Computer-Aided Design of Energy-Efficient HVAC Systems

The developments in the computer-aided building design will enable designers to improve the energy performance in buildings, through a more appropriate design which will be better structured, will learn from previously accumulated knowledge (e.g., heuristics, databases), and will use new methods for the generation and evaluation of the design alternatives. A scenario is presented to emphasize the designer's expectations, and also the authors view on the development of this integrated computer-aided building design software, which will be used for the design of energy-efficient HVAC systems. Some areas of research, required for the development of this software, are proposed, and they are as follows: (1) the acquisition of the common experience, (2) the development of databases for energy performance of buildings (monitored and predicted), and for manufacturer's data, (3) the automatic generation of a set of new design alternatives, to refine the initial prototype, and (4) the implementation of the requirements from standards, norms or bylaws.