Development of adaptive behaviour models for thermal comfort: Longitudinal investigation in Japanese office buildings and literature review

Abstract

In the recent year's energy consumptions has increased, especially in the office buildings for heating and cooling use. Adaptive behaviours such as clothing adjustments, window opening, fan use, heating use and cooling use are important contributing factors for thermal comfort of the occupants. The main objectives of this study is to clarify different behavioural adaptations carried out by occupants in Japanese office buildings and to compare with previous studies. The occupant behaviour models were developed for clothing adjustments and air-conditioning use. Occupant behaviour survey was conducted in the five mixed mode (MM) and one heating, ventilation, and air-conditioning (HVAC) Japanese office buildings over a period of fifteen months resulting in 16,411 votes from 45 participants. Range of clothing insulation was wider in MM buildings compared to HVAC buildings which indicate that occupant behaviour in MM buildings required less energy for thermal comfort. The mean proportion of window opening and fan use was 0.54 and 0.41 respectively. Developed logistic model suggested that 80% of occupant used heating and cooling when the outdoor air temperature drops below 11 °C and rise above 27 °C respectively. The obtained results from field investigation are validated by the extensive literature review. The occupant behaviour models in Japanese office buildings are comparable with the behaviours models from different parts of the world having various climatic conditions. It was also confirmed that occupants behaviours are effective for energy saving building designs. The acknowledgement of these behaviour of the occupants is fruitful in designing thermally comfortable and possibly energy saving MM buildings in future.