Hello Ladybuggers!
We have just released a new solar Envelope component for Laybug called SolarEnvelopeAdvanced! The component offers two envelopes -
Solar rights - A 3D envelope which defines the maximum height of built volume which would not violate the solar access for defined surroundings given filtered sun vectors.
Solar Collection - A complementary 3D envelope which defines the lowest heights from which a new built volume would receive solar access, given a built context and filtered sun vectors.
The new component harnesses ladybug’s SunPath tool to determine relevant sun positions based on input from an .epw file. The simulation also takes into account surrounding buildings if provided or a self envelope if omitted, with the goal of adding control and flexibility in conjunction with a more accurate simulation.
A video tutorial is available here - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hRtsxgJCVEw
An example file is both attached and accessible through here - https://www.dropbox.com/s/ao11882no95io9x/solarEnvelopeAdvanced_exa…
The component takes as an input a filtered list of sun vectors, a base surface which represents the site border and a list of curves, representing the surrounding context
and outputs a point cloud and a polysurface -
which in turn can be closed and further evaluated (On the left - solar collection, on the right - solar rights) -
By Boris Plotnikov and with the assistance and guidance of Prof. Guedi Capeluto, based on SustArc model. The component could not have be alive without the invaluable help of the awesome Chris Mackey and Mostapha Sadeghipour Roudsari in development and integration, also a big thanks is due to Abraham Yezioro for testing and advising on usability.
For further reading it might be worth taking a look at Ralph Knowles’s work, e.g -http://www.fau.usp.br/aut5823/Acesso_ao_Sol/Knowles_2003_Solar_Enve…
and G. Capeluto and E. Shaviv’s, e.g - http://www.ibpsa.org/proceedings/BS1999/BS99_C-22.pdf
the component relies to a great extend on the concepts described there.
Thanks for reading and enjoy!