Defining LoDs to support BIM-based 3D building abstractions in GIS

Abstract. BIM models of buildings are increasingly being created, and they can be used as a geometrically detailed and semantically rich source for GIS building models without the need for additional data acquisition. However, the existing level of detail (LoD) schemes for buildings are based on models created from very different sources, e.g. 2D topography and remote sensing measurements. In this paper, we propose four novel Levels of Detail (LoDs) specifically tailored for BIM-derived 3D building models. The proposed LoDs—LoDa, LoDb, LoDc, and LoDd offer abstractions that leverage BIM’s strengths while mitigating its limitations. LoDa provides a multi-surface representation of the footprint and roof, whereas LoDb, LoDc, and LoDd offer volumetric alternatives that better capture complex facades, vertical variations, and overhangs. The performance of these new LoDs was evaluated against the established LoD framework by Biljecki et al. (2016) using metrics such as area, volume, and spatial deviation. Results demonstrate that the proposed LoDs, particularly LoDa, LoDb, and the refined variants LoDc.2 and LoDd.2, can achieve a closer geometric approximation to the source model than standard LoD2.2, thereby enhancing the usability of BIM data in GIS applications like urban planning and building permit checks.