Courtyard Design Research Articles

An Analysis of a Historical House in Alaçatı, Çeşme

Alaçatı, located on the Çeşme Peninsula in Türkiye, is a historic and touristic coastal settlement. In recent years, despite the growing influence of tourism on its historic center, the settlement has managed to partially preserve its urban fabric and architectural heritage. In the historic center of the settlement, the civil architecture from the Ottoman period stands out as a prominent physical representation of cultural heritage. Historical houses are particularly significant for understanding the socio-cultural history of the settlement. Today, most of them have been restored and lost their original functions. On the other hand, some historical buildings hold a significant place in the city's memory, not only for their residential function but also for their commercial role in the settlement. A notable example is atwo-storied stone house named “Yürük Grocery”, situated in the Hacı Memiş Neighborhood, Alaçatı. Among the other historical houses, it stands out with its corner position, shared courtyard design and ground-floor function. This study aims to document the architectural features and cultural heritage values of this historical building, trace its evolution over time, and contribute to the literature. The methodology of this study includes documentation, literature review, archival research, fieldwork, and oral expressions. As a result, this study has identified three periods by examining the building's architectural features, history, construction techniques, and material characteristics in its evolution. In this way, the study contributes to maintain its historical identity.

Modifying School Courtyard Design to Optimize Thermal Conditions and Energy Consumption in a Hot Arid Climate

Modifying School Courtyard Design to Optimize Thermal Conditions and Energy Consumption in a Hot Arid Climate

Unveiling the Thermal Comfort Dynamics of Asymmetrical Buildings Configurations in Malaysia’s Public School Courtyard Design

Unveiling the Thermal Comfort Dynamics of Asymmetrical Buildings Configurations in Malaysia’s Public School Courtyard Design

MODELLING STUDY ON CENTRAL COURTYARD SHADING STRATEGY IN TROPICAL CLIMATE REGION MALAYSIA

A courtyard is an open multi-functional space and an effective daylight passive design strategy in a building. However, to have a courtyard in a tropical country, it had to deal with the issue of visual discomfort, which requires some consideration in adaptation to the climate condition. These visual comfort issues include inconsistent light distribution, inappropriate illuminance levels, glare, and a lack of shaded areas. The focus of this research paper is to address the solution of shading strategies towards the visual discomfort issues associated with courtyard spaces. The solution is done by modelling study method on courtyard ratios and courtyard configuration to determine the effect on the internal courtyard percentage shaded area. This research aims to explore the potential benefits of using courtyards as a daylight shading design as a strategy in buildings. Besides, it is also to examine courtyard design variables in enhancing visual comfort, particularly in the context of commercial building design in Malaysia. Kuala Lumpur is chosen to represent the tropical climate region. The aim is achieved by identifying optimum courtyard ratios that can improve daylight, shading, and visual comfort that make courtyards functional and usable spaces. Results show that a small and deep courtyard is found to be best suited to tropical climate conditions with the configuration of the courtyard’s height being double the size or more than the size of the courtyard’s width. This courtyard ratio is able to produce a full shaded area during daytime. While courtyard length does not have any impact on the percentage of shaded area, wide and narrow courtyard need to adapt to the tropical climate constraint by having aided shading strategies such as multi-layered height of trees, independent covered structures like a canopy or gazebo, shading panels, awnings, and extended roof overhangs.

Sustainable Urban Landscapes in Hot–Dry Regions: Climate-Adaptive Courtyards

In hot and arid environments, courtyards are essential architectural elements that significantly contribute to microclimate regulation and enhanced thermal comfort. Beyond providing protection against environmental severities, these spaces elevate the standards of livability and sustainability in urban design. The traditional landscape of Mardin, Turkey, exemplifying such challenges, takes center stage in this study, where courtyards hold a prominent role in architectural composition. Facilitated by the ENVI-met software, the evaluation process herein comprehensively analyzes four representative courtyard case studies in Mardin. Key parameters, including air temperature, humidity, predicted mean vote (PMV), and wind speed, are considered to gain a nuanced understanding of their thermal dynamics. The initial evaluation of existing conditions reveals varying thermal comfort levels, with higher PMV values indicating discomfort in the courtyards, underscoring the need for interventions to enhance their microclimate regulation and resilience to climate change challenges. This study aims to enhance our comprehension of the relationship between courtyards and microclimate regulation, particularly in hot–dry regions. By examining the design principles and passive strategies of courtyards, this research identifies effective approaches for optimizing courtyard design, aiming to create sustainable and comfortable living environments.

