Artificial intelligence-based voice assistant for BIM data management

Abstract

Existing systems that employ Automatic Speech Recognition (ASR) technology to retrieve information from the BIM model fail to provide remote interaction, retrieve a wide range of data, and automate the entire process. This is particularly a problem for users with disabilities. The paper offers a two-way, automated, and agnostic solution to this theoretical and methodological gap. A ‘Proof of Concept’ prototype was developed using Amazon Alexa – as the AI voice assistant platform – to test the applicability. The outcome shows that the created and the retrieved information is valid. Furthermore, there is a high level of interoperability among the components of the proposed solution, including the AI voice assistant interface and mediation environment to convert verbal requests and retrieve information to CSV files. Future research will extend the created solution to retrieve and access information from a BIM cloud model.