| dc.description.abstract | Today, there are many building energy simulation programs in use. Some programs are publicly available, while others are restricted to private use. However, currently, there are only a few large, public domain programs that are widely used, such as DOE-2.2/eQUEST, TRNSYS, EnergyPlus and proprietary programs, such as TRACE and HAP. All these programs have their roots in the development of the 1950s and 1960s. Several previous papers have traced the origins of building energy simulation programs to the Post Office program. However, there were earlier programs that were not widely discussed in these previous papers, including the Mathematical Analysis of Thermal Environment in Underground Shelters (MATEUS) program, the SHelter Environmental Prediction (SHEP) program, the Thermo-dynamic Analysis Computer System (TACS) program and several miscellaneous computer programs that contributed significantly to the development of the Post Office program and the NBSLD program, which included: the FORTRAN IV program to calculate heat flux response factors for a multi-layer slab (i.e., the CP-26 program), the Response Factors Calculation program (RESPTK) and the FORTRAN IV program to calculate z-transfer functions for the calculation of transient heat transfer through walls and roofs (i.e., the CP-33 program). In addition, contributions of the American Society of Heating, Refrigerating and Air conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) Task Group on Energy Requirements (TGER) to the development of early computer programs were not widely discussed in detail in these previous studies. Therefore, this study revisits the importance of the earlier programs that contributed to the development of the Post Office program and the NBSLD program. | en |
