Prof. Fan (Frank) Xue - Associate Professor, HKU

Research Projects
(as PI/Co-PI)

We are grateful for about HK$ 15 million research grants from generous funding agencies, including , , , , & .

GRF(4), ECS(1), CRF (1), TRS(1):

1/2022 - 12/2026

Theme-based Research Scheme (TRS, T22-504/21-R)

Healthy and resilient city with pervasive LoCHs. 遍佈室外熱舒適小區的健康韌性城市. HK$1.21M of 34.6M (RGC) + HK$0.14M (HKU) (As Co-PI, PC: Prof J Niu)
Keywords: Derivative-free optimization; complex engineering optimization; CFD; machine learning; surrogate modeling; optimum urban design

1/2024 - 12/2026

General Research Fund (GRF, 17200123)

As-built building information modeling (BIM) of RC details from radar images: A derivative-free optimization (DFO) approach based on Yee’s model. 使用雷達圖像生成 BIM 的鋼筋混凝土細節———— 一類基於余氏模型的無導數優化方法. HK$793,117.
Keywords: BIM automation; RC details; Ground-penetrating radar; Yee's FDTD model; DFO

1/2023 - 12/2025

Collaborative Research Fund (CRF, C7080-22GF)

Generative DfX in high-rise modular building: An expert-augmented cascade graph learning and optimisation approach. 模塊化高層建築的卓越化生成設計：專家知識增強的級聯圖學習與優化解決方案. HK$0.8M of 5.31M. (As Co-PI, PC: Prof W Lu)
Keywords: Derivative-free optimization (DFO); High-rise modular building; Design for excellence; Generative design; Machine learning; Design knowledge management

1/2022 - 12/2024

General Research Fund (GRF, 17200221)

Building information modeling (BIM) on chain: from ‘stocks’ of model files to ‘flows’ of semantic trees. 整合建築信息模擬及區塊鏈————將「存量」文件轉化為「增量」語義樹. HK$799,692.
Keywords: BIM; semantics hierarchy; blockchain; CAST

1/2021 - 12/2023

Early Career Scheme (ECS, 27200520)

From point cloud to building and city information model (BIM/CIM): A study of architectonic grammar optimization. 建築及城市信息模型的一類構造語法最優化方法. HK$635,569.
Keywords: Architectonic grammar; BIM; CIM; 3D point cloud

7/2018 - 12/2021

General Research Fund (GRF, 17200218)

A derivative-free optimization (DFO) approach to architectural symmetry detection from 3D point clouds. 三維點雲中建築對稱性識別的一類無導數優化(DFO)方法. HK$522,846.
Keywords: Architecture; symmetry; DFO; 3D point cloud

1/2018 - 6/2021

General Research Fund (GRF, 17201717)

Generation of semantically rich as-built Building Information Models (BIMs): A derivative-free optimization (DFO) approach. 語義豐富的建成建築信息模型（BIM）生成：一類無導數優化方法. HK$454,157.
Keywords: BIM; DFO; 2D imagery; 3D point cloud

HKITC

ITF Tier-1 (2), ITF PSTS (1), ITF RTH (4):

4/2023 - 3/2025

Innovation and Technology Fund (ITF) Tier-1 (ITP/004/23LP)

Scan-to-BIM Automation System for Built Assets Digitalization in Hong Kong. HK$5.21M (ITF) + 2.3M (Industry sponsorship) = 7.51M. 📺 📺
Keywords: 3D point cloud; deep learning; BIM; CIM; open BIM

3/2024 - 3/2026

ITF PSTS (ITT/004/24LP)

e-TranStar 2.0: i-Core-enabled Smart Just-in-Time MiC Transportation Planning. HK$0.8M of 3.73M. (As Co-PI, PC: Prof Wilson Lu).

1/2021 - 12/2022

ITF Tier-1 (ITP/029/20LP)

“BIM Square”: blockchain and i-Core-enabled multi-stakeholder building information modelling platform for construction logistics and supply chain management in Hong Kong. HK$1.06M of 10.36M. (As Co-PI, PC: Prof Wilson Lu).
Keywords: Construction logistics and supply chain; quality assurance; blockchain; open BIM; i-Core oracles for blockchain

GDST, China

1/2023 - 12/2025

Natural Science Fund of Guangdong (2023A1515010757)

From 3D Real Scene to 3D semantics: Reconstruction of semantic volumetric building models using 3D skeletons in urban point clouds. 從實景三維到語義三維：城市點雲中建築三維骨架的語義體塊重構與分析. HK$ 121,000.
Keywords: 3D Real Scene; 3D semantics; volumetric building models; 3D skeleton; urban point clouds

9/2019 - 8/2022

Key R&D Program of Guangdong (2019B010151001)

The applications of Virtual Reality technologies for cultural heritage conservation in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Greater Bay Area. 面向粵港澳歷史文化保護傳承的虛擬現實技術研究與應用. 5% of CNY 10.0 M. (As Co-PI, PC: Dr Youyi Xiong)
Keywords: Digital conservation; VR; BIM; GIS; automatic as-is modeling

SZSTI, China

7/2021 - 7/2023

Shenzhen-Hong Kong-Macau Technology Research Programme (Type C) (SGDX20201103093600002)

High-definition 3D point cloud and dynamic semantics enabled lean quality assurance system for prefabricated housing products. 高精點雲及動態語義驅動的裝配式建築產部品質量精益控制關鍵技術研究. HK$800,000 of 1.26M (As PI, Co-PI: Prof Clyde Li)
Keywords: LIDAR; prefabricated construction; 3D point cloud; quality inspection

HKU

Seed(8), PTF(1), SPF(1), ROP(1), CCMC(1), TDG(2):

7/2021 - 6/2022

Teaching Development Grant (101002041)

Multi-user Internet Narrative Environment of HKU (MineHKU) for smart city courses and virtual campus events. HK$294,000.
Keywords: voxel modeling; gamification; 3D point cloud

/2020 - /2021

Small Equipment Grant (60%) + Stanley Ho Alumni Challenge (SHAC) (207051055, 40%)

Mobile Color LiDAR Scanners. HK$760,000.
Keywords: color LiDAR; SLAM; indoor model; 3D point cloud

/2018 - /2020

Platform Technology Fund

Development of an urban big data platform for smarter Hong Kong: integrate to inspire. 50% of HK$915,870 (As Co-PI, PC: Prof Chris Webster)
Keywords: urban big data; urban computing; deep learning; street view; 3D point cloud

/2019 - /2020

HKU-Tsinghua SPF

A derivative-free optimization (DFO) approach for 3D scene understanding using civil engineering context. HK$70,000 HKU side + CNY 70,000 Tsinghua side. (Co-PI: Prof Hongling Guo)
Keywords: BIM; DFO; deep learning; 3D point cloud

/2019 - /2020

Seed Fund for Basic Research (201811159177)

Towards spatiotemporal building city information model (BIM/CIM): Semantic voxel modeling based on Gestalt principles. HK$93,200.
Keywords: 3D point cloud; semantics; voxel modeling; Gestalt principles

/2018 - /2019

Seed Fund for Basic Research (201711159016)

'Find them all': A multi-modal optimization approach for automated detection of repetition in urban scenes. HK$111,050.
Keywords: 3D point cloud; repetition; multimodal optimization

