## 2 Materials and Methods
### Implementation of PluginComfort for bim2 sim  
The proposed _PluginComfort_ is an extension of the bim2 sim _PluginEnergyPlus_ (cf. Figure 1). This new plugin requires comfort parameters for each thermal zone, introduced as simplified usage-based parameters in Section 2.3.  
Figure 2 visualizes the structure of the proposed thermal comfort plugin. This plugin builds upon the existing implementation of the PluginEnergyPlus within the bim2 sim framework, as described in Figure 1. While the general tasks like loading IFC data and general element setup from IFC are the same as for all other plugins within the bim2 sim environment, additional template-based data are loaded within the enrichment process of the thermal zones, adding personal comfort parameters for activity and clothing. If this data are available from the given IFC data, these personal parameters could also be loaded directly from IFC. However, since IFC does not yet provide standardized property sets for these personal parameters, the current implementation only considers a template-based enrichment for personal parameters.  
\begin{table}
\begin{tabular}{l c c} \hline \hline  & **DIN EN 15251** & \multicolumn{2}{c}{**DIN EN 16798-1**} \\ \hline Category I, upper threshold & & 24.1...30.7 \({}^{\circ}\)C \\ Category I, lower threshold & 21.75...26.7 \({}^{\circ}\)C & 19.1...25.7 \({}^{\circ}\)C \\ Category II, upper threshold & & 25.1...31.7 \({}^{\circ}\)C \\ Category II, lower threshold & 20.75...25.7 \({}^{\circ}\)C & 18.1...24.7 \({}^{\circ}\)C \\ Category III, upper threshold & & 26.1...32.7 \({}^{\circ}\)C \\ Category III, lower threshold & 18.1...24.7 \({}^{\circ}\)C & 17.1...23.7 \({}^{\circ}\)C \\ _Applicable for running mean temperature:_ & & \\ Upper threshold & & 10...30 \({}^{\circ}\)C \\ Lower threshold & 15...30 \({}^{\circ}\)C & 10...30 \({}^{\circ}\)C \\ \hline \hline \end{tabular}
\end{table}
Table 1: Differences in running mean outdoor temperatures as set points for thermal comfort categories in DIN EN 15251 [59], DIN EN 16798-1 [60].  
Figure 2: Simplified representation of the workflow of the bim2 sim-based thermal comfort plugin PluginComfort; the new plugin builds upon the existing parts of the PluginEnergyPlus (gray) by loading additional data in the enrichment process and comfort-related settings in the plugin-specific settings (white).  
Within the plugin-specific settings, the implementation of the PluginEnergyPlus is extended by adding the personal comfort parameters for activity and clothing to the individual thermal zones according to their zone usage. Furthermore, the applicable comfort metrics are selected, and the related output variables are set. The export of the EnergyPlus simulation model is the same as for the PluginEnergyPlus. The simulation results of the PluginComfort can be evaluated with suitable visualizations to support design decisions within the design stages of the building.  
With this IFC-based thermal comfort plugin, BPS models for design variants can quickly be created, minimizing the manual effort to remodel the geometry. Applying future weather data within the IFC-based BPS assists in evaluating the impact of climate change and the thermal resilience of the design variants. For this evaluation, the heating and cooling loads are related to the resulting thermal comfort of the building. Considering the modular structure of the bim2 sim framework, an additional analysis of the embodied carbon of the design variants could easily be added to further support the design decisions by extending the existing implementation of the LCA Plugin _PluginLCA_[10].