The building and construction industry is reliant upon the structural integrity of the projects it completes — whether it is a building, a bridge, or storage structure. Most movements detected in any of these structures is a sign of deterioration and needs to be analyzed to determine the best approach for repair.   

Displacement sensors are commonly used in construction site supervision for this purpose, but only collect data in 1D or 2D. Tracking motion in 3D enables the user to digitally recreate the entire structure. With this perspective, motion capture systems can supply real time data on a building’s stability during and after construction, as well as its ability to weather a range of conditions throughout its life time.  

In addition, in the case of a catastrophic circumstance, this same real-time data can assist with restoration by providing clear and concise information concerning the stability of the remaining structure. 

The Problem: The need for real-time data and sensing of ongoing or potential building deformations to prevent concerns or issues with building stability.   

Current motion capture systems designed to monitor deformations, both onsite and offsite are: 

• Limited in sufficient detail to detect micro deformations and vibrations caused by structural defects 
• Limited in sensing and alarms outside of environmental causality. 
• Required to employ expensive sensor technologies as accelerometers, laser emitters, and acoustic wave generators. 
• Limited to single point determinations or collated data from caches of single data points. 
• Time-consuming and manpower intensive 
•  Limited to providing short-term data only.   

The Solution: Combining motion capture technology with computer vision techniques and systems to provide non-contact monitoring both during and after construction.   

By engaging current high speed and highly accurate motion capture technology and employing enhanced computer vision techniques, it is possible to collect real-time motion data of structural vibrations. These vibrations are caused by microscopic defects in both building materials and building structures.   

And with 3D motion capture systems like the MPT technology, which are portable and easy to use, municipalities, building owners, and construction companies can provide a 24/7 safety measure with little manpower or complication.