/2017 - /2018

Seed Fund for Basic Research (201702159013)

Automated architectural symmetry recognition from 3D point clouds. HK$300,000.
Keywords: 3D point cloud; symmetry; optimization

Projects invovled as Co-I (selected)

RGC GRF (17202224, HK$755,442). PanoCause: Auto-profiling illegal dumping 'black spots' using a novel panoptic deep causal discovery approach. 1/2025 - 12/2027. (PI: Prof Wilson Lu)

RGC GRF (17202424, HK$784,135). Detecting and modeling building defects in context: A novel learning-based registration of as-damaged reality capture with as-designed drawings. 1/2025 - 12/2027. (PI: Dr Junjie Chen)

RGC GRF (15225822, HK$1,115,452). Stakeholder Analysis in the Dynamic and Complex Environment of Megaprojects. 1/2023 - 12/2025. (PI: Prof Geoffrey Qiping Shen)

RGC GRF (15219422, HK$786,000). Inspection work package on chain: dynamic planning and accountable collaboration. 1/2023 - 12/2025. (PI: Prof Xiao Li)

NSFC/RGC JRS (Conference) (N_HKU7130/24, HK$244,000). Frontiers of Digital Twins in Intelligent Manufacturing and Smart Cities. 7/2024 - 6/2025. (PI: Prof Ray Zhong)

PPR (2022.A8.129.22C, HK$244,949). Prefabrication Hub Feasibility for Hong Kong Construction Industry: An Integrated Approach. 1/2023 - 12/2023. (PI: Prof Ray Zhong)

NSFC General Program (72071022, CNY 480,000). Unfolding the multiple complexities in the formation, quantification, and interactions of resource metabolism in construction projects [建設工程項目資源代謝多重複雜性的形成機理、測度模式與作用機制研究]. 1/2021 - 12/2024. (PI: Prof Chris J Hong)

RGC GRF (17203920, HK$684,520). Enhancing Underground Development Users' Health through an Automated Risk Assessment System for Facilities Management. 1/2021 - 12/2023. (PI: Prof Isabelle Chan)

ECF (128/2021, HK$478,130). Building demolition waste management through smart BIM in Hong Kong. 6/2022 - 11/2023. (PI: Prof Ray Zhong)

ECF (111/2019, HK$485,000). Big data-based "AI inspector" for gauging inert contents at the off-site construction waste sorting facilities in Hong Kong. 9/2020 - 8/2022. (PI: Prof Wilson Lu)

HKU KE (2021/22-10, HK$150,000). Visualizing and Recollecting the Heritage Waterworks on Hong Kong Island and Kowloon Peninsula for the Public and the Professionals. 10/2021 - 6/2022. (PI: Dr Katherine Deng)

SPPR (S2018.A8.010.18S, HK$2.9M). Boosting Construction Waste Material Sharing in the Guangdong-Hong Kong-Macao Bay Area. 2/2019 - 2/2022. (PI: Prof Wilson Lu)

NSSFC Major Program (17ZDA062, CNY 800,000). Evaluation on the environment-resources carrying capacity in megacities and policy instruments with the big data background [大數據背景下我國大型城市資源環境承載力評價與政策研究]. 11/2017 - 11/2020. (PI: Prof Liyin Shen)

NSFC General Program (71671156, CNY 493,000). A Social Network Analysis and NK-model based study of stakeholder relationship in mega construction projects [基於社會網絡分析及NK模型的重大建設項目幹系人關系研究]. 1/2017 - 12/2020. (PI: Prof Geoffrey Shen)

PPR (2018.A8.078.18D). "Finding the Needles in a Haystack": Identification of the Illegal Dumping of Construction Waste Using Big Data. 1/2019 - 6/2020. HK$447,350. (PI: Prof Wilson Lu)

NSFC General Program (60472123). Airport ground service scheduling optimization based on multi-agent coordination and data fusion [基於多Agent協作及信息融合的飛機地面作業運行控制優化算法研究]. 1/2005-12/2005. CNY 80,000. (PI: Prof. W. Fan).
Keywords: multi-agent-driven algorithm; scheduling; airport

Projects invovled as Supervisor (selected)

Sino-British Fellowship Trust Visitorship. HK$45,000 (PI: Dr. Yuandong Pan)

Type-B Research Postgraduate Scholarship. HK$540,000 (Student: Mr. Rui Jeremy Zhao)

Honors & Awards

2024

Gold Medal: 49th International Exhibition of Inventions of Geneva, Geneva, Switzerland. "Automatic AI generation of photorealistic window views and openness indexes using 3D City Information Models (CIM)" (US 63/269,891, PCT/CN2023/077947, WO 2023/179296 A1) 🏆 📺

Dual Winners (both 2D track & 3D track): 4th International Scan-to-BIM Challenge, CVPR2024, Seattle, USA.

First Prize: The 2024 Geospatial Information Technology Progress Award, China Association for Geospatial Industry and Sciences (CAGIS), Kunming, China. 🏆

Dual Outstanding Mentor Award: The 16th Innovation Competition in Construction Engineering and Management, Tsinghua University, Beijing & Gammon Construction Ltd., Hong Kong. 🏆 🏆 (Students' 1st-Prize project entitled "4D-Point Cloud (4DPC) and Blockchain-enabled Lean Quality Management Platform for the Prefabricated Products" [2nd out of 72 teams from China Mainland and Hong Kong] 🏆)

Merit Award of Student Research: The Hong Kong OpenBIM / OpenGIS Awards 2024, Hong Kong, China. 🏆

2023

Winner (3D track), 2nd Place (2D track): 3rd International Scan-to-BIM Challenge, CVPR2023, Vancouver, Canada. 🏆 🏆 📺 📺 📺 📺 📺 📺 📺

First Prize of the 2023 Survey and Mapping Science and Technology Award: Chinese Society for Geodesy, Photogrammetry, and Cartography (CSGPC, 中國測繪學會), Deqing, Zhejiang, China. 🏆 📺 📺 📺 📺

Best Conference Paper Award (1st place) of GSCS & ICUI 2023: Global Smart Cities Summit cum The 3rd International Conference on Urban Informatics, Hong Kong, China. 🏆 📺

Outstanding Paper Award of CRIOCM 2023: 28th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate, Nanjing, China. 🏆

Honorable Mention of BIM Automation Arena 2023 (The 1st Competition and Showcase on BIM x Programming for BIM Enthusiasts (Hong Kong Station)), HKIBIM, Hong Kong, China. 🏆

HKU Foundation Publication Award for Research Postgraduate Students 2023, HKU (≤20 awardees a year; as corresponding author). 🏆

2022

2nd Place (3D track), 3rd Place (2D track): 2nd Scan-to-BIM Challenge, CVPR2022, New Orleans, USA. 🏆 🏆

2021 Best Paper Award: Resources, Conservation and Recycling, Elsevier. 🏆

2022 Best Peer Reviewed Paper Award: Journal of Management in Engineering, ASCE. 🏆

Merit Award of Research: The Hong Kong OpenBIM / OpenGIS Awards 2022, Hong Kong, China. 🏆

Merit Award: HKU-IDS “Data is the New Art Form” Art Competition 2022, Hong Kong, China. 🏆

2021

Winner of the buildingSMART International Awards for Professional Research 2021: bSI Virtual Summit 2021, London, UK. 🏆

Second runner-up of the 1st Scan-to-BIM Challenge: Workshop on CV4AEC, CVPR2021. 🏆

Outstanding Alumnus: Civil Aviation University of China.