Indoor thermal nonuniformity of atrium-centered public building: Monitoring and diagnosis for energy saving

Heating ventilation and air conditioning system accounts for over one third of building energy usage, especially for public buildings due to large indoor heat source and high ventilation and thermal comfort requirement compared to residential buildings. Natural ventilation shows high application potentials in public buildings because of its high-efficient ventilation effect and energy saving potential for indoor heat dissipation. In this paper, the building design is conducted for a science museum and library with atrium-centered natural ventilation consideration. The floor layout, building orientation and internal structure are optimized to make full use of natural ventilation for space cooling under local climatic conditions. A natural ventilation model is established through building field tests to evaluate the air flow and thermal environment under indoor and outdoor pressure differences. The preliminary results show that Building A's courtyard exhibited overheating issues, likely attributed to outdoor solar radiation, whereas Building B's courtyard experienced localized cooling, possibly due to indoor air conditioning system controls. Addressing these concerns necessitates modifications in courtyard design and structure. Moreover, both courtyards displayed vertical temperature gradients, emphasizing the need for effective management of outdoor heat influx and enhancements in indoor ventilation and shading strategies. To mitigate these issues, the study proposed three distinct roof design models and more refined indoor air conditioning system control strategies. The optimization of architectural design can achieve a maximum energy-saving rate of 46.54 %. Furthermore, aligning functional zones with thermal comfort areas was recommended to enhance overall building thermal comfort. The findings and proposed solutions from this study are anticipated to contribute to the enhancement of thermal comfort, energy efficiency, and vertical temperature distribution in large public buildings, catering to user requirements while reducing energy consumption. This research holds significant implications for advancing sustainability and environmental preservation in the realm of architecture.

A parametric approach for evaluating solar panel insolation in urban areas: Courtyard design case study

A parametric approach for evaluating solar panel insolation in urban areas: Courtyard design case study

A Study of Teaching Practices and Innovations in Yard Design Courses in Vocational Undergraduate Education

With the continuous development of the social economy and the continuous improvement of people's quality of life, the professional field of courtyard design is getting more and more attention and importance. This paper analyzes and summarizes the teaching practice and innovation research of courtyard design courses in vocational undergraduate education. By introducing actual projects, selecting typical cases, organizing field trips, and applying digital technology and other teaching practice strategies, we can effectively stimulate students' creative thinking, improve their practical ability teamwork, and communication ability, and then enhance their vocational competitiveness and adaptability.

Enhancing student satisfaction and academic performance through school courtyard design: a quantitative analysis

ABSTRACT Traditionally, students’ overall satisfaction with their educational experience was typically measured using a single question or a straightforward ‘yes’ or ‘no’ response. However, this approach might not capture their complete assessment of other aspects of satisfaction. The design of School Courtyard is expected to be one of these aspects, and it will be the subject of this quantitative research. To gather the data, a self-administered survey was made available to a sample of secondary school students from two private schools. To investigate and validate the connection between School Courtyard Design, Courtyard Suitability and Courtyard Attractiveness with Students’ Satisfaction, three hypotheses were developed. To evaluate the viability of the developed hypotheses, software namely SPSS (Statistical Package for Science Software) was used to carry out several tests, including regression analysis and correlation coefficient. The results showed a high relationship significance between the School Courtyard Design and Students’ Satisfaction with a chance of 37.5%. Student satisfaction can be predicted also by Courtyard Suitability with a 22.9% chance. Finally, Students’ Satisfaction can be additionally predicted by the Courtyard Attractiveness with a 24.7% chance. The research reveals the courtyard design needs, enhancing student satisfaction and academic performance, benefiting architects, experts, and practitioners.

