Overview of thesis structure

The method proposed here is called RadiCal as an acronym for the term radiation calculator but also to indicate its disruptive (radical) innovation character. The RadiCal method as well as the work performed in the course of the PhD, represent a framework comprising different functional modules. While the intended workflow of the method relies on most of these modules, the components are largely self-contained and can also be used independently or integrated into other frameworks. Figure 2 provides an overview of the main components implemented in this thesis. For the sake of clarity, many additional modules implemented for the purpose of validation, testing, import and export were omitted in this overview.

The dash-outlined areas indicate self-contained functional modules. The majority of modules were implemented for the physically based raytracer (covered in chapters 4 and 7). The main result of the raytracer scanning process is directionally sampled data. This data is stored and converted into a solar incidence operator SIOP (see section 6.1). The SIOP operator can be evaluated based on any provided irradiance model (see section 6.2). Finally, the feasibility and accuracy of the method are Introduction RadiCal, D. Rüdisser 7 demonstrated in a full-system validation case (chapter 8) and in an application case (chapter 9). The measurement device and process developed for the validation step in the course of the PhD are also covered in chapter 8.