instance, during construction, a construction professional may
determine that it would be useful to have a technical drawing that
shows the location, on an interior wall that has just been
installed, where a plumbing pipe designed to pass through the wall
(but net yet installed) will eventually intersect that wall.
However, a technical drawing showing these particular dimensions
may not exist. Thus, the construction professional may have to wait
for, or go without, his or her desired technical drawing. One
solution to this issue would be to call upon an engineer, designer,
or architect to generate the technical drawings with the requested
information. But this is often a costly and time-consuming process,
which may not be feasible depending on the project's budget as well
as the stage of construction.
[0063] B. Three-Dimensional Visual Representations
[0064] Another way to visually represent information about a
construction project is through a computerized, three-dimensional
model of the construction project. In order to facilitate the
creation and use of a computerized, three-dimensional model of the
construction project, a team of architects, designers, and/or
engineers engages in a process referred to as Building Information
Modeling.
[0065] As a general matter, Building Information Modeling refers to
the process of designing and maintaining a computerized
representation of physical and functional characteristics of a
construction project, such as a building. Specialized software
tools can then access this computerized representation and process
it to visually communicate how to construct the building via a
navigable, three-dimensional model of the building and its
infrastructure.
[0066] More specifically, but still by way of example, when
architects, designers, and/or engineers engage in Building
Information Modeling for a specific construction project, they
generally produce what is referred to as a Building Information
Model (BIM) file. In essence, a BIM file is a computerized
description of the individual physical elements that comprise the
construction project, such as the physical structure of the
building, including walls, floors, and ceilings, as well as the
building's infrastructure, including pipes, ducts, conduits, etc.
This computerized description can include a vast amount of data
describing the individual physical elements of the construction
project and the relationships between these individual physical
elements, including for instance, the relative size and shape of
each element, and an indication of where each element will reside
in relation to the other elements in the construction project.
[0067] BIM files can exist in one or more proprietary or
open-source computer-file formats and are accessible by a range of
specialized software tools. One type of specialized software tool
that can access BIM files is referred to as a "BIM viewer." A BIM
viewer is software that accesses the information contained within a
BIM file or a combination of BIM files for a particular
construction project and then, based on the file(s), is configured
to cause a computing device to render a three-dimensional view of
the computerized representation of the construction project. This
view is referred to herein as a "three-dimensional BIM view" or
simply a "three-dimensional view."
[0068] In order for BIM viewer software to be able to cause a
computing device to render a three-dimensional view of the
construction project, BIM files typically contain data that
describes the attributes of each individual physical element (e.g.,
the walls, floors, ceilings, pipes, ducts, etc.) of the
construction project. For instance, for an air duct designed to run
across the first-floor ceiling of a building, a BIM file for the
building may contain data describing how wide, how long, how high,
and where, in relation to the other individual physical elements of
the construction project, the duct is positioned.
[0069] There are many ways for BIM files to arrange and store data
that describes the attributes of the individual physical elements
of a construction project. In one specific example, BIM files may
contain data that represents each individual physical component in
the construction project, such as a pipe, as a mesh of geometric
triangles (e.g., a triangular irregular network, or TIN) such that
when the geometric triangles are visually stitched together by BIM
viewer software, the triangles form a mesh or surface, which
represents a scaled model of the physical component. In this
respect, the BIM file may contain data that represents each
triangle of a given mesh as set of coordinates in three-dimensional
space ("three-space"). For instance, for each triangle stored in
the BIM file, the BIM file may contain data describing the
coordinates of each vertex of the triangle (e.g., an x-coordinate,
a y-coordinate, and a z-coordinate for the first vertex of the
triangle; an x-coordinate, a y-coordinate, and a z-coordinate for
the second vertex of the triangle; and an x-coordinate, a
y-coordinate, and a z-coordinate for the third vertex of the
triangle). A given mesh may be comprised of thousands, tens of
thousands, or even hundreds of thousands of individual triangles,
where each triangle may have a respective set of three vertices and
corresponding sets of three-space coordinates for those vertices.
However, other ways for a BIM file to contain data that represents
each individual physical component in a construction project are
possible as well.
[0070] To illustrate one example of a three-dimensional view, FIG.
