UAV-BIM-BEM: An automatic unmanned aerial vehicles-based building energy model generation platform

Abstract

Many existing and aging buildings were in urgent need of upgrades and renovations, but lack accurate geometric and energy consumption information. This study introduced an unmanned aerial vehicles-based (UAV-based) automated platform for building information modellings (BIM) to generate builidng energy modellings (BEM), which was called the UAV-BIM-BEM platform. The platform enabled the creation of energy models for existing buildings to estimate energy consumption and perform retrofit analysis. A four-story office building in Hong Kong, with dimensions of 52.3 m in length, 14.3 m in width, and 16.5 m in height, was selected as the case study building. Firstly, using UAV oblique photography techniques and path planning algorithms, the building images were transformed into a detailed 3D point cloud model. The point cloud model was provided to Revit to generate the BIM model in IFC format. The IFC file containing the geometric information of the building was then supplied to the AutoBPS-BIM tool, resulting in the generation of the BEM model in EnergyPlus to simulate detailed end-use energy consumption. The annual electricity use intensity (EUI) of the building was estimated to be 145.05 kWh/m². Lastly, the generated energy model was used to evaluate the energy-saving potential of three different measures. The results showed that the electrical energy savings from cooling equipment, lighting systems, and window replacement are 17.22 %, 6.91 %, and 6.61 %, respectively. This research demonstrated that the UAV-BIM-BEM platform has great potential in BEM modeling for existing buildings and building energy retrofitting.