Study on Strategy for Optimization of Thermal Comfort of College Courtyards in Lingnan Area in Summer

The campus courtyards in the Lingnan area are commonly used spaces. Therefore, their thermal comfort is highly important for improving user satisfaction. This study conducted field research on 18 courtyards in four universities in Lingnan to explore the effects of their architectural design factors on the thermal environment. Relevant studies have proved that courtyards are cost-effective in microclimate regulation, and individual factors such as the scale and openness of the courtyards have also been shown to have an effect on the thermal comfort of the courtyards. This study synthesizes multidimensional architectural design factors to explore and analyze the thermal environments of college courtyards. Physiologically equivalent temperature (PET) is selected as the thermal comfort evaluation index for the study and the conclusions are as follows: (1) The thermal environment is the most important factor influencing visitors to the courtyards (22%), and good thermal comfort improves the efficiency of using the college courtyards; (2) the courtyards have a positive microclimate regulating function, and a cooling effect occurs in 80% of them; and (3) the floor location, type, orientation, and sky view factor (SVF) of the courtyards are the main design factors affecting the thermal environment and PET. The first three factors were negatively correlated with PET (p < 0.05),and SVF was positively correlated with PET (p = 0.651). Passive courtyard design strategies are presented based on the findings of this study.

Research on the Application Strategy of Mount Tai Culture in the Courtyard Design of Tai'an Home Stay

Mount Tai Scenic Area is located in Tai'an City, Shandong Province, and is known as the "Five Sacred Mountains". Starting from the two directions of gardening art method and modern courtyard landscape design, this paper probes into the essence of spiritual connotation and construction method, analyzes the existing problems and development trend requirements of modern courtyard landscape design, puts forward the design language enlightenment of Tai'an homestay courtyard in space, artistic conception and element direction by combining the case of Tai'an courtyard, and discusses the limitations and relevance of traditional gardening art method in modern application through the relationship between the two, From the perspective of space experience construction, the specific application methods of integrating courtyard design are proposed. The main purpose of this study is to comb the application strategies for regional courtyard landscape design and provide systematic services for courtyard design. Through research, it is found that traditional gardens and modern garden landscapes are highly similar. Mount Tai gardens, whether in design philosophy or garden building methods, could summarize and form a theoretical system of specific application methods in five aspects, namely, "site selection, cultural thoughts and artistic conception experience, space combination, detail elements, formal beauty, and metaphorical expression", based on the design connotation and created space feelings, a new idea of homestay courtyard landscape design was explored and it has the significance of the times and covers local characteristics and is not restricted to external forms. The results of this study provide valuable information for application strategy of Mount Tai culture in the courtyard design of Tai'an home stay.

A workflow for rapid assessment of complex courtyard wind environment based on parallel lattice Boltzmann method

A fast courtyard wind simulation platform based on the parallel courtyard Lattice Boltzmann Method (CLBM) is proposed to achieve comprehensive optimization of courtyard design structure and wind environment performance. The simulation workflow of CLBM is designed and implemented, and its accuracy is validated using two benchmark cases and Qinghui Garden in central Guangdong. The results show that CLBM achieves simulation accuracy on par with other simulations, with R2 values greater than 0.8 and Root Mean Squared Error (RMSE) values less than 0.3 m/s for the building array case and RMSE values less than 0.2 m/s for the row of trees case. In the testbed courtyard, the Normalized Root Mean Squared Error (NRMSE) values range from 0.18 to 0.30, close to Ansys Fluent's NRMSE values of 0.07–0.33, and comparable to most peer studies with NRMSE values below 0.5. CLBM is also faster than traditional Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) models, with a workflow that is 19 times faster than Ansys Fluent and can produce wind environment simulation feedback in about 10 min. This model's speed and accuracy advantages make it well-suited for quickly simulating courtyard wind environments, even in the presence of complex combinations and rich vegetation. Architects can use this technique to regularly experiment with courtyard design elements and achieve evidence-based design of courtyard ventilation to fully realize the aesthetic appeal and maximize ventilation efficiency.