4 depicts an example snapshot 400 of a GUI that includes a
three-dimensional view of a construction project rendered from a
particular perspective. Snapshot 400 may be generated by, for
instance, a software tool running on a client station, such as one
of client stations 112 in FIG. 1, accessing a BIM file and then
rendering a three-dimensional view of the construction project
based on that BIM file and presenting it via a display interface of
the client station 112. Alternatively, a back-end platform, such as
back-end platform 102 in FIG. 1, may access a BIM file and may
generate a set of instructions for rendering a three-dimensional
view of the construction project based on the BIM file. Back-end
platform 102 may then send the instructions to one of client
stations 112, which in turn may present a three-dimensional view of
the construction project via a display interface of that client
station based on the instructions. Still other arrangements are
possible.
[0071] As depicted, snapshot 400 includes a three-dimensional view
of a construction project from a particular perspective. The
three-dimensional view depicted in FIG. 4 includes a number of
meshes that represent individual physical components of the
construction project, such as walls, pipes, floors, beams, etc. In
particular, depicted in FIG. 4 is, among other things, a mesh 402,
which represents a first pipe, a mesh 404, which represents a
second pipe, and a mesh 406, which represents a wall. Of course, in
other examples, other views and meshes are possible.
[0072] The client station presenting snapshot 400 may be configured
to adjust the perspective from which the three-dimensional view is
presented in response to, for instance, receiving user inputs at
the client station. The client station may do this in various ways.
As one possibility, the GUI may include a control 403 that may be
used to reposition the perspective either forward or backward
(along an x-axis) or side to side (along a y-axis) of the model.
Similarly, the client station may reposition the perspective either
up or down (along a z-axis) of the model in response to a user
manipulating control 405. As another example, the client station
may reposition the orientation of the perspective (i.e., the
"camera" angle) in response to a user manipulating control 407.
Other types of controls and inputs for manipulating the
three-dimensional view of the BIM file are also possible.
[0073] BIM files may also include data describing other attributes
of the individual physical elements of the construction project
that may or may not be related to the element's specific position
in three-space. By way of example, this may include data describing
what system or sub-system the component is associated with (e.g.,
structural, plumbing, HVAC, electrical, etc.), data describing what
material or materials the individual physical element is made of;
what manufacturer the element comes from; where the element
currently resides (e.g., data indicating that the element is on a
truck for delivery to the construction site, and/or once delivered,
data indicating where on the construction site the delivered
element resides); and/or various identification numbers assigned to
the element (e.g., a serial number, part number, model number,
tracking number, etc.), as well as others.
[0074] Together, these other attributes are generally referred to
as metadata. BIM viewer software may utilize this metadata in
various ways. For instance, some BIM viewer software may be
configured to present different views based on selected metadata
(e.g., displaying all meshes that represent HVAC components but
hiding all meshes that represent plumbing components; and/or
displaying meshes representing metal components in a certain color
and displaying meshes representing wood components in another
color, etc.). BIM viewers can display certain subsets of the
metadata based on user input. For example, a user may provide a
user input to the BIM viewer software though a click or tap on a
GUI portion displaying a given mesh, and in response, the BIM
viewer software may cause a GUI to display some or all of the
attributes of the physical element represented by the given mesh.
Other examples are possible as well.
[0075] As mentioned, BIM viewer software is generally deployed on
client stations, such as client stations 112 of FIG. 1 (which, as
described above, can generally take the form of a desktop computer,
a laptop, a tablet, or the like). As such, construction
professionals can utilize BIM viewer software during all phases of
the construction project and can access a BIM file for a particular
construction project in an office setting as well as on the
construction site. Accordingly, BIM viewer software assists
construction professionals with, among other things, the design and
construction of the project and/or to identify issues that may
arise during such construction.
[0076] BIM technology has advantages. For instance, as described,
BIM viewers can use BIM files in order to render three-dimensional
views (such as the view depicted in snapshot 400 in FIG. 4) of
various elements of the construction project. This can help
construction professionals identify potential construction issues
prior to encountering those issues during construction as well as
conceptualize what the finished building will look like. For
instance, the construction professional discussed above who wants
to visualize a pipe/wall intersection may utilize a BIM file to
generate the snapshot 400. The snapshot 400 may show the first pipe
that the construction professional is interested in, represented by
mesh 402, as well as the wall, represented by mesh 406.
[0077] However, existing BIM technology has certain limitations as
well. One limitation is that three-dimensional BIM views may be
cumbersome to navigate about and may thus not present information
as quickly or efficiently as a two-dimensional technical drawing.
Further, three-dimensional BIM views generally require more
computing resources to render and display than traditional
two-dimensional technical drawings, which, as mentioned, can
typically be presented in PDF form. Additionally, while
three-dimensional BIM views may display various meshes positioned
about the construction project, the three-dimensional BIM view may
not display precise measurements associated with each mesh in
relation to each other mesh, as doing so may tend to clutter and
perhaps obscure the display of the overall project.
