Architectural Building Research Articles

Investigating the effect of the physical layout of the architecture of high-rise buildings, residential complexes, and urban heat islands

Improper development of land uses in the city leads to climate changes, resulting in an increase in GW and the formation of UHIs. These changes have adverse effects on people's level of comfort. This research is supposed to extract the optimal model by proving the relationship between the physical arrangement of the architecture of high-rise buildings in residential complexes and reducing the adverse effects of this. Therefore, in this research, four models of solitary, environmental, combined, and rowly block arrangement were investigated based on numerical calculation methods and CFD simulation. These simulations were done by ENVI-meto software based on air temperature, relative humidity, wind speed, and thermal comfort in the open space. The results showed that the type of physical arrangement of buildings can increase air temperature for GW by up to 3 °C and UHIs by 0.5 °C. The combined pattern is the most optimal in this section due to its more compact structure than the solitary pattern. Regarding the effect of relative humidity on climate changes, the solitary pattern has the lowest percentage of relative humidity compared to other patterns due to more air circulation in its physical structure. Also, the type of physical arrangement of buildings can improve the wind speed for GW by up to 0.2 m/s and for UHIs by up to 0.7 m/s. Based on this, the most optimal model is the environmental pattern, because the physical structures of the buildings are an obstacle in wind circulation. The fluctuation range of the PMV index for the intensity of GW effects on thermal comfort, is 0.7°, and the fluctuation range of this index for the power of UHIs is about 0.2°. The solitary pattern is the most optimal pattern to reduce the severity of adverse effects of GW and UHIs; this is due to the scattered distribution of blocks in this pattern. In general, according to the research findings, it can be concluded that the most optimal pattern to reduce the severity of the adverse effects of GW is solitary and environmental patterns, and to reduce the severity of the negative impact of UHIs, the solitary pattern is used.

Assessment Of Illuminance and Related Health Effects in Some Departments Within a University Environment

Workplace safety is dependent on numerous factors within the work environment and light intensity (illuminance) is vital in ensuring this, as inadequate lighting is not unrelated to varying deleterious health effects. This study was undertaken to measure the level of illuminance in laboratories and offices of a selected Faculty in the University, in order to ascertain if the lighting conditions in the work environment are in compliance with illumination standards (500 lux), set by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), and to identify the potential hazards that may arise from exposure to lighting conditions that are not in compliance with set standards. A digital lux meter was used to measure light intensity in the different locations. The results obtained revealed that the mean illuminance levels of most of the measured offices and laboratories were below 500 lux. The maximum illuminance level recorded in the assessed offices was 478.6 lux in the Department of Statistics and a minimum of 288.1 lux in the Department of Computer Science. Maximum Illuminance level from the assessed laboratories was 408 lux from the Department of Geology and a minimum of 164 lux. The health effects associated with such poor illuminance levels includes: eyestrain, blurred vision, eye pain, eye fatigue and in general eye discomfort. Poor illuminance may also be linked to the prevalence of headaches. This will subsequently result in poor students and teachers performance, and reduce productivity. In order to improve the lighting situation of the faculty, a suitable day lighting plan should be incorporated into the architecture of buildings in general and workspaces in particular.

Hibridisasi Gaya Arsitektur Bangunan Pemerintahan di Rokan Hilir Masa Bupati Periode 2001-2021

Title: Hybridization of Architectural Styles in Government Buildings in Rokan Hilir during the Regents' Term from 2001-2021
 
 The Architecture of Government buildings in Rokan Hilir Regency, Riau Province, Indonesia, demonstrates a change in style during the terms of three Regents who served between 2001 and 2021. The architectural style of government buildings initially referred to the Malay architectural style but later shifted orientation to architecture with various dome-shaped roofs. This article explains the changes in the architectural style of government buildings in Rokan Hilir from 2001 to 2021 and maps them genealogically. The research was conducted using a historical method, utilizing primary data from field observations and interviews and secondary data from development project archives and literature. The results of this research provide a genealogy of architectural styles in government office buildings in Rokan Hilir, regarding the Traditional, Modern, Dome, and Neo-Classical styles. Throughout their development, these four references underwent a process of hybridization, resulting in five hybrid styles as follows: Traditional-Neo-Classical Hybrid, Neo-Classical-Dome Hybrid, Traditional-Dome Hybrid, Dome-Modern Hybrid, and Traditional-Neo-Classical-Dome Hybrid.

