AutoFrame: A Novel Procedure to Auto-Convert Architectural Massing Models into Structural Simulation Models to Streamline Embodied- and Operational-Carbon Assessment and Daylight Evaluation in Early Design

Abstract

Sustainability and material efficiency are essential considerations in architecture. However, they are often evaluated late, absent optimization potentials inherent in architectural choices. Easy-to-use computational tools facilitate integration of performance parameters into design decision-making, but because different simulation environments require specific geometric input, simultaneous consideration of multiple constraints is not feasible without significant modeling. This research capitalizes on existing simulation tools and presents a novel procedure, AutoFrame, that converts architectural massing models into structural simulation input models to streamline daylight simulation, and embodied- and operational-carbon assessment during schematic design. Three reference buildings are used to validate the approach and a speculative case study demonstrates how the multi-disciplinary performance feedback guides design decisions while maintaining the flexibility of early design exploration.