Papers by Mate Thitisawat
and developing design criteria for a semitropical region of South Florida. A series of surveys ha... more and developing design criteria for a semitropical region of South Florida. A series of surveys has been conducted in the summer and fall seasons to obtain participants ’ sensation votes corresponding to recorded climatic parameters. More data need to be gathered for the calibration and validation. This paper attempts to evaluate different models using the survey data, and identify strong candidates for further study. The models are all based on Predicted Mean Vote (PMV), an index traditionally used to assess indoor comfort. Results from the PMV equation exhibits a promising trend, but needed some adjustments. Calibration alone cannot improve its prediction. After some computational experiments with different adjustment strategies, five model candidates exhibit high rates of agreement with Actual Sensation Votes (ASV). Adaptive and separated calibration approaches applied to the PMV compensate participants ’ adaptation to the outdoor condition. They improve the PMV’s prediction consi...
Impact: Design With All Senses, 2019
This paper discusses the potential of a workflow that integrates parametric design and spatial co... more This paper discusses the potential of a workflow that integrates parametric design and spatial computing, to create a persistent model, and address the gap between top-down and bottom-up design approaches for an informal settlement in Mumbai. The workflow involves the use of Fologram®, a Grasshopper® plugin for Rhinoceros®, which allows designers to work in a Mixed Reality (MR) environment through the Microsoft Hololens® eyewear and ubiquitous smart devices. While Immersive environments typically enable visualization of a design, we are interested in its possibilities as a tool to assist the locals, who often design and construct without the aid of designers. This practice is a good opportunity to examine the implementation of this technology. These tools allow the user to visualize a model at full scale and make edits, which permit an assessment of the design in real time before finalizing design decisions. In addition, the shared MR experience can be further integrated in the prop...
This paper presents the research and design experiences of American students of architecture work... more This paper presents the research and design experiences of American students of architecture working on a research project in the Puerto Rican informal settlement of LaPerla. This neighborhood is located adjacent to the historic city of San Juan, Puerto Rico, (aUNESCO World Heritage Site) and has been segregated from the rest of the city since the first settlers invaded a plot of land about 100 years ago. This paper presents part of the experience of faculty members and more than 180 architecture students from the continental UnitedStates, who have visited Puerto Rico in the last 6 years, as an attempt to incorporate studies of informal settlements in their academic curriculum (through 14 field trips overall). A large research project has been developed to individually study approximately 400 dwellings in this sector. This experience has allowed students to understand the reality of urban slums in a developing country not as spectators, but through designing real architectural and u...
This paper represents the next step in the development of occupant responsive optimal control for... more This paper represents the next step in the development of occupant responsive optimal control for double-skin systems that was presented at the IBPSA 2003 conference. The presented occupant responsive optimal control (Park et al, 2003b) optimizes in real-time the performance of the facade in terms of energy, daylighting, visual comfort and thermal comfort. In the aforementioned approach, the double-skin façade system was viewed as an ‘isolated’ system and hence treated as a local control problem, i.e., based purely on information about the state of the façade and its immediate environment. The paper extends the local control problem to a system control problem in which room environmental control and façade control are dealt with simultaneously. It is investigated whether the integrated control significantly outperforms the suboptimal façade control based on only local state information.
Blucher Design Proceedings, 2019
This paper explores the use of smart technologies like physical computing with a sensor and an ac... more This paper explores the use of smart technologies like physical computing with a sensor and an actuator, to create a prototype of a wearable technology, which augments our interaction with the environment, and people. The initial design idea was based on an empirical study of varying body heat signature patterns corresponding to emotions. However, we are interested to expand the discussion beyond technical issues in the design process, to reflect on the broader relationship of the human body with space and people. The study raises some important questions vis-à-vis current mobility and scalar reduction of Technology today: What is the relationship between architecture and the human body? Can a wearable technology be used to indicate, and express a fluctuating emotion? How would a traditional garment element evolve to respond to a new requirement or program? What are the appropriate scales we should refer in order to design our surrounding space? What sort of expertise is required to shift in design scales?
Energy and Buildings, 2004
The paper describes the calibration of a simulation model of double-skin façade systems with cont... more The paper describes the calibration of a simulation model of double-skin façade systems with controlled rotating louvers and ventilation openings. The approach is based on a parameter estimation technique and in situ monitoring of a full-scale element mounted on the south facing façade of an existing building. Contrary to similar work that attempts to derive the behavior from detailed modeling of the physical transport phenomena, the new approach is based on a postulated "minimalistic" lumped model, which is calibrated on in-situ measurements. It is found that the calibrated model is surprisingly accurate and ideally suited for use in the ensuing optimal control and performance studies.
ABSTRACT: This paper is a part of a research project funded by Architectural Research Centers Con... more ABSTRACT: This paper is a part of a research project funded by Architectural Research Centers Consortium (ARCC) and Florida Atlantic University (FAU). The project focuses on finding a way to assess outdoor comfort and developing design criteria for a semitropical ...
