Computer-support for the design of underground structures

Design decisions in underground construction are mainly based on limited exploration data collected in the individual projects. Up to now, there are no clear procedures on how geological information needed for the determination of the ground type and behaviour is transferred into input data for computer systems. Although a vast amount of data and knowledge is gathered during the design of underground constructions, such information cannot be easily accessed due to the lack of standardized formats, the data size, or simply because the data are not available in a digital form. This contribution is intended to give an overview of the state-of-the-art in the design of underground structures and to present a formal computer-oriented process for the design of underground structures. In addition, it describes the basic implementation concepts of a prototype software system, i.e. the Integrated Optimization Platform (IOPT) and addresses how the different models, numerical simulation software and rule-based systems are integrated into the IOPT system.