Virtual reality for smart urban lighting design: Review, applications and opportunities

More and more cities are evolving into smart cities, increasing their attractiveness, energy efficiency, and users satisfaction. Lighting systems play an important role in the evolution process, thanks to their ability to affect city life at night along with people s mood and behaviour. In this scenario, advanced lighting design methods such as virtual reality (VR) became essential to assess lighting systems from different points of view, especially those linked with the city users expectations. Initially, the review highlights a list of objective and subjective parameters to be considered for the lighting design of three main city areas/applications: roads, green areas and buildings. Besides, the state-of-Art in using VR for outdoor lighting design is established. Finally, the Unreal game engine is used to analyse the ability of VR to take into account the lighting parameters, not yet investigated in current literature and to highlight the VR potential for augmenting lighting design. The results confirm the benefit of using VR in lighting design, even if further investigations are needed to establish its reliability, especially from the photometrical point of view

Realtà virtuale immersiva come strumento per la progettazione illuminotecnica

La realtà virtuale immersiva (iVR) è oggigiorno considerata una tecnologia di nuova generazione con ampia possibilità di applicazione in ambito architettonico; la sua potenzialità di verificare le scelte progettuali e valutare in tempi rapidi spazi, colori e luci, la rendono dunque particolarmente interessante nel segmento specifico della progettazione illuminotecnica. Affinché questa tecnologia possa essere utilizzata in questo campo, è necessario, però, che la riproduzione degli ambienti virtuali immersivi sia fisicamente corretta dal punto di vista fotometrico e coerente nella successiva riproduzione “visiva” dell’ambiente. Dopo una descrizione iniziale dei sistemi iVR disponibili commercialmente e delle loro recenti applicazioni in ambito illuminotecnico, all’interno di ambienti confinati ad uso ufficio, sono riportati i risultati preliminari della accuratezza fotometrica del software (definito come “Game Engine”) di realtà virtuale immersiva, Unreal Engine 4, in confronto ad un software tradizionalmente usato per la progettazione illuminotecnica. I risultati preliminari confermano la possibilità di avere, attraverso la realtà virtuale immersiva, una buona attendibilità fotometrica nella distribuzione della luce diretta per casi studio semplificati

Riqualificazione illuminotecnica di luoghi di culto: il caso studio della Chiesa di Santa Maria di Piedigrotta

Illuminare una chiesa dal valore storico-monumentale implica, tra i molteplici aspetti, l'integrazione di due elementi fondamentali rappresentati dalla valorizzazione degli elementi storico-artistici e dal miglioramento della fruizione dell’edificio. La Chiesa di Santa Maria di Piedigrotta di Napoli è stata utilizzata come caso studio di riqualificazione illuminotecnica in grado di coadiuvare comfort visivo, valorizzazione degli ambienti e risparmio energetico. Lo studio è partito dalla valutazione dei livelli di illuminamento dell’impianto esistente e dall’individuazione del tipo di illuminazione per le diverse aree della chiesa. Al fine di consentire il confronto e l’ottimizzazione di varie soluzioni progettuali, dal punto di vista illuminotecnico ed energetico, gli interni della chiesa sono stati simulati attraverso il software di simulazione DIALux; successivamente sono stati ipotizzati differenti scenari di luce al fine di adattare i consumi energetici ai livelli di illuminamento necessari per ciascuna delle attività svolte nella chiesa, ad esempio per le celebrazioni solenni o ordinarie. Infine si è provveduto alla valutazione in-situ dei livelli di illuminamento e delle luminanze di alcune superfici di riferimento ed al loro confronto con i risultati ottenuti dalla simulazione

The lighting refurbishment of places of worship: The case study of the Church of “Santa Maria di Piedigrotta”

Christian church buildings constitute most of the architectural heritage in Italy. In this paper, the case study of the exterior lighting renewal of the Church of “Santa Maria di Piedigrotta”, located in Napoli, is discussed. The lighting project was carried out with the goal of emphasizing the original hierarchies of the building details, that can often be difficult to understand with the current lighting system. The study started with the analysis of the architectural features of the façades and belfry as well as the existing lighting system. In order to allow for the comparison and optimization of the various lighting design solutions, a virtual model of the church was realized in the simulation software DIALuxEvo. In the most suitable concept, both diffused and accent lighting were integrated, allowing for a correct perception of the whole of the façades of Church, thus highlighting its most valuable elements. The results obtained have responded positively to the enhancement and conservation of the historical-artistic works, while also resulting in energy saving. Moreover, the Standards of Law restrictions on “light pollution towards the sky” for historical and monumental buildings have been respected

Double-Skin Facades with Semi-Transparent Modules for Building Retrofit Actions: Energy and Visual Performances

The performances and the optimal configuration of new semi-transparent modules for Double-Skin Façade are investigated through the dynamic simulation software TRNSYS and Radiance. A sensitivity analysis is conducted upon varying the: (i) material typology, (ii) cavity depth and (iii) transparency of the materials used for the modules. The analysis highlights that, in comparison with the base case without Double-Skin Façade, the new modules can improve energy efficiency of buildings and indoor environmental quality. The analysis underlines also that the performances and the optimal configuration are strongly dependent on the boundary conditions as well as the material thermal and visual characteristics

