Design, Fabrication and Performance Evaluation of Awning/Canopy for Thermal Comfortability

Abstract

This paper presents the design, fabrication and performance evaluation of retractable awning/canopy system for thermal comfortability. It consists of frame (mild steel bars), linear actuator, fabric (acrylic), adapter, roller pathways and photo sensor (for easiness of control). After fabrication and coupling of the whole components of the retractable awning system, it was connected to the adapter and power source for performance test evaluation. It was observed that, the actuator arm which was coupled to the fabric began projecting outward and once the photo sensor was shaded from sunlight using a dark material, the fabric retracted into the roller. Also a reduced solar heat gain factor of 28.16 W was achieved by shading the window compared to the solar gain factor of 498.54 W before shading with a cooling load of 415.37 W. This can be incorporated into building plans especially those at the sunheating direction and tropical region to reduce inner-house temperature air-conditioner loading for longer life and efficient operation.