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TileFlow 4.2 Now Available

TileFlow 4.2 Now Available

TileFlow 4.2 is Now Available 

Innovative Research, Inc. is pleased the announce the release of TileFlow 4.2. This new version contains a large number of enhancements. These are outlined below.

Upflow CRAC Units
TileFlow now allows you to include upflow CRAC units in the data center layouts. For these units, the dimensions, the details of the return and supply openings, the flow rate, and the cooling characteristics are specified through upflow CRAC unit styles. The supply openings are always located on the top face, but the return openings can be on any of the five remaining faces.

For a given CRAC unit, you can specify:

> A supply plenum with flow openings on multiple faces
> A rear return duct if the return openings are on the rear face
> A floor stand (required if the return openings are on the bottom face)
> Supply and return vents (appropriate for ducted supply or return)
> Cooling behavior (supply temperature is known or is determined by the return temperature, which could be subject to thermostatic control)

Database of Upflow CRAC Unit Styles
An upflow CRAC unit style specifies the dimensions, the details of the supply and return openings, the flow rate, and the cooling characteristics of a specific upflow CRAC unit model. TileFlow now includes an extensive database of the styles representing models from major manufacturers. The database is editable, and new styles can easily be added.


Downflow CRAC Units with Fans Lowered Below the Raised Floor
Selected manufacturers have now introduced downflow CRAC units with EC fans that can be lowered below the raised floor. In TileFlow 4.2, the definition of downflow CRAC unit style has been modified to allow for lowered fans and specify geometric details of these fans.


Expanded Databases
The databases of CRAC units, perforated tiles, and server racks have been expanded to include new models from various manufacturers.


New In-Row Coolers
TileFlow now includes several new coolers from APC and Rittal. In addition, for certain coolers, the option for thermostatic control for the supply air has been added. This option allows you to specify the airflow rate and the supply temperature.


Floor Stands for CRAC Units
In TileFlow, you can now place a CRAC unit (downflow or upflow) on a floor stand. When placed on a floor stand, a downflow CRAC unit supplies air above the floor, and can therefore be used in non-raised-floor data centers. For an upflow CRAC unit, the floor stand is required if the return openings are on the bottom face.


Improved Rear-Door Heat Exchanger Model
The heat exchanger model has been improved using new data for 48-inch wide heat exchanger. In addition, an option has been provided for clearance, which is the rack height, measured from the bottom, not covered by the heat exchanger. Finally, the choice of rear-door heat exchangers has been expanded to include LiquiCool from Coolcentric.


Tool to Turn Off Objects
The new Turn Off Object tool can be used to turn off cooling devices (CRAC units, coolers, XDO units, and XDV units) and deactivate heat-producing devices (racks and hot boxes). For cooling devices, this tool turns off both fan and cooling. For racks and hot boxes, it makes both the heat load and airflow demand zero.


Capturing TileFlow Animations as Movies (AVI Files)
In TileFlow 4.2, you can now record cooling plumes, airflow animations, streamers, billboard traverses, etc., as movies in AVI format.


Editing of AVI Files
TileFlow 4.2 includes an editor for AVI movies. It allows you to edit movies, by trimming individual clips and by joining multiple clips.


Automatic HTML Report
TileFlow now has a provision to create an HTML report. The report includes a title page, tables, images (TileFlow screen captures and images from external sources), Excel tables for results, and text. The title page and the contents of the report can be customized. The report is self contained and can be opened in a browser like Internet Explorer.

For a new model created using TileFlow 4.2, the initial report is automatically generated when you calculate the results. For models created using previous versions, you must use the Generate Report command (Report menu) to create the initial report. Additional contents are added after the results become available.

The default contents of the report and the fate of the results tables and screen shots displaying results when the results become invalid are specified using the Report Preferences command from the Report menu.


Distributed Leakage Area for the Drop Ceiling
TileFlow now allows you to specify a distributed leakage area for the drop ceiling. This area accounts for the gaps between ceiling tiles and other extraneous openings.


Grid on the Drop Ceiling
You can now specify the size of the ceiling tiles (which could be rectangular), and have the option of showing/hiding the ceiling tile grid.


Marker Tool
Often there is a need to mark certain areas in a data center, for example, a walkway on the raised floor or light fixtures on the drop ceiling. This can now be done using the marker tool. A marker can be placed on the floor, ceiling, drop ceiling, horizontal and vertical partitions, and faces of no-flow regions, solid blocks, and hot boxes. You can assign different colors to the markers.


Colors for Objects
You can now specify color for under-floor obstructions, vertical and horizontal partitions, no-flow regions, solid blocks, and hot boxes. With this functionality, you can further customize your layout by using a color scheme to identify objects.


View Parameters
View parameters determine the position of the windows, the zoom levels, and the rotation of the geometry in the 3D view. TileFlow now allows you to specify these parameters. In addition, you can save the view parameters in a file or read them from a file. The save/read facility allows you to reproduce a specific view layout. The details of the view parameters are available via the Set View Parameters command from the View menu.


New Display Options
> Display All Objects command displays all objects, including those for which the display option has been set to invisible.
> Display options have been added for vents and markers. The available choices are Full, Outline, and Invisible.
> Display Grid Lines on the Raised Floor command allows you to show/hide the tile grid on the raised floor.
> Display Grid Lines on the Drop Ceiling command allows you to show/hide the ceiling tile grid on the drop ceiling.


Expanded Rack Data Import using Text File
The Import Server Rack Data facility, which uses a text file, has been expanded to import the data from Raritan’s dcTrack.

Rack Data Import from Excel File
TileFlow can now import rack data from an Excel file. Currently, this facility is available only for racks with single value of heat load.

Access to TileFlow while Calculations are in Progress
In TileFlow 4.0 and earlier versions, the program was locked when calculations were in progress. This design has been changed in TileFlow 4.2. Now you can use TileFlow—with certain restrictions—even during the calculation phases. However, still calculations can be run for only one model at a time. You will have limited access to the file for which calculations are in progress (you can examine the details of the model) and full access to other files. As stated earlier, you cannot calculate results for the other files.

Expanded AF Results at a Glance
The above-floor Results at a Glance now includes the supply and return temperatures and cooling produced by in-row coolers, XDO units, XDV units, and CRAC units.

Background Save
TileFlow now includes Background Save, a feature that will allow you to recover your work in the event of a crash or power failure. This feature saves the TileFlow file at a certain time interval specified by the user. The time interval is specified in Background Save Preferences (under the Preferences menu).

This feature is activated only after the file has been saved. If you create a new TileFlow document and do not save it within 15 minutes, you will get a message prompting you to save the file.


New File Formats for Screen Captures
You now have a choice of file formats for saving the screen captures. The available formats are png, jpg, tif, gif, and bmp.


Commands to Display Results in Excel
New commands have been added to open in Excel the files containing airflow rates through perforated tiles, rack temperatures, and details of cooling units.

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