Project 1 : Human Perception of Comfort Level
Introduction
Thermal comfort is defined in British Standard BS EN ISO 7730 as: ‘that condition of mind which expresses satisfaction with the thermal environment.’ There is no absolute standard or index of parameters of thermal comfort. This is not surprising, as humans can and do live in a range of climates from the tropics to high latitudes. So the term ‘thermal comfort’ describes a person’s psychological state of mind and is usually referred to in terms of whether someone is feeling too hot or too cold. Thermal comfort is very difficult to define because you need to take into account a range of environmental and personal factors when deciding what will make people feel comfortable. Perceptions of this environment are affected by air temperature, radiant temperature, relative humidity, air velocity, activity and clothing. More general definitions of comfort include a sense of relaxation and freedom from worry or pain. These factors become parameters where human perception of the thermal environment is concerned.
Objectives:
• To identify and define the principles of heat transfer in relation to building and people
• To understand what is thermal comfort and discuss factors relating to thermal comfort
• To analyze the effect of thermal comfort factors in a person and in a space
• To be able to criticize design of the space in terms of thermal comfort by referring to MS1525 and
UBBL.
Learning Outcomes:
1. Identify environmental conditions related to site conditions, climate, etc.
2. Explain the effects of the sun on the thermal performance of buildings
3. Explain the effect of insulation, thermal mass and air movement on thermal performance of
buildings.
4. Infer how different building material (K-value, u-value, r-value) has different effect on heat gain or
thermal environment in a given space
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Report of Project 1
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