Analysis
Analysis
To access the Analysis view, click on the Analysis icon in the side navigation or the Analysis button from the Home view dashboard.
Access the “Analysis” view from the Home view dashboard.
The user interface of the analysis view has 2 main areas that we refer to as the Palette and the Canvas.
- The Palette contains many tools available to assist the user in building project calculations.
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The Canvas area is a large whiteboard type area that will store all calculation elements and paths. It’s a flexible workspace where you can drag, drop and re-order elements and paths. With a new project open, the canvas will initially appear blank.
V-A Design (1) “Pallet” and (2) “Canvas” areas.
Add Calculation Path
To set up a calculation path, start by:
- Clicking the Add Path text in the canvas.
- Click the Edit icon to provide a custom name for your path. Typically, this will describe a System; for example, “AHU-1 Discharge”.
- Save the name by using the Enter keystroke or by clicking the checkmark icon in the header.
Add Path button, calculation path name.
Add Elements to Path
To place elements into a calculation path, drag the icon from the palette to your calculation path. A drop zone will appear that, allowing you to place the element.
Place calculation element to path with drag and drop from palette.
Subsequent elements are added in a similar workflow. With each element added, the calculation will present user inputs related to the element. As you add successive elements, note that the application assumes default attributes based on previous elements to accelerate calculations. Also with each element modal, note that “Additional Resources” are displayed providing technical information about the calculations.
Rectangular Duct calculation element modal.
Receivers
The final element in calculation paths will typically be a Receiver. For indoor spaces, this is often a noise sensitive space, such as a Conference Room. For outdoor spaces, this could be a specific point along a property line. In either case, the application provides a central library to define project Receivers.
To open the Receiver Library, click the Receivers button.
Here you’ll:
- Input a Name for the Receiver
- Input the Receiver Type (Indoor versus Outdoor)
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Input room dimensions to capture approximate Room Volume and Surface Area, and Room Absorption (or, an approximation for the use of sound absorbing materials in the space). Pre-defined options along a spectrum from acoustically Dead (such as a movie theater), to Live (such as a Gymnasium) are provided. A User Defined option allows you to customize the average sound absorption by octave band.
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Define a Receiver Criteria. You can choose one of the following metrics:
- Noise Criteria (NC)
- Preferred Noise Criteria (PNC)
- Room Criteria (RC)
- Noise Rating (NR)
- dB(A)
- dB(C)
- User Defined
- For situations where the criteria is unique, such as a property line noise ordinance, the “User Defined” option can be selected, allowing you to input criteria for each octave.
Room Effects
With the Receiver defined in a library, Room Effect calculation elements will refer to specific Receivers in the calculation results.
Room Effect calculation element.
When the calculation path has been completed, the header will display feedback to the user. Namely, with a specified criteria, and the estimated Total sound level, the application calculates whether or not the Receiver criteria has been achieved, and Required Insertion Loss in each octave band.
Calculation path header with result and feedback.