Net Load
What are net loads
A load, in network simulation terms, is a supply or demand on a resource transport and distribution network. Such a network is composed of nodes connected by lines, in which the nodes with supply or demand are known as load nodes. Based on the supply and demand of various nodes in the network, it is possible to calculate the amount of resource flowing over the various lines.
How net loads relate to the Tygron Engine
In the Tygron Engine, a net load is a definition of supply or demand which connects to a net node to turn that node into a load node. A net load does have a geographical location in the 3D World which may be different from the net node is belongs to. Loads can be imagined as being the (geographical) destinations or origins of resources such as gas or electricity for GAS and ELECTRICITY networks respectively, while the net nodes and net lines form the extent of the distribution network.
Properties of net loads
Net loads have a number of properties related to their effect on the network. They also allow for the definitions of arbitrary attributes.
Root
The root net load indicates a reference net node or origin within the distribution network. Depending on the use-case, the root net load is often a resource supplier, although the net load can have any value for its supply or demand of resources. The Tygron Engine's built-in algorithm for generating networks requires that a root net load is present. This property is also signified by the ROOT_LOAD attribute.
Time state
The time state of the net load indicates whether or not the net load is to be considered active in the network. The following time states are relevant for a net load:
- NOTHING: The net load is currently not active, and its supply/demand should be ignored.
- READY: The net load is currently active, and its supply/demand should be taken into account for calculations.
- REQUEST_CONSTRUCTION_APPROVAL: The load is currently not active, but the owner of the network would like to make it active, requiring permission of the load owner.
- REQUEST_ZONING_APPROVAL: The net load is currently not active, but the owner of the load would like to make it active, requiring permission of the network owner.
When requesting the time state of a net cluster, the furthest progressed time state among all net loads in the net cluster is returned.
Building
When a net load is created or loaded in directly over a building, the load is linked to that building. This allows for queries to find the properties of constructions based on the state of the network. Additionally, the owner of the building will also become the owner of the net load, for as long as the net load is linked to that building. Loads are not required to be linked to buildings.
Attributes
Net loads can have any number of arbitrary attributes. One attribute name is reserved and has a special function.
FLOW: The flow of a net load indicates the quantity of supply or demand that this net load represents. Positive numbers indicate a demand, and negative numbers indicate a supply. The flow is not a fixed property, but should be added to the net load as an attribute. By default, the attribute name FLOW is preferred. The specific attribute name used for this is defined as part of the settings of the net type.
ROOT_LOAD: This attribute indicates whether this net load is a root of the network. A "1" indicates that this net load is indeed a root. A "0", or lack of this attribute, means that this net load isn't a root.
Importing Net loads
| Attribute | Description | Example | Remark |
|---|---|---|---|
| ADDRESSCODE | The postcode this net load is related to. | 2514EG 46 | When a net load has a postcode which is also found in a building in the 3D world, the net load is automatically linked to that building. |
| STATE | Whether the net load is connected or not. | NOTHING | Any of the timestates mentioned in this article are valid. |
| NODE_ID | The ID of the net node this load belongs to. | 17 | If this file is being imported along with a net lines file, this NODE_ID should match one of the net lines START_NODE_IDs or END_NODE_IDs. |
| CLUSTER_ID | The ID of the cluster this load should belong to. | 4 | The cluster of net loads this net load should belong to. A cluster is not created automatically, but after importing these clusters can be created using a cluster generation algorithm. |
| NET_TYPE | The type of network this net load belongs to | HEAT | Note that when connecting net loads and net nodes or net lines of different network types while importing, this is considered incorrect input and behavior of the Tygron Engine will be undefined. |
| NAME | The name of the net load. | NetLoad 49 | |
| ROOT_LOAD | 0 | Whether this net load is a root load or not | 1 = root load (producer), 2 = a regular load (consumer) |