Structure of a Usage Profile

Overview

A usage profile (zone template) is a database element that bundles the usage-dependent boundary conditions of a room type. It itself contains no numerical values but references up to nine independent sub-models from the database – at most one reference per sub-model type. Which sub-models are populated determines which calculation models are created during export into the simulation dataset for the rooms with this profile.

The individual sub-models (and the schedules they reference) are maintained in their own database dialogs, see Usage Sub-Models. Assigning usage profiles to rooms is described in Assign Usage Profiles.

Opening the dialog

The menu Databases > Usage Profile… opens the Usage Profile Database dialog. The same dialog appears in selection mode via the DB… and Replace… buttons of the Usage Profiles panel, and in editing mode via its Edit… button.

Dialog structure

Unlike the other database dialogs, the usage profile dialog shows a tree view on the left: each usage profile is a top-level node with one child entry per sub-model type – populated entries show the columns Id, Name and Type (e.g. Person loads, Equipment loads, Thermostat control), unpopulated ones appear as <not used>. One column shows a validity icon: a green check mark for fully valid profiles, a stop icon with the error text as a tooltip if a referenced sub-model is missing or itself invalid. Another column shows the profile colour, which is also used for the false-colour display in the scene.

The legend above the tree distinguishes the origin of the elements by colour: Built-in elements (bundled, write-protected records), User DB elements and Project elements – for details on the database concept see Database Concept.

Tools of the tree view:

• creates a new, empty usage profile (<new usage profile>).
• copies the highlighted profile (the sub-model references are carried over).
• deletes the highlighted profile (only active with a highlighted top-level node; bundled profiles cannot be deleted). Individual sub-model references are removed via the - button in the property area on the right.
• / move a profile between the project and the user database; when saving to the user database, a follow-up dialog offers to carry over project-local sub-models.
• Reload user database discards all changes made to the user database since program start (after a confirmation prompt).
• Remove unused local elements deletes project-local database elements without a reference (after a confirmation prompt).

On the right, in the Properties of usage profiles area, the name (multilingual) and colour of the highlighted profile are edited; below are the buttons for creating the sub-model references. In selection mode, Select or a double-click on a top-level node closes the dialog with the chosen profile, Cancel discards; in editing mode there is Close instead.

Sub-models of a usage profile

The buttons are arranged in four groups. Each button opens the database dialog of the respective sub-model type; after selection, the sub-model is shown in the associated child entry of the tree. If a type is already populated, its button is disabled – a double-click on the child entry (or the … button) then opens the selection/editing dialog, and the - button removes the reference.

Group	Sub-model	Key parameters	Effect in the simulation
Internal loads	Person	Person occupancy (persons/m², m²/person or number of persons), occupancy and activity schedule, optional moisture production, convective fraction	Heat and moisture release of the persons in the room energy balance
	Electrical equipment	Power [W] or area-related power [W/m²], operation schedule, convective/latent/loss fraction	Equipment heat load
	Lighting	Power [W] or [W/m²], operation schedule, convective fraction	Lighting heat load
Infiltration/ventilation	Infiltration	Method normal (constant air change) or n50 with shielding coefficient, air change rate [1/h]	Constant outdoor air change
	Natural ventilation	Air change rate [1/h] with schedule	Schedule-controlled window air change
Control	Thermostat	Controlled variable air or operative temperature, controller analogue/digital, heating and cooling setpoint schedules, tolerance [K], dead band [K], preheat time [h] (0 = disabled, max. 23 h)	Setpoints for ideal heating/cooling and surface heating
	Shading	Sensor variant (horizontal only or horizontal + N/E/S/W), threshold radiation per orientation [W/m²], dead band [W/m²]	Radiation-dependent control of the shading elements
	Natural ventilation (control)	Maximum comfort air change [1/h], room air temperature min/max [°C], maximum wind speed [m/s]	Temperature- and wind-dependent increased window ventilation
HVAC	Ideal heating/cooling	Heating limit and cooling limit [W/m²] (0 to 1000)	Power limits of the ideal heating/cooling

In the n50 method of infiltration, the effective air change is formed from the n50 value and the shielding coefficient $e$:

$$n_\text{Inf} = n_{50} \cdot e$$

For ideal heating/cooling the following applies: a limit that is not set or set to 0 W/m² disables the respective operating mode, since the heating/cooling load in the solver is calculated as the product of control signal, room area and power limit. Without a thermostat sub-model the setpoints are missing – ideal heating/cooling and surface heating therefore always also require a thermostat in the same usage profile.

How infiltration, natural ventilation and ventilation control are combined during export (constant, schedule-controlled or temperature-limited ventilation model) is described in Internal Loads and Ventilation.

Usage profile assistant

The Create from assistant… button (tooltip: Creates a new usage profile with the guided assistant.) starts the guided Usage Profile Assistant. The assistant itself is currently only available in English. It creates complete usage profiles including sub-models and schedules as project-local database elements:

1. Building type and usage zones – selection from 14 non-residential building types (office, school, kindergarten, university, hotel, hospital, care home, retail, gastronomy, sports hall, assembly, production, storage, museum) as well as single-family and multi-family house; the typical usage zones with default values according to DIN V 18599 are listed.
2. For residential buildings, a separate page with residential-specific data follows (Residential parameters).
3. Further pages for Infiltration (Airtightness of the building envelope), Ventilation, Thermostat, Heating (Heating type) and Shading/summer thermal protection (Shading and summer heat protection), finally a Summary.

After completion, the first created profile is highlighted in the tree. The generated elements are recognisable by the name suffix (assistant) and can subsequently be edited like manually created records.

Validity and edge cases

• A profile is only valid if every referenced sub-model exists in the database and is itself valid (including the schedules it references). Invalid profiles are marked in the tree with a stop icon; the tooltip names the cause (e.g. Internal load with ID ‘%1’ does not exist.).
• Unpopulated sub-model slots are shown by the tree as <not used>; if a populated entry points to a deleted database element, <invalid ID reference> appears.
• The database additionally knows the type Other internal loads (menu Databases > Internal loads > Other…); however, no button is available for it in the usage profile editor, so this load type cannot currently be linked to a profile via the dialog.

Related topics

• Assign Usage Profiles
• Usage Sub-Models in the Database
• Schedules
• Calculation Model: Internal Loads and Ventilation
• Calculation Model: Ideal Heating and Surface Heating