Assessing indoor thermal comfort of rock-cut architecture in Meymand world heritage site during winter and summer

Rock-cut architecture is among the unique types of ancient architecture in Iran, which creates human living space by excavating the stone mass in the rocks. The rock-cut architecture benefits from utilization of the temperature of the groundmass in cold and hot weather by penetrating its heart. The World Heritage Site of rock-cut architecture in Meymand with more than 360 architectural units is considered as an evolved and appropriate example of such architecture in the semi-hot and dry foothill climate of Iran. The present study aims to determine indoor thermal comfort level of some buildings in the site as mentioned earlier to measure their fitness to climatic conditions of the area without energy consumption. To this aim, Predicted Mean Vote (PMV) index was determined for four selected buildings through the indoor bioclimatic monitoring, as well as calculating the level of the above-mentioned index during December–February and June–August.​ Then, the ASHRAE standard questionnaire was prepared to evaluate and compare the comfort sensation feedback of the occupants in the aforementioned buildings with indoor PMV calculation results. The results indicated that the average indoor PMV during the winter and summer equaled -2.17 and -1.07 with a cold and cool sensation, respectively, which is in line with those of the questionnaire in which most occupants reported a neutral and cold sensation during the winter and a cool one during the summer. In addition, calculation of the percentage of proximity to the comfort zone for indoor environment of the above-mentioned buildings showed they are closer to comfort by 22% and 36%, during the winter and summer, respectively Finally, the results indicated the rock-cut architectural buildings had provided conditions by applying the high thickness of their architectural layers, low heat exchange coefficient of the walls, and temperature of the groundmass, which they are in the comfort zone without energy consumption in summer and provide living conditions with minimal energy consumption in winter.

Passenger spatiotemporal distribution prediction in airport terminals based on insect intelligent building architecture and its contribution to fresh air energy saving

As the essential infrastructure and important transportation hubs, airport terminals play a strategic role in sustainable cities and urbanization. Due to the strict service requirement and round-the-clock operation, the high energy consumption poses unprecedented challenges to developing environment-friendly airport terminals. Actually, passenger flow as a root cause decides the startup and operation of service facilities including air-conditioning systems. But due to spatial connectivity, parameter coupling, and passenger mobility, resource allocation and system tuning have not been effectively related to passenger travel. In this work, Guangzhou Baiyun International Airport Terminal 2 was taken as an object, and a passenger spatiotemporal distribution model was developed and its contribution to fresh air energy saving was estimated. Among them, zone partition and expression rules were formulated based on insect intelligent building (I2B) architecture to construct Wi-Fi positioning system; Next, for domestic and international passenger, their arrival patterns were fitted by Chi-Square distribution with R2 > 0.993, and their spatiotemporal distribution was predicted with R2 over 0.74 and 0.67 respectively; Lastly, a hybrid reset strategy for fresh air volume set-point combing fuzzy and linear rules was proposed with results showing that HVAC systems running on variable occupancy would lead to considerable energy savings.

The Study of Correlations Between Visual Social Communication and Working Memory through Visual Arts at Phumin - Ta Li Community, Nan Province

Phumin - Ta Li is a community that resides close to Wat Phumin, Nan province, Thailand is a historical site and is in the center of the Nan business and government sections. As a matter of fact, Phumin - Ta Li community is situated in Mueang Nan district and is a center of administration of Nan province. This research is designed to study the capability of participants who have seen visual arts (photographs and drawings) of architectural buildings in the area of Phumin-Ta Li community. Furthermore, this research assumed that images played a vital role in the communication and understanding of the characteristics of community to the outsiders. The study employed a methodological approach, utilizing quantitative methods to gather data from a group of seven individuals residing in Tha Wang Pha district, Nan province. The data then were analyzed using percentage, mean, standard deviation, correlation coefficient, and t-test. The study concludes that the apprehension of visual arts (photographs and drawings) for participants in three variables; Aesthetics, Remembering, and Sense of place is related to visual social communication and working memory at a significant level. Subsequently, the results showed a positive correlation between photographs and drawing to strengthen the collaboration between visual social communication and working memory in this research. These findings suggest that visual social communication and working memory are closely related to images (photographs and drawings) of Phumin-Ta Li community’s buildings to the eyes of the outsiders. In order to work towards the achievement of the Global Goals (also known as the Sustainable Development Goals or SDGs) and establish itself as a sustainable city, the study emphasizes the vital importance of fostering community-based connections between the Phumin-Ta Li community and its architectural structures. This approach aims to serve educational purposes as well.

