Multiobjective Design Optimization of Building Spa
Multiobjective Design Optimization of Building Spa
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Abstract: Computational tools for early architectural design need to address issues related to building performance and integrally con-
sider early design decisions regarding building form, spatial layout, orientation, and envelope articulation. This paper presents (1) a design
optimization tool, Multiobjective Architectural Design Explorer (MADE) that supports performative-based building design, and (2) a
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design exploration strategy that effectively operationalizes MADE for Pareto-based comparative search. MADE implements genetic
optimization in two steps. It first generates building layouts that satisfy formal, topological, and placement constraints with a single-
objective genetic algorithm. Then, MADE determines the opening sizes of the generated layout(s) by optimizing the buildings’ energy
and daylighting performance with a multiobjective genetic algorithm. MADE is tested on the design of a library building and the proposed
Pareto-based exploration strategy is demonstrated in the selection of an optimal design. The results point out the feasibility of the presented
tool and the design strategy, and that multiple objectives can be satisfied by sequentially optimizing design objectives. DOI: 10.1061/
(ASCE)CP.1943-5487.0000669. © 2017 American Society of Civil Engineers.
Author keywords: Building energy and daylighting optimization; Architectural layout optimization; Genetic algorithms; Design
exploration; Pareto front.
balance their satisfaction against others. A multiobjective genetic and wall and roof construction were parameterized in a multiob-
algorithm (MOGA) looks for a Pareto-optimal set of solutions jective optimization model that assists users in green building
while dealing with multiple objectives. Although MOGA shares design by Wang et al. (2005b). Coley and Schukat (2002)
its main principles with SOGA, it differs from it in the selection combined computer-based optimization and human judgment
and retention of the good individuals. Nondominated sorting in a semiautomated model using GA.
genetic algorithm-II (NSGA-II) is a dominance-based MOGA ap-
proach that can effectively balance exploitation and exploration in
its search for optimal design alternatives. This way, it can support Research Gaps in Integral Optimization Approaches
early-design decision making by reaching multiple optimal solu- and Design Strategies
tions and expanding the solution space.
Automated building layout approaches have previously been Early design phases can benefit from genetic optimization to gen-
developed that make use of GAs to optimize spatial geometry erate and evaluate a high number of design alternatives. There are
and topology. Among these works there are a number of heuristics many studies focusing on building shape, opening size and con-
for layout generation. The slicing tree approach uses a binary tree figurations, construction materials, and the design of shadings.
representation to repeatedly subdivide a given building shape by However, the design of spatial layout has not yet been addressed
vertical and horizontal dissections to acquire spaces. Although in performative design tools despite its determinant role in build-
many studies successfully applied this approach in two-dimensional ing performance. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, a com-
(2D) floor plans (Tam 1998; Al-Hakim 2000; Azadivar and Wang putational approach that considers and optimizes spatial layout
2000; Shayan and Chittilappilly 2004; Wu and Appleton 2002; during performative design does not exist. Therefore, an inte-
Honiden 2004; Aiello et al. 2012; Banerjee et al. 2008), it fails grated strategy for the optimization of both spatial layout and
in three-dimensional (3D) layouts, nonsliceable floor plans, and building performance is necessary. Here, computational chal-
nonrectangular spatial and building forms. An alternative heuristic lenges need to be resolved regarding (1) different problem formu-
is to assign spaces to the cells of a matrix representation considered lations to layout and performance optimization, (2) different
as a quadratic assignment problem (Balakrishnan and Cheng 2000; design and solution representations (corresponding to geometry
El-Baz 2004; Mak et al. 1998; Rajasekharan et al. 1998), or space models and chromosome representations) of layout and energy
filling curves (Buscher et al. 2014; Islier 1998; Kochhar et al. 1998; and daylighting optimization, and (3) the need to attend to many
Wang et al. 2005a), or by growing spaces from seeds by rule-based design variables and objectives. Moreover, design processes
heuristics (Inoue et al. 2014). However, these approaches also require the simultaneous exploration of design artifacts, require-
cannot generate 3D and vertically continuous spaces that span ments. and objectives (Van Langen and Brazier 2006), during
multiple floors. A third heuristic packs a number of spatial which a high number of design alternatives need to be systemati-
blocks within a given boundary (Baušys and Pankrašovaite 2005; cally evaluated and benchmarked. Therefore, there is a need for
Dunker et al. 2003; Koenig and Schneider 2012; Lee et al. 2005; design strategies that can systematically explore the solution
Rodrigues et al. 2013). However, the computation time to detect space and provide insight into the solution space for better-
and avoid collision and empty spaces and their limited range of informed decision making.
