bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
EVALUATION OF FOLIAR SPRAY WITH EXTRACT OF MARINE ALGAE AND YEAST AND MOWING DATE ON GROWTH, YIELD, AND ACTIVE COMPONENTS OF WATERCRESS.
Authors: Zainab J. Al-Mousawi  , Y. F. Salloom  , Z.M. Abdul-Qader
Published: February 2024

The experiment was implemented in the fields of the College of Agricultural Engineering Sciences / University of Baghdad during the agricultural season 2021-2022 as a factorial experiment (2 x 3 x 3) with within Randomized Complete Block Design using 3 replcates, The spraying with marine algae extract (0, 4, and 6ml.l-1) represented the first factor symbolized by K0, K1, and K2; the second factor involved spraying with the yeast extract (0, 2, and 4 mg.l-1) referred to as Y0, Y1, and Y2; while the third factor was mowing date as tow mows were applied with 15 days interval between them. The research was aimed to examine the effect of the three mentioned factors and their interaction on the vegetative growth and leaf biochemical traits of watercress plants. The research objectives Results showed a significant superiority of the interaction treatment Y2K2 in increasing number of leaves, leaf area, fresh weight, and dry weight in the second mow (62.80 leaves.plant-1, 131.77cm.plant-1, 265.30g, and 113.5g) as well as increasing the biochemical traits in leaves including the content of carbohydrates, protein, N, P, K, Glucosinolates, total Glucosinolates, total phenolic compounds, and total flavonoids in the second mow.
EFFECT OF GLYCEROL ON PERFORMANCE AND SOME BLOOD CHARACTERISTICS OF HOLSTEIN CALVES
Authors: W. A. Khalid  , N. N. Al-Anbari
Published: February 2024

This research was to study the effect of adding glycerol at different levels (T1 = control treatment without glycerol, T2 = 75 ml and T3 = 150 ml glycerol) in the body weight, body measurements and some blood characteristics of Holstein calves from 60 to 120 days of calves age. Body weight increased  (P≤0.05) in T3 calves at 80 and 100 days of age, also body weight increased in T2 and T3 calves at 120 days of age. T2 calves were significantly superior (P≤0.01) in average total gains from 60 to 120 days of age. Significantly increased (P≤0.05) at the ages of 100 and 120 days of: Wither height in T3 calves, Body length in T2 calves and Heart girth in T2 and T3 calves. Blood glucose concentration increased (P≤0.05) and blood NEFA concentration decreased (P≤0.01) in T2 calves at 80 days of age. At the age of 100 and 120 days, the concentration of blood glucose was increased (P≤0.01 and P≤0.05) and the concentration of NEFA and BHBA decreased (P≤0.01) in calves of the two treatments T2 and T3. We conclude that the addition of glycerol (75 and 150 ml/day) in the feeding of calves increases body weight, promotes growth and improves blood characteristics by increasing blood glucose and reducing NEFA and BHBA concentrations.
SYNERGISTIC EFFECT OF COPPER OXIDE NANOPARTICLES FOR ENHANCING ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY AGAINST K. PNEUMONIAE AND S. AUREUS
Authors: Rand M. A.
Published: February 2024

This study was aimed to assess the antimicrobial  activity of  copper oxide nanoparticles (CuO NPs) created by  method of thermal green way using basically a maize starch. Mucoid were appeared of Klebsiella pneumoniae bacterial colonies and the positive results with some biochemical tests. On the other hand, Staphylococcus aureus  appeared pigmented colonies surrounded by a yellow halo because of mannitol fermentation.  According to the 24 time incubation period, the CuO NPs antimicrobial activity showed of bacterial growth pathogenic K. pneumonia was 0.52 ± 0.04 cell/ml than control 1.60 ± 0.01 cell/ml .Aven as S. aureus appeared the number of bacterial growth as follow 0.79 ± 0.07 cell/ml compared with control 1.90 ± 0.01 cell/ml. The biologically effect for enhancing antimicrobial activity the percentage of resistant was decreasing from 66.6% to 22.2% when used copper oxide nanoparticles. Also, S. aureus sensitivity test showed resistant percentage was decreased from 55.5% to 33.3% at 24 hours.
ENHANCE OF FLAVOR AND SOME MICROBIAL PHYSICOCHEMICAL AND SENSORIAL PROPERTIES OF YOGURT BY DRIED CANTALOUPE PULP
Authors: Al-Zobaay W. J.M.  , Al-Zobaay A.H.H.
Published: February 2024

