The interpretation of building energy simulation results remains a critical challenge as Building Energy Performance Simulation (BEPS) datasets continue to increase in scale and complexity. This study presents BEPVis, an open-source visual analytics tool designed to support the post-processing, interpretation, and diagnosis of EnergyPlus simulation outputs. The tool automates the ingestion and structuring of raw simulation data and integrates multiple visualization types within a coherent and interactive workflow, improving clarity and supporting expert analytical reasoning. A comparative expert evaluation was conducted against EnergyPlus Results Viewer and DView. Quantitative results, analyzed using non-parametric statistical tests (Friedman and Wilcoxon), revealed statistically significant differences across all evaluated visualization tasks, with BEPVis consistently achieving the highest performance scores. Qualitative feedback further highlighted the benefits of a coherent visual language, the integration of comfort-related thresholds, and reduction in cognitive load during energy performance analysis. By streamlining the post-processing and interpretation of simulation outputs, BEPVis contributes to more efficient, reproducible, and decision-oriented building energy analysis, facilitating energy performance assessment and optimization. The tool is openly available to support adoption and further development within the building energy research community.
Automating the interpretation of building energy simulations: A visual analytics workflow with BEPVis
Vera Piazzini, Ofelia
;Scarpa, Massimiliano
2026-01-01
Abstract
The interpretation of building energy simulation results remains a critical challenge as Building Energy Performance Simulation (BEPS) datasets continue to increase in scale and complexity. This study presents BEPVis, an open-source visual analytics tool designed to support the post-processing, interpretation, and diagnosis of EnergyPlus simulation outputs. The tool automates the ingestion and structuring of raw simulation data and integrates multiple visualization types within a coherent and interactive workflow, improving clarity and supporting expert analytical reasoning. A comparative expert evaluation was conducted against EnergyPlus Results Viewer and DView. Quantitative results, analyzed using non-parametric statistical tests (Friedman and Wilcoxon), revealed statistically significant differences across all evaluated visualization tasks, with BEPVis consistently achieving the highest performance scores. Qualitative feedback further highlighted the benefits of a coherent visual language, the integration of comfort-related thresholds, and reduction in cognitive load during energy performance analysis. By streamlining the post-processing and interpretation of simulation outputs, BEPVis contributes to more efficient, reproducible, and decision-oriented building energy analysis, facilitating energy performance assessment and optimization. The tool is openly available to support adoption and further development within the building energy research community.
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