A fast and accurate mean radiant temperature model for courtyards: Evidence from the Keyuan Garden in central Guangdong, China

Most models that simulate mean radiant temperature (Tmrt) for complex geometries are computationally expensive. We developed a fast and accurate Tmrt model for courtyards (CMRT) based on a parallelized quasi-physical algorithm. Here, we present the CMRT implementation, validate the model for Keyuan Garden in Central Guangdong, and compare model results and performance to ENVI-met and Ladybug Tools. The new model simulated Tmrt for various locations in the test bed courtyard with a root mean square error (RMSE) of 1.82 °C, outperforming Ladybug (5.00 °C) and ENVI-met (8.27 °C) and meeting the accuracy requirement for heat and cold stress. The CMRT model simulates Tmrt two orders of magnitude faster than ENVI-met and Ladybug Tools. Model performance increased with resolution of the domain and number of view facets. A sensitivity analysis shows that the solar beam fraction is the largest contributor to Tmrt after air temperature. Cloud cover has a non-linear effect on Tmrt, and every 1 °C increase in surrounding surface temperatures raises Tmrt by 0.28 °C. With faster simulations and reliable results, the CMRT model will facilitate future climate-resilient courtyard design.

Optimizing urban courtyard form through the coupling of outdoor zonal approach and building energy modeling

Urban courtyards are well known for their potential thermal performances in vernacular urban morphology. Furthermore, in a more general approach considering various cities and locations, new building uses, and climate changes, a correct courtyard design requires an accurate understanding of the complex interactions between buildings and their surroundings. This study aims to develop tools and processes to optimize the design of these urban courtyards. A microclimate model is developed and integrated in a building simulation software (TRNSYS) to evaluate the thermal microclimatic conditions of courtyard building, and their heating and cooling energy demand. A specific zonal model is developed for the local courtyard microclimate, which is coupled with a previously developed thermoradiative model. Indoor conditions are modeled by the multizone building model of TRNSYS. This methodology is used to investigate the microclimatic influence of different courtyard morphology on their thermal behavior in three different climates (hot, temperate and cold). An extended study on the impact of courtyard aspect ratios has been carried out. In order to optimize the courtyard heating and cooling energy needs, a multiple regression analysis was further used to develop the fast prediction model and then select the non-dominated solutions using pareto efficiency. The results suggest optimal morphology in order to enhance the energy performance of the courtyard, from which square shape is more advantageous in cold climates (reduced heating energy needs by approximately 48%), while the deep and less wide shape is more advantageous for hot and arid climates (reduced the cooling energy needs by about 10%). For temperate climate, the shape guaranteeing minimum energy needs and, in all seasons, is the one with less width and medium depth (allowing a reduction in energy needs of about 58%).

Orientation as a panacea for improving the Thermal Performance of a fully enclosed courtyard in a typical tropical climate

Globalization has resulted in pollution, carbon emissions, climate change, and an insufficient supply of natural resources. As a result, research is required to increase the thermal performance of buildings. In this regard, using a courtyard as a building component is one of the most sustainable ways to improve the building's thermal performance and microclimate. While utilizing the Envi-met program on the configurations chosen for the fully enclosed courtyard, this study investigated the effect of orientation on the fully enclosed courtyard's thermal performance. 1:1:1 and 1:2:1 are examples of this setup. The orientations considered in this example were N-S, E-W, NE-SW, and NW-SE. The air temperature, mean radiant temperature and physiological equivalent temperature were measured during simulations of two configurations of the fully enclosed courtyard. According to the research, the air temperature, mean radiant temperature and physiological equivalent temperature rises as the size of the courtyard grows. As a result, the air temperature in the 1:1:1 courtyard arrangement is lower than in the 1:2:1 courtyard design.

