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The implementation of BIM methodologies for historical buildings presupposes not only the collection of data and information related to its geometric configuration and to the technical parameters of its constituent elements, but more generally the identification of those semantic values which make it part of the historical-cultural heritage shared in a specific context. It is therefore essential that the modelling objectives are explicitly defined in relation to the specific BIM uses required, in order to avoid risks of over-modelling. This paper proposes a process of geometric validation of building information models of high morphological complexity implemented through Scan-to-BIM procedures. By means of a controlled and interoperable workflow, a chain of software applications is defined that is able to determine the level of geometric accuracy (LOA) of the information model with respect to the numerical model derived from the point cloud. Two case studies of H-BIM modelling of historical monumental complexes dating back to the Romanesque period in Sardinia (Italy) are illustrated: the churches of Sant'Efisio a Nora (Cagliari) and Santa Maria del Regno (Sassari). In the discussion of the results, the need for a prior definition of modelling strategies in relation to the expected BIM uses is highlighted. The digital survey was carried out as a part of the research project titled, “The Romanesque and the territory. Construction materials of the Sardegna Giudicale”, and coordinated by prof. Stefano Columbu. The BIM model was developed by a students’ team as part of the teaching activities of the Architectural Drawing course at the School of Engineering, University of Florence. The imagines are extracted from the drawings of the students, Valeria Siddi, Elena Pastorelli, Liuba Gabrielli, Simone Riccio, Elisa Ricotti.

The interest in high-resolution semantic 3D models of historical buildings continuously increased during the last decade, thanks to their utility in protection, conservation and restoration of cultural heritage sites. The current generation of surveying tools allows the quick collection of large and detailed amount of data: such data ensure accurate spatial representations of the buildings, but their employment in the creation of informative semantic 3D models is still a challenging task, and it currently still requires manual time-consuming intervention by expert operators. Hence, increasing the level of automation, for instance developing an automatic semantic segmentation procedure enabling machine scene understanding and comprehension, can represent a dramatic improvement in the overall processing procedure. In accordance with this observation, this paper aims at presenting a new workflow for the automatic semantic segmentation of 3D point clouds based on a multi-view approach. Two steps compose this workflow: first, neural network-based semantic segmentation is performed on building images. Then, image labelling is back-projected, through the use of masked images, on the 3D space by exploiting photogrammetry and dense image matching principles. The obtained results are quite promising, with a good performance in the image segmentation, and a remarkable potential in the 3D reconstruction procedure. International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences, XLVI-2/W1-2022 ISSN:2194-9034 ISSN:1682-1777 ISSN:1682-1750

Rome Transformed' is a five-year ERC funded research project that began in 2019 with the aim of developing an understanding of Rome and its place in cultural change across the Mediterranean world by mapping political, military and religious changes to the eastern Caelian from the first to eight centuries. The project has brought together a team of specialists in non-invasive methodologies for the investigation of complex modern urban environments. Beginning with extensive archival and bibliographic research, the project is conducting detailed structural analysis of all the standing monuments in the area. This includes structures such as the Aurelian Walls, the Claudio-Neronian aqueduct and the Sessorian Palace complex. A central component of these investigations is the high-resolution geophysical prospection of the study area which covers around 13.7km2 in central Rome. The use of these non-invasive methodologies in central Rome led to several challenges, in particular the significant topographical changes that have occurred since antiquity. To the west, underneath the Basilica of Saint John Lateran, nine metres of vertical stratigraphy are preserved, ranging from Republican houses at the lower level through to the Castra Nova of Septimius Severus and the Constantine Basilica. This paper, as well as presenting preliminary results of the geophysical surveys, will also discuss some of the solutions for geophysical prospection in complex urban environments. For the study of the Eastern Caelian, the collation of information regarding previous excavations has been fundamental, which has been greatly assisted by a collaboration with the municipal authority archaeological service and access to their ArcheoSITAR database.

The Engineering Department of the University of Perugia and the Architecture Department of the University of Florence have started a research project on the ancient city gates of Perugia, belonging to the Etruscan city, dating between the third and second centuries b.C., and to the subsequent city wall completed in the twelfth century. In this paper, focus is placed on three Etruscan gates - Porta Eburnea (also called Porta della Mandorla), Porta Cornea and Porta Trasimena – which have in common profound Middle Age transformations and further significant context changes following the loss of function as defensive walls. Due to the decommissioning of this urban infrastructure, the gates have assumed a marginal role; nowadays they are almost completely absorbed by residential buildings, almost losing the memory of their origins and of the important Etruscan remains that are still preserved in the gates. Geomatic surveys on the three Etruscan gates were carried out by the Geomatics Laboratory of Perugia University in the frame of a research project financed by the Cassa di Risparmio di Perugia Foundation. The survey was carried out by means of a coordinated use of more Geomatic techniques: GNSS, Total Station, Terrestrial LIDAR and Digital Photogrammetry. From LIDAR and photogrammetry were derived dense point clouds, beside CAD plans, sections and elevations. The information acquired with these detailed surveys provide a completely new and accurate documentary evidence of the gates’ consistency, allowing to identify the actions and interventions that have changed their structure over time.

