4.3 Article

Simulation-aided development of automated solar shading control strategies using performance mapping and statistical classification

Journal

JOURNAL OF BUILDING PERFORMANCE SIMULATION
Volume 14, Issue 6, Pages 770-792

Publisher

TAYLOR & FRANCIS LTD
DOI: 10.1080/19401493.2021.1887355

Keywords

Automated solar shading; control strategies; mapping; statistical classification; confusion matrix

Funding

  1. Rijksdienst voor Ondernemend Nederland through the TKI-Urban Energy consortium [TEID215059]
  2. (TKI-iDEEGO)

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This paper proposes a method using building performance simulation to aid the development of comfort-driven solar shading controls, which utilizes confusion matrices as a statistical classification approach to facilitate sensor deployment strategies and control algorithm optimization. The method has been tested and shown to identify high-performance solutions, and its generally applicable features have been extrapolated from a case study.
This paper presents a structured, generically applicable, method for using building performance simulation to aid the development of comfort-driven solar shading controls by mapping predicted occupant comfort conditions to sensor measurements. The method uses confusion matrices as a statistical classification approach to facilitate (i) selection of sensor deployment strategies that offer beneficial trade-offs considering multiple performance aspects and (ii) identification of control algorithms that optimise comfort conditions using non-ideal sensors. The support method requires relatively little effort from a developer, only a small number of simulations and fits well within the current practice of shading control development. The method is tested using a sun-tracking control strategy for indoor roller blinds as a case study, which demonstrates that the method can identify high-performance solutions. Finally, generally applicable features of the method are extrapolated from the case study, and alternative applications and the method's limitations are discussed.

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