Outstanding Paper Award and dual Merit Paper Awards of CRIOCM'2021: The 26th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate, Beijing, China.

2020

Early Career Scheme Award 2019/20: Research Grants Council of Hong Kong SAR, China.

2020 Featured Article: ISPRS Journal of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing, Elsevier. 🏆

Research Output Prize 2018/19: The University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China. 🏆

Dual Outstanding Paper Awards and triple Merit Paper Awards of CRIOCM'2020: The 25th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate, Wuhan, China. 🏆 🏆 🏆 🏆 🏆

2019

Best Paper Award of ICSBS'2019: International Conference on Sustainable Buildings and Structures, Suzhou, China. 🏆

2017

The Special Award for Joint Computing in Construction: The LC3 Innovation Competition 2017, Heraklion, Greece.

Finalist in the Construction Industry Council (CIC) Construction Innovation Award 2017, Hong Kong SAR, China. 📺

2016

Best Paper Award of CRIOCM'2016: The 21st International Conference on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM'2016), Hong Kong SAR, China. 🏆

Dual winners of GECCO'2016 Combinatorial Black Box Optimization (CBBOC): The 2016 Genetic and Evolutionary Computation Conference, Denver, USA.

2015

Tripple winners of GECCO'2015 Combinatorial Black Box Optimization (CBBOC): The 2015 Genetic and Evolutionary Computation Conference, Madrid, Spain.

2011

The third runner-up (of 30 teams), the first on the public Leaderboard (of 17 teams) in the first Cross-domain Heuristic Search Challenge (CHeSC 2011): The 53rd Operational Research Society Conference (OR53), Nottingham, UK.

Publications

ESI Top 1% Researcher
World Top 2% Scientist

Field-Weighted Citation Impact (FWCI) = 3.59 (359% of world average, SciVal), most cited subjects: 3.93/Engineering, 3.28/Environment, & 5.15/Mgmt.

Count by UN's Sustainable Development Goals:
SGD-3 Good health & well-being: 3 (papers)
SGD-7 Affordable & clean energy: 8
SGD-9 Industry, innovation & infrastructure: 18
SGD-11 Sustainable cities & communities: 23
SGD-12 Responsible consumption & production: 20

2024

A novel Building Section Skeleton for compact 3D reconstruction from point clouds: A study of high-density urban scenes. ISPRS Journal of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing.

4D point cloud-based spatial-temporal semantic registration for monitoring mobile crane construction activities. Automation in Construction.

Open BIM exchange on Blockchain 3.0 virtual disk: A traceable semantic differential transaction approach. Frontiers of Engineering Management.

CIM-WV: A 2D semantic segmentation dataset of rich window view contents in high-rise, high-density Hong Kong based on photorealistic city information models. Urban Informatics.
Data+Model: 10.25442/hku.24647487

Co-existence of airborne SARS-CoV-2 infection and non-infection in three connected zones of a restaurant. Journal of Hazardous Materials.

Role of Urban Underground-Space development in achieving carbon neutrality: A national-level analysis in China. Engineering.

Digital technologies for construction sustainability: Status quo, challenges, and future prospects. npj Materials Sustainability.

MIVES multi-criteria framework to sustainability index of design for manufacture and assembly. Journal of Civil Engineering and Management.

Remote sensing of 4D point cloud (4DPC) for digital twin construction: A time-dynamic, occlusion-minimized data source exploiting low-cost LiDAR sensors. The 29th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2024).

The opportunities and challenges of multimodal GenAI in the construction industry: A brief review. The 29th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2024).

A scan-to-BIM automation paradigm for digital transformation in the AEC industry. The 29th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2024).

BSS-Indoor: Volumetric wall reconstruction using Building Section Skeleton. The 29th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2024).

Multi-objective optimization for parametric bamboo-metal mixed scaffolding design in Hong Kong. The 29th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2024).

A lossy 4D point cloud (4DPC) data compression method for LiDAR surveillance streaming in construction management. The 29th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2024).

Digital twinning hoisting process of high-rise MiC components based on 4D point cloud and BIM models. The 29th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2024).

Real-time modular construction hoisting monitoring method and device based on 4D lidar point cloud and image fusion. 基於 4D 激光雷達點雲和圖像融合的實時模塊建築施工吊裝監控方法和裝置

2023

A blockchain 3.0 paradigm for digital twins in construction project management. Automation in Construction.

Automatic BIM detailing using deep features of 3D views. Automation in Construction.

Bi-objective analytics of 3D visual-physical nature exposures in high-rise high-density cities. Landscape and Urban Planning.

Integrating automated machine learning and interpretability analysis in architecture, engineering and construction industry: A case of identifying failure modes of reinforced concrete shear walls. Computers in Industry.

Pushing the boundaries of Modular-integrated Construction: A symmetric skeleton grammar-based multi-objective optimization of passive design for energy savings and daylight autonomy. Energy and Buildings.

Building feature-based machine learning regression to quantify urban material stocks: A Hong Kong study. Journal of Industrial Ecology.

Surface or skeleton? Automatic hierarchical clustering of 3D point clouds of bronze frog drums for heritage digital twins. ISPRS Annals of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences. (CIPA 2023)

Invigorating AEC education using Minecraft: A case of LiDAR surveying and virtual learning. Proceedings of the 2023 European Conference on Computing in Construction and the 40th International CIB W78 Conference. (EC3+W78 2023)

Towards fully automatic Scan-to-BIM: A prototype method integrating deep neural networks and architectonic grammar. Proceedings of the 2023 European Conference on Computing in Construction and the 40th International CIB W78 Conference (EC3+W78 2023).

4D Point Cloud (4DPC)-driven real-time monitoring of construction mobile cranes. Proceedings of the 2023 European Conference on Computing in Construction and the 40th International CIB W78 Conference (EC3+W78 2023).

A blockchain-based token economic model for incentivizing ESG in the construction industry. Proceedings of the 2023 European Conference on Computing in Construction and the 40th International CIB W78 Conference (EC3+W78 2023).

Efficient assessment of window views in high-rise, high-density urban areas using 3D color City Information Models. Proceedings of the 18th International Conference on Computational Urban Planning and Urban Management (CUPUM 2023).

HRHD-HK: A Benchmark Dataset of High-Rise and High-Density Urban Scenes for 3D Semantic Segmentation of Photogrammetric Point Clouds. Proceedings of 2023 IEEE International Conference on Image Processing Challenges and Workshops (ICIP 2023).

Decoding the past: A Genetic Algorithm-based method for extract decorative patterns in Digital Twin Heritages. The 28th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2023).
🏆

Automated Machine Learning in the smart construction era: Significance and accessibility for industrial classification and regression tasks. The 28th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2023).

Emerging trends of ESG in the construction sector: A promising pathway to sustainable and responsible development. The 28th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2023).

Addressing BIM versioning challenges: A blockchain-ready IFC schema extension for semantic change management. The 28th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2023).

Carbon tracking in the building sector: A ‘cabbage’ framework. Proceedings of the 23rd International Conference on Construction Applications of Virtual Reality (ConVR2023).

