Me Energy Kernel System (EKS) is an energy simulation environment that facilitates the creation, validation and maintenance of simulation programs using the object-oriented programming (OOP) paradigm. Ibis paper introduces the particular aspect of the EKS development concerning the fundamental issues of system representation; that is, the theory encapsulation and system solution which constitute the implementation of the generalised solver classes in the object-oriented environment.

The Energy Kernel System (EKS) project has reached the final year of its three year duration. The modus operandi has been designed, a class taxonomy devised and the software implementation process commenced. This paper describes the elements of the EKS as it is now envisaged and elaborates on the object oriented programming (OOP) approach being employed in its construction. In particular, the form and content of the EKS classes, the role of inheritance and the scope of the in?built domain theories are elaborated.

The transient simulation program TRNSYS was originally developed to aid in the study of solar energy systems. It was first made public in 1975 when Version 6.0 wag released. Since then it has undergone continual development, and a series of versions have been documented, released, and supported. The current version, 13.1, was released in October, 1990, and is available in mainframe, IBM PC and Macintosh formats.

Design Reference Years are used as climatic input data for computer calculations-simulations - mainly of solar energy systems, and of building energy consumption, energy conservation, indoor climate and comfort. They can be seen as a new generation of such data collections already known as Test Reference Years in Europe or Typical Meteorological Year or WYEC in US.

The Energy Simulation Research Unit of the University of Strathclyde has recently undertaken a major effort to support the application of building performance assessment tools within architectural and engineering practices, universities and research groups around the UK. This has taken the form of a support service, funded by ETSU of the Department of Energy, to assist members of their Passive Solar Programme who are using the ESP suite of thermal simulation tools.

The TEF (Transfer Evolution Formalism) and the ZOOM software (Zone Organized Optimal Modelling) have been developped in order to give a flexible framework for physics oriented modelling. Their construction is based on a clear statement of the necessary partition ning/interfacing process, which leads to the definitions of the two classes of simulation objects : cells (elementary physical systems) and transfers (interfacing cells). This structure is the basis for system nesting and coupling analysis implementation.

The study is focussed on the sensibility of optimal start/stop control of hydronic heating systems on boiler and radiator sizing, supply temperature lift, and the building occupancy pattern. For the prediction of optimal start/stop times the recursive least squares method and the gradient method are evaluated. Computer simulation is applied on the example of an office building equipped with an hydronic heating system.

Zonal models are a promising way to predict air movement in a room with respect to comfort conditions and gradient of temperature because they require extremely low computer time and may be therefore rather easily included in multizone air movement models. The main objective of this paper is to study the arbility of the zonal models to predict the thermal behaviour of air in case of natural convection coupled with a radiator. First, we present two zonal models available in the literature.

The simulation complexity of the thermal behaviour of buildings can be reduced by splitting it up as a hierarchical system of linked components. The behaviour of each component and its relations to the other components are modelled by an object oriented approach. We describe an Ada implementation of these concepts and a simple example of a multilayer wall at the end of this article.

Evacuation is a vitally important component of emergency management. Effective evacuation planning and evacuation management can be the difference between safety and tragedy in an emergency situation. However, in an emergency evacuation of any large complex building, there is a tendency for serious congestion of evacuees to occur in some areas even while other nearby exit areas are experiencing relatively light usage. The consequences are very serious, involving a direct threat to public safety, and adding to the likelihood of the onset of panic amongst evacuees.