Ontology-based representation of quality assurance and inspection planning in construction

Inspections based on detailed quality inspection plans are crucial for minimizing construction failures and improving construction quality. However, the manual inspection planning process could be aided through the use of a formalized representation, which is currently missing. To address this gap, this paper introduces the Ontology for Construction Quality Assurance (OCQA), which aims to provide formal, comprehensive, and modular knowledge representation for quality inspection planning in construction. The development of the OCQA follows the Linked Open Terms methodology and is encoded using Semantic Web Ontology Language to ensure machine-readability and alignment with other ontologies. The OCQA offers support to inspection planners and inspectors by providing relevant inspection planning knowledge and information to enable project-specific inspection planning. Future research could involve extending the OCQA to specific trades or automating the inspection planning process. • A formal knowledge model (OCQA) for construction quality inspection is proposed. • OCQA structures heterogeneous information for inspection planning. • The ontology can be reused and extended to support inspection planning. • OCQA can be used for inspection information/knowledge retrieval and reasoning. • OCQA is evaluated via a set of ontology evaluation methods.