Pasts of the Present

In light of today’s global boom in landmark architecture, urban megaprojects and reconstructions of cultural heritage buildings, this paper analyses two large-scale reconstruction projects at iconic historical locations in Japan: the Heijō Palace in Nara and Dejima in Nagasaki. Since the 1990s, the two projects have recreated long-lost built environments, gradually transforming the sites, turning them into museums and exhibition spaces and giving rise to thorough reform of the surrounding urban fabric. In this paper I trace the involved agents’ motivations to engage in historical reconstruction from early-phase experimental efforts to legitimise the sites’ protected status to present-day politico-economic mobilisations of important historical locations to boost city attraction values. In this way, I link these two unfolding projects in Nara and Nagasaki to issues of urban boosterism, heritage production and the facilitation and commodification of tourist experiences of past realities. Approaching the reconstructions as contemporary heritage in traditional guise, the paper argues that both sites revolve materially, spatially and thematically around the master-metaphors of flow, growth and intercultural connectivity that characterise the present age. Elucidating processes of authentication and intersections of ideological and economic interests in and around the two sites, the paper asks in what ways Japanese cities exploit lost iconic localities and reconstructed heritage under post-industrial conditions marked by globalisation and intense cultural-economic competition.

The spatial vision of place identity elements along the highways: A procedural approach

Placelessness and the loss of a place’s identity, along the travel corridors, can generate a few problems like fatigue in driving, difficulties in wayfinding and limit the people from exploring new places and architectural buildings. The sense of a place’s familiarity and the similarity of views along the roadways are often overlooked, which result in the development of monotonous mundane highways, leading to the loss of place identity. There is an imperative need to understand the place identity elements along the roads and enhance them so as to improve the activity encounters, comprehensive awareness, and orientation along the travel sequences. Spatial identity elements help the travellers to sit, look, relax or entertain themselves which enhances the identity of a place along with the travel experience. Spatial vision is vital to notice the places that pass by with elements along the travel. The logical positioning of locating the identities attracts a clear visibility. A comprehensive viewshed, with an appropriate angle of vision, adds to the sense of identity and creates the place memory. The current research paper provides a method to understand the importance of locating a building along a highway with proper orientation. The research focuses on checking the visibility of buildings and studying them for the right location so as to enhance the place-identity quality for a better perception and visibility of the travellers in their moving corridors. In this background, the ISOVIST measures are appropriate design and study tools to calculate the visibility viewsheds and angles of the place identity elements. The evaluation of the elements’ visibility is performed using Depthmap X 0.70 (designed by UCL), a simulation tool with nine options of designing a restaurant, as a place identity element along a highway, at the entrance of an educational institution. In this study, a total of 144 maps was generated with 16 maps for each option for nine options of location and orientation. The research concludes with methods and recommendations at an eye level of the traveller along the highway for an innovative and procedural approach to measure and assess the location and visibility of place identity elements along the highway.

Reducing heat gain in buildings by artificially lowering the outside air temperature through evaporative cooling

Introduction. Systems for microclimate regulation in buildings consume a large amount of natural energy resources. Statistics show that 40 % of energy is used for heating, ventilation and air conditioning. This problem is directly related to the heating and cooling load of the building, i.e. it depends on the thermal engineering characteristics of building envelopes and the thermal protection of the building.
 
 Materials and methods. To reduce the consumption of energy resources, the most common method is the thermal insulation of enclosing structures, increasing the thermal resistance of enclosing structures, which is a complicated thermal engineering problem. An alternative new method of reducing heat gain into buildings through evaporative cooling of outside air which leads to reduction of cooling load of building and subsequently influences the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions is considered. For this purpose, a spray irrigation system is installed on the southern wall of the building to lower the conditional boundary layer temperature which is formed as a result of solar radiation.
 
 Results. The suggested method passively reduces the boundary layer temperature, which tends to the temperature of the wet-bulb thermometer, as a result, the heat influx into the building is reduced, which leads to a lower cooling load and increases the energy efficiency of the system.
 