This study was aimed to enhance the flavor compounds, improve sensorial, microbial and physicochemical characteristics of the yogurt product using dried cantaloupe pulp. This study included the estimation of three flavor compounds in the yogurt product (acetaldehyde, acetone, and ethanol), after seven day of refrigeraed storage at 4°C, a wide difference in the levels of flavor compounds among the treatments have been shown, the values ​​of acetaldehyde were in the following treatments (A) control treatment, (H) cantaloupe 1 %, (K) cantaloupe3%, as follows 13.46, 14.27, 24.54 mg/L respectively. Acetone values were 8.38, 5.33, 3.47 mg/L respectively. Ethanol were 10.25, 7.12, 4.29 mg/L respectively. Lactobacillus delbrueckii subsp. Bulgaricus log vaible count after the first day of manufacture were 7.38, 8.53, 8.77 cfu ml-1 for A, H and K treatment respectively, gradually decreased through refrigerated storage to reach after 28 days 6.25, 7.41, 7.60 cfu ml-1 respectively. The log vaible count Streptococcus silvarius subsp. Thermophilus at first day of manufacture were 8.20, 9.66, 9.71 cfu ml-1 for A, H and k treatment  respectively, gradually decreased under refrigerated storage to 7.25, 8.50, 8.30 cfu ml-1 respectively after 28 days. Chemical composition did not change, and there were no significant differences among the treatments. Sensory evaluation values showed differences in treatment, the flavor scores for treatments after 28 days of refrigerated storage were (37, 42, 43), the texture were (25, 28, 29), the appearance were  (10,14, 14), color (9, 8, 8) for A, H and k treatment respectively. The treatment K was superior as compared to the other treatments with a score of acceptance (94), compared with the control treatment whose score of acceptance was(81) out to 100
EFFECT OF SPRAYING BA AND ZN AT VEGETATIVE AND ROOT SYSTEM GROWTH OF PLUM SAPLINGS
Authors: A. Y. Salih  , A. Q. Hamdan  , S. M. Tarkan
Published: February 2024

This study was aimed to investigate effects of Benzyl Adenine and Zinc sulfate on Plum trees growth, at the field of Depart. Horticultural and Landscape, College of Agricultural Engineering Sciences, University of Baghdad, during the spring season of 2021. Spraying three different concentrations (0, 50, and 100) mg.L-1 of Benzyl adenine and foliar applications of Zinc sulfate with three different concentrations (0, 25, and 50) mg.L-1 on vegetative and root system traits, as well as the chemical content of Plum seedlings (Prunus domestica L.) grafted on to Apricot rootstocks. The experiment conducted using factorial experiment with a Randomized Complete Block Design and, three replicates, Two seedlings per treatment, were used. The results revealed significant differences concerning the foliar application of Benzyl Adenine, particularly at the 100 mg/L concentration. which had a substantial impact on various vegetative traits. Additionally, it exhibited a superior effect on root characteristics.. Conversely, Zinc element demonstrated significant superiority at the concentration of 50 mg/L concerning the same vegetative and root traits,.
Overview of Finnish national patient data repository for research on medical risk assessment
Authors: Männikkö Viljami , Förger Klaus , Urhonen Henna , Tikkanen Jani , Antikainen Simo , Munukka Joona
Published: February 2024

The Kanta Patient Data Repository contains healthcare data from the
population of Finland for more than a decade. The repository is a
continuously expanding real world dataset produced by many information
systems and healthcare service providers. Kanta data has been accessible
for secondary uses such as scientific research since 2019. The data can
be requested from the Finnish authority Findata. However, before a
request has been accepted, it is difficult to assess if the accumulated
data allows answering a specific research question. Publicly available
descriptions of data structures in Kanta do not tell how much they are
used in practice. This publication enables future data use cases by
providing a view on the overall availability of types of structured
health data in the Kanta patient data repository based on a sample of 96
200 medical histories of over 18-year-old patients. We conclude that
Kanta PDR is a promising source of real world data for development and
evaluation of medical risk calculators within the Finnish population.
The wide coverage of the Finnish population and timeliness of the data
are its strengths as a source of research data also outside of Finnish
context. However, the limitations on data availability in variable level
need to be considered on a case-by-case basis. Main challenges in the
use of Kanta data are multiple code systems for laboratory results,
short durations of recorded data for specific data types, and missing or
very rarely used structured format e.g., in cases of tobacco and alcohol
use.
Novel hybrid low-resource Field-Programmable-Gate-Array time-to-digital-converter architecture
Authors: Real Diego , Calvo David , Manzaneda Mario , Díaz Antonio , Gozzini Rebecca , Zornoza Juan de Dios , Ricolfe-Viala Carlos , Lajara Rafael
Published: February 2024

Time measurements are challenging in electronics 1 given their various
applications. The main focus lies not in achieving greater precision, as
conventional architectures have already reached picosecond levels.
Instead, the challenge stems from the use of low resources and the
substantial expansion in the number of channels. This study presents a
novel architecture for the implementation of TDCs in applications where
resources are constrained. The introduced FPGA-based TDC offers a
resolution of 415.84 ps, a single-shot precision of 0.45 LSB (186 ps
r.m.s), while maintaining a minimal resource occupancy. Built upon a
multi-shift phase counter, the TDC is extended with a tap delay using
the input delay available in the FPGA hardware input, doubling the
resolution of the TDC. The resource utilization is minimized when
compared to low-resources state-of-the-art TDCs. The number of LUTs has
been reduced up to 102, and the number of registers to 213. Furthermore,
the presented TDC exhibits favorable DNL (0.2 LSB) and INL 17 (0.15
LSB). The TDC has been successfully implemented on an Artix7-2 FPGA from
Xilinx. This design provides a resource-effective solution for
applications requiring high precision and  low resource consumption.
Simple But Effective: Rethinking the Ability of Deep Learning in fNIRS to Exclude Abnormal Input
Authors: Cao Zhihao
Published: February 2024

