Automatic Conversion of CityGML to IFC

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Abstract

This study presents a methodology to convert from the most dominant 3D city model standard in 3D GIS to BIM. Namely, CityGML to IFC. IFC is chosen because it is the common open standard to exchange data in the BIM world. For the aim of this study, the two standards are divided into 5 comparable sub-parts; Semantics, Geometry, Geographical coordinates, Topology, and Encoding. The characteristics of each of these sub-parts are studied and a theoretical conversion method is proposed for it from the first standard to the other. This is done by performing a semantic and geometrical mapping between the two standards, converting the georeferencing from Global to local, converting the encoding that the two standards use from XML to STEP, deciding which topological relations are to be retained, and providing a basic implementation that is created using Python to combine the above tasks. The work presented in this thesis can provide a foundation for future work in converting CityGML to IFC. It provides an insight into the relationship between the two standards and a methodology for the conversion from one to the other, and the process of developing software to perform such conversion. This is done in a way that can be extended for future specific needs.