Two-way integration of 3D visualization and discrete event simulation for modeling mobile crane movement under dynamically changing site layout

Construction site layout changes dynamically depending on the progress of construction activities in ways that may constrain access routes and paths of mobile resources. Discrete event simulation is a useful tool for modeling time dependent activities and resource interactions but usually cannot depict spatial changes in a natural way. This paper describes a framework for integrating 3D visualization components with discrete event simulations to model the movement of mobile cranes on industrial construction projects and facilitate tempo-spatial planning of site layout. The paper focuses on the integration approach using distributed simulation standards and spatial analysis using a dedicated visualization component with pathfinding algorithm. The A* algorithm is used in conjunction with mesh generation mechanism for developing the proposed framework. The benefits of the proposed framework emerge from taking full advantage of the geometrical and special processing strengths of the visualization component through loose coupling with simulation components. The paper describes the main components of the framework and the two-way communication mechanism between them based on distributed simulation standards. It also presents a case example of a real world project to demonstrate the proposed framework and compare the outcome to a traditional solution that uses a probability distribution to model crane travel times.