A value stream mapping approach to the identification of lean management opportunities for off-site construction production: A case of reinforced concrete slabs. Proceedings of the 23rd International Conference on Construction Applications of Virtual Reality (ConVR2023).

Zero-Knowledge Proof for trusted construction management: A preliminary study of adaptive blockchain BIM identity authentication. Proceedings of the 23rd International Conference on Construction Applications of Virtual Reality (ConVR2023).

E-Inspection System for Offsite Construction Manufacturing and Transport.

Digital Twin-based Quality Control System and Method for Construction Components. 基於數字孿生的建築部件品質控制系統及方法

Web System and Method for Structural Maintenance and Monitoring of Modular-Integrated Construction. 結合web的功能模塊化建築結構維運監管系統及方法.

2022

A room with a view: Automatic assessment of window views for high-rise high-density areas using City Information Models and deep transfer learning. Landscape and Urban Planning.

Role of the built environment in the recovery from Covid-19: Evidence from a GIS-based natural experiment on the city blocks in Wuhan, China. Frontiers in Built Environment.

As-built building information modeling: joint effort of 3D reconstruction and semantic enrichment. Research Companion to Building Information Modeling.

Impact of institutional distance on environmental and social practices in host countries: evidence from international construction companies. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management.

Probable cross-corridor transmission of SARS-CoV-2 due to cross airflows and its control. Building and Environment.

Blockchain technology for projects: a multi-criteria decision matrix. Project Management Journal.

Blockchain-Enabled IoT-BIM Platform for supply chain management in modular construction. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management. 🔥

Using blockchain to improve information sharing accuracy in the onsite assembly of modular construction. Journal of Management in Engineering. 🏆

A blockchain-based model with an incentive mechanism for cross-border logistics supervision and data sharing in modular construction. Journal of Cleaner Production.

Ontology-based mapping approach for automatic work packaging in modular construction. Automation in Construction.

Estimating construction waste volumes in truck loads using monocular vision. Resources, Conservation and Recycling.

Using computer vision to recognize composition of construction waste mixtures: a semantic segmentation approach. Resources, Conservation and Recycling.

Linking permissioned blockchain to Internet of Things (IoT)-BIM platform for off-site production management in modular construction. Computers in Industry.

When permissioned blockchain meets IoT oracles: An on-chain quality assurance system for off-shore modular construction manufacture. Proceedings of the 1st IEEE Global Emerging Technoloies "GET" Blockchain Forum.

Interactive BIM-based VR: A case study of doors. The 19th International Conference on Computing in Civil and Building Engineering (ICCCBE) 2022.

Applications of 4D Point Clouds (4DPC) in Digital Twin Construction: A SWOT analysis. The 27th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2022).

Precise urban green volume-enabled building and environment simulation: Sub meter voxel modeling of airborne and handheld three dimensional scans of urban trees. The 27th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2022).

System and Methods for Quantifying and calculating Window View Openess Indexes. US patent: 63/269,891. PCT: CN2023/077947. WIPO: 2023/179296

Indoor 3D Barrier-Free Mapping Based on Lidar Point Cloud and BIM Clash Simulation. 基于 LiDAR 點雲和 BIM 碰撞模擬的室內三維無障礙地圖生成方法.

A Cultural Relics Traceability System for Museums. 一種博物館文物可追溯方法及系統.

An Analytics System for Museum Touring Based on BIM and Surveillance Videos. 一種基于 BIM 和視頻監控的博物館參觀分析的方法及系統.

2021

Semantic enrichment of Building and City Information Models: a ten-year review. Advanced Engineering Informatics.

RegARD: Symmetry-based coarse registration of smartphone’s colorful point clouds with CAD drawings for low-cost Digital Twin Buildings. Remote Sensing.

Big data-driven pedestrian analytics: unsupervised clustering and relational query based on Tencent Street View photographs. ISPRS International Journal of Geo-Information.

Two-layer adaptive blockchain-based supervision model for off-site modular housing production. Computers in Industry.

Handling missing data for construction waste management: machine learning based on aggregated waste generation behaviors. Resources, Conservation & Recycling.

Exploring smart construction objects as blockchain oracles in construction supply chain management. Automation in Construction.

Blockchain technology for governmental supervision of construction work: learning from digital currency electronic payment systems. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management.

Revisiting the effects of prefabrication on construction waste minimization: a quantitative study using bigger data. Resources, Conservation & Recycling.

Federated transfer learning enabled smart work packaging for preserving personal image information of construction worker. Automation in Construction.

Optimization of multiple-crane service schedules in overlapping areas through consideration of transportation efficiency and operational safety. Automation in Construction.

“Looking beneath the surface”: A visual-physical feature hybrid approach for unattended gauging of construction waste composition. Journal of Environmental Management.

Investigating the bulk density of construction waste: A big data-driven approach. Resources, Conservation & Recycling.

Estimation of construction waste composition based on bulk density: a big data-probability (BD-P) model. Journal of Environmental Management.

Estimating construction waste generation in the Greater Bay Area, China using machine learning. Waste Management.

A blockchain- and IoT-based smart product-service system for the sustainability of prefabricated housing construction. Journal of Cleaner Production. 🔥

The renaissance of Augmented Reality in construction: history, present status and future directions. Smart and Sustainable Built Environment.

FloorPP-Net: Reconstructing Floor Plans using Point Pillars for Scan-to-BIM. arXiv. 🏆
arXiv:2106.10635

Understanding illegal waste dumping behaviours with multi-source big data: visualized evidences from Hong Kong. Proceedings of the 24th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2019), Springer.

Comparison of BIM collaboration paradigms for digital twin readiness: Centralized files, decentralized clouds, and distributed blockchains. Proceedings of the 38th International Conference of CIB W78.

CIM-enabled quantitative view assessment in architectural design and space planning. Proceedings of the 38th International Symposium on Automation and Robotics in Construction (ISARC2021).

A Review of As-Built BIM Using LiDAR Point Clouds [基於LiDAR點雲的竣工BIM建模文獻綜述]. The 7th National BIM Academic Conference of China.

A study on protocols of cross-chain data synchronization for permission blockchain for construction management. Proceedings of the 26th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2021)

Latent Dirichlet Allocation-based approach for automatically mapping components to tasks in modular construction. Proceedings of the 26th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2021), 🏆 Merit Paper Award

Prefabrication in Hong Kong’s High-Rise Residential Construction: Evolution and Effect on Waste Minimization. Proceedings of the 26th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2021)

Cloud asset-enabled integrated blockchain platform for prefabricated construction management. Proceedings of the 26th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2021), Springer, in press. 🏆 Outstanding Paper Award

Impacts of the COVID-19 Pandemic on construction industry: a comparison between Hong Kong and Singapore. Proceedings of the 26th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2021), 🏆 Merit Paper Award

Smart contract: Is it really smart in construction?. Proceedings of the 26th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2021)

A generic framework for BIM component naming. Proceedings of the 26th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2021)

A 3D Quality Inspection Equipment for Prefabricated Construction Products. 一種裝配式建築產部品三維質量檢測裝置. CN Patent 202120404023.4.

2020

Quick story: A semantic differential transaction approach to minimizing information redundancy for BIM and blockchain integration. Automation in Construction.

