Engineering news
Engineers at the Nanyang Technological University in Singapore have invented a building inspector robot.
The Quicabot, short for Quality Inspection and Assessment Robot, took a year to develop at the NTU Robotic Research Centre. It can move autonomously to scan a room in half the time of a manual inspection, using cameras and laser scanners to detect building defects like cracks and uneven surfaces.
Several robots will work together to facilitate building inspection. The robots can upload 3D data of the scans to the cloud and inform the human operator, who can then inspect critical and complex defects.
Project leader and assistant professor from Nanyang Technological University’s (NTU) School of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, Erdal Kayacan, stated that their key aim is to automate and speed up the building inspection process according to standards set by the building and construction authority.
Kayacan said: “Visual inspection of a new building is an intensive effort that takes two inspectors, so we have designed a robot to assist a human inspector to do his job in about half the time, saving precious time and manpower, and with greater accuracy and consistency.”
Common building defects include cracks on walls and ceilings, disproportionate floors and walls, hollow tiles, and walls that may not be at a right angle. To detect them manually, a building inspector would need measurement tools, such as a spirit level and set square.
The Quicabot incorporates its own set of high-tech tools: a small laser scanner for navigation and mapping, a large laser scanner to inspect walls, an Inclinometer to inspect floors, a thermal infrared camera to inspect tiles, and a small standard colour camera to detect cracks on walls.
The Quicabot can operate for three days with two hours of charging. To enable quick and nimble movements around the room, the team worked with Ctrlworks to develop the robot’s mobile platform.
Professor Chen I-Ming, director of the NTU Robotic Research Centre and co-leader of the project said: “Using cameras and lasers which are more accurate than manual measurements, our robot has shown that it is able to assess the interior architectural defects of a building according to existing industry standards.”
He added that the robot has already done well in simulated environments.
Koh Chwee, director of the technical services division of Singapore’s national industrial developer JTC said: “The use of such automation in construction projects can go a long way in raising the quality of inspections and alleviating the manpower crunch faced by the construction industry.”
For the next phase of development, Quicabot will be test-bedded at suitable locations within JTC’s industrial developments.