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WINDOW and THERM have undergone several iterations prior to the 7.8.55 versions. All documentation on fixes and updates have been posted to the LBNL website. The following are the most notable differences between WINDOW/THERM 7.4 and WINDOW/THERM
7.8.
Updates to airflow coefficients for all shading systems except venetian blinds. This will affect the U-factor and SHGC for shading systems.
Added two check boxes under File/Preferences/Options:
Database integrity check before database close (recommended)
Check this box to have WINDOW library results saved for shading systems
Check that results are current for all records and their dependent records
For WINDOW databases with many glazing system library records (4,000+) the program would take up to a minute to move from the detail view to the list view, due to the program checking the results for the records
and all their dependent records. There is now a checkbox in File/Preferences/Options tab that allows the user to turn off those checks while creating and editing the records. The check can be turned on again
as needed after the records have been created and calculated.
Direct/Diffuse model added for diffuse materials such as fritted glass
This option requires further development to be used and has not been approved by the WINDOW/THERM Approval TG
Added a new check box under Options/Preference/Simulation
Show progress, dialog
A checkbox has been added so that the user has control over whether the progress dialog box is displayed when calculating files with multiple glazing options. Uncheck to duplicate THERM 7.4 behavior.
# of threads used in Calc Manager
The number of threads THERM uses during simulations can be set in Preferences/Simulation tab, and is stored in the THERM7.8.ini file
You can set this value in Preferences, in the Simulation tab; the advice is to set it to the number of computer's cores minus 1, with a max value of 7
If there is no setting in the INI file (the INI files does not get overwritten during the install), THERM will look at the number of cores on your computer and set the number of threads to that number minus
1, with a maximum of 7
The number of cores for a computer can be found in Task Manager under the Performance tab, the number of "Logical processors" is the number of cores that THERM looks at.
Added editing of the float tolerance under Options/Preferences/THERM File Options
Float tolerance
The float tolerance setting in Preferences/THERM File Options is now saved with the THERM file. See this Knowledge Base Article about Float Tolerance.
Nusselt number differences between THERM 7.4 and 7.8 due to problems with the frame cavity rectangularization (results change)
There have been several updates to the WINDOW and THERM software which are expected to change the results when comparing WINDOW/THERM 7.4 to WINDOW/THERM 7.8. These documented changes are provided through the following link. The general overview is provided here.
Divider results are better in THERM 7.8 (U-factor, SHGC, and Edge) than in THERM 7.4
This fix will change results in THERM if a frame cavity with an imported IGU is in the model
The emissivity of glass surfaces are not accurate when importing a glazing system from WINDOW into THERM
Angular dependence calculations
Routines for angular calculations which are causing certain inaccuracies were fixed
Revision to slat shade thermal openness (A_h) equation
The front openness coefficient is used in airflow calculations and this change is performed based on the research done by Robert Hart at LBNL
In the worst case, it impacts the U-factor by 0.6%. And this is only when slats are fully tilted. The impact is essentially zero for all other cases. It also has a very minor impact on SHGC since solar dominates there (0.2% in worst case)
Airflow calculation for all shades except Venetian blinds now have updated shade coefficients that correspond to the paper published by Robert Hart, LBNL. This change will affect U-factor and SHGC values.
Two frame cavities placed next to each other in the model were causing incorrect emissivity calculations in finite element model
This was confirmed to be the problem in THERM 7.4 and it is fixed in THERM 7.8. How much results will be affected depends on the size of connected frame cavities in a model.
Glass Library List View: Improved the speed of updating glass records using the IGDB as a source
v7.8.70
THERM:
Calc Manager: Fixed an issue in the Calc Manager that the counter of the files being calculated was not correct
WINDOW:
Frame Library Detail View: Fixed second issue opening a THERM file from the WINDOW Frame Library
v7.8.69
WINDOW:
Frame Library Detail View: Fixed first issue opening a a THERM file from the WINDOW Frame Library
v7.8.68
THERM:
Calc Manager: Fixed problem with Calc Manager not generating or simulation glazing option (child) files
v7.8.67
THERM:
Boundary Conditions: Fixed external frame boundary conditions not sticking in glazing options files if user edits them
Mesh Void Tolerance: Fixed issue that the Mesh Void Tolerance was not being saved in the INI file when changed in the GUI.
v7.8.66
THERM:
Fixed the fact that emissivity and Material Changes were not persisting in the parent glazing options file, and therefore not in the child glazing options files.
v7.8.65
THERM
Fixed issue that some of the keyword shortcuts were not working
v7.8.63
THERM:
Increased LogFile size to accommodate more than 5,000 records
Material pulldown lists: fixed ability to type ahead all characters
v7.8.62
THERM:
Calc Manager: Fixed an issue in the Calc Manager that the counter of the files being calculated was not correct
v7.8.61
THERM:
Calc Manager:
Fixed issue to allow running 3,000 THERM files at once
Fixed issue of results being saved in the THM file even if that option was not checked in Preferences
Added feedback to show how many glazing option files are being created
Added more feedback to show
Maximum number of cores on the computer
Number of cores to use in the simulations
Number of files left for the simulation
v7.8.60
WINDOW:
Gap Library: Fixed issue that program would crash going from List to Detail view after opening a new WINDOW database
Gap Library Detail View: Fixed issue that the new name was not being saved after changing the gas mixtures
v7.8.59
WINDOW:
Dir/Dif Import
Shade Material Library: Fixed issue that some fields were not being populated when importing a file
Shading Layer Library: Fixed issue that some fields were not being populated when importing a file
Fixed problem that not all information was deleted when a dir/dif file was deleted
Import now requires NFRC ID for Shade Materials and AERC ID for Shading Layers
v7.8.58
THERM:
Fixed issue when changing units (IP/SI) which caused an error to appear
Added save of SNAP Settings to the INI file
Fixed an issue with they command line mode not opening a THM file
NFRC is a nonprofit organization that administers a voluntary, uniform rating, labeling, and certification system for the energy performance of windows, doors, curtain walls, skylights, and other fenestration products. Its members include manufacturers,
suppliers, utilities, consumer groups, representatives from the building and code industries, scientific and educational organizations, and government agencies. Contact us at info@nfrc.org.