In tropical and subtropical regions, outdoor conditions allow people to live outdoors for a longe... more In tropical and subtropical regions, outdoor conditions allow people to live outdoors for a longer period than other climatic regions. Understanding how to create a comfortable environment is crucial for designers working in this region. This paper ...
Building and Environment, 2004
Automation in Construction, 2013
This paper presents the follow-up in the development of occupant responsive optimal control for d... more This paper presents the follow-up in the development of occupant responsive optimal control for double-skin systems that was published previously in Park et al. [1]. The presented occupant responsive optimal control optimizes in real-time the performance of the facade in terms of energy, visual comfort (average daylight interior illuminance, uniformity, average window luminance, and outward visibility) and thermal comfort (Predicted Percentage Dissatisfied, PPD). In the aforementioned approach, the double-skin façade system was viewed as an 'isolated' system and hence treated as a local control problem, i.e., based purely on information about the state of the façade and its immediate environment. The paper extends the local control problem to an integrated control problem in which room environmental control and façade control are dealt with simultaneously. It was found that the local control leads to sub-optimality, albeit of moderate proportions.
Occupant responsive optimal control is developed for so called smart façade systems. The control ... more Occupant responsive optimal control is developed for so called smart façade systems. The control optimizes the performance of the system by rotating a motorized louver slat in the cavity and ventilation dampers at the top and bottom of exterior and interior glazing. One prominent feature of the system is the capability of dynamically reacting to the environmental input data through real-time optimization in terms of energy, visual comfort and thermal comfort. Users interaction with the system is Web enabled. Current state variables, weather data and energy flows are posted on a web page and an occupant with given privileges can choose the preferred operation mode or override the devices (louvers, ventilation inlet/outlet).
ABSTRACT: This paper presents the research and design experiences of American students of archite... more ABSTRACT: This paper presents the research and design experiences of American students of architecture working on a research project in the Puerto Rican informal settlement of La Perla. This neighborhood is located adjacent to the historic city of San Juan, Puerto Rico, (a UNESCO World Heritage Site) and has been segregated from the rest of the city since the first settlers invaded a plot of land about 100 years ago. This paper presents part of the experience of faculty members and more than 180 architecture students from the continental United States, who have visited Puerto Rico in the last 6 years, as an attempt to incorporate studies of informal settlements in their academic curriculum (through 14 field trips overall). A large research project has been developed to individually study approximately 400 dwellings in this sector. This experience has allowed students to understand the reality of urban slums in a developing country not as spectators, but through designing real archit...
In subtropical or tropical region, shading is one of the most important design strategies due to ... more In subtropical or tropical region, shading is one of the most important design strategies due to exposure to intense solar radiation. The study addresses the need for flexible design method identified intoday’s architectural practice. Different workflows for coupling the parametric design with simulations of heatflow and radiation are examined. A workflow consists of tools running on modeling or simulation platform. The paper establishes three workflows, static, cross-platform and dynamic. Each workflow has similar capabilities in terms of access to simulation engines but different flow of information. Therefore, they can beemployed in different design circumstances. The current investigation indicates the need for multi-objectiveoptimization in the future.
In tropical and subtropical areas, people can spend more time outdoors than in other latitudes. U... more In tropical and subtropical areas, people can spend more time outdoors than in other latitudes. Understanding the sensitivity of outdoor comfort is a fundamental element for architects and urban designers working in these specific climates. This study is part of a research project attempting to relate climatic influences and human thermal sensation. The primary objective of this funded research is to study the influence of climatic parameters in outdoor comfort. This paper analyzes the climatic parameters such as temperature, radiation, humidity, and wind speed in four selected public spaces in the downtown area of the city of Fort Lauderdale, Southeast Florida. The climatic data was correlated with thermal sensation surveys of occupants using selected public spaces. This paper presents data from the surveys, evaluates two existing statistical models, and proposes two calibrated statistical models to predict thermal comfort based on the values of mean radiant temperature, wind veloc...
Energy and Buildings, 2004
The paper describes the calibration of a simulation model of double-skin façade systems with cont... more The paper describes the calibration of a simulation model of double-skin façade systems with controlled rotating louvers and ventilation openings. The approach is based on a parameter estimation technique and in situ monitoring of a full-scale element mounted on the south facing façade of an existing building. Contrary to similar work that attempts to derive the behavior from detailed modeling of the physical transport phenomena, the new approach is based on a postulated "minimalistic" lumped model, which is calibrated on in-situ measurements. It is found that the calibrated model is surprisingly accurate and ideally suited for use in the ensuing optimal control and performance studies.
ABSTRACT: This paper is a part of a research project funded by Architectural Research Centers Con... more ABSTRACT: This paper is a part of a research project funded by Architectural Research Centers Consortium (ARCC) and Florida Atlantic University (FAU). The project focuses on finding a way to assess outdoor comfort and developing design criteria for a semitropical ...
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Papers by Mate Thitisawat