Daylight and View: The Influence of Windows on the Visual Quality of Indoor Spaces

Abstract

Windows are important for a comfortable and healthy indoor environment, because they give access to daylight and an outside view. To be able to improve the visual quality of indoor spaces, one needs to have insight in how daylight and view affect people’s perception of indoor spaces. This is investigated by means of a literature and a questionnaire research in eight office buildings. The literature shows that many different variables affect the perception of daylight and view quality. The results of the questionnaire study give new insight in how these variables are related. Based on the research results a method is developed for the analysis of the daylight and view quality of windows, the D&V analysis method. The method combines different existing methods for the analysis of daylight with a new method for the assessment of view quality. Designers can use the analysis method to optimize the design of daylight openings during different phases of a building design.