An Evidence-Constrained Method for LoD Reachability Assessment in the Virtual Reconstruction of Historic Architectural Complexes

An Evidence-Constrained Method for LoD Reachability Assessment in the Virtual Reconstruction of Historic Architectural Complexes | Research Square window.SnipcartSettings = { analytics: { enabled: false } }; (function() { var accessVector = localStorage.getItem('access_vector') || ''; window.dataLayer = window.dataLayer || []; if (accessVector) { window.dataLayer.push({ user: { profile: { profileInfo: { snid: accessVector } } } }); } })(); (function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start':new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0],j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src='https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f);})(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-K279D39R'); Browse Preprints In Review Journals COVID-19 Preprints AJE Video Bytes Research Tools Research Promotion AJE Professional Editing AJE Rubriq About Preprint Platform In Review Editorial Policies Our Team Advisory Board Help Center Sign In Submit a Preprint Cite Share Download PDF Article An Evidence-Constrained Method for LoD Reachability Assessment in the Virtual Reconstruction of Historic Architectural Complexes Ziyu Guo, Miaole Hou, Huiqiang Zhao, Botong Gu, Xinyang Liu This is a preprint; it has not been peer reviewed by a journal. https://doi.org/ 10.21203/rs.3.rs-9194620/v1 This work is licensed under a CC BY 4.0 License Status: Under Revision Version 1 posted 9 You are reading this latest preprint version Abstract Historic architectural complexes contain important information about urban spatial structure, religious institutions, and socio-cultural evolution. They are therefore key subjects in cultural heritage research.However, due to war damage, urban redevelopment, and the loss of historical records, the original appearance of many architectural complexes can no longer be directly verified. Virtual reconstruction has therefore become important for heritage conservation and public education. Existing virtual reconstruction results often rely on researchers’ subjective judgments. This limits their transparency and traceability.To address these issues, this study proposes an evidence-constrained method for assessing the achievable Level of Detail (LoD) in the virtual reconstruction of historic architectural complexes, termed Evidence-Constrained LoD Assessment (ECLA).The method establishes a mapping between the Evidence Support Level (ESL) and geometric representation levels, allowing the upper bound of reconstruction precision to be constrained by available evidence. It includes three main components: multi-source evidence attribute modeling, ESL determination, and ESL–LoD mapping with intersection constraints. These steps are used to determine the maximum reachable geometric precision (LoDmax) for each architectural object.Using the Chongshan Temple architectural complex in Taiyuan as a case study, this research performs evidence modeling, ESL assessment, and LoDmax determination for representative buildings. The results are then integrated to produce a virtual reconstruction of the architectural complex at the site scale.The results show that different buildings exhibit different levels of geometric representation due to variations in evidence conditions. The reconstruction outcomes demonstrate good interpretability and consistency. This confirms the effectiveness of the ECLA method in achieving traceable and reproducible virtual reconstruction under conditions of incomplete evidence. Virtual reconstruction Evidence-constrained modeling Level of Detail (LoD) Historic architectural complexes Full Text Additional Declarations No competing interests reported. Cite Share Download PDF Status: Under Revision Version 1 posted Editorial decision: Revision requested 17 May, 2026 Reviews received at journal 07 Apr, 2026 Reviews received at journal 04 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 03 Apr, 2026 Reviewers agreed at journal 29 Mar, 2026 Reviewers invited by journal 29 Mar, 2026 Editor assigned by journal 26 Mar, 2026 Submission checks completed at journal 26 Mar, 2026 First submitted to journal 22 Mar, 2026 You are reading this latest preprint version Research Square lets you share your work early, gain feedback from the community, and start making changes to your manuscript prior to peer review in a journal. As a division of Research Square Company, we’re committed to making research communication faster, fairer, and more useful. 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Also discoverable on Platform About Our Team In Review Editorial Policies Advisory Board Help Center Resources Author Services Accessibility API Access RSS feed Manage Cookie Preferences © Research Square 2026 | ISSN 2693-5015 (online) Privacy Policy Terms of Service Do Not Sell My Personal Information {"props":{"pageProps":{"initialData":{"identity":"rs-9194620","acceptedTermsAndConditions":true,"allowDirectSubmit":false,"archivedVersions":[],"articleType":"Article","associatedPublications":[],"authors":[{"id":615261681,"identity":"4d683345-bd5c-44f0-afee-562ff98a6a05","order_by":0,"name":"Ziyu Guo","email":"","orcid":"","institution":"School of Geomatics and Urban Spatial Informatics, Beijing University of Civil Engineering and Architecture","correspondingAuthor":false,"prefix":"","firstName":"Ziyu","middleName":"","lastName":"Guo","suffix":""},{"id":615261682,"identity":"9423a5d6-709b-42ee-8102-448678b6abf6","order_by":1,"name":"Miaole 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