DIAL+Cooling

Description

DIAL+ is a very intuitive interface dealing with the optimization of energy loads on the room scale. Originally focused on daylighting purposes (DIAL-Europe) the capacities of DIAL+ have been extended the field of electric lighting and dynamic thermal simulation. A comprehensive internal modeler allows to quickly describe all the required parameters to either calculate the thermal and cooling loads of a given room or to launch Radiance® simulation (Lighting). Among the results one can mention: THERMAL PURPOSES • Heating & Cooling loads & demands (SIA 382/1 SIA 382/2) • Comfort evaluation (SIA 180, EN15251) • Air flows due to natural ventilation (Cockroft model). DIAL+ has been validated against the following standards: EN 15255, EN 15265 and ISO 13791 LIGHTING PURPOSES • Daylight factor values (Certivea, LEED, BREAM) • Diffuse Daylight Autonomy (Minergie-ECO) • Annual electricity consumption due to electric lighting (SIA-380/4, Minergie) DIAL+ has been validated against the CIE 171:2006 “Test Cases to Assess the Accuracy of Lighting Computer Programs”

External Link to Product Page:

Country:

Switzerland

Major Capabilities:

Load Calculations, Weather Data and Climate Analysis, Air Flow Simulation

Building Type:

Commercial, Residential, Multi Family

Keywords:

Languages:

English, French, German, Spanish, Italian

Platform:

Windows, Mac OS X

Pricing:

Free for Non-Commercial/Academic Use, Free To Try

Help And Support:

Subscription Email Support, Subscription Phone Support

Last Software Update:

October 21, 2015

Expertise Required:

The interface was designed so that a non-expert user can easily describe all the room parameters. This very fluid interface is particularly suitable for sporadic use (no need to use the software every day to know how to use it). However, the use of all the features (lighting and thermal) assumes that the user has a minimum educational background regarding building behavior.

Audience:

DIAL+ is very adapted to the optimization stage of the design process. Its speed and simplicity allow to realize very quickly parametric studies and compare the different variants of a given facade. DIAL+ can thus be used either by engineers and architects. It is also well suited for educational purposes.

Input:

The software includes an internal modeler that allows to describe all the required parameters of a given room. It is possible to import meteo-data from a given location.

Output:

The Cooling module allows to produce reports that include the following results: – Heating & Cooling demand – Overheating hours (EN 15251, SIA 180) – Indoor temperature profiles – Solar gains profiles – Internal gains profiles – Air flow profiles – Shading analysis (sunshine factor, viewed sky fraction) – Sunpath diagrams including outdoor obstructions

Strengths:

Intuitiveness, speed. Ability to consider all the energy loads of a given room (e.g. heating, cooling, ventilation & lighting).