ARCH 655 PROJECT 2: DAYLIGHT SIMULATION AND OPTIMIZATION IN URBAN DESIGN

In this project, I tried to explore the daylight impact of a proposed high-rise building on an existing low-rise courtyard building. Then I used Genetic Algorithm to optimize the shape and height of the high-rise building that maximized the solar gain on the existing low-rise building.

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At first, I created the existing low-rise building with courtyard in Grasshopper.

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 Then I used DIVA plug-in to carry out the daylight simulation on this block. I chose outside façade as the building material and a typical summer day in Houston, TX for the simulation. 

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 In the next step, I created the proposed high-rise building to the south side of the existing building, with the width and volume fixed, and the length and height variable. 

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 Then I performed daylight simulation in DIVA with the same material and weather condition as the existing building. 

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 In the last step, I used Galapagos to optimize the shape of the tower to maximize the solar gain of the low-rise building. 

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