simplified spatial forms remain an obstacle in their application in
architecture. In conclusion, existing studies mostly deal with 2D
and nonrectangular forms, hindering their effective use in architec- Multiobjective Architectural Design Explorer
tural design. It is necessary to develop a novel heuristic that can
support the design of arbitrarily complex building forms and spatial MADE is a design tool that supports the optimization of building
programs. spatial layout and envelope openings in two submodules (Fig. 1).
Similar to layout design, various metaheuristic methods have MADE-Layout [see Dino (2016) for an extended discussion]
been applied in performance optimization for early-phase build- implements SOGA to find an optimal layout satisfying spatial
ing design. Granadeiro et al. (2013) integrated energy perfor- constraints, while MADE-Opening implements MOGA to deter-
mance assessment in the decision making of building shapes mine the opening sizes that have optimal energy and daylighting
using shape grammars. Lin and Gerber (2014) proposed a deci- performance. The optimal layouts generated by MADE-Layout
sion-support framework that couples parameterization with are provided as input to MADE-Opening. Then, MADE-Opening
MOGA that can generate formal variety while taking energy per- computes a Pareto set of building opening sizes that optimize en-
formance and costs as objectives. Caldas (2008) combined SOGA ergy and daylighting performance. To this end, MADE-Opening
and MOGA with an energy simulation tool applied on various is seamlessly integrated with EnergyPlus, an existing energy
simulation tool, to calculate the energy use and daylighting the width (ratioW), depth (ratioD), and height (ratioH) ratios are
performance. generated, and Pi ’s actual widthi , heighti , and depthi are calculated
using these ratios. Then, Pi is assigned to a random voxel in the
building (Cix ; Ciy ; Ciz ) from its center point. Prism Pi is trimmed off
MADE-Layout if it overflows the building. After all the zones are placed in the
building, conflicts regarding zone overlaps and/or empty voxels
MADE-Layout makes use of SOGA to address 3D unequal-area are resolved using two permutation lists, the collision precedence
layout design in three submodules: (1) precedence-based layout list (CPL) and the fill precedence list (FPL). The CPL maintains the
configuration heuristics (P-LCH) is a novel heuristic that generates precedence of each zone in case of space collision. The highest-
layouts without overlaps or empty spaces; (2) the constraint ranking zone in CPL has the precedence to keep the voxel when
checker quantifies layout fitness by means of constraint penalties; multiple zones are assigned to it. The FPL maintains the precedence
and (3) the genetic engine provides feedback to P-LCH to improve of each space to occupy the empty voxels surrounding it. For each
solutions. The user inputs (Table 1, first row) define the require- empty voxel island, the neighboring zone(s) that border these vox-
ments that the layouts need to satisfy based on which layouts els are computed, and the highest ranking in FPL extends itself onto
are constructed (Table 1, second row) and constraint penalties that island. As a result of these two steps, all overlap and empty
are calculated (Table 1, third row). voxel conflicts are resolved. The resulting layout is represented
P-LCH is a novel method that generates valid space layouts as a second 3D matrix (Abuil ) with the same size as Ainit that main-
without zone conflicts or empty areas. As input, P-LCH takes a tains the zones’ indexes. The following generations make use of
discretized building form represented as a 3D Boolean matrix recombination and mutation to generate new individuals.
