New building simulation tool improves energy efficiency by considering occupant comfort.
Building energy simulation tools currently do not fully consider how people interact with buildings, affecting accuracy. To address this, a new method combines EnergyPlus™ and PMFServ to model occupant behavior. By connecting these tools in a virtual simulation environment, the study shows that integrating occupants' interactions with building components improves building performance evaluation. The results suggest the need for metrics that measure different types of comfort for building occupants.