Effect of neighbourhood courtyard design on the outdoor thermal comfort in a tropical city

In the tropical city of Ha Tinh (Vietnam), the number of new developed neighbourhoods in the courtyard layout is increasing while the city is experiencing annual severe heat stress. The paper quantitatively analyses, by means of ENVI-Met simulation, the effect of neighbourhood courtyard landscape on the outdoor thermal comfort (OTC) in the tropical city of Ha Tinh (Vietnam). A sample 9-ha residential block was at first experimentally configured with four scenarios of courtyard, including (1) bare grass and perimetry location of high plants, (2) grass ground, fully occupied high trees, (3) water body and perimetry location of high plants, and (4) mixed ground surfaces of water, hard pavement and grass, and partly occupied high trees. The adding of tree canopies to the entire courtyard, consequently sufficient shades, as in case 2, contributes to the better OTC among the chosen scenarios by triggering the reduction of mean radiant temperature (Tmrt) (2.9°C) and physiological equivalent temperature (PET) (3.5°C) at the hottest hours as compared to the original configuration (case 1) during the summer days. Application of perimetry plants with either water (case 1) or bare grass (case 3) results in higher PET though full occupation of water body lowers the air temperature by roughly 1°C. The limited impact on OTC of local water body is counter-intuitive, yet important result to the practice of urban design. The worst OTC was observed in case 4 where almost half of the garden was sun-exposed and intended for hard-paved playground and water body. Increasing shades against solar radiation is the most important measure to deal with intensive heat problem. The study is an essential part of translating academic knowledge on urban climate into interventions on urban design for better climate resilience of neighbourhoods in Vietnam and by extend in other tropical countries.

AN INVESTIGATION INTO GEOMETRIC RATIOS OF THE SUNKEN COURTYARDS IN TRADITIONAL IRANIAN HOUSES (A FIELD STUDY ON YAZD AND KASHAN)

In Iranian architecture, the emphasis on the use of geometric ratios such as human scale and modularization, caused beauty and harmony. Unfortunately, in contemporary architecture, the use of these scales has been forgotten, and their presence has been diminished. Therefore, the main goal of the present study was to analyze and evaluate the geometry and proportions used in six remaining traditional Iranian sunken courtyards in Yazd and Kashan. For each house, the length, width, height and the ratio between these dimensions were measured for the sunken courtyard, courtyard and earth of the case studies. Then, to find out which kind of proportions were used in these sunken courtyards, we proposed some statistical tests to compare our measurements with the traditional proportions used. In the end, the results showed that the proportions used in the design of the sunken courtyard, courtyard, and earth of the case studies are related and the traditional Iranian sunken courtyards have been designed mostly based on the use of Gereh (a unit of measurement), which was the most appropriate and most widely used scale in housing architecture.

Courtyard configuration to optimize shading, daylight and ventilation in a tropical terrace house using simulation