Functional near-infrared spectroscopy (fNIRS) is a non-invasive
technique for monitoring brain activity. To better understand the brain,
researchers often use deep learning to address the classification
challenges of fNIRS data. Our study shows that while current networks in
fNIRS are highly accurate for predictions within their training
distribution, they falter at identifying and excluding abnormal data
which is out-ofdistribution, affecting their reliability. We propose
integrating metric learning and supervised methods into fNIRS research
to improve networks capability in identifying and excluding
out-of-distribution outliers. This method is simple yet effective. In
our experiments, it significantly enhances the performance of various
networks in fNIRS, particularly transformer-based one, which shows the
great improvement in reliability. We will make our experiment data
available on GitHub.
A Modular 512-Channel Neural Signal Acquisition ASIC for High Density 4096 Channel Electrophysiology
Authors: Papadopoulou Aikaterini , Hermiz John , Grace Carl , Denes Peter
Published: February 2024

The complexity of information processing in the brain requires
development of technologies that can provide spatial and temporal
resolution by means of dense electrode arrays paired with
high-channel-count signal acquisition electronics. In this work, we
present an ultra-low noise modular 512-channel neural recording circuit
that is scalable to up to 4096 simultaneously recording channels. The
neural readout application-specific integrated circuit (ASIC) uses a
dense 8.2 mm x 6.8 mm 2D-layout to enable high-channel-count, creating
an ultralight 350 mg flexible module. The module can be deployed on
headstages for small animals like rodents and songbirds, and can be
integrated with a variety of electrode arrays. The chip was fabricated
in a 0.18 µm 1.8-V CMOS technology and dissipates a total of 125 mW.
Each DC-coupled channel features a gain and bandwidth programmable
analog front-end, along with 14b analog-to-digital conversion at speeds
up to 30 kS/s. Additionally, each front-end includes programmable
electrode plating and electrode impedance measurement capability. We
present both standalone and in vivo measurements results, demonstrating
readout of spikes and field potentials that are modulated by a sensory
input.
Analisis Faktor-Faktor yang Mempengaruhi Konsumen dalam Pembelian Perhiasan Emas di Kota Metro
Authors: Sunarmi Sunarmi , Puspitasari Puspitasari
Published: February 2024

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui faktor-faktor yang mempengaruhi konsumen dalam pembelian  perhiasan emas di Kota Metro, Untuk mengetahui variabel yang dipertimbangkan konsumen dalam pembelian perhiasan emas di Kota Metro serta Untuk mengetahui Faktor-faktor yang paling dominan dari konsumen dalam pembelian produk perhiasan emas di Kota Metro. Penelitian ini menggunakan responden berjumlah 100 responden. Teknik pengambilan sampel menggunakan tehnik accidental sampling. Hasil analisis menunjukkan bahwa terdapat empat faktor yang mempengaruhi pembelian  perhiasan emas di kota Metro yaitu promosi, kualitas produk, koleksi, dan pergaulan sosial . Faktor promosi dan faktor kualitas produk merupakan faktor yang paling dominan dalam penelitian ini. Variabel promosi mewakili faktor promosi. Variabel kualitas produk mewakili faktor produk. Variabel koleksi mewakili faktor pribadi. Serta, variabel pergaulan sosial mewakili faktor sosial.
Analisis Indeks Pembangunan Manusia dan Leverage pada Ketersediaan dan Keteraksesan Informasi Keuangan Daerah
Authors: Munzir Munzir , Difinubun Yusron , Andriyan Yoga
Published: February 2024

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui dan menganalisis pengaruh kompetisi politik, indeks pembangunan manusia dan leverage terhadap ketersediaan dan keteraksesan informasi keuangan pemerintah daerah se-Sorong Raya. Populasi dan sampel penelitian ini adalah pegawai pada Kantor Sekretariat Daerah se-Sorong Raya. Jenis data penelitian ini menggunakan data primer berupa kuesioner. Analisis data menggunakan analisis regresi linear berganda menggunakan Statistical Packages for Social Science (SPSS). Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa kompetisi politik, indeks pembangunan mansuia dan leverage berpengaruh positif dan signifikan terhadap ketersediaan dan keteraksesan informasi keuangan pemerintah daerah se-Sorong Raya
Dampak Pandemi Covid-19 terhadap Laporan Keuangan dan Praktik Bisnis (Studi Pada UMKM di Kota Sorong)
Authors: Sismar Andi , Wulandary Alyn , Sanaba Hardiman F. , Hidayat Rahmat
Published: February 2024