 Conclusions. Green architecture and zero-energy building design are relevant and important at the present time. World statistics show that 14 % of all potable water is used in buildings, in order to use potable water economically the proposed system installs a rainwater accumulation tank for outdoor irrigation. A comparative analysis showed that by cooling evaporation and artificially lowering the outside air temperature, the cooling load of the building is reduced by 20 %, which results in a reduction of greenhouse gas emissions.

BRIDGING DIGITAL AND ANALOG DOCUMENTATION FOR THE PRESERVATION OF ANCIENT PUEBLOAN SITES

Abstract. The Four Corners region, where Colorado, Utah, New Mexico, and Arizona meet, is the location of one of the most significant archaeological sites in the United States, the Lowry Pueblo in the Canyon of the Ancients National Monument. This case study examines two aspects of the documentation process for the Lowry Pueblo. First, a collaborative model of multiple stakeholders dedicated to an integrated digital and analog documentation approach. Second, the method for determining how digital and analog techniques were used from site preparation to the final submittal of Historic Architectural Building Survey (HABS) drawings to the Library of Congress. This integrated documentation approach used for the Lowry Pueblo is part of a strategy informed by predicted future human impacts on these rare ancient resources and fulfilling a unique tribal request for minimally impactful management. The approach allows natural erosional processes to continue unabated at less visited remote “backcountry” cultural sites, and for proactive stabilization to occur at heavily visited publicly accessible "front country" areas. The combined documentation methods used allowed for creation of highly detailed models, digital applications, and nuanced, aesthetic HABS drawings of the stunning 1,000-year-old cultural resources. The outcomes contribute to informed decision making for future analysis, stabilization assessment, resource interpretation, archiving, and the dissemination of information for public benefit, while deepening an understanding of the history and people that inhabited the land.

A SCAN-TO-BIM PROCESS FOR THE MONITORING AND CONSERVATION OF THE ARCHITECTURAL HERITAGE: INTEGRATION OF THEMATIC INFORMATION IN A HBIM MODEL

Abstract. Conservation actions often challenge traditional planned conservation tools, especially when referring to the management of data relating to the existing building heritage due to the huge amount of information to be acquired and archived. In response to this requirement, the Building Information Modelling (BIM) process, applied to historical buildings as Historical-BIM (HBIM), could be an effective solution for integrating different types of data concerning not only the geometric features but also useful qualitative information in conservation and preservation works (i.e. the type of materials, construction techniques, the presence of degradation and instability, intervention techniques, etc.). Although the BIM process has reached a considerable level of maturity, several aspects related to the application of the method to existing structures through the Scan-to-BIM process require further research; particularly the need to find suitable approaches to integrate, manage and store thematic information. The article describes the work carried out in the case study of Villa Castelnuovo, an eighteenth-century architectural building located in Palermo (Italy), in which, starting from an integrated survey, it was possible to generate an HBIM model to support all the phases concerning preventive maintenance, long-term redevelopment and management of the architectural asset. The research focused mainly on the modelling and information integration phases, developing a procedure applicable to different contexts for storing, managing and analysing the external façade decay necessary for documenting and monitoring the architectural heritage.

WARISAN FILSAFAT ISLAM DI KOTA FEZ DAN SUMBANGSIHNYA BAGI MASYARAKAT INDONESIA

This article aims to reveal the Islamic philosophy legacies in Fez City, Morocco, and analyze the values ​​relevant to Indonesian people’s lives. Fez is one of the centers for the development of Islamic philosophy in the golden age of Islamic civilization. Fez is located in the modern state of Morocco, Fez is the spiritual and cultural capital of Morocco. Fez has historical dynamics until it developed into the modern city today, but Islamic philosophy colors the city's history. This article is the result of research by the author on the visit to the city from October to mid-November 2019. This research is an observation and literature study. Data analysis used historical and phenomenological approaches. The results of this study indicate that the legacies of Islamic philosophy could be found in the Fez in tangible and intangible forms. The tangible legacies are the Al-Karaouine University Architectural Building, and works of Islamic philosophers who have intersected with Fez, including Ibn Khaldun, Averroes, Avempace, and Moses Maimonides. The intangible legacies are the education system, a spirit of freedom of thinking, and tolerance. These legacies could be an alternative reference for the Indonesian Muslim society to develop behavior in daily life with tolerance, freedom of thinking, and an education system.

