The generic single dimension array configurators are possible (as explained poorly in Generic Room Configurator I, II, and III). Now we need to break down all of the room types we have based upon what services the rooms need. My dumb brain immediately cant decide to do this for a bedroom and I need to gut check if this would work for the worst possible room imaginable. The Commercial Kitchen has a list of service requirements close to that of a hospital Check it out:
| Power and Electricity | Standard Electrical Outlets | 🔌 |
| High-Voltage Power | ⚡ | |
| Backup Power Supply | 🔋 | |
| Electrical Distribution Panel | 🛠️ | |
| Lighting | 💡 | |
| Water Supply | Hot and Cold Water Lines | 🚰 |
| Filtered Water Systems | 💧 | |
| High-Pressure Water Supply | 🚿 | |
| Wastewater and Drainage | Grease Traps/Interceptors | 🧼 |
| Floor Drains | 🕳️ | |
| Wastewater Treatment Systems | ♻️ | |
| Sump Pumps | 💧 | |
| Backflow Prevention Devices | 🔄 | |
| Natural Gas | Gas Supply Lines | 🔥 |
| Gas Leak Detection Systems | 🛑 | |
| Ventilation and Exhaust | Range Hoods | 🏭 |
| Fire Suppression Systems | 🚒 | |
| Ductwork | 📦 | |
| Refrigeration | Walk-In Coolers/Freezers | ❄️ |
| Refrigerated Lines | 🧊 | |
| Refrigerant Monitoring Systems | 🌡️ | |
| HVAC | Temperature Control | 🌡️ |
| Dehumidification Systems | ♻️ | |
| Air Filtration | 🍃 | |
| Waste Management | Trash Compactors | 🗑️ |
| Recycling Stations | ♻️ | |
| Food Waste Disposal Units | 🗑️ | |
| Grease Disposal | 🛢️ | |
| Fire Safety Systems | Fire Suppression Systems | 🚒 |
| Smoke and Heat Detectors | 💨 | |
| Fire Extinguishers | 🧯 | |
| Emergency Exit Lighting and Signage | 🟢 |
That is enough services (not including point of sale and slews of others) to give me a headache. Perhaps we start with electricity first and discuss a few of the rules governing electrical switch placement and kick the can down the road of all this other stuff.
Switches:
- Placed inside STRIKE SIDE of door on nearest wall
- At opposite ends of a long room (>12′)
Outlets:
- Within 6 feet of a corner
- Spaced every 12′ Thereafter
Given imperial inches work in base 12, I guess its okay that the NEC only thinks in base 12 as well.
Perhaps we can optimize the number of electrical outlets required in a room of given x y dimension:
Its interesting that there is a break point at 6′ and then another at 18′ (which is exactly what it says in the code.
Lets perform the same analysis for light switches. I think there is a 13’x13′ mafia out there, where all of a sudden a room is so large it needs three times as many switches, yet is only 14% larger.
Overlay the two on top of one another (and add half-hot/ lighting requirements) to get the table of total needed electrical things in a room for given dimensions x and y. I think this is accurate, given what chatgpt was able to comprehend from my incomprehensible input (there might be mistakes in this map):
For fun I ran it with an HVAC requirement (output in BTUs of course)
Lets convert that to “a half-working American A/C unit mounted through a wall” increments:
Summary:
Some rooms have a lot of requirments.
Some of those requirements are systems based on rules.
Plugs and Switches can be placed with an algorithm to minimize receptacle count.
Most rooms would only ever need one mounted AC wall unit.
Other analysis can be done in similar arrays.