(Ainit ) and a list of spaces (zones) that are also discretized such that The constraint checker computes layout fitness by penalizing
the total number of the spatial units is equal to the total number of constraints regarding a zone’s form, placement, and topology
voxels. P-LCH assigns zones to voxels as follows. (Table 2). Here, all constraint penalties are normalized to the
In the first generation, for each zone Zi , a rectangular prism Pi (0–1) range to allow intercomparability. A total penalty score
that has the same or approximately the same number of voxels as in fðLÞ for a given layout L is calculated by aggregating the penalties
the brief (NRiv ) is generated. For this, random values over (0, 1) for of all zones, and is minimized toward zero [Eq. (1)]
X
Ns In the genetic engine, MADE-Layout maintains the spatial in-
minfðLÞ ¼ ðwsize Csize þ wdim Cdim þ wcompact Ccompact þ wjag Cjag formation dealt by P-LCH in chromosomes. Two encoding
i¼1
schemes are used: value encoding for the spaces’ rectangular
þ wconvex Cconvex þ wfacade Cfacade þ wfloor Cfloor Þ prisms, and permutation encoding for the two precedence lists.
Atopo ·length In the former, the center point (Cix , Ciy , Ciz ) and dimensions
X
þ ðwneigh Cneigh þ wsep Csep Þ ð1Þ (depthi , heighti ) of each prism Pi is stored (widthi is calculated
j¼1 only when required). In the latter, two permutation lists are used
Emin
Zi and setpoint schedules lx Zi wwr W
Zi
Heating and cooling setpoint °C
schedules
HVAC (standard Zone controls, equipment —
for all buildings) configurations, ideal loads system
component
North side West side
Decision Window-to-wall ratio (wwrNZi , —
variables wwrSZi , wwrEZi , wwrW Zi ) wwr S
Zi wwr E
Zi
Objective BTEU kWh
functions
BDA h
to maintain the precedence information of the spaces. When a South side East side
genotype is to be mapped to its phenotype (a valid 3D layout),
the P-LCH algorithm is used. Fig. 2. Window placement example of a zone with 12 voxels (Zi )
Elitism, crossover, and mutation operations are implemented as
genetic operators. In elitist selection, the best individuals are copied
to the new generation with a rate of Pe . The remaining individuals
are selected for crossover with a rate of Pc . Uniform crossover is for each voxel with user-specified dimensions (widthi , depthi ,
applied on the chromosome’s value-encoded part, while partial heighti ). An energy model is built in OpenStudio SDK, where each
mapping crossover (PMX) is used for the two ordered lists. zone corresponds to a thermal zone. Following, the parameters nec-
Afterward, a mutation is applied to individuals with a rate of essary for simulation such as materials, internal loads, schedules,
Pm . The mutation replaces alleles with random values on the chro- and illuminance setpoints are entered by the user (Table 3). If there
mosome’s value-encoded part, or switches two random gene posi- are neighboring buildings or other obstacles that may influence the
tions with each other on the ordered lists. MADE-Layout energy calculations, they also need to be added in the model by
terminates when the highest fitness value remains the same for a specifying their surface reflectivity and geometry in relation to
user-determined number of successive generations (N ni ). the building. The wwr values are determined randomly for the first
generation. In the following generations, the genetic operators
compute these values.
MADE-Opening aims to minimize BTEU and maximize BDA.