Lithium fluoroarylsilylamides and their structural features

Abstract In order to probe the role of Li⋯F interactions toward the stabilisation of low-coordinate lithium complexes, the four fluoroarylsilylamides [LiN(SiMe3)(2-C6H4F)] (1-Li), [LiN(SiMe3)(2,6-C6H3F2)] (2-Li), [LiN(SiMe3)(C6F5)] (3-Li), and [LiN(SiMe2H)(2-C6H4F)] (4-Li) have been synthesised in high yields by deprotonation of the parent amines with nBuLi. They have been comprehensively characterised by multinuclear NMR spectroscopy, and complete assignments were achieved with the help of 2D NMR data. The molecular solid-state structures of [(2-Li)2]∞, [3-Li·Et 2 O]2, and [4-Li]8 were determined by single-crystal X-ray diffraction. They feature unusual coordination patterns, notably for the formation of the polymeric [(2-Li)2]∞ and a unique octagonal, crown-like [4-Li]8. In both structures, the role of Li⋯F non-covalent interactions was the key toward the building of the final architecture. It is shown that Li–F and C–F interatomic distances, along with |1 J C,F| coupling constants, can be used as qualitative tools for the evaluation of the presence and relative strength of Li⋯F contacts.

An advanced Bangladeshi local fish classification system based on the combination of deep learning and the internet of things (IoT)

Fish classification leads to the automated machine-based fish separation system. In terms of classification and real-time data monitoring, deep learning and the Internet of Things (IoT) each provides an efficient solution. This paper focuses on the development of an embedded system based on the principles of Deep Learning and IoT. The proposed methodology is classified into interconnected parts. The first part describes the working principles of DL with along the dataset building, model analysis and overall system architecture. A new dataset from eight different Bangladeshi fish species. In the process of DL, First, two sets of datasets have been created namely, setup-1(S1) containing original images and setup-2(S2) containing Unsharp masked photos. Then, seven conventional ImageNet pertained state-of-the-art deep learning models on both benchmarking setups: InceptionV3, Xception, DenseNet121, DenseNet169, DenseNet201, InceptionResNetV2, and ResNet152V2. In the process of IoT, the architectural design of a smart contained has been deployed with the aid of several kinds of sensors and microcontrollers. This research has found satisfactory results with the DL models and IoT-based components. The best benchmark accuracy for setup-1 was 96% for all of the DenseNet121, DenseNet169, and DenseNet201 architecture, and for setup-2, it was 96% for the Xception model. Finally, we have constructed a hybrid (CNN + Convolutional LSTM) model, for which the accuracy was 97%, outperforming all of the abovementioned state-of-the-art methods. Besides, the research has performed some experiments with the IoT-based Solution. Though the proposed solution has exhibited some drawbacks, but it can be practicable in real-time solutions.

Deterioration of pre-war and rehabilitation of post-war urbanscapes using generative adversarial networks

The urban built environment of contemporary cities confronts a constant risk of deterioration due to natural or artificial reasons. Especially political aggression and war conflicts have significant destructive effects on architectural and cultural heritage buildings. The post-war urbanscapes demonstrate the striking effects of the armed conflicts during the hot war encounters. However, the residues of the urbanscapes become the actual indicators of damage and loss. Since today we can make future predictions using a variety of machine learning algorithms, it is possible to represent hybrid projections of urban heterotopias. In this context, this research proposes to explore dystopian post-war projections for modern cities based on their architectural styles and demonstrate the utopian scenarios of rehabilitation possibilities for the damaged urban built environment of post-war cities by using generative adversarial network (GAN) algorithms. Two primary datasets containing the post-war and pre-war building facades have been given as the input data for the CycleGAN and pix2pix GAN models. Thus, two different image-to-image GAN models have been compared regarding their ability to produce legible building facade projections in architectural features. Besides, the machine learning process results have been discussed in terms of cities’ utopian and dystopian future predictions, demonstrating the war conflicts’ immense effects on the built environment. Moreover, the immediate consequence of the destructive aggression on tangible and intangible architectural heritage would become visible to inhabitants and policymakers when the AI-generated rehabilitation potentials have been exposed.

