Comparative Analysis aimed at optimization and visualization of BIM for VR applications.

In this thesis, we explore the proper visualization of Autodesk Revit data inside virtual reality applications by presenting a new optimization framework as a plugin inside Autodesk 3DS Max. This plugin leverages new Autodesk APIs, in conjunction with Maxscript to read and translate BIM data from Revit, while preserving its metadata, materials and textures. Multiple model optimization procedures are then applied automatically, most importantly an LOD system for every model. To test our proposed framework, we conducted a comparative analysis of quantitative data gathered from multiple virtual reality applications running inside an Oculus Quest VR device. Results show that the applications developed using our proposed framework performed better than the applications developed using the Datasmith toolset (current industry standard), both in terms of higher average frames per second and lower GPU usage.