Accessed from the Panes Dialog
DesignBuilder provides an option to load Glass data directly from an Berkeley Lab WINDOW mdb file into the current Pane dataset. The option is accessed either from the Import button at the bottom of the Panes dialog , or when using Learning mode, from a link on the Info panel. When selecting the Import option you will be prompted for the name of the mdb file containing the data to be loaded. Having selected the mdb filename a list of the Glass types is presented as shown in the screenshot below.
Select the Glass type to be imported by clicking on the appropriate row of data and pressing the OK button. All Glass data supported by DesignBuilder, including spectral data, will be loaded from the database into the currently open Pane dialog.
Data is grouped by Manufacturer by default, but other column headers can be selected as the grouping category instead by dragging the existing group header back to the column header row and dragging the new grouping column category header to the group box. The screenshot below shows the data grouped by the IGDB version number (when the product was introduced) instead.
Buttons are provided to the right of the screen to allow you to expand or collapse all of the group headings.
You can sort the data by any column by clicking on the appropriate column header. Click again to toggle between ascending and descending sort order.
DesignBuilder is supplied with recent IGDB (International Glazing Database) data, but the IGDB is updated at regular intervals and so the vary latest glazing data may not be included in DesignBuilder. However, the latest IGDB data can be downloaded from LBNL in the form of a database. This database can be imported to a WINDOW mdb file where it can be accessed from DesignBuilder as described above.
Note: There is no direct way to import data directly the IGDB database. The data must be imported as a 2-stage process: IGDB to WINDOW then WINDOW to DesignBuilder.