MADE-Opening
BTEU aggregates the building heating, cooling, and lighting en-
MADE-Opening supports the optimization of building energy and ergy use [Eq. (2)]. BDA is calculated in two steps. First, the day-
daylighting performance using NSGA-II as a multiobjective opti- z ) for each zone Zi for a given hour h is
light illuminance value (Ecalc
mizer. The zones’ window-to-wall ratios (wwr) are selected as de- calculated by EnergyPlus. Then MADE-Opening calculates day-
sign variables, and building total energy use (BTEU) and building light illuminance setpoint satisfaction (DISS) using an asymmetric
daylight autonomy (BDA) are selected as the objectives of MOGA. triangular fuzzy membership function, as an indication of how
Both BTEU and BDA are calculated at once by the EnergyPlus close Ecalc
z is to Zi ’s user-defined daylight illuminance setpoint
energy simulation software, which is seamlessly coupled to (Emin
z ). In this function, the lower and upper limits of deviation
MADE-Opening through OpenStudio SDK, an open-source frame- (ElowB
z and EhighB
z ) can be stretched by the user to specify the al-
work that supports tool development by providing access to model lowable daylighting values. The DISS value then is weighed by the
object attributes for the programmatic generation of energy models number of voxels Zi contains (NAiv ). Finally, the eventual BDA
(Weaver et al. 2012). Finally, MADE-Opening presents to the value is calculated by aggregating the DISS values for all the hours
users a Pareto optimal set of nondominated solutions for further of the given design days for all zones [Eq. (3)]
exploration.
minBTEU ¼ Qheating þ Qcooling þ Qlighting ð2Þ
Fitness Evaluation: Energy Modeling and Simulation
MADE-Opening takes as input a layout solution (Abuil ) that the X
t X
k
user generates in MADE-Layout. First Abuil is converted from a maxBDA ¼ DISShz NAiv
3D matrix into a 3D form by instantiating a rectangular prism z¼1 h¼0
Form
Form
Form
Form
Layout B5
Fitness 27.69714164
csize 0.0
cdim 0.0
ccompact 0.14925498
cjag 0.00637755
cconvex 0.0
cfacade 0.35
cfloor 0.0
cneigh 0.460714286
csep 0.6
Northeast view Southwest view
Layout C2
Fitness 26.73771788
csize 0.02178030
cdim 0.0
ccompact 0.21868312
cjag 0.00347222
cconvex 0.0
cfacade 0.35
cfloor 0.0
cneigh 0.32738095
csep 0.0
Northeast view Southwest view
Layout D4
Fitness 30.51772142
csize 0.03645833
cdim 0.0
ccompact 0.17941780
cjag 0.0019531
cconvex 0.0
cfacade 0.32142857
cfloor 0.0
cneigh 0.43333333
csep 0.0
Northeast view Southwest view
Z1 Z2 Z3 Z4
Z5 Z6 Z7 Z8
Fig. 5. Highest ranking layout of each building form, the final fitness and raw penalty values; northeast and southwest views
Layout B3
Fitness 34.59124096
csize 0.04848710
cdim 0.0
ccompact 0.19506230
cjag 0.00510204
cconvex 0.0
cfacade 0.32142857
cfloor 0.0
cneigh 0.39404762
Northeast view Southwest view csep 0.86666667
Layout B5
Fitness 27.69714164
csize 0.0
cdim 0.0
ccompact 0.14925498
cjag 0.00637755
cconvex 0.0
cfacade 0.35
cfloor 0.0
cneigh 0.46071429
Northeast view Southwest view csep 0.6
Layout B7
Fitness 28.92860827
csize 0.0
cdim 0.0
ccompact 0.15173838
cjag 0.00765306
cconvex 0.0
cfacade 0.37500000
cfloor 0.0
cneigh 0.45238095
Northeast view Southwest view csep 0.6
Z1 Z2 Z3 Z4
Z5 Z6 Z7 Z8
Fig. 6. Form B’s four highest ranking layouts, their final fitness and raw penalty values; northeast and southwest views
that have similar BTEU values, B3-i26 and B7-i20, are selected
(visualized in Fig. 10, together with B1 and B5). Their objective
values (Table 14) reveal that Z2 and Z4 of B3-i26 cannot satisfy
their high illumination requirements due to their horizontal depth
and north exposure. As a result, it can be concluded that an optimal
solution (1) favors shallow zones and (2) avoids the northern
exposure of zones with higher illumination needs.