Quick story: From LiDAR point cloud towards digital twin city: Clustering city objects based on Gestalt principles. ISPRS Journal of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing. 🏆Featured Article (of Vol. 167).

Pervasive sensing technologies for facility management: A critical review. Facilities.

Embodied energy in service industry in global cities: A study of six Asian cities. Land Use Policy.

Is the private sector more efficient? Big data analytics of construction waste management sectoral efficiency. Resources, Conservation and Recycling.

Automated mapping from IFC data model to relational database model (IFC数据模型至关系型数据库模型的自动映射). Journal of Tsinghua University (Science and Technology).

An anatomy of waste generation flows in construction projects using passive bigger data. Waste Management.

Construction-oriented Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DfMA) guidelines. Journal of Construction Engineering and Management.

Design for Manufacture and Assembly (DfMA) in construction: The old and the new. Architectural Engineering and Design Management.

Mapping the knowledge domain of stakeholder perspective studies in construction projects: A bibliometric approach. International Journal of Project Management.

Estimating construction waste generation in residential buildings: A fuzzy set theory approach in the Brazilian Amazon. Journal of Cleaner Production.

Digital twinning construction objects: Lessons learned from pose estimation methods. The Joint Conference ICCCBE and CIB W78 2020.

Indoor-outdoor navigation without beacons: Compensating smartphone AR positioning errors with 3D pedestrian network. ASCE Construction Research Congress 2020.

Classification of photo-realistic 3D window views in a high-density city: The case of Hong Kong. Proceedings of the 25th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2020), Springer, in press. 🏆 Outstanding Paper Award.

Modular construction: design considerations and opportunities. Proceedings of the 25th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2020), Springer, in press. 🏆 Outstanding Paper Award.

Prospect of architectonic grammar reconstruction from dense 3D point clouds: Historical building information modeling (HBIM) of Guangdong cultural heritages. Proceedings of the 25th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2020), Springer, in press. 🏆 Merit Paper Award.

Construction inspection information management with consortium blockchain. Proceedings of the 25th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2020), Springer, in press. 🏆 Merit Paper Award.

Understanding construction waste recycling in Hong Kong: SWOT analysis of the government’s prevailing initiatives. Proceedings of the 25th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2020), Springer, in press. 🏆 Merit Paper Award.

A review of BIM data exchange method in BIM collaboration. Proceedings of the 25th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2020), Springer, in press.

2019

A derivative-free optimization-based approach for detecting architectural symmetries from 3D point clouds. ISPRS Journal of Photogrammetry and Remote Sensing

From semantic segmentation to semantic registration: Derivative-free optimization-based approach for automatic generation of semantically rich as-built Building Information Models from 3D point clouds. Journal of Computing in Civil Engineering

BIM reconstruction from 3D point clouds: A semantic registration approach based on multimodal optimization and architectural design knowledge. Advanced Engineering Informatics

Barriers to Building Information Modeling (BIM) implementation in China's prefabricated construction: An interpretive structural modeling (ISM) approach. Journal of Cleaner Production. 🔥

Towards the "third wave": An SCO-enabled occupational health and safety management system for construction. Safety Science

Developing a conceptual framework of smart work packaging for constraints management in prefabrication housing production. Advanced Engineering Informatics

‘Cognitive facility management’: Definition, system architecture, and example scenario. Automation in Construction.

Understanding unstructured 3D point clouds for creating digital twin city: An unsupervised hierarchical clustering approach. CIB World Building Congress 2019

Computational streetscapes: Big data, deep learning, and vector model. 2019 Landscape Architecture international forum in HKU: Urban landscape for people.

Semantic enrichment of city information models with LiDAR-based rooftop albedo. In Proceedings of the 2nd International Conference on Sustainable Buildings and Structures (ICSBS 2019). Best Paper Award. 🏆

Personalized walkability assessment for pedestrian paths: An as-built BIM approach using ubiquitous augmented reality (AR) smartphone and deep transfer learning. In The 23rd International Symposium on the Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate. in press.

Semantic enrichment for rooftop modeling using aerial LiDAR reflectance. In Proceedings of the 2019 IEEE International Conference on Signal Processing, Communications and Computing (ICSPCC 2019).

Architectural Design for Additive Manufacturing Construction: Lesson Learned from Design for Additive Manufacturing. In Proceedings of the 2019 CRIOCM International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate (CRIOCM2019).

2018

Automatic Generation of Semantically Rich As‐Built Building Information Models Using 2D Images: A Derivative‐Free Optimization Approach. Computer-Aided Civil and Infrastructure Engineering.
Get sample BIM library

Linking radio-frequency identification to Building Information Modeling: Status quo, development trajectory and guidelines for practitioners. Automation in Construction.

Automatic building information model reconstruction in high-density urban areas: Augmenting multi-source data with architectural knowledge. Automation in Construction.

An Internet of Things-enabled BIM platform for on-site assembly services in prefabricated construction. Automation in Construction. 🔥

Real options model of toll-adjustment mechanism in concession contracts of toll road projects. Journal of Management in Engineering.

Searching for an optimal level of prefabrication in construction: An analytical framework. Journal of Cleaner Production.

Cross-boundary collaboration in waste management research: A network analysis. Environmental Impact Assessment Review.

A cost-benefit analysis of green buildings with respect to construction waste minimization using big data in Hong Kong. Journal of Green Building.

A physical internet-enabled building information modelling system for prefabricated construction. International Journal of Computer Integrated Manufacturing.

The Heterogeneity of BIM Objects in Different Construction Contexts. In Construction Research Congress 2018.

Architectural symmetry detection from 3D urban point clouds: A derivative-free optimization (DFO) approach. In Advances in Informatics and Computing in Civil and Construction Engineering.

3D point cloud data enabled facility management: A critical review. In Proceedings of the 23rd International Symposium on the Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate, Springer.

2017

Design of an efficient hyper-heuristic algorithm CMA-VNS for combinatorial black-box optimization problems. In Proceedings of the Genetic and Evolutionary Computation Conference Companion.

Integrating RFID and BIM technologies for mitigating risks and improving schedule performance of prefabricated house construction. Journal of cleaner production.

Developing an Open Access BIM Objects Library: A Hong Kong Study. In Lean and Computing in Construction Congress-Volume 1: Proceedings of the Joint Conference on Computing in Construction.

Schedule risk modeling in prefabrication housing production. Journal of cleaner production.

An Overview of the driving forces behind energy demand in China's construction industry: Evidence from 1990 to 2012. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews.

Prefabricated construction enabled by the Internet-of-Things. Automation in Construction. 🔥

The Fusion of GIS and Building Information Modeling for Big Data Analytics in Managing Development Sites. Comprehensive Geographic Information Systems.

'Local content' of corporate social responsibility in international construction business. ARCOM 2017.

Development of 3D building models using multi-source data: a study of high-density urban area in Hong Kong. In Lean and Computing in Construction Congress-Volume 1: Proceedings of the Joint Conference on Computing in Construction.

A Smart Construction Object (SCO)-Enabled Proactive Data Management System for Construction Equipment Management. In Computing in Civil Engineering 2017.

The Experiences for Post-disaster Reconstruction in Rural China: The Implications from Data Mining. In Proceedings of the 20th International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate.

