Method for assessing the impact of buildings on access to daylight in urban neighborhoods applied in virtual scenarios

Abstract

During daytime, daylight can help to reduce consumption from artificial sources. However, access to this resource is hampered as cities increase building density, increasing occupancy rates and building heights. Given this background, the aim of this study was to develop a method to investigate the impact of buildings on access to daylight though a static approach in neighbourhoods, using parameters and assessment techniques found in the literature, followed by an analysis using virtual scenarios to illustrate the application of the method. The methodology of this study, which involves the construction of a method, is divided into six steps: choice of analysis parameters, definition of the neighbourhood coverage radius, modelling and simulation, definition of the types of impacts, definition of the virtual scenarios and analysis of the data of the scenarios. To assess the impacts, the FLDV - Vertical Daylight Factor in the original scenario and in the scenario with the insertion of a building in the neighbourhood were compared. The simulation results of the case studies indicate that a type of urban environment configuration with buildings presenting different architectural forms between neighboring buildings and irregular installments, would help minimize adverse impacts on the neighbourhood.

Keywords:
Neighbourhood impact; Daylight; Virtual scenarios