SBIR Phase I: A Novel Video-Based Software Application For Automatic And Accurate Roof Surveying

这个小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第一阶段项目将调查设计基于视频的屋顶测量软件的技术和商业可行性。屋面测量是板材屋面工程中不可缺少的一项工作。多年来，已经为此目的发展了几种技术；然而，没有一种技术同时足够安全、廉价、自动化和准确。因此，卷尺测量仍然是标准做法，尽管其明显的局限性。该项目将通过自动生成包括必要测量的准确的屋顶三维线路图来满足这一需求。如果成功，这将是世界上第一个满足所有行业要求(准确、简单、成本、安全和效率)的视频屋面测量软件-S。当使用它时，屋顶承包商只需从屋顶收集立体视频，并将其发送到服务器进行处理。与仅使用点级别信息的现有基于视觉的软件不同，该软件使用点、线和平面相结合的混合公式。该更高级别的信息将输出精度提高到所需的级别。一旦测量被自动提取并送回，承包商将它们上传到现场滚压成型机，将金属板卷卷成形并切割成精确的、随时可以安装的板材。该项目的更广泛的影响/商业潜力是解决当前屋顶测量技术的固有缺陷，并使板材屋顶行业达到许多其他行业使用的现代CAD/CAM标准。与卷尺测量相比，该项目将显著降低测量成本，并消除员工面临坠落危险的风险，从而减少屋顶行业发生的非常高的职业伤害和坠落死亡人数(2009年私人建筑死亡人数的7%)。应用程序的简单性将消除对训练有素的测量员的需要，这是使用全站仪进行测量所必需的。它还可以提供比卫星成像技术更准确的测量结果，从而满足行业要求。除了目标行业(即板材屋顶)，该解决方案几乎可以被世界各地的任何屋顶承包商使用。它还可以适用于许多其他建筑行业，在这些行业中，建造部件需要竣工文件，包括金属幕墙制造商/安装商和暖通空调承包商。这反过来又可以节省时间和成本，从而提高建造业的效率。测量设备制造商和测量公司是这一应用的目标市场的另一个关键参与者。

This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will investigate the technical and commercial feasibility of designing a video-based roof surveying software. Roof surveying is an essential activity in sheet metal roofing projects. Several technologies have been evolved over the years for this purpose; however, none of them are safe, inexpensive, automatic, and accurate enough at the same time. Tape measurement is therefore still the standard practice despite its apparent limitations. This project will address this need by automatically generating an accurate 3Dwirediagram of a roof which includes necessary measurements. If successful, it will be the world?s first videobased roof surveying software that fulfills all industry requirements (accuracy, simplicity, cost, safety, and efficiency). When using it, a roofing contractor simply collects stereo video from a roof and sends it to a server for processing. Unlike existing vision-based software that only use point level information, the software uses a hybrid formulation that combines points, lines, and planes. This higher level information enhances the output accuracy to the required level. Once measurements are automatically extracted and sent back, the contractor uploads them to an on-site roll forming machine to roll form and cut sheet metal coil into precise, ready to install panels.The broader impact/commercial potential of this project is to address inherent deficiencies of current technologies for roof surveying and bring the sheet metal roofing trade up to the modern standards of CAD/CAM used in many other industries. Compared to tape measuring, this project will significantly reduce measuring costs and also eliminate the exposure of employees to fall hazards, thereby decreasing the very high number of occupational injuries and fall deaths which occur in the roofing industry (7% of private construction fatalities in 2009). The simplicity of the application will remove the need for trained surveyors which are required for surveying with a total station. It could also provide more accurate measurements compared to satellite imaging technology and hence satisfy industry requirements.Beyond the target industry (i.e., sheet metal roofing), this solution could be used by virtually any roofing contractors worldwide. It could also be adapted to many of the other building trades where as-built documentation is required to build components, including metal façade manufacturers/installers and HVAC contractors. This, in turn, will result in time and cost savings, which can improve the efficiency of the construction industry. Surveying equipment manufacturers and surveying companies are the other key players in the target market of this application.