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mendeskripsikan pengaruh pandemi Covid –19 terhadap Laporan Keuangan dan Praktik Bisnis studi pada UMKM Kota Sorong. Menggunakan pendekatan kualitatif fenomenologi dengan paradigma interpretatif. Informan dalam penelitian ini adalah 3 orang pemilik UMKM, 1 orang konsumen dan 1 orang lagi yang berasal dari pemerintahan. teknik pengumpulan data menggunakan wawancara, observasi dan dokumentasi. Analisis data yang digunakan dalam penelitian ini adalah analisis data interaktif yaitu reduksi data, penyajian data, kesimpulan dan verifikasi. Untuk mencapai hakikat murni harus diadakan penyaringan atau reduksi. Terdapat tiga macam metode reduksi yakni reduksi fenomenologis, reduksi eidetis dan reduksi trasendental. Adapun hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa dampak pandemi Covid-19 terhadap laporan keuangan dan praktik bisnis yaitu terhadap penurunan penjualan,  penurunan pendapatan, pengurangan karyawan, penurunan daya beli dan pertambahan pengeluaran
Implementasi Sistem Akuntansi dan Pengelolaan Keuangan Daerah pada Peningkatan Kinerja Pemerintah Daerah
Authors: Wulandary Alyn , Rini Tutri Hanggari Citra , Khaerani Annisa'
Published: February 2024

Penelitian ini bertujuan untuk mengetahui dan menganalisis pengaruh implementasi sistem akuntansi, pengelolaan keuangan daerah terhadap kinerja pemerintah daerah. Populasi dan sampel penelitian ini adalah pegawai yang bekerja pada Kantor Bappeda Kota Sorong. Jenis data penelitian ini menggunakan data primer berupa kuesioner. Analisis data menggunakan analisis regresi linear berganda menggunakan Statistical Packages for Social Science (SPSS). Hasil penelitian menunjukkan bahwa implementasi sistem akuntansi dan pengelolaan keuangan daerah berpengaruh positif dan signifikan dalam kinerja pemerintah daerah
Pengaruh Kinerja Keuangan terhadap Return Saham pada Perusahaan Farmasi di BEI Selama Masa Pandemi Covid-19
Authors: Hasan Meilia , Gasperz Jefry , Limba Franco Benony
Published: February 2024

This study aims to examine the effect of current ratio, debt to equity ratio and return on equity on stock returns in pharmaceutical companies listed on the indonesia stock exchange. The population in this study are pharmaceutical companies listed on the indonesia stock exchange during the covid-19 pandemic (2020-2021). The sample in this study is the financial    statements of pharmaceutical companies (2020-2021) which were taken using the purposive sampling method, so that 10 companies were obtained as samples. And using multiple linear regression analysis method, classical assumption test, t test (partial test), and coefficient of determination with the help of spss (statistical product and service solutions) v16 software. Based on the results of the study, it can be concluded that partially current ratio has a positive and significant effect on stock return, while the debt to equity ratio has no significant effect on return on equity, and return on equity has a positive and significant effect on stock return in listed basic and chemical industry sector companies On the indonesia stock exchange for the period (2020-2021).
Towards Construction Safety Management Maturity Model in the Industry 4.0 Era: A State-of-the-Art Review
Authors: Soltanmohammadlou Nazi , Rashidian Sara , Hon Carol K. H , Drogemuller Robin , Omrani Sara
Published: February 2024

While the advantages of leveraging advanced technologies and Industry 4.0 for effective safety management have been extensively recognized, the journey towards a more mature integration of Industry 4.0 technologies into safety management practices often lacks a well-defined and systematic guidance map. This research is a step towards providing organizations with a structured approach to navigate and achieve successful safety management transformation, enabling them to fully harness the potential of industry 4.0 technologies in the workplace. Two rounds of systematic literature reviews (SLRs) are conducted to narrow down the number of articles based on the PRISMA method, which are then subjected to further content analysis. The study highlights the integration of Industry 4.0 technologies within the domains of People, Process, and Policy and their significance in advancing safety maturity. This research uncovered key themes, providing valuable insights that will shape the conceptual maturity model structure of safety management based on the innovative nature of Industry 4.0 to enhance their safety culture to align with. The results provide a fertile ground for a Smart Safety Maturity Model, to integrate technologies to elevate safety drivers in construction safety management
Investigation of the Acceptance of Virtual Reality for Planning Decisions in Early Design Phases
Authors: Napps Daniel , König Markus
Published: February 2024

In recent years, with the increasing digitization of the construction industry, the potential benefits provided by the adoption of Virtual Reality (VR) have been shown especially in interdisciplinary networking among different stakeholders for which effective communication and information exchange methods are crucial. This is particularly significant during early design phases and associated decision-making processes where, despite its positive impact in terms of project’s time and cost savings, VR adoption still has to reach its full potential. For this reason, this paper investigates to what extent the acceptance and application of VR has developed and identifies possible integrations in the early planning phases. By conducting a multi-year study with representatives from the construction industry, including qualitative and quantitative survey methods, the current use of VR and the requirements for future applications are determined. The study reveals that VR's importance for design visualization has increased, identifies architects' current requirements and integration barriers. Additionally, these requirements are compared with existing VR possibilities and an approach for exchanging different variants in a building information model will be examined. Based on these findings, VR can be integrated in application-specific contexts and software can be adapted to architects' needs for optimizing the digitization process
Collaborative Site Layout Planning Using Multi-Touch Table and Immersive VR
Authors: Johansson Mikael , Roupé Mattias , Viklund Tallgren Mikael
Published: February 2024

