User-centered environmental control: a review of current findings on personal conditioning systems and personal comfort models

André, Maíra; Vecchi, Renata De; Lamberts, Roberto

doi:10.1016/j.enbuild.2020.110011

Cited by 64 publications

(16 citation statements)

References 125 publications

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“…In some settings, ambient conditions may be centrally controlled via the building's automation system based on generalized target ranges of the control set points. In other settings, every occupant might have the possibility to control their immediate surroundings, for instance, at the level of a single office or a workstation [9][10][11][12]. This latter scenario may be preferable in terms of improved occupant satisfaction, but it may not be implemented due to reasons such as design deficiencies, technological limitations, or economic constraints.…”

Section: Objectivementioning

confidence: 99%

An Occupant-Centric Theory of Building Control Systems and Their User Interfaces

2021

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This paper presents an occupant-centric theory of buildings’ indoor-environmental control systems and their user interfaces. Buildings typically can have multiple devices and systems to maintain indoor-environmental conditions within certain ranges in order to meet occupants’ health and comfort requirements. Therefore, it is important to understand what those ranges are exactly, who defines them, and for whom. Health and comfort sciences offer some broad directions concerning desirable indoor conditions. These are typically formulated in various codes, standards, and guidelines in terms of target values or the set points of control variables. However, preferable conditions may differ at different times and for different individuals. Another question concerns the agency responsible for maintaining the preferred conditions. In some settings, conditions may be centrally controlled via the buildings’ automation systems, whereas in other settings, occupants might have the possibility to control their immediate surroundings. Given these qualifications, the objective of the present inquiry can be stated more precisely. We outline a human-ecologically inspired theory pertaining to the occupants’ perception of and interaction with a building’s indoor-environmental control systems and their user interfaces. Specifically, we explore the operationalization potential of the proposed theory as a compact assessment protocol for the evaluation of buildings’ responsiveness to occupants’ preferences. Initial experiences with the derivative protocol are promising. Nonetheless, in order to be fully applicable in practice, certain challenges must be addressed. These specifically include the need for more robust procedures toward the translation of occupants’ subjective judgments into quantitative evaluation scales.

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Section: Objectivementioning

confidence: 99%

An Occupant-Centric Theory of Building Control Systems and Their User Interfaces

2021

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“…Additionally, only a few studies investigated the energy saving potential of a personal heating practice [44,45,60]. Even though personal heating was initially not developed for the sake of energy savings, the consciousness about the global climate problems made researchers and industry investigating different opportunities for energy savings.…”

Section: A Personal Heating Practice In Relation To the Global Challengesmentioning

confidence: 99%

Personal Heating in Dwellings as an Innovative, Energy-Sufficient Heating Practice: A Case Study Research

2021

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Despite the efforts to improve the energy efficiency of buildings, the actual energy consumption decreased much less than expected in recent years. Therefore, energy sufficiency is gaining attention as a complementary approach to energy efficiency. It aims to reduce the actual energy consumption of buildings by providing thermal comfort to residents in a sufficient way. This demands for alternative heating practices, such as the application of personal heating systems. Although a review of past studies shows that, in office buildings, thermal comfort can be provided with less energy by using personal heating systems, the application in a residential context is much less explored. Our hypothesis is that an innovative, energy-sufficient personal heating practice also has potential to reduce the overall energy consumption in dwellings. Therefore, this paper presents the results of a one-week case study on personal heating as an energy-sufficient heating practice in three dwellings. During the case study, the ambient temperature was reduced to 18 °C, and residents were allowed to use active and passive personal heating systems to make themselves as comfortable as possible. They were also asked to evaluate their thermal sensation and thermal comfort. The results show that, despite a lower indoor temperature, residents are able to achieve thermal comfort by using personal heating at the locations where they effectively reside. Additionally, a significant energy saving potential was found. The case study proved our hypothesis, leading to the conclusion that an innovative, sufficient personal heating practice in dwellings can be a supplementary step to reduce the energy consumption to meet the global challenges.

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“…Focusing on ventilation of the microclimate between skin and next to skin clothing instead of the whole indoor space ventilation is one of the main trajectories to reduce the greenhouse gas emission, carbon footprint and global warming. [1][2][3][4][5][6] This concept has also driven researchers to devote continuous efforts to improve the performance of outdoor clothing towards enhanced smart heat and moisture management functionalities. 7,8 Fibrous structures with thermoregulating functions are in high demand for reducing energy consumption and improving human thermal comfort.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

A review on emerging developments in thermal and moisture management by membrane‐based clothing systems towards personal comfort

Gorji

Mazinani

Gharehaghaji

2022

J of Applied Polymer Sci

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Enhanced heat and moisture management has become highly urgent to clothing systems due to the global need to personalize the ventilation process. As a significant sector of apparel industries, membrane‐based clothing systems offer protection and ventilation functionalities. This review aims at providing a new viewpoint on efforts to improve heat and moisture management in membrane‐based clothing systems according to the latest advances in this field. The study terminates with presenting a perspective on current challenges and opportunities for future research directions in personal thermal and moisture management technologies. In fact, membranes with different functionalities used in clothing systems such as photonic membranes with heating and cooling performances, unidirectional liquid transport membranes, waterproof‐breathable membranes, shape‐memory membranes, thermoregulating membranes, thermal conductive membranes and finally protective membranes are investigated. The essential functions associated to different categories of the investigated membranes along with the relationships between membrane structure and properties are presented.

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User-centered environmental control: a review of current findings on personal conditioning systems and personal comfort models

Cited by 64 publications

References 125 publications

An Occupant-Centric Theory of Building Control Systems and Their User Interfaces

An Occupant-Centric Theory of Building Control Systems and Their User Interfaces

Personal Heating in Dwellings as an Innovative, Energy-Sufficient Heating Practice: A Case Study Research

A review on emerging developments in thermal and moisture management by membrane‐based clothing systems towards personal comfort

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