2016

An optimization-based semantic building model generation method with a pilot case of a demolished construction. In Proceedings of the 21st International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate. Best Paper Award. 🏆

CMA-VNS2: An efficient hyper-heuristic algorithm for combinatorial black-box optimization. Technical report, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

SWOT analysis and Internet of Things-enabled platform for prefabrication housing production in Hong Kong. Habitat International.

A multi-regional structural path analysis of the energy supply chain in China's construction industry. Energy Policy. 🔥

Schedule risks in prefabrication housing production in Hong Kong: a social network analysis. Journal of cleaner production.

Energy use embodied in China's construction industry: A multi-regional input–output analysis. Renewable and Sustainable Energy Reviews.

Bridging the Cyber and Physical Systems for Better Construction: A Case Study of Construction Machinery Monitoring and Utilization. In Proceedings of the 21st International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate.

Smart gateway for bridging BIM and building. In Proceedings of the 21st International Symposium on Advancement of Construction Management and Real Estate.

2015

Project-based as-needed information retrieval from unstructured AEC documents. Journal of management in engineering.

Cma–vns: A short description. Technical report. The Hong Kong Polytechnic University.

Embodied energy of service trading in Hong Kong. Smart and sustainable built environment.

IoT-enabled on-site assembly service in prefabricated public housing construction. Second International Conference on Sustainable Urbanization (ICSU 2015).

Towards Physical Internet-enabled prefabricated housing construction in Hong Kong. IFAC-PapersOnLine.

Building information technologies and challenges in precast housing construction in Hong Kong. In The 7th International Conference of Sustainable Development in Building and Environment

2012

PhD Thesis: A suboptimum- and proportion-based heuristic generation method for combinatorial optimization problems. The Hong Kong Polytechnic University. Advisors: Dr. C.Y. Chan, Dr. Andrew W.H. Ip, Prof. Benny C.F. Cheung. theses.lib.polyu.edu.hk/handle/200/7203

A hyper-heuristic inspired by pearl hunting. In Learning and intelligent optimization (Proceedings of LION 6).

A learning-based variable assignment weighting scheme for heuristic and exact searching in Euclidean traveling salesman problems. NETNOMICS: Economic research and electronic networking.

Using division to classify Low-level Heuristics for the Quadratic Assignment Problem. (Preprint)

2011

Pearl hunter: A hyper-heuristic that compiles iterated local search algorithms. CHeSC competition.

2010

A Learning-based Variables Assignment Weighting Scheme for Heuristic and Exact Searching. 1st International Conference on Computational Logistics (ICCL 2010).

Towards a learning-based heuristic searching reform scheme. 24th European Conference on Operational Research (EURO XXIV).

2007

MSc Thesis: Coordinating Multi-agent with Organization in Distributed Scheduling System. Civil Aviation University of China. Advisor: Prof. W. Fan.

Multi-agent optimization design for multi-resource job shop scheduling problems. In International Conference on Intelligent Computing (ICIC2007).

2006

Optimize cooperative agents with organization in distributed scheduling system. In International Conference on Intelligent Computing (ICIC2006).

Talks & Invited

2024

Digital Heritage Conservation With Spatial Information Technologies. Xianghai Forum, 25 July 2024, HKUST, Hong Kong.

2023

Fully Automatic Scan-to-BIM: Consolidation of unsupervised, supervised, and reinforced learning. The 2023 Smart City and Smart Construction Forum, 5 May 2023, Wuhan, China.

Design for eXcellence (DfX) with Digital Twins: From Reality Data to Semantic Models to Optimized Design. Faculty of Architecture and the Built Environment, TU Delft, 30 June 2023, Netherlands.

Bridging the gap between point clouds for GeoAI: Role of supervised, reinforced and unsupervised learning. Workshop on GeoAI and Big Data for Urban, Environment, and Sustainability, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, 10 December 2023, Hong Kong.

2022

Symmetry and Similarity Detection for Urban Point Cloud Understanding. Sustainability, Intelligence, and Resilience (SIR) Frontiers, South China University of Technology. 29 Apr 2022, China.

Scan-to-BIM: Reverse Engineering of construction from Point Clouds. The joint 8th Summer School of Frontiers in Construction Management and Cloud Summer Camp of College Students in Civil Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology. 11 July 2022, Wuhan, China.

Low-cost Digital Twins of Built Assets: Automatic creation of photo-realistic openBIM by integrating ubiquitous Augmented Reality and 2D CAD drawings. Training Class 51, HKABAEIMA. 12 Oct 2022, Hong Kong SAR.

Digital Twinning buildings and cities with 3D point clouds: A semantics perspective. Leica Geosystems Hong Kong Seminar "Are you ready for autonomous future?", 25 Nov 2022, Sheraton Hotel, Hong Kong SAR.

Scan2floorplan: Floor layer-based kernels and pillars of points (FLKPP). 2nd Workshop on Computer Vision in the Built Environment, CVPR 2022. 19 Jun 2022, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA.

Floor layer-based kernels and pillars of points (FLKPP): 3D building model reconstruction. 2nd Workshop on Computer Vision in the Built Environment, CVPR 2022. 19 Jun 2022, New Orleans, Louisiana, USA.

2021

CIM-enabled quantitative view assessment in architectural design and space planning. Plenary in the 38th International Symposium on Automation and Robotics in Construction (ISARC2021), 1-5 Nov 2021, Dubai, UAE.

📺A new angle on views. HKU Bulletin, 23(1), 12-13.

https:

2020

Blockchain for Construction in the Post-COVID-19 Era. The 6th China BIM Conference - Youth Forum. 11 November 2020, Taiyuan, China.

Blockchain for Smart Construction. The joint 6th Summer School of Frontiers in Construction Management and Cloud Summer Camp of College Students in Civil Engineering, Huazhong University of Science and Technology. 23 July 2020, Wuhan, China.

2019

Digital Twinning Construction Objects: Filtering, Supervised, and Reinforcement Learning Methods. REC Departmetal Seminars, 6 December 2019, HKU.

Evolutionary computation with applications in 3D urban reconstruction. Civil Aviation University of China. 24 September 2019, Tianjin, China.

From geometric landscape to fitness landscape: As-built BIM reconstruction through optimization. Huazhong University of Science and Technology. 27 May 2019, Wuhan, China.

2018

Derivative-free optimization: Theory and applications in construction management. Tongji University. 19 October 2018, Shanghai, China.

Demystifying BIM & Innovation. Zhejiang University of Finance & Economics. 18 October 2018, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.

Urban Semantics in BIM & GIS: From source to sea. Department of Civil Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University. 15 October 2018, Suzhou, Zhejiang, China.

An efficient approach for symmetry detection in point clouds of constructions. Visual Computing Research Center, Shenzhen University. 22 June 2018, Beijing, China.

Semantic enrichment for BIM and GIS: A computational perspective. Frontiers in Construction Management, Shenzhen University. 22 May 2018, Shenzhen, China.

Enriching urban semantics to fuse BIM and CIM for smart city: examples, prospects, and challenges. Technology Collaboration: The first BIM and GIS Conference, Cyberport. 4 May 2018, Hong Kong SAR, China.

Linking RFID to BIM: A demystification of research methods. Research Methodology, Renmin University of China. 21~22 March 2018, Beijing, China.