Building Information Modeling (BIM) is changing the way architects and engineers produce and deliver design results, and object-oriented 3D models are now starting to replace traditional 2D drawings during the construction phase. This allows for a number of applications to increase efficiency, such as quantity take-off, cost-estimation, and planning, but it also supports better communication and increased understanding at the construction site by means of detailed 3D models together with various visualization techniques. However, even in projects with a fully BIM-based design, there is one remaining part that is still done primarily using 2D drawings and sketches – the construction site layout plan. In addition to not take advantage of the benefits offered by 3D, it also makes it difficult to integrate site layout planning within the openBIM ecosystem. In this paper we present the design and evaluation of a user-friendly, IFC-compatible software system that supports collaborative, multi-user creation of construction site layout plans using both multi-touch table and immersive VR. By allowing temporary structures, machines, and other components to be easily added and updated it is possible to continuously produce and communicate 3D site layout plans that are aligned with the schedule and supports integration with other BIM-tools
Seamless Indoor/Outdoor Marker-Less Augmented Reality Registration Supporting Facility Management Operations
Authors: Messi Leonardo , Spegni Francesco , Vaccarini Massimo , Corneli Alessandra , Binni Leonardo
Published: February 2024

Augmented reality (AR) still struggles to be widely used in real processes in the construction industry despite its great potential. This is partly due to the difficulties that exist in aligning holograms and maintaining their stability, especially for outdoor applications. In addition, being indoor-outdoor interactions crucial for built environment management, it would be important that AR apps can work seamlessly. Alignment in indoor environments cannot make use of methods such as GNSS, nor can all environments be assumed to have been previously initialized with AR tools. Thus, marker-less AR registration is crucial for indoor applications. This paper presents an approach for marker-less AR registration seamlessly in both outdoor and indoor environments. Real-time kinematic positioning (RTK) and Inertial Measurement Units (IMU) technologies have been chosen for outdoor registration, while image comparison based on convolutional neural networks (CNN) for indoor registration. In this research, the application of these two technologies and their integration have been studied and tested on site on a real Facility Management use case related to a university campus. The proposed approach has shown very promising results in displaying BIM elements of the electrical system seamlessly superimposed through AR to their physical counterparts in mixed indoor-outdoor environments
A Semantic Digital Twin Prototype for Workplace Performance Assessment
Authors: Bruttini Alessandro , Hagedorn Philipp , Cleve Felix , Getuli Vito , Capone Pietro , König Markus
Published: February 2024

Nowadays, despite the growing attention to indoor environmental quality and comfort, existing workplaces still often fail to meet employees’ expectations and needs, affecting their well-being and productivity. In order to improve management decisions, crucial insights can be provided by the timely correlation of objective workplace conditions, observed by sensors, and subjective workers’ feedback, collected through Ecological Momentary Assessment (EMA) method. This paper presents a prototypical Digital Twin for the assessment of workplace performance from an occupant-centric perspective, based on the integration of IoT, BIM and Semantic Web technologies. Following the definition of relevant use cases and requirements a layered system architecture is presented and the prototype implementation is discussed. For capturing the workplace’s environmental properties, a sensor network based on the Zigbee communication standard is proposed due to its data transmission efficiency. The measured data, converted in the lightweight MQTT protocol, are streamed to an InfluxDB time series database where they are stored along with the incoming workers’ feedback collected as survey responses with a dedicated web application. These time series data are queried and transported into a developed web platform for integrating BIM and RDF data within the standardized structure of Information Containers for linked Document Delivery (ICDDs). Inside this platform, the IFC model of the workplace, the measured data from the sensors, and the worker generated RDF data according to the WOMO ontology for occupant-centric workplace management are linked. The capabilities of the workplace Digital Twin prototype are finally demonstrated querying the linked heterogeneous data to fulfil workplace management tasks in a case study provided at the end of the paper
A Systematic Review of Digital Twin as a Predictive Maintenance Approach for Existing Buildings in the UK
Authors: Sobowale Modupe , Elghaish Faris , Brooks Tara
Published: February 2024