IDENTIFYING THERMAL COMFORT OF TROPICAL ARCHITECTURAL CONCEPT BUILDING : A CASE STUDY OF EXPANDABLE HOUSE

Tropical architecture is an architectural building concept that focuses on the use of materials and techniques used in an accordance with the environment and climate in the tropical region. Buildings with tropical architectural style have special characteristics in adapting to climate conditions, but currently there are also modern buildings that can be categorized as contemporer tropical buildings. In the context of Batam city, contemporer tropical architectural buildings have not been prominent, especially in residential houses applications. Moreover, few residential houses failed to follow thermal comfort in the objective of Batam climate. This study aims to identify the elements of thermal comfort in residential houses which apply contemporer tropical architectural concepts in the city of Batam. In this case the author examine “Rumah Tambah” as a case study. By conducting a literature review and comparison of case studies as well as direct observation to the location, this research was conducted using an inductive qualitative method using primary and secondary data. Finally, this research produces an identification of thermal comfort that is applied to residential houses with a contemporer tropical architectural concept and provides recommendations for design elements in residential houses with a contemporer tropical architectural concept in the city of Batam.

The Effect of Improper Interfering in The Historical Architecture on Energy Wasting (Case Study: Bibi-Roqayyeh House, Yazd, Iran)

Intelligent traditional architecture in Iran functions as a sustainable system with the goal to achieve thermal comfort. Buildings in Iranian architecture have a strong connection with the surrounding buildings, making the city an integrated whole. Generally, it is said that it is not possible to remove any part of this system without affecting the whole system’s performance. This research shows how removing some components of the system could affect the energy consumption of the whole. the question raised in our research and the answer obtained through this simulation is essential for controlling and optimizing interventions in historic cities. The case study is the Bibi-Roqayyeh traditional house in Yazd, Iran. First, the energy performance of the building under real conditions is simulated in Design-Builder software. Next, the energy performance of the building without the neighbors, the SABAT, and the traditional high Parapet are simulated. Overall, the simulation results show an increase in the total energy consumption of the main building after removing the selected components. The total energy consumption of the house is increased by 21.81% when all neighbors, the SABAT, and the old Parapet are removed. Each part affects the thermal comfort and energy consumption of the building, even if its primary function is not related to the thermal system.

Examining Out-of-Plane Offset in Multistory Buildings: A Comprehensive Review

Abstract: India has a high population density, leading to a shortage of land for residential and commercial use. To address this issue, engineers are building taller structures with more land coverage and aesthetically pleasing designs. However, these architectural buildings can become unstable due to their unique designs. This review paper provides an in-depth analysis of various research papers associated with the topic of increasing stability in architectural buildings. Through a thorough literature review and analysis of previous works in this field, our study has identified conclusive outcomes that form the basis of our research objectives for improving the stability of these structures. We aim to provide technical insights and recommendations for future research in this area.

Review on Out of Plane Offset in Multistory Building

bstract: As per latest statistics, India comes under more denser oriented in terms of living in populated countries and by analysis, it is directly proportional to the land shortage problem. To overcome this problem, now engineers make a structure taller in height and having more land coverage area with aesthetic view is the only option available since it provides more suitability in less space. Also, architectural point of buildings are very famous and client prefer this type of structure. The main problem is to stable the architectural building when there will be instability due to attractive building looks. In this study, various papers associated to this topic are intensively studied and have gone through deep analysis in which an enormous work is done in this field earlier. To make these buildings more stable, literature review has conducted that came to know the conclusive outcome which forms the research objectives of our further technical study.

The influence of architecture, design and physical environment in residential buildings on cardiovascular disease - rationale and protocol for an overview of systematic reviews.

Introduction and Objective. Architecture and design solutions profile the environment and living conditions in residential housing and may have an impact on health. The aim of the study was to summarise all published systematic reviews (SRs) with or without meta-analysis (MAs), which assess the effect on cardiovascular disease (CVD) of the architecture, design and physical environment in residential buildings. Materials and method. This study presents the rationale and protocol of an overview of SRs. It was prepared according to Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Review and Meta-analysis Protocols (PRISMA-P). Four bibliographical databases will be searched. Eligible SRs can include RCTs, quasi-RCTs and observational studies. Results and Summery. The expected results of the completed overview of SRs will comprehensively summarise evidence concerning the influence of residential environment on cardiovascular health. This might be of importance to physicians, architects, public health professionals and politicians.