AR tech to help workers ‘see’ underground utilities trialled

Augmented reality (AR) technology that helps workers visualise underground utilities is being trialled by contractor Morrison Utility Services in partnership with Vinci-owned highways specialist Eurovia UK.

The pair are deploying technology developed by Eurovia called Augmented Visualisation of Underground Services (Avus) in work for clients Thames Water and Yorkshire Water.

Avus lets onsite workers map and view underground services via Android smartphones or tablets. The layout of pipes and cables can be viewed in 2D plan form or as a 3D drawing overlaid on the device’s camera view, using real-time AR techniques.

The ability to view CAD drawings that are synchronised with the worker’s real-world location and movement on site is expected to reduce accidental damage during excavations, the companies said.

The Avus system can also be used to capture detailed 3D records of any work carried out before holes are backfilled. This is expected to improve the accuracy of data for any future work at the same site. In a statement, Morrison Utility Services said the technology can locate the positions of underground items with a tolerance of 5cm.

It requires a device running Google’s Android 7 operating system. An additional handheld positioning bracket is also needed to deliver maximum accuracy.

A successful first trial of the technology was carried out by Morrison Utility Services on a Thames Water job in South London last October.

Morrison Utility Services director of IT, innovation and improvement Andy Carter said the technology rollout was “born from real-life business challenges” and that the AR facilities offered by Avus represented “a real industry game changer”. Eurovia UK director of innovation Yogesh Patel, added: “When we developed the Avus technology, we always knew that it would make a big impact on the safety and success of planning and programming of works.”

Prior to lockdown last year, Construction News witnessed the use of AR on site at complex central London build being tackled by contractor Multiplex, using technology supplied by Danish firm Dalux.