Digital Twin (DT) developments and applications in the Architectural Engineering Construction (AEC) Industry are emerging. However, insufficient publications synthesised the existing literature on DT of existing buildings, including energy retrofit and challenges as part of Net-zero strategies. When developing DT systems, it is vital to include the existing buildings primarily captured in 2-Dimensions (2-D) static data. To date, the implementation of DT has been minimal in applications in existing buildings in the UK. Despite DT benefits for maintenance (O&M) managers, facilities management (FM) as a comprehensive source of consistent data for predictive maintenance. This study explored the challenges faced by DT adoptions in existing buildings through a systematic review of the extant literature. A systematic approach is adopted to search the Scopus database using relevant keywords such as "Digital Twin.", "Built Environment" and "Existing Buildings.". the study focused on publications from the past five years (2018 to 2023) and prioritised articles in Scopus. The findings of this paper showed that the practitioners, O&M managers, and academics in built environments need more proper knowledge and technical expertise on digital twins as part of Industry 4.0 (I4.0). Evidence from the literature resulted in low empirical case studies and applications. The complexity of real-time data integration and interoperability were highlighted as part of the challenges despite the need for comprehensive knowledge of DT in the built environment. Scarce publication on the study was noted. The directions for comprehensive solutions and future research on digital twin applications in existing buildings towards achieving efficient energy retrofits, cost reductions, and net-zero goals were highlighted
Digital Twins for Smart Decision Making in Asset Management
Authors: Elias Chady , Issa Raja
Published: February 2024

This study discusses the classification of Digital Twins (DTs) and their use in the Architecture, Engineering, Construction, and Operations (AECO) industry, the differences between building information modeling (BIM) and DT are emphasized and platforms for implementing DTs are compared. DTs are quickly gaining traction in the AECO industry because they create the ability to interact virtually with all physical smart devices in the built environment. The need for replicas goes all the way back to the 1960s, when NASA created physical replicas of spaceships and connected them to simulators to develop workshop solutions on the ground. DTs are simply building blocks of the metaverse that act as a real-time digital copy of a physical object. Based on data from the physical asset or system, the physical twin (PT), a DT unlocks value in supporting smart decision-making by combining artificial intelligence (AI) with the internet of things (IoT)
Improving Sense-Making for Construction Planning Tasks Using Visual and Haptic Stimuli in Virtual Reality Environments
Authors: Mutis Ivan , Oberemok Marina , Purushotham Nishanth
Published: February 2024

Design documents, drawings, and specifications are visual representations that are fundamental and prevalent in today’s construction engineering practice. Construction specialties (e.g., structural, mechanical) rely on these visual representations to express and draw meaning during collaborations. Construction engineering and management (CEM) students must acquire the knowledge, skills, and abilities — a key example of which is perceptual competence —for interpreting visual representations to facilitate efficient task execution, such as planning. Empowering learners with new technology using robust real-world immersion and interactive features is a significant step towards this target. The presented research explores new human-machine interactions to determine the best way for CEM students to learn through the combined senses of sight and touch. The approach merges visual and haptic interactions within an immersive environment to enhance perception and reasoning skills. The research demonstrates how CEM learners interact with and interpret the meanings of information within a planning task. It explores how VR and haptic technology augment the ability to recognize meanings — a new type of representational competency — for improved interpretation of information related to components with respect to engineering disciplines and sub-systems in a CEM, and investigates learners’ problem-solving ability by using perception-rich enhanced virtual reality (VR) and haptic affordances
Application of Diminished Reality for Construction Site Safety Management
Authors: Corneli Alessandra , Naticchia Berardo , Vaccarini Massimo , Carbonari Alessandro , Spegni Francesco
Published: February 2024

Safety management in construction sites has always been one of the most sensitive aspects of the AECO industry and a problematic that recalls the complexity of such a multifactor domain. The high number of work accidents that occur on construction sites is also caused by the fact that not all the information to work safely is always available. For instance, visibility during some maneuvers is a key aspect of safety in operations, and this is often impeded due to the layout of the construction site and working methods, especially in the use of some equipment. The latest approaches in order to overcome complex situations is represented by the Digital Twin paradigm. This approach has among its main criticisms:1) the way of connecting physical reality and its digital replica and 2) the system for exploiting the combination of real-time data and digital applied intelligence for supporting operations on site. This paper proposes a framework for the development of digital twin of the construction site. An application of augmented reality that exploits the concept of diminished reality and workers location detection will improve visibility during critical operations
Driving Simulator for Road Safety Design: A Comparison Between Virtual Reality Tests and In-Field Tests
Authors: Meocci Monica , Terrosi Alessandro , Paliotto Andrea , La Torre Bellardoni Francesca , Infante Irene
Published: February 2024

Virtual reality simulations conducted by driving simulators represent a methodology to assess both the quality of road design and road safety in a safe, controlled, and replicable environment.
Nowadays, there are numerous studies that use driving simulators to analyze the driver's response when specific road safety treatments are planned before these are implemented. This approach allows the road designer/scientist to estimate the potential safety effectiveness of the countermeasure/design configuration considered.
However, although virtual reality simulations are potentially extremely useful in the evaluation of road configuration design and treatments effectiveness, they also have cons. The two most important are the limitations in the reproducibility of the real world environment and the difference in drivers’ behavior due to the awareness that they are conducting a test.
In this context, our research compared the data collected during virtual reality experiments with those collected in the field with an instrumented vehicle, after a few years from the implementation of the specific safety measure on a real road. Statistical analyses were conducted to compare the results of the two experiments to demonstrate the reliability of the virtual simulations and to identify the limitations
Assessing Impacts of Immersive Virtual Reality-Based Design Reviews on Learners’ Self-Efficacy
Authors: Castronovo Fadi , Razavialavi Seyedreza , Abdulrahman Abdullahi , Rayan Saiba Mohammed , Martinez Rodriguez Pablo
Published: February 2024