PurposeThis study aims to identify the optimal configuration to enhance the environmental conditions of a terrace house courtyard space in a hot and humid climate. The use of the courtyard has declined in new housing developments although it is an effective element to bring in light and wind to promote passive ventilation to occupants. To achieve the comfort level, the courtyard needs to be open, but some occupants modify it with enclosures, such as polycarbonate, to increase the useable and shaded area. This affects bringing in daylight but deters the passive ventilation from happening. Thus, this research is important to create a courtyard that brings in daylight and wind as well as shades from the harsh sun of the tropics and to educate the occupants on the role of the courtyard as a passive ventilation system.Design/methodology/approachThe research method employed is a simulation study. A terrace house with a courtyard design in Penang was chosen as a case study of the baseline model. The courtyard configurations of the case study were evaluated, and 4 settings based on the literature review were established for simulation. The effects of the courtyard configurations were tested through daylight and CFD simulations. Daylight and ventilation requirements from Malaysia Standard were used to evaluate and compare the effectiveness of the proposed settings.FindingsThe results suggested that the semi-enclosed courtyard feature with a shading device could provide the optimal environmental conditions of the courtyard space in a terrace house in a hot-humid climate. This paper will benefit the architectural community in which it is intended to implement courtyard design in modern terrace houses and will also contribute to the discovery of the most suitable courtyard typology in a hot-humid climate.Research limitations/implicationsThe study does not include studies on thermal comfort, energy performance, or use behavior of occupants in this courtyard. The study only focuses on the influence of different courtyard configurations in improving the courtyard space's daylight availability and indoor air movement.Practical implicationsThe data from this study reveal that alteration of courtyard design needs to suit comfort level that should not alter the functions of the courtyard as a passive design. The simulation method offers data for microclimatic conditions according to the changes in design. This study attempts to design influence on multiple parameters of shading, daylighting and ventilation to optimize the use of tropical climatic conditions.Social implicationsThe terrace house with courtyard would create a passive design strategy that would naturally ventilate, provide daylight, and will save on energy usage. The courtyard then with its enhanced comfort for the user will be able to function as a useable space to foster family relationships.Originality/valueThe study on courtyard design using the simulation method mostly have been conducted using a single parameter. This study highlights the analysis and process of identifying the optimal configuration for the architectural feature of a courtyard to provide a comfort level for occupants in hot and humid climates using the simulation method using data from two pieces of software.

Courtyard design impact on indoor thermal comfort and utility costs for residential households: Comparative analysis and deep-learning predictive model

A courtyard is an architectural design element which is often known as microclimate modifiers and is responsible to increase the indoor occupant comfort in traditional architecture. The aim of this study is to conduct a parametric evaluation of courtyard design variants in a residential building of different climates with a focus on indoor thermal comfort and utility costs. A brute-force approach is applied to generate a wide range of design alternatives and the simulation workflow is conducted by Grasshopper together with the environmental plugins Ladybug and Honeybee. The main study objective is the evaluation of the occupant thermal comfort in an air-conditioned residential building, energy load, and cost analysis, derived from different design variables including courtyard geometry, window-to-wall ratio, envelope materials, heating, and cooling set-point dead-bands, and building geographical location. Furthermore, a Deep Learning model is developed using the inputs and outputs of the simulation and analysis to transform the outcomes into the algorithmic and tangible environment feasible for predictive applications. The results suggest that regarding the thermal loads, costs, and indoor thermal comfort index (PMV), there are high correlations between the outdoor weather variation and dead-band ranges, while in extreme climates such as Singapore, courtyard spaces might not be efficient enough as expected. Finally, the highly accurate deep learning model is also developed, delivering superior predictive capabilities for the thermal comfort and utility costs of the courtyard designs.

Courtyard: A Look at the Relevance of Courtyard Space in Contemporary Houses

The paper attempts to uncover the key issues concerning the sustainable built form of towns in the aftermath of rapid urbanization and growing population. The objective of this study is to understand the suitability and practicability of the courtyard forms in the urban settlement. Traditional courtyard houses in India are the native types of houses. These typologies of houses have been developed through the time-tested method and reached widespread acceptance. It became apparent that contemporary along with the traditional courtyard design should be studied on various parameters to determine the most suitable courtyard design for an urban context and quantify possible design solutions in various regional contexts. The paper presents a literature review at two levels. The environmental and socio-cultural impact of courtyard typology has been addressed at the first level. And the second level explores the typological implication of courtyard houses at an urban scale with special emphasis on parameters like building bye-laws, Floor area ratio, and density. The study revealed that the courtyard serves as a holistic space within the house, however depending on the regional and climatic context, the attributes may differ. The paper concludes that courtyard typology has the potential to justify the cultural, anthropological, and climatic needs of the occupant therefore could be adopted in urban settings. The study also provides future direction for the research work as a very limited background study is available to establish a direct relationship between courtyard typology and building bye-laws.