Virtual reality for the built environment: A critical review of recent advances

This paper reviews the current state of the art for Virtual Reality (VR) and Virtual Environment (VE) applications in the field of the built environment. The review begins with a brief overview of technological components involved in enabling VR technology. A classification framework is developed to...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Kim, Mi, Wang, Xiangyu, Love, Peter, Li, Heng, Kang, Shih-Chung
Format: Journal Article
Published: International Council for Research and Innovation in Building and Construction 2013
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.itcon.org/2013/14
http://hdl.handle.net/20.500.11937/48139
Description
Summary:This paper reviews the current state of the art for Virtual Reality (VR) and Virtual Environment (VE) applications in the field of the built environment. The review begins with a brief overview of technological components involved in enabling VR technology. A classification framework is developed to classify 150 journal papers in order to reveal the scholarly coverage of VR and VE from 2005 to 2011, inclusive. The classification framework summarizes achievements, established knowledge, research issues and challenges in the area. The framework is based on four layers of VR: concept and theory, implementation, evaluation and industrial adoption. These layers encompass architecture and design, urban planning and landscape, engineering, construction, facility management, lifecycle integration, training and education. This paper also discusses various representative VR research work in line with the classification framework. Finally the paper predicts future research trends in this area.