AR-Informed Collaborative Timber (Pre-)Fabrication

Associated Project 29 (AP 29)

IntCDC Associated Project 29 – AR-Informed Collaborative Timber (Pre-)Fabrication
MRK II – FLEXIBLE (PRE-)FABRICATION IN TIMBER CONSTRUCTION VIA AR-INFORMED HUMAN-ROBOT COLLABORATION WITH MULTIPLE MACHINES AND HUMAN CRAFT

The timber prefabrication industry is moving away from craftsmanship towards higher levels of automation. In this context, the role of craftspeople has received little attention. Their ability to identify problems and act flexibly with hand tools continues to make them a valuable asset, especially in the low-volume production of SME prefabrication sites. Developments in robotic technologies and advances in augmented reality (AR) facilitate rich, real-time communication between human and robotic actors, opening up new possibilities for flexible, adaptive and efficient production processes. This project aims to bring together craftspeople and large-scale automation technology through AR-informed human-robot collaboration to carry out complex, collaborative (pre-)fabrication processes.

The research project explores novel flexibilisation strategies for the collaborative production of building components with multiple human and robotic actors. Concepts for safety and work zone systems are also proposed. The approach counters the progressive reduction and exclusion of human craftsmanship contribution in the full-automation paradigm. It aims to develop an agile, competitive manufacturing strategy for organisations that cannot afford extensive automation, and to help craftspeople thrive in value-added activities in the construction industry.

 

PRINCIPAL INVESTIGATOR
Prof. Achim Menges
Institute for Computational Design and Construction (ICD), University of Stuttgart

RESEARCHERS
Dr. techn. Felix Amtsberg (ICD)
Xiliu Yang (ICD)

PARTNERS
müllerblaustein HolzBauWerke GmbH
BEC GmbH

FUNDING
Bundesinstitut für Bau-, Stadt- und Raumforschung (BBSR) im Bundesamt für Bauwesen und Raumordnung, Innovationsprogramm Zukunft Bau

PEER-REVIEWED PUBLICATIONS

  1. 2025

    1. Aygün, D., Calepso, A. S., Yang, X., Menges, A., & Sedlmair, M. (2025). Mixing and Matching: Instruction Conveyance for Collaborative Tasks Using Asymmetric Augmented Reality Setups. 2025 IEEE Conference on Virtual Reality and 3D User Interfaces Abstracts and Workshops (VRW), 1072–1078. https://doi.org/10.1109/VRW66409.2025.00215
    2. Pittiglio, A., Yang, X., Kladeftira, M., Amstberg, F., Menges, A., & Parascho, S. (2025). Augmented Human-Robot Collaborative Bending: Human-robot collaboration for biogenic material bending-active assemblies. Proceedings of the 30th International Conference of the Association for Computer-Aided Architectural Design Research in Asia (CAADRIA) 2025, 2, 315–324.
    3. Yang, X., Pathmanathan, N., Zabel, S., Amtsberg, F., Otto, S., Kurzhals, K., Sedlmair, M., & Menges, A. (2025). Exploring the Use of Augmented Reality for Multi-human-robot Collaboration with Industry Users in Timber Construction. Proceedings of the Extended Abstracts of the CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. https://doi.org/10.1145/3706599.3720104
    4. Yang, X., Sasikumar, P., Amtsberg, F., Menges, A., Sedlmair, M., & Nanayakkara, S. (2025). Who is in Control? Understanding User Agency in AR-assisted Construction Assembly. Proceedings of the 2025 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. https://doi.org/10.1145/3706598.3713765

  2. 2024

    1. Opgenorth, N., Cheng, T., Lauer, P. R. A., Stark, T., Tahouni, Y., Treml, S., Göbel, M., Kiesewetter, L., Schlopschnat, C., Zorn, M. B., Yang, X., Amtsberg, F., Wagner, H. J., Wood, D., Sawodny, O., Wortmann, T., & Menges, A. (2024). Multi-scalar computational fabrication and construction of bio-based building envelopes – the livMatS biomimetic shell. Fabricate 2024: Creating Resourceful Futures, 22–31. https://doi.org/10.2307/jj.11374766.7
    2. Pathmanathan, N., Rau, T., Yang, X., Calepso, A. S., Amtsberg, F., Menges, A., Sedlmair, M., & Kurzhals, K. (2024). Eyes on the Task: Gaze Analysis of Situated Visualization for Collaborative Tasks. 2024 IEEE Conference Virtual Reality and 3D User Interfaces (VR), 785–795. https://doi.org/10.1109/VR58804.2024.00098
    3. Yang, X., Amtsberg, F., Sedlmair, M., & Menges, A. (2024). Challenges and potential for human–robot collaboration in timber prefabrication. Automation in Construction, 160, 105333. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.autcon.2024.105333

  3. 2023

    1. Amtsberg, F., Yang, X., Skoury, L., Ron, G., Kaiser, B., Sousa Calepso, A., Sedlmair, M., Verl, A., Wortmann, T., & Menges, A. (2023). Multi-Akteur-Fabrikation im Bauwesen. Bautechnik, 100, Article 10. https://doi.org/10.1002/bate.202300070
    2. Amtsberg, F., Yang, X., Skoury, L., Sousa Calepso, A., Sedlmair, M., Wortmann, T., & Menges, A. (2023). Multi-Actor Fabrication for Digital Timber Construction. eCAADe Proceedings. https://doi.org/10.52842/conf.ecaade.2023.1.417
    3. Yang, X., Sousa Calepso, A., Amtsberg, F., Menges, A., & Sedlmair, M. (2023). Usability Evaluation of an Augmented Reality System for Collaborative Fabrication between Multiple Humans and Industrial Robots. Proceedings of the 2023 ACM Symposium on Spatial User Interaction, 1–10. https://doi.org/10.1145/3607822.3614528

  4. 2022

    1. Yang, X., Amtsberg, F., Skoury, L., Wagner, H. J., & Menges, A. (2022). Vizor, Facilitating Cyber-physical Workflows in Prefabrication through Augmented Reality. CAADRIA Proceedings. https://doi.org/10.52842/conf.caadria.2022.2.141
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