Multidisciplinary Product Modeling of Buildings

Abstract

A building entity is decomposed into systems (containing subsystems and elements), which correspond to the various disciplines associated with it. A set of exhaustive, nonintersecting primary elements are identified for the architectural and structural systems. These are space, solid, opening, layer, and finish. The classification of solids into principals and joints provides a partial solution to the problem of different disciplines having different views of building entities. Joints can also be used to define nodes, act as load transfer junctions and store information (e.g. hogging moment information for beams). Structural engineering perspectives and processes require that principals and joints be aggregated into assemblies. Juxtaposition between the preceding primary elements is handled by the definition of three distinct interface elements, namely face, surface, and boundary. The building product model described before is implemented in a limited fashion in a PC environment on an object-oriented shell. The example provided shows how the model can be used for processes such as load evaluation, structural analysis, design checking, and quantity takeoff.