An interactive graphic interface for daylinghting design with superlite

Fast accurate micro-computer simulations of the thermal, lighting, and energy performance of buildings offers the promise of informing architects' design decision-making. Yet this promise has only been partially realized, probably because of the mismatch between the way humans and computers communicate information. The full potential of microcomputer design tools depends on finding more effective ways for architects and computers to exchange information in a graphic or visual mode. This paper describes a new daylighting design tool built around SUPERLITE, a powerful but cumbersome microcomputer program currently used primarily by the research community. The problem for architects is that SUPERLITE accepts data only from a formatted numerical input batch file (apparently a holdover from the days of punched card input), and only in terms of variables that are quite foreign to the way architects think about their buildings. Another problem is that SUPERLITE produces huge amounts of numerical output, which means that architects cannot instantly see the overall general trends or subtle differences that are essential for design decision-making, especially at the early phases of a building's design. Thus, although it is a potentially valuable piece of software, the design community considers SUPERLITE unusable because of the complexity of the input and output. This new user?friendly design tool makes SUPERLITE easily accessible for architects and lighting designers, while also saving time for researchers.