From point cloud to BIM: an integrated workflow for documentation, research and modelling of architectural heritage

Heritage buildings traditionally have been tackled from several points of view: architectonic features, architectural style, archaeology, history, etc. Documents derived from those studies were classified and put together to form the documentation for consultation, taking decisions about its conservation, and restoration. Such a document organisation has some inconveniences: objects composing the building were treated as isolated objects not related to its adjacent objects. Nowadays technology may help to discover the relationship between architectural objects forming heritage buildings. The tool that makes it possible to include functionality in architectural objects is BIM (Building Information Modelling). In this paper the historical evolution of Saint Jeromés Church in Baza will be analysed and stored in a functional model which includes geometry and its current state. We propose a procedure for building the BIM through its historical roots and evolution to be included in each remarkable object modelled from the point cloud surveyed.