2017

A Derivative-free Optimization Approach for Automated As-built 3D Modelling. CIB Student Chapter Workshop Series 2017. Aug 18, 2017, HK PolyU.

An optimization approach for automated as-built 3D modeling. REC Departmetal Seminars, Apr 6, 2017, HKU.

2016

Derivative-free optimization: Theory and applications in construction management. Tongji University. 19 October 2018, Shanghai, China.

Demystifying BIM & Innovation. Zhejiang University of Finance & Economics. 18 October 2018, Hangzhou, Zhejiang, China.

Urban Semantics in BIM & GIS: From source to sea. Department of Civil Engineering, Xi'an Jiaotong-Liverpool University. 15 October 2018, Suzhou, Zhejiang, China.

An efficient approach for symmetry detection in point clouds of constructions. Visual Computing Research Center, Shenzhen University. 22 June 2018, Beijing, China.

Semantic enrichment for BIM and GIS: A computational perspective. Frontiers in Construction Management, Shenzhen University. 22 May 2018, Shenzhen, China.

Enriching urban semantics to fuse BIM and CIM for smart city: examples, prospects, and challenges. Technology Collaboration: The first BIM and GIS Conference, Cyberport. 4 May 2018, Hong Kong SAR, China.

Linking RFID to BIM: A demystification of research methods. Research Methodology, Renmin University of China. 21~22 March 2018, Beijing, China.

2011~2015

Automated facilitation techniques in Value Management workshops based on domain-specific semantic metrics. Apr 24, 2015, Nanjing University, China.

Towards an automated semantic analysis for ideas in construction workshops. Dec, 2013, Chongqing University, China.

Team and Jobs

Moments

Job vacancies (full-time PostDoc, RA)

PostDoc (Project management) / full-time Research Assistants (Computer vision; Software development) in liDAR Scan-to-BIM: Open until fulfilled. Preferred experiences / papers about LiDAR point cloud, 3D semantic segmentation, C++ / Python development, and construction project management. (Contact: Frank Xue xuef@hku.hk)

PhD / PostDoc / part-time student RA / summer interns in 4D LiDAR video: Open until fulfilled. Preferred experiences / papers about LiDAR semantic segmentation, contrastive learning, motion tracking, and 4D VR/GIS. (Contact: Frank Xue xuef@hku.hk)

PhDs posts (Fully funded)

Scholarship HK$0.9~1.6 mil
Intro to PhD programs
100% PhD Scholarship

How to apply for a PhD

Any proposals on computation and automation for construction, cultural heritage, and city (i.e., BIM, HBIM, & CIM) are welcome. Examples of novel theories are (but not limited to) for construction and city management

Time-dynamic 4D laser scanning methods / analytics,
Operations research (DFO / surrogate / FEM) methods,
Graph theory / Graph ML / Spatial information technology,
Computational geometry / Urban semantics analytics,
(Silicon-integrated) optical computing / computability theory, and
Distributed computing / blockchains / automatic reasonsing,

Research proposal contact: Frank Xue <xuef@hku.hk>; The current 2025/26 round of application opens in Sept-Nov 2024.

You may wish to read 👨‍🏫What is a PhD study,exactly?, before writing your Research Proposal.

Students, colleagues, and interns

👩‍🎓PhD students

Wu, Yijie, 2021 (former RA 2020). CIM: Building Section Skeleton (BSS) theory. Visited TU Delft in 2024, with Prof L Nan 👩‍💼 👩‍💻 👩‍💻 🏆 🏆 🏆 🏆 🏆 🏆 📺
Zhao, Rui (Jeremy), 2021 (former RA 2021). Construction DT: Blockchain 3.0/4.0 Home page🏠 🏆 🏆 🏆 🏆 🥂
Liang, Dong (Leo), 2021 (online appl.). Construction DT: 4DPC processing. Home page🏠 🏆 🏆 📺
Chen, Zhe (Philo), 2021 (former RA 2020-21). Construction DT: Lean quality 🏆 🏆
Kong, Lingming (Karle), 2022 (former RA 2021-22). BIM: CAST theory. 🏆 🏆 🏆 🏆 🏆
Wang, Jiajia, 2022 (online appl.). CIM and Sustainability 🏆 🏆 🏆
Chen, Sou-Han (Hank), 2023 (former RA 2021-23). BIM: DL & automation. Home page🏠 🏆 🏆 🏆 📺
Zhou, Qianyun (Joanna), 2023 (former RA 2022-23). CIM: Hyper-optimization of design. 🏆 🏆 📺
Sun, Meng, 2023 (online appl.). Digital twin for construction. 🏆 🏆
Meng, Siyuan, 2024 (former RA 2023-24). Heritage/CIM: point cloud understanding. 🏆 🏆 🏆 📺
Wei, Xi (Nigel), 2024 (former RA 2023-24). Digital heritage architecture.
Wu, Longyong 2024 (former RA 2024). AI for 3D mapping. Home page 🏠 🏆
👨🏻‍🎓 Li, Maosu (Eric), 1/2020-1/2024. PhD Thesis (🔝Top 5%/Outstanding): Urban Computing of 3D Window Views in High-rise, High-density Cities Based on City Information Models and Machine Learning. Home page 🏠 👨‍💼 👨‍💻 👨‍💻 🏆 🏆 🏆 🏆 🏆 🏆 🏆 🏆 🏆 🏆 📺 📺 📺 Now Postdoc at HKU and visited MIT Senseable City Lab in 2024.

👩🏻‍🎓Postdoctoral Fellows

👨🏻‍🎓 Dr. You, Ke, 2024. Automation in Construction. Departmental page 🏠 🏆
👨🏻‍🎓 Dr. Li, Maosu (Eric), 2024. CIM. Home page 🏠 🏆 🏆 Visiting MIT Senseable City Lab
👨🏻‍🎓 Dr. Pan, Yuandong, 2024. GPR processing. Marie Skłodowska-Curie Future Roads Fellow 🏠 from Cambridge CIT Lab. Postdoc Visitorship funded by SBFT

👬Colleagues (RAs & alumni)

Wang, Yibo, 2023. LiDAR. 🏆
Wang, Ziwei, 2024. 3D AI and UX.
Sa, Xingyun (Saxon), 2024. Web AI for 3D processing.
Guo, Chengchen (Gauthier), 2024. Urban infrastructure resilience.
Liu, Zihan (Thea), 2024-25. Urban sustainability.
Hu, Ruibo (Rab), 2024-25. Smart construction.
👨🏻‍🎓 Prof. Tan, Tan, 2018-19. BIM. Now Assistant Professor at HKU. Home page 🏠
Cao, Jin, 2018-19. Construction IT
👨🏻‍🎓 Prof. Li, Xiao (Shell) (2019). Urban semantics. Now Assistant Professor at HKU
👨🏻‍🎓 Dr. Wu, Liupengfei (Mike), 2020. Semantic enrichment. Now Postdoc at HKU
Yang, Zhongze (Zoe), 2020-21. Complex system analytics. Now PhD at HKU
Gao, Wenjun (Wendy), 2020. HKU Minecraft campus. Now PhD in OpenBIM at HKU 🥂
Wang, Chen (Dennis), 2020. Edge computing. Now PhD in Math at HKCityU
Zhang, Jing (Christel), 2020. Parametric modeling. Now PhD in Infrastructure Computer Vision at UWaterloo
Chen, Limei, 2023-24. Scan-to-BIM. 🏆
Li, Ziqi, 2023-24. 3D redering and processing. Now MSc(AI) at HKPolyU.

