Review of survey method for human time-activity pattern and its application in the exposure assessment of air pollutants

Abstract

Time activity pattern refers to the time and behavior of people at different locations. The knowledge of time-activity pattern is essential for air pollution exposure assessment when direct personal exposure monitoring can't not be conducted, because air pollutant concentrations may vary significantly by location and activity. This review is focused on the survey method for human time-activity pattern and its application in the exposure assessment of air pollutants. After comparing the diary-reported trips and Global Positioning System (GPS) recording method, we believed that diary-reported trips were more reliable in describing comprehensive and detail records of the behavior and environmental circumstances while GPS-recorded trend to maintain sound information of time, location and transportations. Meanwhile, according to different subjects, the air pollution exposure model could be divided for population and individuals. There were great difference between two types of model in many areas, including the required information about time, activity and microenvironment.