Archinect - News

Toronto Metropolitan University unveils plan for SCITHub, the 'world’s first fully digitally-enabled building'

2023-12-28T15:49:00-05:00

A new prototype demonstration of different burgeoning smart building technologies is coming to the campus of Toronto Metropolitan University as part of a cross-institutional effort that will result in the construction of a new 3,229-square-foot Smart Campus Integration and Testing Hub (SCITHub) designed by WZMH Architects.

The initiative has been in development since 2019, with a finalized design for the structure submitted two years later, and its construction is now fully funded through a mixture of public grants and private donations that covered the total project cost of about $6 million.

The TMU SCITHub is part of the Network of Living Campuses (NLC), which involves seven other universities across Canada. Researchers are hopeful it will serve as a kind of nexus for the various data-driven investigations into smart building tech that are happening at their respective campuses.

Image courtesy Toronto Metropolitan University

A mass timber building envelope and exterior Intellige...

Ohio State researchers use machine learning to create 3D digital models of lost historic neighborhoods

2023-07-21T12:38:00-04:00

A team of researchers from The Ohio State University has developed a machine learning technique that converts old urban maps into three-dimensional digital models. According to the team, the models could potentially revolutionize research involving historic neighborhoods and the economic impact of their demolition.

The study, recently published in the journal PLOS ON, involved extracting and digitizing data from Sanborn Fire Insurance maps. The maps, created during the 19th and 20th centuries and frequently updated, were used by fire insurance companies to estimate their liabilities in about 12,000 U.S. cities and towns.

"We now have the ability to unlock the wealth of data that are embedded in these Sanborn fire atlases," said Ohio State Geography Professor Harvey Miller, a co-author of the study. "It enables a whole new approach to urban historical res...

MIT's 'Ways of Seeing' project offers scholars renewed access to four important cultural sites in Afghanistan

2023-07-05T14:24:00-04:00

A new research project at Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) has produced a useful documentation of four hard-to-access multireligious architectural heritage sites in Afghanistan using a combination of digital renderings, satellite imaging, crowdsourced data, and XR technology.

MIT News recently profiled the school’s “Ways of Seeing: Documenting Endangered Built Heritage in Afghanistan” effort, which was the product of multiple departments and research centers within the university. The project was led by MIT’s Sociotechnical Systems Research Center director Fotini Christia, who said it “combines field data, technology, and art to protect heritage and serve the world” in a true evocation of the university’s cross-disciplinary collaborative tradition.

The end result produced two open-access digital archives co-managed via Archnet and MIT Libraries by the Aga Khan Documentation Center and Aga Khan Trust for Culture. Class of 2006 M.Arch graduate Jelena Pejkovic contributed ...

Move over, Google Earth: Swiss tech startup uses enhanced aerial photography to create better 3D models of cities for urban planners

2022-12-19T17:06:00-05:00

A new approach uses aerial imaging to generate 3D models of cities and regions with advanced precision, enabling urban planners to incorporate full-scale designs of all types of architectural and urban structures.

Tech start-up Uzufly operates out of the Le Garage space located inside the Ecole Polytechnique Federale de Lausanne (EPFL)’s expanding Innovation Park. "The company's 3D models incorporate a wide range of urban-planning data and can accommodate any type of architectural design at full scale," reports Tech Xplore's Sandy Evangelista.

Previously on Archinect: Scientists are using deep learning data to map structure damage from wildfires

"We basically use the same technology as Google Earth — that is, aerial photography," Uzufly co-founder Théo Benazzi explains. "But while Google uses airplanes to take huge numbers of pictures at high altitudes, we use drones that have smaller cameras and capture images much closer to the ground. That's why we can generate 3D models at the level of a neighborhood or an entire city."

The team is currently working with the EPFL's Arts of Sciences Laboratory (LAPIS) and the Swiss National Science Foundation to produce a digital twin of an unnamed Egyptian...

MVRDV launches digital tool that lays out design possibilities for Rotterdam's rooftops

2022-11-28T17:21:00-05:00

At the Smart City Expo World Congress in Barcelona, MVRDV’s computational design arm MVRDV NEXT, multidisciplinary planning organization Superworld, and the Municipality of Rotterdam announced RoofScape, a software that visualizes potential uses for rooftops in Rotterdam.

RoofScape was designed to be used by both professionals and citizens while being detailed enough to assist policymakers and urban planners. As noted in MVRDV’s press announcement, rooftops have become one of Rotterdam’s urban planning priorities. This program builds on prior work between MVRDV and the Dutch city, who launched Rooftop Catalog in 2021, a book containing 130 suggestions for how rooftops can be utilized to increase Rotterdam’s density. The suggestions range from providing more housing and leisure spaces to fostering biodiversity and energy generation.

Image courtesy of MVRDV

The software works by color-coding roofs by what uses they can support. The possibilities are determined through a wide range of ...

Abu Dhabi unveils emirate-wide digital twin project

2022-10-19T09:00:00-04:00

Abu Dhabi’s Department of Municipalities and Transport (DMT) has announced the launch of a digital twin project, a first-of-its-kind initiative for the emirate capital.