Orientation Exploration
For orientation studies, B5, a fragmented form with an aspect ratio
of 7:4, is selected and its four different azimuth angles, B5-α0 ,
B5-α90 , B5-α180 , and B5-α270 , are simulated. Because façade ori-
entation was a part of in MADE-Layout’s fitness function (cfacade ),
the layout fitness value is first recalculated through MADE-Layout,
such that it corrects the cfacade penalty of the rotated layout. Then,
their Pareto fronts are computed by MADE-Opening and HV val-
ues are calculated (Fig. 11 and Table 15). The east-west oriented
Fig. 7. Pareto set of A6, B5, C2, and D6; the individuals on the layout B5-α0 could minimize BTEU slightly better than B5-α90
3,750-kWh line are visualized in Fig. 8 and B5-α270 , but is very similar in BDA. Layout B5-α180 , on
the other hand, too quickly reaches a low plateau regarding day-
lighting. Again, one individual on the Pareto front of each orien-
tation (B5-α0 -45, B5-α90 -4, B5-α180 -22, and B5-α270 -17) is
Table 11. HV and Layout Fitness Values of A6, B5, C2, and D4 selected and its energy and daylighting values are plotted
(Table 16). It is observed that B5-α180 -22’s daylighting satisfaction
Building and of Z4 and Z6 are significantly lower compared with the other zones.
layout A6 B5 C2 D4
As previously, the north orientation and the horizontal depth of
HV 1.0823 × 106 1.8807 × 106 1.6592 × 106 1.2589 × 106 these zones hinder their reference illumination points reaching
Layout fitness 23.57 27.69 26.73 30.51 the target illuminated levels.
(previously
calculated by Higher-Resolution Design Explorations
MADE-Layout) To evaluate a high number of individuals rapidly, MADE-Opening
deals with low-resolution energy models and 4 design days for sim-
ulation. As a result, yearly simulations are postponed until the sol-
3,750-kWh BTEU line is visualized (Fig. 8). The layouts’ average ution space is narrowed to a limited number of alternatives. In this
wwr values show that MADE-Opening consistently maximized section, the results of detailed simulations for the whole year for the
the south and minimized the north wwr values (Table 12). The best-performing building instance, B5-α0 -45, are presented. As a
exception to this rule are zones with a single north-facing window result the yearly, monthly, or daily energy use and daylighting per-
that try to increase its wwr to receive sufficient daylight. Although formance can be analyzed for each zone (Fig. 12 and Table 17).
western solar exposure is generally not desired due to extreme heat These analyses can calculate the actual building performance (as
gain, MADE generated unusually large western windows due to the opposed to simplified simulations that consider a limited number
controllable shades that limit the undesired heat gain. of days) and allow benchmarking between other building instances
with the same use and size.
