What’s the Point of Artificial Intelligence in BricsCAD BIM?

Did you know that automation and Artificial Intelligence in BricsCAD® BIM can greatly assist you in your BIM workflows? To show you how, we’ve outlined six key processes in the design phase of a typical construction or refurbishment project.

WHY DO FEW ARCHITECTS OR CONTRACTORS USE BIM?

We hear from time to time that the concept of Building Information Modeling (BIM) has failed to deliver, and the adoption of BIM methodologies across the AEC industry has been low – arguably because BIM is viewed as something complex and complicated.

At Bricsys®, we think differently, and we are radically focused on delivering a BIM solution that boosts creativity rather than adding complexity.

ACCELERATING THE BUILDING DESIGN WORKFLOW WITH BRICSCAD® BIM TODAY

To accomplish this, the R&D team at Bricsys® places AI techniques, and other smart algorithms, at the heart of BricsCAD®. We don’t replace the Architect, Engineer, Contractor, or Manufacturer. Instead, we develop design tools to assist our users in their design and documentation workflows intelligently. The goal is to let the computer deal with the repetitive tasks, so you can focus on the creative process of design.

Conceptual Design

Our mission is to make prototyping and conceptual modeling in 3D as easy as sketching with a pen and paper. Why is it easy to create a simple house in a computer game and so hard in a CAD program? With BricsCAD’s unique tools like BIMQUICKDRAW and BIMSTAIR, the simplicity and fun of a computer game are brought to precision CAD software (See Fig. 1).

Starting a project with a mass study

Construction projects usually don’t start from scratch. Often, the first step is to conduct a mass study. From there, architects first define the shape of a building based on the physical boundaries of the plot and some - usually environmental – regulations. BricsCAD’s BIMQUICKBUILDING functionality fully supports this workflow. The tool takes a solid mass, representing the high-level shape of the building, and automatically creates outer walls, slabs, roofs, and floor spaces.

Does BricsCAD BIM support Scan-To-BIM?

Many projects are refurbishments of existing buildings rather than new buildings. Today’s laser scanners enable surveyors to map actual buildings to a point cloud with higher density and accuracy than ever before.

Alongside conceptual modeling and mass modeling, BricsCAD® BIM supports a complete Scan-To-BIM workflow (See Fig. 2). Load a point cloud in BricsCAD®, fit some planes, and stitch them to solids (FITPLANAR) to represent spaces and invert these spaces (BIMINVERTSPACES) to obtain a complete 3D CAD model.

These first three processes all result in a conceptual, accurate 3D geometric model with a low level of detail.

How to add data to a BIM model in BricsCAD BIM?

To make your building model ‘smart’, you need to add meta-data. Compared to other BIM software packages, BIM classification and property data in BricsCAD® are not baked into the geometry itself - it’s something extra’, so you don’t need to worry about it until you have a 3D geometric model.

Now, instead of manually adding BIM meta-data to the geometry, you can use BIMIFY (See Fig. 3). This tool automatically leverages Machine Learning technology to classify 3D objects as BIM building elements. For architects creating and modeling building designs, complete with all components, BIMIFY enables users to take a geometry-first approach and let the software take care of the rest.

As well as classifications, you can apply a specific ‘building style,’ defined by the compositions of walls, slabs, roofs, floor elevations, windows, doors, and stairs parameters. The BIMAUTOMATCH command will analyze the ’building style’ of a building (e.g., from a previous project) and use a decision-tree machine learning algorithm to apply that style to the current structure.

Can I increase the level of detail in a model?

One way you can increase the level of detail in a model is by designing detailed connections, for example, between the structural and finishing piles of a wall and a slab or between a structural beam and a column. The clever BIMPROPAGATE command allows you to design a detail once and automatically apply it to similar locations in the model (See Fig. 4). Of course, you remain in control: you decide which suggestions to use and which to reject simply by toggling checkmarks ‘on’ or ‘off’.

Easily generate construction documentation in BricsCAD BIM

Finally, 2D construction documentation needs to be generated from the BIM model. Typically, this is a labor-intensive process: picking the right points in the plan to add dimensions, playing with layer properties to change the visual appearance of building elements on the plan, manually attaching tags, creating legends … and the list goes on! Fortunately, Typed Plans in BricsCAD® BIM enable you to fully customize the appearance of sectioned entities and how tags are placed effortlessly.

