Calibration of Building Energy Simulation Models Based on Optimization: A Case Study

This study applies an optimization-based approach for calibrating building energy models using monitored data. The calibration was carried out on a test building coupling the EnergyPlus energy simulation tool with the GenOpt optimization tool. The objective function was set to minimize the difference between simulated and monitored energy consumption. For evaluating the model accuracy, the Mean Bias Error (MBE) and the Coefficient of Variation of the RMSE (Cv (RMSE)) were calculated and found consistent with ASHRAE guideline 14 limits for a model to be considered calibrated.