The undertaking was unveiled during GITEX Technology Week, a tech and startup event held in the Dubai World Trade Center, which ended last week. The project will integrate a range of advanced technology, including aerial photography, LiDAR scanning, and game engines to create an accurate digital copy of Abu Dhabi, supporting the work of planners, engineers, and specialists from the public and private sectors. The aim is to simulate changes to the city’s built environment in 3D and evaluate vast amounts of data. For example, spatial analysis tools will assist in analyzing the impacts of various urban planning scenarios.

The emirate’s buildings, infrastructure, and even interior spaces will be made virtual to improve planning a...

OpenSea is now hosting a Nakagin Capsule model NFT auction

2022-08-17T18:29:00-04:00

Tokyo’s beloved Nakagin Capsule Tower may be getting its speculated second digital life after all thanks to a new metaverse project from the firm of its original designer Kisho Kurokawa Architect and Associates (KKAA) and the NFT platform OpenSea.

In an exclusive collaboration with the LAETOLI Corporation’s KABUKI-X venture, the firm is now auctioning off the rights to reconstruct their founder’s most famous Metabolic work in both the physical and digital realms only a few months removed from the neglected tower’s ongoing demolition, which began formally at the end of April. Bidders will have the chance to reconstruct the tower inside the metaverse and at the global site of their choice using CAD data and a digital model of the tower produced in Revit by design partners BDP.

Image courtesy OpenSea

Restrictions are limited to the local zoning laws and regulations of the country the holders of the ‘real space’ rights select to build in. This otherwise allows for the potential resale ...

Los Angeles the latest city to adopt digital twin technology to cut carbon emissions

2022-06-09T21:11:00-04:00

Cityzenith, a Chicago-based digital twin platform, announced last week that it is partnering with the Los Angeles branch of the U.S. Department of Energy’s Better Buildings Challenge to help construct a digital twin, or virtual replica, of a section of the city to help make its buildings more sustainable and reduce carbon emissions.

The project will initially center on the downtown Los Angeles neighborhood of Bunker Hill. Cityzenith’s SmartWorld digital twin product will be implemented to enable building owners to simulate their financial paths to net-zero emissions. This is part of Cityzenith’s "Clean Cities — Clean Future" initiative, which provides cities with a free digital twin in order to virtually test potential decarbonization efforts before implementing costly plans in the real world.

Previously on Archinect: Digital twin of downtown Las Vegas unveiled in effort to cut emissions

As noted by Melissa Goldin of Construction Dive, the Bunker Hill project will focus on data related to decarbonization efforts for a major public building and the surrounding area. Energy or building management systems, occupancy readings, and architectural information are among the variables that will be examined. The digital twin will have the potential to expand to cover the rest of the city and address other city planning i...

Barcelona is developing a digital twin within a 19th-century chapel

2022-05-20T11:47:00-04:00

Barcelona has become the latest city to begin construction on a digital twin of itself. Currently in a test phase, the data-driven replica of the city is expected to be operational by 2027, at which point it will be used as an urban planning tool to shape the city’s future development.

The digital twin will be housed within the MareNostrum supercomputer, one of the world’s most powerful data processors, located within the city’s Torre Girona chapel. Originally constructed in the 19th century, the chapel was rebuilt in the 1940s following the Spanish Civil War, and now sits on the campus of the Polytechnic University of Catalonia. The chapel has housed the supercomputer since 2005.

The MareNostrum supercomputer. Image courtesy of Barcelona Supercomputing Center

For city officials, the digital twin will offer urbanists, architects, and planners a means of testing urban theories and projects before implementation in order to understand their effects, without physically disrupting th...

The English city of Bradford develops a digital twin to help inform planning decisions and promote cultural heritage

2022-02-07T19:36:00-05:00

An online space called Virtual Bradford is set to be completed this summer that would provide a high-resolution 3D online “brick-for-brick” digital twin of Bradford, England’s city center.

The project is a collaboration between the University of Bradford and the Bradford Council. It is also partially funded by the European Union SCORE project, which aims to improve public service through smart open-data solutions. It is hoped Virtual Bradford can help how the city deals with planning, air pollution, traffic management, flood risk, noise pollution, along with the creation of green space.

“Virtual Bradford represents a revolution in terms of city planning,” said Professor Chris Gaffney, Chair in Archeological Sciences at the University of Bradford. “It will enable people to look at the built environment in a virtual 3D world, and then see what impact new developments have on things like surface water drainage, noise pollution, clean air and visual impact.”

“One of the biggest issues...

Digital twin of downtown Las Vegas unveiled in effort to cut emissions

2022-01-20T13:39:00-05:00

Las Vegas has become the latest city to embark on constructing a digital twin, following the unveiling of a digital model at the city’s Consumer Electronics Show earlier this month. Developed by Chicago-based Cityzenith and Las Vegas-based Terbine, the model encompasses a 2.7-square-mile portion of downtown Las Vegas and is intended to “help Las Vegas building owners transition to net-zero carbon emissions.”

