Use of augmented reality tools in bridge engineering courses

Traditionally, the representation of civil engineering infrastructures has relied on 2D drawings, which can give rise to misinterpretations and undermine engineers' grasp of intricate projects. Nevertheless, the advent of the Building Information Modeling (BIM) methodology has revolutionized civil engineering projects by enabling virtual 3D modeling, yielding a more precise depiction. Augmented Reality (AR) tools can now be seamlessly integrated with BIM models, enriching educational contexts, and providing a profoundly immersive and interactive learning experience. This study focuses on the use of economical AR solution for the visualization of BIM models and its subsequent application within the course "Project of Civil Engineering Infrastructures” at University of Castilla-La Mancha (UCLM) in Spain.The authors thank the financial support of the project PID2021-126405OB-C32 funded by MICIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033/ and FEDER funds A way to make Europe. The support of Prof. R. Hindi from Saint Louis University (USA) providing the blueprints of the studied bridge is also greatly appreciated.Postprint (published version