Summary
Indoor air quality (IAQ) has a significant impact of the health and well-being of building occupants. Recent evidence further links IAQ with cognitive function and work performance. Despite that buildings account for considerable energy consumption and carbon emission (e.g., in Switzerland, 45% of the total end energy demand and 1/3 of CO2 emission), complaints about the air quality and overall environmental quality of indoor spaces are ubiquitous.
Building users’ lack of satisfaction is partially due to that environmental preferences vary across individuals and change over time. It is very challenging to collect real-time feedback from building occupants continuously using conventional methods such as questionnaires due to the inconveniences they cause.
The aim of the project is to develop a novel passive non-contact tool that estimates the environmental perception and satisfaction of building occupants based on changes in their facial expressions. Compared to conventional questionnaire-based methods, the proposed tool requires no conscious effort from the building users and collects real-time feedback using simple devices. The ENAC Seed Grant allows us to test the method in response to air pollution exposures as proof of concept before its generalization to other environmental conditions.
General information
- PI: Bowen Du (HOBEL/ IIC)
- Start date: 01.05.2023
- Duration: 6 months