Three-dimensional acquisition techniques, reality-based modelling and virtual reality are tools used in Digital Humanities prevalently for displaying the results of a study, but they can also suggest new methods of investigation to humanities scholars. In a case study regarding art history, these techniques made it possible to recreate the layout of the Sala di Saturno in Pitti Palace (Florence) in the 17th century, based on information obtained from archive documents on the tapestries designed for that hall and a 3D model expressly elaborated with geomatic techniques. The results were summarised in a video showed in 2019 during the exhibition on tapestries dedicated to Cosimo I de' Medici. A tool was also developed to assist exhibition and museum curators in their work. Through virtual reality, they can design temporary exhibitions or modify the display of the works of art in a museum in a realistic way, using visually and metrically accurate models of the pieces and exhibition rooms.

The paper deals with the application of Building Information Modelling (BIM) to the documentation and preservation of Archaeological Heritage. illustrating the implemantation process to a case study. The work process started from the historical analysis tighether with the geometric capturing of the built morphology. A 3D model was created by combining laser scans and a digital photogrammetric survey. To maka all 3D data sets interoperable, it was developed a BIM project execution plan focused on the restoration of Shipwreck Museum in the Kyrenia Castle in Cyprus. The HBIM approach not only allows ti represent the existing historic fabric with an effective visualization but also to lead a complex analysis of designed interventions in various scenarios. All the additional information besides the geometrical data were stored into the HBIM able ti document the manteinance and ti help the future works. It will be illustrated the procedure and the methodology by presenting the outcomes of the research.

Starting from the example of San Miniato al Monte, the essay dwells on the relationship existing between Florentine aristocracy and religious institutions. These were indispensable elements for the occupation of the urban ‘political space’, thanks to the social networks they controlled. Their political role – until now poorly investigated – was clearly recognised by the new ruling groups (Popolo). For this reason, the Florentine Popolo’s regime at the end of the thirteenth century tried to break the connection between aristocratic families and religious institutions, also through the use of precise rules that had become part of the Ordinamenti di Giustizia.

Abstract Research activity on ejectors is ongoing at the University of Florence since the late nineties. The most important achievement is a 40 kW ejector chiller designed according to the “CRMC” criterion. The experimentally validated CFD simulations have given some hints about some possible improvements, i.e. refine the surface finish of the ejector, study the effect of heat transfer and improve the final part of the diffuser, which in its present shape does not produce a measurable compression. The prototype has been recently filled with low-GWP refrigerant R1233zd, as a drop-in replacement of previously used R245fa. Both fluids are “dry-expanding” and hence significantly easier to model in CFD simulations. Synthetic low-GWP refrigerants may be an option for ejector chillers, due to their ability to reach below-zero temperature and high volumetric refrigerant capacity. Some lessons learned with synthetic refrigerants can be transferred to the project of a steam ejector chiller, which remains one of our future targets. Herein we resume the principal findings gathered by means of experimental and numerical activity on our prototype and propose a few ideas for the future research.

Technology and the fruition of cultural heritage are becoming increasingly more entwined, especially with the advent of smart audio guides, virtual and augmented reality, and interactive installations. Machine learning and computer vision are important components of this ongoing integration, enabling new interaction modalities between user and museum. Nonetheless, the most frequent way of interacting with paintings and statues still remains taking pictures. Yet images alone can only convey the aesthetics of the artwork, lacking is information which is often required to fully understand and appreciate it. Usually this additional knowledge comes both from the artwork itself (and therefore the image depicting it) and from an external source of knowledge, such as an information sheet. While the former can be inferred by computer vision algorithms, the latter needs more structured data to pair visual content with relevant information. Regardless of its source, this information still must be be effectively transmitted to the user. A popular emerging trend in computer vision is Visual Question Answering (VQA), in which users can interact with a neural network by posing questions in natural language and receiving answers about the visual content. We believe that this will be the evolution of smart audio guides for museum visits and simple image browsing on personal smartphones. This will turn the classic audio guide into a smart personal instructor with which the visitor can interact by asking for explanations focused on specific interests. The advantages are twofold: on the one hand the cognitive burden of the visitor will decrease, limiting the flow of information to what the user actually wants to hear; and on the other hand it proposes the most natural way of interacting with a guide, favoring engagement. Comment: accepted at FlorenceHeritech 2020

This book is the result of a research project designed and carried out at the Department of Architecture, University of Florence. This research was based on the transfer of knowledge from members of the Albanian Diaspora in Italy (university students, young architects and researchers) to their home country. This unique process blazed a trail in the Albania-related studies by creating a methodology, which could be replicated not only in Albanian rural contexts, but also elsewhere. The book constitutes a structured tool for generating sustainable and socially inclusive territorial development processes in five lesser-known Albanian cultural sites. Their tangible and intangible cultural heritage was seen as a driving factor for triggering development processes aimed at improving the inhabitants’ quality of life and strengthening local identity and social networks. Through concrete proposals and strategies, the book offers scenarios and solutions capable of enhancing the potential of each village and, at the same time, counteracting the effects of land abandonment that so often characterise them.