[0078] Moreover, a three-dimensional BIM file might not utilize a
datum that references the same type of universal coordinates
discussed above and used by two-dimensional technical drawings.
Rather, the BIM file may utilize a virtual coordinate system that
is project specific, and that uses a point within the construction
project as the origin point for the coordinates of each mesh. For
example, a building corner may serve as the origin point for a
virtual coordinate system, from which the various construction
elements within the BIM file can be located.
[0079] However, because the BIM file may not include a reference to
the universal coordinate system used by the two-dimensional
drawings, the gridlines 301 might not be readily inserted into the
BIM file. Thus, the construction professional who generates the
three-dimensional view shown in snapshot 400 might not have a
convenient reference from which to measure the location of the
pipe/wall intersection that would be useful to the construction
professional in the field. Thus, it would be useful for the BIM
file to incorporate the gridlines information discussed above in
such a way that a BIM viewer operating on a client station can
display both the gridlines 301 as well as dimensioning information
that is based on the gridlines 301.
IV. Example Operations
[0080] Disclosed herein is new software technology that is designed
to help remedy some of the aforementioned limitations. For
instance, disclosed herein is a software tool that generates a
two-dimensional view of a given three-dimensional drawing file,
where the two-dimensional view incorporates gridlines and
dimensioning information that is based on a coordinate system other
than the coordinate system used by the three-dimensional drawing
file. In one aspect, the disclosed software tool may cause a
computing device to obtain and convert gridline information form a
two-dimensional drawing file and provide the gridline information
and associated dimensioning information on a generated
two-dimensional view of the three-dimensional drawing file. In
another aspect, the disclosed software tool may cause a computing
device to dynamically update dimensioning information based on a
repositioning of the two-dimensional view by a user.
[0081] Example operations that may be carried out by one or more
computing devices running the disclosed software tool are discussed
in further detail below. For purposes of illustration only, these
example operations are described as being carried out by a
computing device, such as computing device 200 of FIG. 2. As
described above, the computing device 200 may serve as one or more
of client stations 112 and/or back-end platform 102 shown in FIG.
1. In this respect, it should be understood that, depending on the
implementation, the operations discussed herein below may be
carried out entirely by a single computing device, such as one or
more of client stations 112 or by back-end platform 102, or may be
carried out by a combination of computing devices, with some
operations being carried out by back-end platform 102 (such as
computational processes and data-access operations) and other
operations being carried out by one or more of client stations 112
(such as display operations and operations that receive user
inputs). However, other arrangements are possible as well.
[0082] To help describe some of these operations, flow diagrams may
also be referenced to describe combinations of operations that may
be performed by a computing device. In some cases, a block in a
flow diagram may represent a module or portion of program code that
includes instructions that are executable by a processor to
implement specific logical functions or steps in a process. The
program code may be stored on any type of computer-readable medium,
such as non-transitory computer readable media (e.g., data storage
204 shown in FIG. 2). In other cases, a block in a flow diagram may
represent circuitry that is wired to perform specific logical
functions or steps in a process. Moreover, the blocks shown in the
flow diagrams may be rearranged into different orders, combined
into fewer blocks, separated into additional blocks, and/or
removed, based upon the particular embodiment. Flow diagrams may
also be modified to include additional blocks that represent other
functionality that is described expressly or implicitly elsewhere
herein.
[0083] A. Generating Two-Dimensional Views with Gridline
Information
[0084] As noted above, in one aspect, the disclosed software tool
may cause a computing device to carry out a process for obtaining
and converting gridline information form a two-dimensional drawing
file and providing the gridline information and associated
dimensioning information on a generated two-dimensional view of the
three-dimensional drawing file. This process may take various
forms.
[0085] With reference now to flow diagram 500 of FIG. 5, one
example of a process carried out in accordance with the disclosed
software tool for generating a two-dimensional view with gridline
information is illustrated and described. In practice, this process
may be commenced while the computing device is presenting a
three-dimensional view via a GUI, such as the three-dimensional
view shown in FIG. 4. In some implementations, for instance, the
computing device may receive an indication that a user has
requested creation of a two-dimensional view, such as through the
push of a button or the selection of a menu command. However, other
ways to commence the process are possible as well.
