2017 Urban Research Awards: 3D Models and Virtual Reality Techniques for Mapping & Analyzing Above and Underground Urban Infrastructures (UIMAGE)

Earth & Environment Ph.D. candidate Yaxiong Ma, in collaboration with Earth & Environment Professors Sucharita Gopal and Nathan Phillips, will design and build a prototype model using 3D Models and Virtual Reality Techniques for Mapping & Analyzing Above and Underground Urban Infrastructures. The model, called UIMAGE (Underground Infrastructures Mapping Analyzing Geospatial), will enable 3D rendering of above and below ground urban infrastructure and create a virtual reality experience to enable users to experience a realistic backdrop and the dynamics of underground infrastructure.

Ma will prototype two areas in Boston: Dorchester Avenue and Bay State Road on the BU Charles River campus. In creating these models, Yaxiong hopes to engage with the City of Boston so future city planners can use these tools to more accurately plan and configure both above- and below-ground infrastructure.

View more projects funded through our Early Stage Urban Research Awards