Daylight Visualizer

VELUX Daylight Visualizer is a professional lighting simulation tool for the analysis of daylight conditions in buildings. It is intended to promote the use of daylight and to aid professionals by predicting and documenting daylight levels and appearance of a space prior to realization of the building design.

 

What makes Daylight Visualizer special?

The difference between Daylight Visualizer and commonly used 3D visualisation programmes is that it permits you to accurately simulate and quantify daylight levels in interiors, whereas 3D visualisation programmes only generate images, without information about the quantity and quality of light in a given space. With Daylight Visualizer you can take more informed decisions about daylight performance in your architectural design.

Calculate daylight factor levels

Daylight factor is the most commonly used performance indicator for the evaluation and specification of daylight conditions in buildings. It evaluates the amount and distribution of diffuse light in the building in relation to the amount of diffuse light available outside under cloudy sky conditions, and is expressed as a percentage. Daylight factor levels are usually determined on a plan view and at work-plane height.

Example
Comparison between the effect of a flat roof window and facade window in a simple room. The images show the amount light falling on a work plane at a height of 0.85m.

Photo-realistic and false colour visualisation

Visualise the appearance of daylight with photo-realistic images, and quantify the amount and distribution of daylight with false colour images.

Example
Comparison between a luminance rendering (left) of the hallway on the first floor with a picture (right) from the realised project.

Example
False colour visualisation of luminance levels under overcast sky conditions.

Create or import 3D models

Use the embedded modeling tool to generate 3D models in which roof and facade windows can be freely inserted. Or simply import 3D models directly from your CAD program (Autocad, Revit, SketchUp, Archicad and more) with the following supported 3D file formats DWG, DXF, SKP and OBJ.

Example
Screenshot of an imported 3D model in Daylight Visualizer.

Validated calculation results

Daylight Visualizer can accurately predict daylight levels and appearance of a space lit with natural light, prior to realization of the building design. It passed all of the CIE 171:2006 test cases dedicated to natural lighting. 

Daylight Visualizer simulates the following aspects of natural light transport with an average error lower than 1.29 %:


• Luminous flux conservation

• Directional transmittance of clear glass

• Light reflection over diffuse surfaces

• Diffuse reflection with internal obstructions

• Sky component for a roof unglazed opening for CIE sky types 1-15

• Sky component under a roof glazed opening for CIE sky types 1-15

• Sky component and external reflected component for a façade unglazed opening for CIE sky types 1-15

• Sky component and external reflected component for a façade glazed opening for CIE sky types 1-15

• Sky component and external reflected component for an unglazed façade opening with a continuous horizontal mask for CIE sky types 1-15

• Sky component and external reflected component for an unglazed façade opening with a continuous vertical mask for CIE sky types 1-15

Download Daylight Visualizer:

Contact

For support and other queries, please contact the Daylight Visualizer team by emailing  daylight.visualizer@velux.com