[0086] Once the process is commenced, the process may generally
involve the following operations: (i) at block 502, the computing
device may extract gridline information from a two-dimensional
drawing file, (ii) at block 504, the computing device determines,
for the gridline information, first coordinate information that is
based on a first datum, (iii) at block 506, the computing device
converts the first coordinate information into second coordinate
information based on a second datum used by a three-dimensional
drawing file, (iv) at block 508, the computing device receives a
request to generate a two-dimensional view of the three-dimensional
drawing file including an intersection of two meshes, (v) at block
510, the computing device generates the two-dimensional view, and
(vi) at block 512, the computing device adds at least one gridline
as well as dimensioning information involving the at least one
gridline and at least one of the two meshes. Each of these
operations will now be discussed in further detail.
[0087] At block 502, a computing device, such as the computing
device 200 shown in FIG. 2, may extract gridline information from a
two-dimensional drawing file. For example, the two-dimensional
drawing file may be the drawing 300 shown in FIG. 3, and the
gridline information may correspond to the gridlines 301. In some
implementations, the drawing 300 may exist as a CAD drawing and the
computing device 200 may extract the gridline information from the
CAD drawing. Other possibilities also exist.
[0088] At block 504, the computing device 200 may determine, for
the gridline information, first coordinate information that is
based on a first datum. For instance, as discussed above, the first
datum may include a horizontal datum such as latitude and
longitude, and the first coordinate information may include a set
of points expressed in degrees, minutes, and seconds, or in decimal
degrees, among other examples. Accordingly, this coordinate
information may define the horizontal gridlines 301 shown in FIG.
3.
[0089] Further, because the gridlines 301 shown in FIG. 3 may be
used for each of the two-dimensional drawings corresponding to the
construction project, e.g., two-dimensional drawings representing
different floors of the building at different vertical elevations,
the two-dimensional drawing 300 may also include vertical data
corresponding to the gridlines 301. That is, although the gridlines
301 are depicted as horizontal lines in the x- and y-direction of
the drawing 300, each of these gridlines 301 may include
corresponding gridline information that defines a plane that
extends vertically, in the z-direction, through the construction
project.
[0090] In some examples, the two-dimensional drawing 300 may
include gridline information defining a set of vertical gridlines
at regular intervals, (e.g., every 12 feet), even though the
vertical gridlines are not shown in the two-dimensional drawing
300. Thus, the computing device 200 may extract this vertical
gridline information in conjunction with the horizontal gridline
information. In some other implementations, the two-dimensional
drawing 300 may include vertical elevation data that is based on
the first datum, but the two-dimensional drawing 300 might not
define any vertical gridlines based on the first datum. In this
case, the computing device 200 may determine the first coordinate
information for the vertical gridlines that is based on the first
datum.
[0091] Depending on the format of the gridline information in the
two-dimensional drawing 300, the computing device 200 may perform
steps 502 and 504 substantially concurrently. For instance, the
gridline information may be expressed in the two-dimensional
drawing 300 using first coordinate information that is based on the
first datum, and thus the computing device 200 may extract the
gridline information as such. For instance, the two-dimensional
drawing 300 may include both horizontal and vertical gridline
information expressed by a set of GPS coordinates having x-, y-,
and z-components. In other examples, as noted above where the
two-dimensional drawing 300 does not include complete gridline
information defining vertical gridlines, the computing device 200
may determine the first coordinate information for the vertical
gridlines as noted above.
[0092] Extracting the gridline information as discussed above from
a two-dimensional drawing file for the construction project may
provide a quick and accurate way to obtain the gridline information
that covers the metes and bounds of the construction project.
However, because the gridline information in the two-dimensional
drawing is based on universal coordinates, the gridline information
might also be obtained by the computing device 200 from a database
or other mapping source. For example, a known reference point, such
as a roadway intersection or a GPS point within the construction
project, may be used as a basis to determine first coordinate
information in an area surrounding the construction project. The
gridline information may then be determined therefrom.
[0093] At block 506, the computing device 200 converts the first
coordinate information into second coordinate information that is
based on a second datum. As noted previously, a three-dimensional
drawing file corresponding to the construction project may be based
on a second datum that is project specific, rather than the
universal coordinates discussed above. For example, each mesh
representing a physical component in the three-dimensional view
depicted in FIG. 4 may have coordinates that are based on a project
specific origin point, such as a building corner or other reference
point. This origin point may be assigned coordinate values of (0,
0, 0) in the x-. y- and z-directions, for instance. Although this
may simplify the layout and location of physical elements within
the three-dimensional drawing, these coordinates might not be
readily compatible with the universal coordinates on which the
gridline information is based.
