IfcWoD, Semantically Adapting IFC Model Relations into OWL Properties

TL;DR

This paper introduces IfcWoD, a semantic adaptation of IFC models into OWL that enhances interoperability and query efficiency in Building Information Modelling by considering the meaning of entities and relationships.

Contribution

It presents a novel semantic adaptation of IFC into OWL, optimizing file size and query performance while preserving the meaning of IFC entities and relationships.

Findings

Improved query execution time demonstrated through benchmarks

Semantic adaptation preserves IFC entity meanings

Optimization of IFC file size achieved

Abstract

In the context of Building Information Modelling, ontologies have been identified as interesting in achieving information interoperability. Regarding the construction and facility management domains, several IFC (Industry Foundation Classes) based ontologies have been developed, such as IfcOWL. In the context of ontology modelling, the constraint of optimizing the size of IFC STEP-based files can be leveraged. In this paper, we propose an adaptation of the IFC model into OWL which leverages from all modelling constraints required by the object-oriented structure of IFC schema. Therefore, we do not only present a syntactic but also a semantic adaptation of the IFC model. Our model takes into consideration the meaning of entities, relationships, properties and attributes defined by the IFC standard. Our approach presents several advantages compared to other initiatives such as the optimization of query execution time. Every advantage is defended by means of practical examples and benchmarks.