👩‍🎓Master's thesis advised

Ngai, Nam Hei (Nancy), 2023. Barriers to Achieving Net Zero Energy Building in Urban China: An interpretive structural Modeling (ISM) Study 🏆 Now studying at Harvard.

👩‍🎓Bachelor's dissertations advised (Fulltext PDFs for HKU REC staff/student)

Kong, Siu Tung (Brona), 2025.
Kwok Wai Shing (Jacky), 2025.
Lee, Wai Hung (Sammy), 2025. 🏆
Lui, Ally, 2025.
Yip, Chun Sang (Jason), 2025.
Choi, Kam To (Toby), 2024. Mapping the Network of Causes of Construction Occupational Accidents: An Empirical Study in Hong Kong
Hsiao, Yau Kit (Kyle), 2024. Assessing the Applicability of Net Zero Energy Buildings (NZEB) in Low-Density Areas of Hong Kong: A Comparative Analysis of Policies in California and Singapore
Lam, Oi Ting (Nerissa), 2024. Exploring the Mutual Reinforcement of ESG and Green Building Management for Long-Term Sustainability: A Case Study of Hong Kong
Mok, Kai Ho (Gordon), 2024. Evaluation of Design Aspects of Floating Houses in the Context of Hong Kong 🏆
Kwan, Shing Fung (Tommy), 2023. Empirical Study of the Effects of Public Hospital View on Private Residential Property Price in Hong Kong
Ng, Kai Yui (Clive), 2023. A study on the application of exoskeleton in the construction industry in Hong Kong 🏆
Ng, Mei Shan (Sandra), 2023. Disparity in Utilization Rates of Electric Vehicle Charging Facilities: An Empirical Study of Hong Kong using Machine Learning
Lee, Hok Kiu (Chris), 2022. The Applicability of Wearable Technology to Improve Construction Safety in Hong Kong 🏆
Ng, Tsz Shing (Simon), 2022. Impacts of the Rising Popularity of Nano-flat on Property Market and Society: A Study of Hong Kong
Li, Yuet Tat (Jeff), 2021. Application of Machine Learning on Property Valuation for Hong Kong Residential Units 🏆
Huang, Cheuk Wai (Cherry), 2021. Green Features in Shopping Centers: A Comparative Study of Occupants and Property Developers in Hong Kong
Wong, Ka Yan (Kali), 2021. Assessment of factors and measures for the Hong Kong hotel industry in the pandemic time of Covid-19

Research tips

Materials for newcomers

📰 Construction in Hong Kong: CIC-BIM events (by sending an Empty Email to cic-bim-subscribe@listserv.hku.hk from @hku or @connect.hku.hk)
15 mins to sharpen your 'teeth' for research at HKU
Research handbooks @ HKU
🌬Maximization of your research impacts
🛡️Cyber security: Auto warnings of account/password breach/leakages at haveibeenpwned.com

Philosophy reading list for a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

📚 Ludwig Wittgenstein. (1921). 🆓Tractatus Logico-Philosophicus (TLP, 邏輯哲學論, public domain). HKU Main Library Books 193.1 W83 C t.
📚 Bertrand Russell. (1948). 🆓Human Knowledge: Its Scope and Limits (人類的知識, public domain). HKU Main Library Books 121 R96 h
📚 Laozi. (~500BC). 🆓道德經 (Tao Te Ching, public domain).

World leading tech & innovation news

🎅Choose based on your interests
- 📚 Academia: EurekAlert's Technology, Math, Earth Science, and Chinese news [RSS feeds; Bookable via blogtrottr or your browser]
- 🤖 Data analytics: Towards Data Science and Machine Learning [Bookable on the websites] and
- 🖥 General IT: Hacker News [RSS feed; Bookable via blogtrottr or your browser])

Data analysis tools

📈Linear & statistical models
- 🤖 IBM SPSS (free on your desktop)
- 🐃 GNU PSPP (free version of IBM SPSS)
⛏️Data mining & machine learning
- 🇷 R: rattle
- 🐍 Python: 🍊orange (or 🧪sklearn) and
- 🐦 Java: WEKA

Vector charting tools (🆓free)

📈Veusz
🎨MS Powerpoint + PDF print (e.g., flow charts)
🐍Python
- 🍊orange, 📊matplotlib, 📊Seaborn, & 📊Plotly
📦Dia
📝MS Word
- 🙅Disable auto image compression in MS Word
- 🎨MS Powerpoint for wrapping the sub-figures up
📝LaTeX
- 📊Pgf/TkiZ, 📊Asymptote, & 📊PSTrick

Standard citation managers

🧩MS Word's citation manager
- Get MS Office Suite from office.com with your HKU account
- Basic use, & citing like "Alice (2020, pp. 22-23)"
- Frank's APA-Classic style (copy it to "%HOMEPATH%\AppData\Roaming\Microsoft\Bibliography\Style") and 25+ extra styles (including ACS/MDPI)
- For an organization/government document, you can cite the short name as "Corporate Author" and full name as "Publisher" in the "Report" type. E.g.,
  - NIBS. (2015). National Building Information Modeling Standard. Version 3, Washington, DC, USA: National Institute of Building Sciences (NIBS). Retrieved from https://www.nationalbimstandard.org/ (accessed on 1 Jan 2020).
- Try to format webpages and online documents in "Report" category, rather than "Website," "Document from website," and "Electronic source."
- Article number (ASCE and some Elsevier journals) can be input as the "Pages"
- Set a DOI (or URL) to every reference entry
🧩LaTeX
- 💽BibTeX for thesis, books, and as a citebase
- 💇A clean BibTeX .bib for each article
- Note the formating control macros, e.g., {}, --, $$
- Set a DOI (or URL) to every reference entry

XUE, Fan (Frank, 薛帆)

👨‍🏫Associate Professor

Memberships & services

Education

Job experiences

Research Projects (as PI/Co-PI)

1/2022 - 12/2026

1/2024 - 12/2026

1/2023 - 12/2025

1/2022 - 12/2024

1/2021 - 12/2023

7/2018 - 12/2021

1/2018 - 6/2021

4/2023 - 3/2025

3/2024 - 3/2026

1/2021 - 12/2022

1/2023 - 12/2025

9/2019 - 8/2022

7/2021 - 7/2023

7/2021 - 6/2022

/2020 - /2021

/2018 - /2020

/2019 - /2020

/2019 - /2020

/2018 - /2019

/2017 - /2018

Projects invovled as Co-I (selected)

Projects invovled as Supervisor (selected)

Honors & Awards

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2017

2016

2015

2011

Publications

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2015

2012

2011

2010

2007

2006

Talks & Invited

2024

2023

2022

2021

2020

2019

2018

2017

2016

2011~2015

Team and Jobs

Moments

Job vacancies (full-time PostDoc, RA)

PhDs posts (Fully funded)

Students, colleagues, and interns

Research tips

Materials for newcomers

Philosophy reading list for a Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

World leading tech & innovation news

Data analysis tools

Vector charting tools (🆓free)

Standard citation managers

Research Projects
(as PI/Co-PI)