E-Campus @ City Lab
Prof.
Carrera (IGSD), Prof. Salazar (CEE) and John Miller, Director of Physical Plant
and Associate Vice President for Administration have been promoting a series of
Interactive and Major Qualifying Projects to be carried out on campus to help
WPI’s department of Plant Services migrate to an all-electronic management of
information and operations. The main
areas of study are:
A past project in this area of study has pinpointed on
GIS layers the exact location of all parking spaces in and around campus. The project completed in 2003-2004 analyzed
parking demand and supply and assessed the actual parking needs for the years
to come vis à vis the planned parking expansions proposed in the WPI master
plan. Future projects will develop a system
to organize all the information about parking stickers and will determine the
feasibility of equipping campus police officers with PDA’s that will facilitate
the cross-referencing of license plates with the WPI stickers database and will
thus automate the issuance of parking tickets.
A possible consequence of this project is the development of an MQP
(CS/ECE) to produce the actual PDA application.
This year’s team is continuing the 2003-04 effort by
completing the transfer of CAD drawings of campus buildings into GIS
layers. The students are finalizing a
method for dealing with 3-D buildings on 2-D layers, managing information on a
room-by-room basis. The project looks at
ways to streamline permits, reduce maintenance, optimize use, reduce energy
consumption and increase safety for all buildings and structures owned by WPI
in and around campus. This year’s
project focuses on the human and environmental safety aspects of campus
buildings linked to the e-safety project line described below.
In future years, this project will analyze the energy use
in campus buildings to connect with the e-energy project line described below.
This year’s team is continuing the 2003-04 effort by
completing the mapping of all open space at WPI onto GIS layers. The students are developing a system that
will optimize the maintenance of the grounds in all seasons. The project analyzes lawns, flower beds,
trees, bushes and other plantings with respect to mowing, planting, pruning,
fertilizing, mulching, disease prevention and landscaping in order to maximize
the aesthetic value of the campus and minimize maintenance costs. The team is considering the (re-)allocation
of economic and human resources in the context of desired “levels of service”
to maintain the WPI grounds at a level that contributes to the campus
attractiveness to both visitors and prospective students.
This project pinpoints on GIS layers the exact location
of all fire extinguishers, fire hydrants, exit signs, emergency lights,
emergency generators, emergency phones, back flow preventers,
and other safety equipment, as well as mapping all evacuation routes and the
location of all hazardous materials at satellite collection areas. The students are developing a system that
organizes all safety information so that important data can be accessed quickly
in case of an emergency. The system
should be an important tool in support of decisions about safety on
campus. The project is also exploring
the Homeland Security implications of this system.
Projects in this area of study will pinpoint on GIS
layers the exact location of all recreation/athletic facilities on campus. The students will develop a system that help
manage the use and maintenance of these facilities. A needs assessment will be conducted to
determine whether the facilities are adequate and how the Master Plan will
address future needs as they arise.
Projects in this area of study will analyze the energy
use around campus and will identify areas where savings could be achieved in
the short, medium and long term. The
team will also explore the feasibility of energy production on campus through
solar, wind and other renewable technologies.
The feasibility of selling energy to the electric grid will be explored
in detail as will be the implementation of “signature” projects that will
promote a renewed attention to energy and will bring about a zero energy campus
in a reasonable timeframe.
City
Lab [Homepage,
City
Knowledge,
Information
Systems,
Technologies, Studies, Initiatives, Projects, Publications, Emergent
Systems Lab]
FABIO
CARRERA [Homepage, Research, Teaching, Projects, Publications, Contacts]