Often when using ElumTools, you won’t be interested in a rendering and will only need the point-by-point illuminance values, and perhaps the associated statistics (avg, max, min, ratios, etc.).  A common question we get is if there is a way to suppress the rendering and have ElumTools only return the numerical results when calculating (usually in the interest of faster calculation times).

The answer to this question is no.  But it isn’t because we neglected to add the feature :).  ElumTools, like AGi32, uses a process called radiosity to consider all the interreflected light and its contribution to the point-by-point results.  With radiosity, the math to produce the calculation point values is identical to the math required to produce the rendering.  In other words, the point-by-points are a by product of the rendering.  So, were the option to suppress the renderings given, the calculation time would remain roughly the same.

There are, however, some things you can do to speed things up, particularly if you are daring enough to compromise on calculation accuracy.  This help article contains some handy tips. These can be particularly useful during design iterations when only approximate computations are required.  Then the settings can always be ratcheted up for final deliverables, when greater accuracy is needed.   Layout assistant can also be a useful “quick calc” tool to get a rough idea of fixture quantities, early in the design process.