[0094] Thus, in order to make the gridline information compatible
with the three-dimensional drawing, the computing device 200 may
convert the first coordinate information into second coordinate
information in a number of ways. For instance, the computing device
200 may map the first coordinate information to the second
coordinate information based on a transformation function.
[0095] In some implementations, the transformation function may be
predetermined. For example, the during the design phase of the
construction project, the location of one or more building corners,
including the reference point used as the origin for the
three-dimensional drawing, may be defined based on universal
coordinates using the first coordinate system. This might be
desirable, for example, to ensure that the building is properly
located with respect to certain boundaries, such as property lines,
setbacks, and/or floodplain elevations, which may themselves be
derived from universal coordinates.
[0096] Based on this information, a function may be derived that
allows any point in three-space that is defined based on the
project-specific, second datum to be converted such that it is
defined instead based on universal first datum, and vice versa. As
one example, converting from the second datum to the first datum
may involve adding the values (41.883 degrees, -87.623 degrees, 610
feet) to each set of (x, y, z) coordinates in three-space.
Differences in latitude and longitude degrees can further be
converted into feet, for instance, using known methods.
[0097] Conversely, the computing device 200 may perform the reverse
operation when converting coordinate information from the first
datum to the second, such as the gridline information discussed
herein. For example, the computing device 200 may store in memory a
conversion table or similar data structure that contains, for the
gridline information, the corresponding first coordinate
information and then the converted, second coordinate information.
Other possibilities also exist.
[0098] In some implementations, the transformation function might
not be predetermined based on known references to the first datum.
In these scenarios, the first computing device 200 may derive the
transformation function based on information within the
two-dimensional and three-dimensional drawings. For instance, in
conjunction with determining the first coordinate information for
the gridline information, the computing device 200 may also
determine first coordinate information for at least two reference
points in the two-dimensional drawing file that have corresponding
reference points in the three-dimensional drawing file. The
reference points may be, for example, one or more building corners
as discussed above, or another similarly identifiable reference
point that is represented in both drawings. In some cases, the
computing device 200 may automatically select the reference points.
In other embodiments, the computing device 200 might prompt a user
to indicate one or more of the reference points in the
two-dimensional drawing and their corresponding reference points in
the three-dimensional drawing.
[0099] Once the first coordinate information for the reference
points in the two-dimensional drawing file is determined, the
computing device 200 determines second coordinate information for
the at least two corresponding reference points in the
three-dimensional drawing file. The computing device 200 may
determine the transformation function based on the first coordinate
information and the second coordinate information.
[0100] In some implementations, the reference points may have
associated elevation data that is already expressed in terms of the
first datum, as noted above, requiring only a transformation
function for the x- and y-coordinates between datums.
Alternatively, the reference points might not have associated
elevation information that is based on the first datum, but may
nonetheless have relative elevation information inherently
associated with them. For example, where the two reference points
are selected as two corners of a building, they might both
correspond to the same elevation representing the top of the
building's foundation. Thus, they can be assumed to be in the same
horizontal plane (i.e., they have the same z-coordinate value) for
purposes of deriving the transformation function. In some other
implementations, a third reference point may be used to establish
the transformation function in the vertical as well as horizontal
directions. Other examples also exist.
[0101] At block 508, the computing device 200 may receive a request
to generate a two-dimensional view of the three-dimensional drawing
file, where the two-dimensional view includes an intersection of
two meshes within the three-dimensional drawing file. For example,
returning to the example shown in FIG. 4 and discussed above, a
construction professional may wish to generate a two-dimensional
view that shows the intersection of the first pipe 402 and the
second pipe 404 with the wall 406.
[0102] The construction professional may initiate the request for
the specific two-dimensional view in a number of different ways.
For example, the construction professional may make a selection
indicating a command to generate a two-dimensional view, and then
make a series of additional selections specifying, for example, a
first mesh (e.g., the wall 406) along which the two-dimensional
view will be created, a second mesh (e.g., the first pipe 402) that
intersects the first mesh, a boundary or similar area surrounding
the intersection for which the construction professional would like
to view cross-sectional information, and so on. Additionally or
alternatively, the construction professional may manipulate the
perspective of the three-dimensional view shown in FIG. 4 using the
one or more of the controls 403, 405, or 407 and then request that
a two-dimensional view be generated based on the then-current
perspective shown in the snapshot 400. Other examples are also
possible.
[0103] At block 510, the computing device 200 generates the
two-dimensional view of the three-dimensional drawing file.
