STEPHANIE: a simplifield approach to energy analysis in buildings

This paper addresses the development of a prototype system for energy building simulation by coupling commercially available CAD systems for architecture to numerical computational methods. Three fundamental directions of the research work are presented:-enhance and expedite the traditional and manual design activities;-open new design possibilities in building design by exploring graphics, database capabilities and innovate programming;-interfaces to generally available computational software using the same graphical environment. Highlights are the relevance of emerging CAD technologies and integration of disciplines within the building design domain using a common user-friendly interface. This will be exemplified by the design of a building floor plan. A procedural pipeline for the method is briefly described.