Flexible linking of semantic, procedural and logic models for consistent multi-scale infrastructure design

In recent years, a tendency toward the adoption of neutral product models has been observed in the Architecture Engineering and Construction (AEC) industry. Product models such as Industry Foundation Classes (IFC) allow engineers to exchange and integrate information in a flexible and reliable way. Thanks to the strict separation between geometry and semantics, a number of extensions have been developed, spanning from semantic definitions to procedural multi-scale geometric representations. However, the design knowledge underlying the design of infrastructure models cannot be completely encapsulated by the approaches proposed so far. This paper contributes to close this technological gap by introducing the concept of logic models,which enable engineers to describe, store and exchange the full design knowledge employed for specific design problems. Thus, logic models provide a bridge between abstract design rules and concrete geometrical representations. In addition, we propose an extension of the IFC model, which enables a flexible linking between logic and semantic-geometric models. As proof-of-concept we present three logic models for shield-tunnel infrastructure projects, which were coupled with a multi-scale geometric-semantic model.