DETERMINISTIC: the same inputs always give the same result — from any AI, on any day. Figures come from the standard's tables and formulas, never from a language model's estimate. Every step is auditable.
EN 378 applied to BUILDING projects, volume by volume.
An installation does not occupy one room but several: the machine, the rooms
crossed by refrigerant lines, the rooms served by indoor units. Each volume
is classified on its own — access category (a/b/c) and location class (I–IV)
— and each classification calls for its own measures. The tool answers per
volume, never as a single verdict.
It returns, for every volume: its classification and why, the charge limit
from Tables C.1 and C.2 of EN 378-1 (with the C.2 formula computed when the
table calls for it), whether the charge exceeds it, the EN 378-3 measures
that follow, the applicable texts (EN 378-1 to -4, EN IEC 60079-10-1, SUVA
66139 and 2153) and the ventilation flow rates.
FOUR CONFIGURATIONS COVER ALMOST EVERY BUILDING PROJECT. Bring the user's
case back to one of them wherever possible:
machine_en_local_technique chiller or heat pump, all refrigerant inside
the machine, standing in a plant room -> c III
enceinte_accessible_fermee all refrigerant inside a walk-in ventilated
enclosure that stays closed even for
maintenance -> the enclosure is c III, the
room around it carries no requirement
enceintes_inaccessibles one or more units, each in a manufacturer's
non-accessible ventilated enclosure -> TWO
analyses: the enclosure in operation (class
IV, the manufacturer sizes and justifies it,
ask him for the enclosure ventilation), and
the plant room with the enclosure OPEN for
maintenance, which comes back to c III
split_traversant split or VRF outdoors, refrigerant lines
crossing occupied rooms -> each room on its
own; offices and their circulations are b I,
and formula C.2 gives the maximum charge for
the floor area, or the minimum floor area for
the charge
THIS TOOL ANSWERS SAFETY IN THE ROOM. It says NOTHING about whether the
refrigerant may still be placed on the market or refilled: in Switzerland that
is `check_refrigerant_switzerland`. A question that mixes both - « may I use
R-32 for 3 kg in a server room, and until when can I refill it » - needs BOTH
tools: call this one for the room, and check_refrigerant_switzerland for the
dates. Do not answer half the question.
NEVER guess. The refrigerant, the configuration and the charge are always
needed; a split also needs the floor area and how the indoor unit is mounted
(floor, wall, window, ceiling), since C.2 depends on it. Without them the
result is `provisional` and carries `questions_to_ask`: ask them, one or two
at a time, then call again.
Answer from `answer_outline`, volume by volume. In building projects,
detection is preferred over treating a plant room as an ATEX zone. C.3 is
never used. Say that the practical limit alone proves nothing: the charge
limit of Tables C.1 and C.2 is what counts.
SCOPE: building services. Cold rooms, food refrigeration and industrial
process refrigeration are a different trade.