[0104] FIG. 6A depicts one example of a two-dimensional view 600 of
a three-dimensional drawing file, according to one possible
implementation. The two-dimensional view shown in FIG. 6A may be
generated, for instance, from a three-dimensional drawing file
similar to the one shown in FIG. 4. For example, the
two-dimensional view 600 may be a cross-sectional view taken
through a given mesh in the three-dimensional drawing file that
represents a wall 606. Accordingly, several other meshes that
intersect the wall 606 are shown as two-dimensional shapes, such as
a first pipe 602, a second pipe 604, a first column 608, a second
column 614, a first air duct 610, and a second air duct 612.
[0105] At block 512, the computing device 200 may add to the
generated two-dimensional view 600 at least one gridline
corresponding to the gridline information. For example, FIG. 6A
also depicts gridlines 601a, 601b, 601c, and 601d that correspond
to the gridline information that was converted, as discussed above,
so as to be compatible with the three-dimensional drawing file. The
computing device 200 may also, at block 512, add to the generated
two-dimensional view 600 dimensioning information involving the at
least one gridline and at least one of the two intersecting
meshes.
[0106] For example, the two-dimensional view 600 shown in FIG. 6A
includes a horizontal dimensioning reference bar 609 located across
the top of the view 600, and a vertical dimensioning reference bar
611 located along the left side of the view 600. Within the
reference bars are included dimensions showing the distance between
a given mesh and a gridline, as well as between individual meshes.
For example, dimensions 613a, 613b, 613c, and 613d each indicate a
horizontal distance between two of the meshes shown intersecting
the wall 606. Dimension 613e indicates a horizontal distance
between the pipe 604 and the gridline 601b. Similarly, dimensions
613f and 613g, shown in the reference bar 611, indicate the
vertical distances from the gridlines 601c and 601d to the next
nearest element in the two-dimensional view 600. As shown in FIG.
6A, both the horizontal reference bar 609 and the vertical
reference bar 611 include additional tick marks corresponding to
the locations of other elements shown in the two-dimensional view
600.
[0107] In some implementations, the computing device may
automatically determine the dimensioning information to add to the
two-dimensional view 600 based on various factors, such as the next
nearest element to a given gridline or element, or the amount of
space within the reference bar to legibly display the dimensioning
information. However, in some situations this automatic
dimensioning may not provide the construction professional with the
specific information that is needed. For example, the construction
professional may desire horizontal and vertical dimensioning
information to locate the intersection of the pipe 602 with the
wall 606, which is not immediately evident from the view 600.
[0108] Accordingly, after generating the two-dimensional view 600
of the three-dimensional drawing file, the computing device 200 may
receive an input selecting, within the two-dimensional view, the
intersection between the two meshes. For example, the construction
professional may select the pipe 602 within the two-dimensional
view 600.
[0109] FIG. 6B shows another example of the two-dimensional view
600 after being updated by the computing device 200 in response to
the construction professional's input selecting the pipe 602. The
view 600 now includes dimensions 615a, 615b, 615c, and 615d
indicating the respective distances from the pipe 602 to each of
the four gridlines. Further, all dimensioning information
referencing the other elements in the view 600 has been removed.
After reviewing the information shown in FIG. 6B, the construction
professional might select a different element, such as the air duct
610, and the dimensioning information may be updated accordingly,
removing the dimension related to the pipe 602 and instead showing
the distances from the air duct 610 to each of the gridlines. Other
examples are also possible.
[0110] FIG. 7A shows another example of a two-dimensional view 700
that the computing device 200 may generate from a three-dimensional
drawing file. Similar to FIG. 6A and 6B, the view 700 may be a
cross-sectional view taken through a wall 706. As above, several
meshes in the three-dimensional drawing may intersect the wall 706,
including a first pipe 702 and a second pipe 704, columns 708 and
714, and air ducts 710 and 712. A horizontal dimensioning reference
bar 709 is located across the top of the view 700 and a vertical
dimensioning reference bar 711 located along the left side of the
view 700. The reference bars contain dimensioning information 713a,
713b, 713c, 713d, 713f, and 713g, which indicate distance between
respective elements that are shown in the view 700. Accompanying
these dimensions are respective horizontal and vertical reference
lines, which may facilitate the visualization of the distances
between elements.
[0111] Unlike the example view 600 shown in FIG. 6A, the view 700
does not include gridline information, and therefore also does not
include dimensioning information involving the gridlines. For
example, it may be desirable for the computing device 200 to avoid
using the processing and storage resources required to add the
gridline information to a given two-dimensional view until the
gridline information is specifically requested by a user. In fact,
in some implementations, the computing device 200 might not
undertake any of the steps discussed above related to obtaining the
gridline information--including extracting the gridline information
from a two-dimensional drawing, determining the coordinate
information, and converting it to a compatible datum, etc.--until a
two-dimensional view has already been generated and the computing
device 200 receives an input indicating that the gridline
information should be added to the two-dimensional view.