The lighting refurbishment of places of worship: The case study of the Church of “Santa Maria di Piedigrotta”

Christian church buildings constitute most of the architectural heritage in Italy. In this paper, the case study of the exterior lighting renewal of the Church of “Santa Maria di Piedigrotta”, located in Napoli, is discussed. The lighting project was carried out with the goal of emphasizing the original hierarchies of the building details, that can often be difficult to understand with the current lighting system. The study started with the analysis of the architectural features of the façades and belfry as well as the existing lighting system. In order to allow for the comparison and optimization of the various lighting design solutions, a virtual model of the church was realized in the simulation software DIALuxEvo. In the most suitable concept, both diffused and accent lighting were integrated, allowing for a correct perception of the whole of the façades of Church, thus highlighting its most valuable elements. The results obtained have responded positively to the enhancement and conservation of the historical-artistic works, while also resulting in energy saving. Moreover, the Standards of Law restrictions on “light pollution towards the sky” for historical and monumental buildings have been respected

Passive Strategies for Building Retrofitting: Performances Analysis and Incentive Policies for the Iranian Scenario

A large amount of the Iranian energy demand is related to the building sector, mainly due to its obsolescence. In this paper, a second-skin system has been implemented as a retrofit action for an office building, evaluating the effect of a tensile material as second-skin in terms of primary energy saving, carbon dioxide equivalent emissions, and simple payback period. The analysis was carried out through numerical simulations across a whole year and for four Iranian cities (Tabriz, Teheran, Yazd, and Bandar Abbas) in four different climates (cold, temperate, hot-dry, and hot-wet), and with the building aligned at either north-south or east-west. Moreover, an economic analysis was carried out suggesting different incentive policies to promote building energy refurbishment. The simulation results highlighted a favorable orientation for buildings in Iran, suggesting a guideline for new constructions. Indeed, the best results were achieved for an east-west orientation of the building (up to a primary energy saving of 13.6% and reduction of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions of 45.5 MgCO2,eq, in Yazd), with a decrease of the annual specific total (cooling and thermal) energy demand of 37.9 kWh/m2/year. The simple payback period values were also lower in the east-west orientation than the north-south one

Passive Strategies for Building Retrofitting: Performances Analysis and Incentive Policies for the Iranian Scenario

A large amount of the Iranian energy demand is related to the building sector, mainly due to its obsolescence. In this paper, a second-skin system has been implemented as a retrofit action for an office building, evaluating the effect of a tensile material as second-skin in terms of primary energy saving, carbon dioxide equivalent emissions, and simple payback period. The analysis was carried out through numerical simulations across a whole year and for four Iranian cities (Tabriz, Teheran, Yazd, and Bandar Abbas) in four different climates (cold, temperate, hot-dry, and hot-wet), and with the building aligned at either north-south or east-west. Moreover, an economic analysis was carried out suggesting different incentive policies to promote building energy refurbishment. The simulation results highlighted a favorable orientation for buildings in Iran, suggesting a guideline for new constructions. Indeed, the best results were achieved for an east-west orientation of the building (up to a primary energy saving of 13.6% and reduction of carbon dioxide equivalent emissions of 45.5 MgCO2,eq, in Yazd), with a decrease of the annual specific total (cooling and thermal) energy demand of 37.9 kWh/m2/year. The simple payback period values were also lower in the east-west orientation than the north-south one

Virtual Reality for Smart Urban Lighting Design: Review, Applications and Opportunities

More and more cities are evolving into smart cities, increasing their attractiveness, energy efficiency, and users’ satisfaction. Lighting systems play an important role in the evolution process, thanks to their ability to affect city life at night along with people’s mood and behaviour. In this scenario, advanced lighting design methods such as virtual reality (VR) became essential to assess lighting systems from different points of view, especially those linked with the city users’ expectations. Initially, the review highlights a list of objective and subjective parameters to be considered for the lighting design of three main city areas/applications: roads, green areas and buildings. Besides, the state-of-art in using VR for outdoor lighting design is established. Finally, the Unreal game engine is used to analyse the ability of VR to take into account the lighting parameters, not yet investigated in current literature and to highlight the VR potential for augmenting lighting design. The results confirm the benefit of using VR in lighting design, even if further investigations are needed to establish its reliability, especially from the photometrical point of view

Lighting refurbishment of worship places: The case study of Church “Santa Maria di Piedigrotta”

Christian church buildings constitute most of the Italian’s architectural heritage. In this paper, the case study of the exterior lighting renewal of the Church “Santa Maria di Piedigrotta”, located in Napoli, is showed. The lighting project has been performed with the goal of emphasizing the original hierarchies of building details, often difficult to understand with the actual lighting system. The research activity started with the analysis of the façades and belfry architectural features, as well as the existing lighting system. In order to allow the comparison and optimization of the various lighting design solutions, a virtual model of the church was realized in the simulation software DIALuxEvo. In the most suitable concept, both diffused and accent lighting were integrated, allowing a correct perception of the whole Church façades and highlighting its most valuable elements. The results obtained have responded positively to the enhancement and conservation of works of historical-artistic interest and to the achievement of energy saving. Moreover, the Standards of Law restrictions on "light pollution towards the sky" for historical and monumental buildings have been respected