Layout Exploration
In this phase, Form B’s four highest-ranking layouts are studied
(B1, B3, B5, and B7). Their Pareto sets are plotted (Fig. 9) and Discussion
their HV values are calculated (Table 13). The HV results suggest
that B7 performs the best, representing a good distribution over the
objective space and a close proximity to the true Pareto front. A Size of the Variable Space and Objective Space
noticeable gap between B3 and the other layouts’ HV values is ob- MADE addresses a dense objective space (satisfying a number
served. To understand the reason, individuals from B3 and B7 of spatial constraints for layout design and ensuring energy and
B5.i3
Objective 1
BTEU (kWh): 3759.54
Qelectric: 1319.59
Qheating: 1468.46
Qcooling: 971.49
Objective 2
BDA (hours): 2447.07
C2.i38
Objective 1
BTEU (kWh): 3734.46
Qelectric: 1335.32
Qheating: 1369.10
Qcooling: 1030.04
Objective 2
BDA (hours): 2455.36
Northeast view Southwest view
D4.i27
Objective 1
BTEU (kWh): 3764.73
Qelectric: 1407.40
Qheating: 1081.98
Qcooling: 1275.35
Objective 2
BDA (hours): 2092.33
Z1 Z2 Z3 Z4
Z5 Z6 Z7 Z8
Fig. 8. Objective values of the layouts selected in Fig. 7; northeast and southwest views
B3.i26
Objective 1
BTEU (kWh): 3499.59
Qelectric: 1429.16
Qheating: 1092.19
Qcooling: 978.24
Objective 2
BDA (hours): 1948.69
B5.i45
Objective 1
BTEU (kWh): 3507.36
Qelectric: 1334.46
Qheating: 1248.60
Qcooling: 924.30
Objective 2
BDA (hours): 2378.09
B7.i20
Objective 1
BTEU (kWh): 3474.00
Qelectric: 1285.98
Qheating: 1159.41
Qcooling: 1028.62
Objective 2
BDA (hours): 2679.70
Z1 Z2 Z3 Z4
Z5 Z6 Z7 Z8
Fig. 10. Objective values of the instances selected in Fig. 9; northeast and southwest views
Conclusion
MADE addresses the need for early-phase design tools that support
performance-based design. Building form, layout, and envelope
openings have a huge impact on energy and daylighting perfor-
mance. Their combined optimization in early-design processes
can lead to well-informed decisions toward higher performance.
Layout and energy and daylighting optimization are characterized
by different convergence behavior and fitness landscapes. Corre-
spondingly, MADE-Layout and MADE-Opening should be opera-
tionalized using different design exploration strategies. The former
requires multiple separate runs to reach different optimal solutions,
while the latter computes a Pareto frontier on which users can nego-
tiate and agree on a trade-off solution. The presented case study
Fig. 11. Pareto front for four azimuth angles of layout B5
demonstrates the feasibility of MADE in sequentially optimizing
multiple design objectives that cannot be tackled at once. More-
over, genetic algorithms coupled with simulation tools proved to
be able to facilitate both design exploration within a rich design
space and exploitation by converging to the Pareto frontier.
The simulation-based evaluation function of MADE-Opening
Table 15. HV and Recalculated Layout Fitness Values of Four Azimuth necessitates energy models early during design. While there is extra
Angles
burden in the buildup of these models, it also contributes to a con-
Building and tinuous evaluation supported by simulation. The models initiated
layout B5-α0 B5-α90 B5-α180 B5-α270 by MADE-Opening can be gradually developed further as detailed
HV 2.3114 × 106 2.5294 × 106 2.1117 × 106 2.3964 × 106 design information is made available by time. While the energy and
Layout fitness 27.69 27.98 28.17 27.98 daylighting models can be sustained until the end of design, it is
(recalculated also necessary to integrate other performance analysis tools that
in MADE- were not addressed in this research into the process. To this
Layout) end, future work should consider strategies for data interoperability.
Building information models such as inductry foundation classes
Fig. 12. Yearly heating, cooling, and lighting energy use and daylight autonomy of B5-α0 -45
Table 17. Objective Values—Yearly Heating, Cooling, and Lighting Energy Use and Daylight Autonomy—of B5-α0 -45
Objective values Z1 Z2 Z3 Z4 Z5 Z6 Z7 Z8 Total
Heating (kWh) 53,583.41 18,022.07 23,825.95 22,223.64 20,328.7 56,703.39 3,047.819 1,451.088 19,9186.1
Cooling (kWh) 18,774.06 9,147.469 33.24476 20,103.12 36,181.13 47,168.82 56.44864 2,650.728 13,4115
Lighting (kWh) 27,270.72 19,042.29 18,831.8 12,920.67 9,633.258 29,240.41 1,593.495 2,553.945 12,1086.6
BTEU (kWh) 99,628.19 46,211.83 42,690.99 55,247.43 66,143.08 133,112.6 4,697.762 6,655.761 454,387.7
BDA (h) 2,661.167 2,830.333 3,068 3,392 3,451.5 3,371.167 3,447.833 0 22,222