[0112] FIG. 7B shows the two-dimensional view 700 after being
updated by the computing device 200 in response to the construction
professional's input selecting the pipe 702. The gridlines 701a,
701b, 701c, and 701d have been added. Further, and similar to FIG.
6B, dimensions 715a, 715b, 715c, and 715d have been added to the
view 700 indicating the respective distances from the pipe 702 to
each of the four gridlines, replacing all of the dimensioning
information related to the other elements shown in view 700.
Further, additional horizontal and vertical reference lines
accompany the newly added dimensioning information, similar to FIG.
7A. As discussed above, the construction professional may select a
different element shown in the view 700, which may cause the
computing device 200 to update the displayed dimensioning
information accordingly.
[0113] In the examples discussed above, the computing device 200
adds the gridline information and associated dimensioning
information to the two-dimensional view after the two-dimensional
view is generated, or at the time it is generated. However, in some
alternate examples, the gridline information might be inserted into
the three-dimensional view such that the gridlines are visible in
the snapshot 400 shown in FIG. 4. Thus, the gridlines may be
displayed in the three-dimensional view before the computing device
200 receives a request to generate a two-dimensional view
therefrom, as discussed above. Numerous other examples are also
possible.
[0114] B. Dynamic Display of Dimensioning Information
[0115] In another aspect, the disclosed software tool may cause a
computing device to carry out a process for dynamically updating
dimensioning information based on a repositioning of a
two-dimensional view by a user. As mentioned above, the
two-dimensional view generated by the computing device 200
according to the examples discussed herein might not have the space
to legibly display all of the dimensioning information that the
construction professional is interested in. Therefore, the
computing device 200 may dynamically update the two-dimensional
view and dimensioning information therein based on certain inputs
from the construction professional.
[0116] With reference now to flow diagram 800 of FIG. 8, one
example of a process carried out in accordance with the disclosed
software tool for dynamically displaying dimensioning information
is illustrated and described. In practice, this process may be
commenced in connection with the generation of a two-dimensional
view according to the process and examples discussed above.
However, other ways to commence the process are possible as
well.
[0117] Once the process is commenced, the process may generally
involve the following operations: (i) at block 802, the computing
device generates a two-dimensional view of a three-dimensional
drawing file, (ii) at block 804, the computing device may receive a
user input to zoom in on a given portion of the two-dimensional
view, and (iii) at block 806, the computing device, in response to
the user input, zooms in on the given portion of the
two-dimensional view and adds additional dimensioning information
corresponding to one or more meshes displayed in the given portion
of the two-dimensional view. Each of these operations will now be
discussed in further detail.
[0118] At block 802, the computing device 200 may generate a
two-dimensional view of a three-dimensional drawing file, as
discussed generally above. For instance, FIG. 9A shows an example
two-dimensional view 900 that may be generated according to the
examples discussed above. Similar to FIG. 6A, the view 900 may be a
cross-sectional view taken through a wall 906, showing the wall's
intersection with a first pipe 902 and a second pipe 904, among
other elements of the construction project. Gridlines 901a, 901b,
901c and 901d are also shown in the view 900. In some other
implementations, as discussed above, the computing device 200 might
not add the gridline information to the two-dimensional view 900
unless an input is received requesting this information.
[0119] Like in FIG. 6A, dimensions 913a, 913b, 913c, 913d, and 913e
are shown along a horizontal dimensioning reference bar 909 shown
along the top of the view 900. Dimensions 913f and 913g are shown
along the left side of the view 900 in a vertical dimensioning
reference bar 911. However, the reference bar 909 also includes
gaps 917a, 917b, and 917c between the tick marks corresponding to
the first pipe 902 and the second pipe 904. Similar gaps are shown
along the vertical reference bar 911, corresponding to the various
elements shown in the view 900. These gaps might otherwise display
dimensioning information, but for the lack of space to legibly
display the information. Yet, the construction professional may be
interested in these dimensions corresponding to the first pipe 902
and the second pipe 904.
[0120] Accordingly, the construction professional might provide an
input to zoom in on a given portion of the two-dimensional view 900
in order to obtain more detail. For example, FIG. 9A shows a box
918 indicating a given portion of the two-dimension that the
construction professional would like to focus on. The input to zoom
in on the given portion 918 may be provided by any number of known
methods, such as a pinch-to-zoom functionality enabled by a
touchscreen display, a zoom window defined by mouse or other input
device, among numerous other possibilities.
