Geco with PV Panels (+Centipede)

This grasshopper definition uses the GECO plugin to extract the quantitative values of solar exposure for roof panels during the year in Dallas, Texas.

The hottest spots on the roof are selected to array photovoltaic panels. The number of photovoltaic panels is defined by the target energy intensity offset (kWh/sf/yr). This gives us two parameters for PV panels: the gross sf of the building and the solar exposure.

The PV panels chosen are then arrayed by a base PV component (box morph). Remaining panels are arrayed with a glass skin component. Geometry is immediately modeled based on environmental data.

The results are then exported to 3ds Max with Centipede. Some low-res animations are included in this video. The first animation shows the PV panels changing based on form. The following two represent a ribbon scheme (solar shading), and an aperture scheme (solar mass/fenestration).