An effective design review is critical to identifying changes and/or errors at the early stage of construction projects and reduce the project costs. Traditionally, design reviews are conducted by reviewing the project by reading multiple drawings. The inherent demands of reading project drawings are especially challenging for entry-level built environment learners who often need professional experience and may need more training and skills to fully understand technical representations. Previous research has focused on evaluating the impacts of interactive visualization technologies, such as virtual reality, on the learners’ design review thinking skills and showed how such technologies could support learners and industry professionals in performing design reviews. However, such research has yet to assess its impacts on their self-efficacy in engaging in design review thinking skills. Self-efficacy can be defined as one's perception of their ability to perform a task, such as problem-solving and evaluation. To understand how the VR technology can support learners in increasing their self-efficacy in performing design reviews, the researchers hosted a pilot study to evaluate immersive virtual reality design reviews' impacts. Based on the results of this pilot study, the implementation of immersive virtual reality has the potential to positively impact first year-built environment learners’ self-efficacy in performing design reviews
Towards a Digital Era in AEC Higher Education: Combining Theory and Technology to Develop and Deliver Architectural Master Classes
Authors: Hajirasouli Aso , Getuli Vito , Bruttini Alessandro , Sorbi Tommaso , Capone Pietro
Published: February 2024

In recent years, technology has been playing a transformative role in the field of built environment, architecture, and construction education. It can be argued that the emergence of digital technologies has revolutionised the approach to teaching and learning in higher education in these fields. Digital technologies, such as Artificial intelligence (AI), additive manufacturing, robotics, 3D laser scanners, and Immersive Realities (IR), have played a crucial role in enhancing sustainability and efficiency in the industry. However, the opportunities provided by the use of these technologies (as a single tool or combined) in higher education and within the field of Architecture, Engineering, and Construction (AEC) are still relatively unexplored. To address this gap, this work presents a novel pedagogical framework aimed to enhance students’ literacy on emerging technologies, and increase their criticality, and understanding of professional practices along with the related ethical challenges. Furthermore, to assess its effectiveness regarding the integration of immersive VR technologies in the teaching practice, a learner-centred evaluation approach is proposed, based on the collection and correlation of both qualitative and quantitative data. Concerning the former, a dedicated questionnaire is developed to collect students’ subjective feedback. For the latter, a method for tracking their use of space in the virtual environment is discussed. Both the immersive pedagogical framework and evaluation approach presented in this work will be implemented in diverse architecture and civil engineering master classes in Australia and in Italy, and their comparative outcomes and validation will be the object of future joint contributions
Multi-Aspectual Knowledge Elicitation for Procurement Optimization in a Warehouse Company
Authors: Fotso Mtope Franck Romuald , Joneidy Sina , Pandit Diptangshu , Pour Rahimian Farzad
Published: February 2024

Efficient optimization of business processes required a profound understanding of expertise provided by domain specialists. However, extracting such insights can indeed be a laborious and time-consuming endeavour. This paper introduces the Multi-Aspectual Knowledge Elicitation framework (MAKE4ML) — a novel approach designed to effortlessly and effectively extract valuable information from domain experts. This framework inherently facilitates the development of machine-learning models capable of optimizing business processes, thereby diminishing reliance on experts. The framework's application within a food warehouse company is showcased, specifically targeting the enhancement of the procurement process. The employed methodology revolves around conducting comprehensive interviews with procurement experts, thereby enabling a meticulous exploration of diverse facets inherent to a business process. Subsequently, the gathered insights are employed to conceive and calibrate a machine learning model (time series forecasting). This model effectively emulates the domain experts' proficiency, offering invaluable decision-oriented insights. The outcomes of this study show that our framework allows efficient knowledge elicitation, which is a pivotal factor in formulating and deploying a bespoke machine-learning model. The proposed approach can be extended into various other business processes, thereby paving the way for operational refinement, cost reduction, and amplified efficiency
Robotic Assembly and Reuse of Modular Elements in the Supply Chain of a Learning Factory for Construction and in the Context of Circular Economy
Authors: Teizer Jochen , Hong Kepeng , Larsen Asger D. , Nilsen Marcus B.
Published: February 2024

