  The past decade has seen the advent of numerous building energy efficiency
visualization and simulation systems; however, most of them rely on theoretical
thermal models to suggest building structural design for new constructions and
modifications for existing ones. Sustainable methods of construction have made
tremendous progress. The example of the German Energy-Plus- House technology
uses a combination of (almost) zero-carbon passive heating technologies. A
web-enabled X3D visualization and simulation system coupled with a
cost-effective set of temperature/humidity sensors can provide valuable
insights into building design, materials and construction that can lead to
significant energy savings and an improved thermal comfort for residents,
resulting in superior building energy efficiency. A cost-effective
hardware-software prototype system is proposed in this paper that can provide
real-time data driven visualization or offline simulation of 3D thermal maps
for residential and/or commercial buildings on the Web.