[0121] Thus, at block 804, the computing device 200 receives an
input to zoom in on the given portion 918 of the two-dimensional
view 900. At block 806, in response to the input, the computing
device 200 may update the two-dimensional view 900 to zoom in on
the given portion 918 and add additional dimensioning information
to the given portion 918 of the two-dimensional view 900.
[0122] For example, FIG. 9B shows the updated view 900, now
zoomed-in on the given portion 918. The computing device 200 had
added additional dimensions 919a, 919b, and 919c to the reference
bar 909, corresponding to the first pipe 902 and the second pipe
904, where formerly gaps were present. Similarly, additional
dimensions 919d and 919e have been added to the vertical reference
bar 911. Moreover, some of the initial dimensioning information
shown in FIG. 9A but not included in the given portion 918, such as
dimensions 913a and 913b, has been removed from the view 900.
Likewise, comparing the vertical reference bar 911 between FIGS. 9A
and 9B, it can be seen that some of the additional tick marks
corresponding to other elements in the three-dimensional drawing
have been removed from the view 900 as well, where those elements
no longer appear in the view 900.
[0123] In some implementations, as shown in FIG. 9B, dimensions
that extend beyond the edge of the view 900 after zooming in on the
given portion 918 may nonetheless continue to be displayed, even
though one of the end points for the dimensioning information is no
longer shown. For example, the dimension 913e shown in FIG. 9A is
still shown in FIG. 9B, even though the gridline 901b that marks
the end of the dimension is no longer shown in the view 900. This
may be desirable in some situations where a construction
professional needs to continue zoom in on the view 900 to obtain
the dimensioning information needed, while still maintaining a
dimensional reference to the next nearest reference point that was
shown in the initial two-dimensional view 900, shown in FIG.
9A.
[0124] Although the updated view 900 has been zoomed in on the
given portion 918 indicated by the construction professional, the
view 900 may still include some gaps where there is not enough
space to legibly display relevant dimensioning information, as
shown by the gaps 917d and 917e in the vertical reference bar 911.
If these dimensions are needed, the construction professional may
provide further input that causes the computing device 200 to
continue zooming in on the view 900, until additional dimensions
appear in place of the gaps 917d and 917e.
[0125] In this regard, the computing device 200 may facilitate the
continuous readjustment of the view 900 by the construction
professional, with corresponding updates to the view 900 and the
dimensioning information that are also continuous, or substantially
continuous. For example, the construction professional may utilize
a pinch-to-zoom functionality on a touchscreen display, which may
provide for progressive, substantially smooth updates to the zoom
level of the view 900, both in and out, depending on how the
construction professional moves his or her fingers. Accordingly,
the computing device 200 may dynamically update the dimensioning
information shown in the view 900 in a similarly progressive
fashion, based on the changes in zoom level. This may allow a
construction professional to zoom progressively on a given area
until the desired dimensions appear along the horizontal reference
bar 909, in place of a gap. Thus, the construction professional may
zoom in only as far as necessary, while maintaining as much
surrounding dimensioning information as possible.
[0126] Although the example above discusses a change in zoom level
to the two-dimensional view 900, other updates to the view 900 are
also possible. For example, the construction professional may
provide inputs to pan the two-dimensional view 900 left, right, up,
or down to view adjacent areas. The computing device 200 may update
the view 900 accordingly, with corresponding updates to the
dimensioning information, as discussed above. Further, the view 900
may be updated without repositioning its perspective. For example,
certain meshes within three- dimensional drawing, may be hidden or
shown based on the construction professional's preference. For
instance, the construction professional may hide, or turn off, all
elements related to HVAC sub-systems, which might cause the
computing device 200 to remove the air ducts from the views shown
in the examples above. In response, the computing device 200 might
also update the dimensioning information shown in the views by
removing any dimensions corresponding to the air ducts. Numerous
other examples are also possible.
V. Conclusion
[0127] Example embodiments of the disclosed innovations have been
described above. Those skilled in the art will understand, however,
that changes and modifications may be made to the embodiments
described without departing from the true scope and spirit of the
present invention, which will be defined by the claims.
[0128] Further, to the extent that examples described herein
involve operations performed or initiated by actors, such as
"users" or other entities, this is for purposes of example and
explanation only. Claims should not be construed as requiring
action by such actors unless explicitly recited in claim
language.
* * * * *