Although robotic solutions have been making significant contributions to fabrication environments, implementations in the construction are rare. It seems a disconnect between the industries exists where in construction the high number of non-uniform work tasks, the wide assortment of types and shapes of building materials and elements, and the presence of human workers creating safety hazards make the deployment of rather rigid robotic manipulators on construction sites much more complex than in production-like work environments. To advance construction with robotic solutions, it could prove beneficial to make each sector aware of the barriers that exist, and likewise, introduce a physical space for joint experimentation with state-of-the-art technologies from both fields. One way of alleviating this issue is to connect the sectors by providing hands-on education and research experiences, defined hereby as Learning Factory for Construction (LFC). This paper presents a scaled-down version of a LFC that has a robotic manipulator perform fully-automated and precise assembly, deconstruction, and reuse tasks of modular construction elements, whereas the elements are tracked with fiducial markers according to a known building information model and schedule. Furthermore, the FLC continuously gathers and analyzes data for performance, measures successful completions, assembly times, and potential quality defects. This project involved Masters level students with domain expertise from architectural, civil, and mechanical engineering in a cross-disciplinary and collaborative learning exercise of building a working prototype within a semester-long study project. Beyond the core tasks of the digital design and robotic application, the group developed theoretical concepts and limitations for more holistic views on circular economy, lean production, on- and off-site logistics, modularization, and construction safety, just as expected from a LFC. It is anticipated that the next generation of professionals working in the built environment and intending to solve some of the larger and more complex societal problems will require both the technical and communication skills that a LFC can stimulate. Therefore, LFC is expected to become an important component of active learning environments
Identifying and Developing Prerequisites for Takt Planning in a BIM-Based Construction Process
Authors: Ljung Efraim , Viklund Tallgren Mikael , Roupé Mattias , Johansson Mikael
Published: February 2024

The construction industry is undergoing a significant shift in how design and production are conducted. Building Information Modeling (BIM) has emerged as a key tool for coordinating information from all involved disciplines and providing a more holistic view of the construction process. However, effective coordination and communication between different professions remain major challenges that require new approaches to project management. Takt planning has gained increasing attention as a potential solution to improve traditional planning methods. Despite this, there is a lack of real-world studies exploring BIM and takt planning where information is structured according to takt planning. A takt planning structure for all BIM-models would bring a more holistic understanding of what is to be done, controlled, and reported back. To address this gap, this paper presents findings from a three-stage research process. Firstly, form a focus group of disciplines to find a shared structure to present the execution in a common way for design and construction in a lab environment at a conceptual level, secondly implementing it to the detailed design information for real -world case project in workshops and group meetings with the focus group and then thirdly, evaluate it in the case project with the site staff involved. The findings highlight the importance of a shared denominator to get a holistic approach to project management and enabling takt planning throughout all phases of construction, providing insights into its practical application and benefits for the construction industry
Identifying Hazards in Construction Sites Using Deep Learning-Based Multimodal with CCTV Data
Authors: Quoc Tran Dai , Jeon Yuntae , Son Seongwoo , Park Minsoo , Park Seunghee
Published: February 2024

The use of closed-circuit television (CCTV) for safety monitoring is crucial for reducing accidents in construction sites. However, the majority of currently proposed approaches utilize single detection models without considering the context of CCTV video inputs. In this study, a multimodal detection, and depth map estimation algorithm utilizing deep learning is proposed. In addition, the point cloud of the test site is acquired using a terrestrial laser scanning scanner, and the detected object's coordinates are projected into global coordinates using a homography matrix. Consequently, the effectiveness of the proposed monitoring system is enhanced by the visualization of the entire monitored scene. In addition, to validate our proposed method, a synthetic dataset of construction site accidents is simulated with Twinmotion. These scenarios are then evaluated with the proposed method to determine its precision and speed of inference. Lastly, the actual construction site, equipped with multiple CCTV cameras, is utilized for system deployment and visualization. As a result, the proposed method demonstrated its robustness in detecting potential hazards on a construction site, as well as its real-time detection speed
Utilizing 360-Degree Images for Synthetic Data Generation in Construction Scenarios
Authors: Sabir Aqsa , Hussain Rahat , Zaidi Syed Farhan Alam , Pedro Akeem , Soltani Mehrtash , Lee Dongmin , Park Chansik
Published: February 2024

Computer vision-based safety monitoring requires machine learning models trained on generalized datasets covering various viewpoints, surface properties, and lighting conditions. However, capturing high-quality and extensive datasets for some construction scenarios is challenging at real job sites due to the risky nature of construction scenarios. Previous methods have proposed synthetic data generation techniques involving 2D background randomization with virtual objects in game-based engines. While there has been extensive work on utilizing 360-degree images for various purposes, no study has yet employed 360-degree images for generating synthetic data specifically tailored for construction sites. To improve the synthetic data generation process, this study proposes a 360-degree images-based synthetic data generation approach using Unity 3D game engine. The approach efficiently generates a sizable dataset with better dimensions and scaling, encompassing a range of camera positions with randomized lighting intensities. To check the effectiveness of our proposed method, we conducted a subjective evaluation, considering three key factors: object positioning, scaling in terms of object respective size, and the overall size of the generated dataset. The synthesized images illustrate the visual improvement in all three factors. By offering an improved data generation method for training safety-focused computer vision models, this research has the potential to significantly enhance the automation of the construction safety monitoring process, and hence, this method can bring substantial benefits to the construction industry by improving operational efficiency and reinforcing safety measures for workers