As we noted in October 2021, the digital replica of the physical landscape was built using local city data. In the future, the developers see the model as an opportunity to accurately measure and design for the impacts of future plans on the city’s air quality, mobility, water management, and building emissions.

With the base model now completed, the next phase will involve input from stakeholders including real estate owners, government agencies, university researchers, data partners, architects, and casino operators, overlaying further detail on how the city is operated and u...

ONE Sotheby's unveils new digital twin NFT home project

2022-01-07T16:37:00-05:00

Together, ONE Sotheby’s International Realty and Voxel Architects, along with general contractor and NFT collector Gabe Sierra, are introducing the first ever ‘MetaReal’ mansion that includes a real-world home and a virtual counterpart in the metaverse. The virtual home will live within The Sandbox metaverse. The buyer of the NFT asset will also acquire ownership rights of the physical home, set to be completed in Miami in Q4 of 2022. This is the first time something like this has been done.

The company picked the up-and-coming virtual design firm that has rapidly gained a reputation for its metaverse designs hosted by platforms like Decentraland. Under a licensing agreement, the real estate entity leases its name from the -year-old auction house, which itself has dabbled rather extensively in virtual architecture since the trend began to take hold of the art world.

The digital twin created by Voxel will serve as the basis for the physical home, which will be completed by the end of the year. The transaction will be completed using Etherium according to a firm-sponsored Medium post about the project.

Decentraland's Max Stealth Gallery. Image courtesy Voxel Architects. From the recently published article, "Decentraland is playing host to six-figure deals as architects begin to embrace the metaverse"

“In the future, we think it will be commonplace to have a metaverse extension of your home,” virtual realtor Gabe Sierra explained. “As experiences become more and more imme...

Assembly OSM unveils its first modular apartment unit built using car and airplane assembly techniques

2021-10-26T19:55:00-04:00

Modular construction startup Assembly OSM has unveiled its first one-bedroom apartment built using a new digital manufacturing method dubbed Post-Modular construction. Conceptualized by architects and co-founders of SHoP Architects, Bill and Chris Sharples, in collaboration with auto and aerospace engineers at Boeing, SpaceX, and Tesla, Assembly OSM aims to make high-rise construction faster and cheaper in order to address America’s housing crisis.

Assembly OSM’s building methodology takes a similar approach to how cars and airplanes are assembled. Digital twin technology is used to create collections of digitally-designed, fully customizable subassemblies where every item is tracked, assembled, and placed based on certain specifications. Detailed instructions for building components are generated and given to suppliers who then manufacture entire housing features, such as bathrooms, kitchens, and façade panels. From there, Assembly OSM uses its patented clipping mechanism to attach...

Las Vegas is adopting digital twin technology to mitigate emissions

2021-10-20T14:22:00-04:00

Las Vegas is implementing digital twin technology to tackle its urban emissions. An area of downtown Las Vegas will use advanced 5G networking and IoT along with the digital twin technology to improve air quality, water management and carbon emissions produced from major buildings in the city.

Technology startup Cityzenith will provide its Digital Twin platform, SmartWorldPro2, for the project as part of its Clean Cities, Clean Future initiative. Las Vegas-based data management and curation platform Terbine will use IoT data from government agencies, building operators, transportation systems, and others to provide sensor information needed for the digital twin.

“Now in Las Vegas, we will have a city-scale digital twin that is driven by the physical environment, and ultimately letting us control key systems through it,” said Las Vegas Chief Innovation Officer Michael Sherwood. “This will give us new levels of insights and control to benefit city planners, residents, and businesses.”

Las Vegas is the second city to participate in Cityzenith’s initiative behind New York City. According to the company, Phoenix and several other major cities are expected to follow.

Skydio releases autonomous drone software that can create detailed 3D models in real time

2021-06-04T19:15:00-04:00

Earlier this week, U.S. autonomous drone manufacturer, Skydio, launched Skydio 3D Scan, an adaptive scanning software that allows its drones to generate incredibly detailed 3D models of real-world settings with a very high degree of autonomy.

3D Scan is equipped with advanced artificial intelligence skills that automate photographic data collection and mapping functions for important tasks ranging from infrastructure asset inspection to digital twin generation as well as crime and accident scene reconstruction.

"Corsair Jet", an image of an old jet captured with 3D Scan and a Skydio drone. Image: Skydio

In real time, objects and locations can be digitized and explored. Bridges and roads that may be in need of structural repair, accident sites, and clients looking to inspect construction sites can receive explicitly detailed, 3D recreations of these scenes.

According to Skydio, the software has been tested by the likes of the North Carolina Department of Transportation for bridge i...

Tech company to create 'digital twin' of new SoFi Stadium

2020-11-16T16:00:00-05:00

Digital twin provider Willow has announced a partnership with Hollywood Park to create a digital twin of a 300-acre sports and entertainment development, including SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles.

According to Construction Dive, Willow will create a virtual copy of the stadium by capturing data in and around the area that will be "used to provide analytics and insight into the experience of attending a game there. This data will help SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park facilities managers to identify potential problems, optimize sustainability and manage risk."