At Bricsys®, we are radically focused on identifying and automating repetitive and labor-intensive tasks throughout the various stages of BIM design workflows. By putting you in control of all processes, BricsCAD® BIM boosts creativity without adding complexity!

The Future Potential Of Generative Ai In Bricscad Bim

Generative AI is quite a buzzword, but that doesn’t mean it’s a fad. The Architecture and Engineering sectors will adopt this technology more quickly as a greater number of solutions become available to solve nicely bound problems – like classifying 3D objects into building elements and engineering system classes. So, how and why are we using Generative AI in BricsCAD®?

In the first half of this article, we’ve shown our eagerness to accelerate your building design workflow by letting the computer deal with repetitive and painful tasks. This is where we are using Generative AI in our product development: when it makes sense, and where it adds value by speeding up design workflows for our users and giving them back some time for creativity.

Software Product development is a steady process that requires carefully considered steps. When developing BricsCAD®, our first principle is to keep innovating to offer the best-in-class CAD solution. Following on, the technology we harness focuses on boosting our users’ productivity – these guiding ideas led us to start developing Generative AI in BricsCAD®

BUILDING A GENERATIVE AI MODEL –WELL-CONSIDERED, UNCOMPLICATED.

To build a successful Generative AI model, we always need to start with a well-defined problem, and a clear action plan, and then ask ourselves the question: “Do we really need to use AI to solve this?” For example, if a problem can be determined in a heuristic way, then an AI model might not always be the best way forward, and more straightforward solutions are probably available.

We take care not to be over-zealous in our approach – we may risk overcomplicating the entire process –so prefer to keep it simple. Once we’ve established that an AI model is the best solution, defining the correct model features and preparing the training data usually takes most of the time when developing AI in BricsCAD®

AIDING PERFORMANCE-BASED DESIGN IN BRICSCAD BIM

Generative AI is no longer a nascent technology, and companies are now adopting it across industries to create initial product offerings, improve initial product design or increase operational efficiency. We’re implementing Generative AI to solve our users’ problems, and we’ve found two use cases where Generative AI models could help our users in the future with improved, performance-based building design.

Quick compliance checking

When room and building designs need to meet specific health and safety legislation or codes, such as building accessibility, emergency exits, and ventilation, the rules-to-model generators can help architects and designers check rules quickly. Design specifications for these requirements can be inputted into generative models so that the model uses the rules as prompt-text instructions, for example, to generate a floor plan from an existing drawing that meets the code specified.

Sustainable building design

The rule-checking process can be expanded to include any set of rules that could instruct a model to enhance a building’s design. For example, suppose a model is trained with data on how much direct sunlight each room in a building will have. In this case, the model could create more energyefficient heating and air conditioning configurations. Or, a model could create a design that layers the necessary soundproofing materials when provided with data on ambient noise levels. With the increasing demand for sustainability, the correct use of Generative AI is set to become a vital tool for furthering the design of sustainable buildings.

Current Challenges To Ai In Cad

Using AI in CAD development presents its own set of challenges. One roadblock is that AI-enabled CAD systems aren’t based on NLP models yet, so they are currently relatively rigid. Technical work needs to be done on this point to increase the accessibility of these systems by training Generative AI models to understand natural language instructions.

Another significant barrier is the resistance by design professionals to adopt AI technologies. For some, the idea of AI interfering with or replacing creative processes is deterring. It may be counterintuitive, but technologies like Generative AI present the opportunity to increase creativity for industrial designers and architects. Building rote processes, like rule checking and rapid image generation into design work, gives designers time to experiment and play with their creativity – reaping the benefits of an enhanced rather than a redundant creative process.

More About BricsCAD®

Explore all the BricsCAD® editions and features by downloading the free, 30-day trial of BricsCAD® Ultimate. The latest BricsCAD® V23 improves the tools and features users love, as well as new functionality and UI that supercharge productivity.

Wouter Nys works as R&D Manager at Bricsys®. Wouter entered the CAD world right after graduation from university when he joined Bricsys® as an R&D Software Engineer. In this role, he worked on a variety of unique-to-BricsCAD® tools such as BLOCKIFY, BIMQUICKDRAW, and BIMSTAIR. This brought him in contact with many areas of the application and brought insight into what CAD professionals are doing in their day-today jobs. In his current role, he leads the AI team, provides technical guidance to the R&D Software Engineers, and works with all Product Managers who are responsible for building time-saving solutions across the BricsCAD® product portfolio, building the BricsCAD® of tomorrow.