As the electrification rate is expected to increase toward carbon neutrality, it is necessary to improve the energy resilience of homes, taking into account the risk of power outages due to natural disasters. In order to achieve this, it is essential to understand the actual conditions, such as problems that occur during power outages and changes in awareness due to power outages. So we conducted the questionnaire and interview. The main results are as follows: Subjects ‹38 interviewees and 574 questionnaires› who experienced long-term power outages due to disasters ‹earthquakes, typhoons, snow damage› were asked their problems in the long-term power outages. Most of the subjects chose refrigerators⁄freezers, lighting, hot water supply etc. The reason for the selection of problems was the damage to foodstuffs in refrigerators and freezers, and health concerns such as heat stroke in air conditioners. On the other hand, the responses on equipment indicated that, from the standpoint of cost-effectiveness, equipment that can be used not only during emergencies but also during normal times and that can ensure sufficient rated output during power outages is desired. In addition, it was shown that it is important to provide information on home appliances and power supply equipment and their use according to each household's lifestyle.

View full abstract

We distributed the “thermal environment visualization tools for indoor ” to the older adults and young people in rural and urban areas, considering universal design such as installation diversity and visibility. In order to find design elements that are highly effective in behavior change to prevent heat stroke, behavior change is expressed in six stages of “recognition and action flow ”, and how to perceive the design corresponding to each stage was analyzed. The older adults tend to pay attention to clear color changes of concrete illustration that are easy to remember.

View full abstract

There are many environmental performance rating systems in Japan and overseas for the purpose of energy conservation and environmental impact assessment. Also, in the field of occupational health, labor productivity tools according to health are being researched. To develop a self-evaluation and management method that contributes to the maintenance and management of building sanitation in Japan, we have collected and organized manuals and tools for these systems, as well as research papers using them, and clarified the issues.

View full abstract

Authors developed ISO 14505-4 ‹2021 ›, which defines numerical calculation methods of equivalent temperature. ISO 14505-4 defines two calculation methods to determine equivalent temperature. One method uses a numerical thermal manikin and the other uses thermal factors for the calculation. This paper firstly introduces the calculation methods. Then their validation results in vehicle cabins by comparisons with thermal manikin measurements are described. The numerical thermal manikin method has an advantage in accuracy. The calculation method based on thermal factors also has advantages. For example, it can be used with 0D ⁄ 1D simulation. Thus, it is recommended to select either method properly depend on the purpose.

View full abstract

A questionnaire survey and a subject experiment under two environmental conditions were conducted with 18 men and women between July 1 and September 30, 2022. Compared to the steady state, there were greater individual differences in temperature and comfort in the non-steady state. The subjects were divided into three groups ‹Low, Middle, and High › based on their dorsal skin temperature, and their desire to change temperature and their feelings of warmth, coolness, and comfort were examined. In the Middle group, there were large individual differences in the desire to change the temperature, with a tendency to report a positive or negative temperature ⁄coolness sensation, while reporting a comfortable sensation on the uncomfortable side.

View full abstract

It has been shown that, except in cases of abrupt changes in skin temperature, the thermal sensation vote for whole body can be expressed as a function of the average skin temperature, but dealing with individual differences remains an issue. It is necessary to develop a model for individual differences in the change in thermal sensation vote ‹characteristics in voting thermal sensation › in response to the change in skin temperature when it deviates from the thermally neutral state. One possible method is to correlate personality test scores with characteristics in voting thermal sensation. However, it requires data on a wide variety of subjects, and is difficult to do in a laboratory experiment alone. Therefore, in this study, we attempted a relatively simple method to collect data on a large number of data set of skin temperature and thermal sensation vote in daily life by limiting skin temperature measurement to the wrist, taking advantage of the high correlation between average skin temperature and forearm skin temperature. It is possible to obtain data under a variety of thermal environmental conditions that are sufficient for modeling.

View full abstract

A field survey on thermal environment and thermal comfort was conducted in office buildings in Aichi Prefecture during autumn and winter. Room temperature was maintained above 21°C by using heating when the outdoor temperature was below 10°C, but the uncomfortable side votes were observed in 22.5-26.5°C. A different tendency was shown in thermal and humidity sensations between male and female, and a range of changes in female 's votes was large in response to seasonal environmental changes such as cold and dry sensation. It is insufficient to adapt changes of thermal environment only by adjustment of the clothing insulation. So, it is important to improve overall thermal comfort that personal adaptive behaviors can be used freely.

View full abstract

Optimizing the parameters using a model is effective in presenting more appropriate control methods for air conditioning systems equipped with an evaporative humidifier. In this study, first, the operating conditions of the outdoor and indoor air conditioners, and the actual indoor temperature and humidity were determined based on data measured in an existing building. Then, a model was created to reproduce the humidification process in evaporative humidifier, using weekday data of the inlet/outlet air temperature, humidity, and airflow rate at evaporative humidifier. The calculated results based on the model reproduced the fluctuations and values at many times during the day, while deviations were observed in the calculated values of humidification during active humidification by additional water supply and during the night when the airflow rate is lower than the day, suggesting the need to correct the parameters according to the water supply and airflow.

View full abstract

This study aimed to discuss relationship between cognitive temperature ‹CT › and thermal adaptation, and also to evaluate usability of cognitive comfort temperature ‹CCT ›. The CT is an index on thermal comfort in a space where people stay at that time. we think the CT has effects on variable factors, such as ‹a › experimental elements, ‹b › seasonal or regional conditions, ‹c › physical conditions, and ‹d › thermal conditions. It is expected that the cognitive temperature becomes more useful scale than present popular thermal comfort indexes such as PMV and SET ∗. We measured thermal environments in a university classroom in the period from autumn to winter seasons, and conducted questionnaire survey to students in the university. Conclusions of this study are as follows: ‹1 › Values of CT correlate significantly with those of both outdoor air temperature and operative temperature in the classroom. ‹2 › Combining CT with CCT enables us to accordingly evaluate the present state of the thermal adaptation. ‹3 › The CT is available to evaluate the adaptation process to thermal environment, because the CT relates strongly to the following adaptations: psychological, physiological, and behavioral adaptations.

View full abstract

In this study, the diffusion behavior of odor substances was measured by semiconductor gas sensors using a 1 m3 chamber. An air supply port was provided at the lower part of the chamber, and the exhaust port was changed to two places. We investigated the diffusion behavior of odor substances due to the difference in the position of the exhaust port. D-Limonene, a citrus fragrance, and ammonia, which is designated as one of the 22 specified malodorous substances, and smell like night soil, were used as odor substances. In the chamber where the exhaust port was installed on the ceiling, ammonia could be actively exhausted, and D-limonene could spread in the space. It is optimal to actively exhaust odors and take countermeasures against odors by changing the atmosphere of the space due to the odor of the aromatics.

View full abstract

The purpose of this study was to understand the response characteristics of odorants by semiconductor gas sensors, and to explore sensors that can determine the occurrence of odorants in the living environment. For the experiment, 20 types of odorants were selected from among the odorants that are likely to occur in the living environment. The concentration of odorant was adjusted to correspond to odor intensity 2, 3, and 4, and evaluated by subjects and measured by sensors. Six people who passed the panel selection test were employed as subjects, and three types of semiconductor gas sensors were used as sensors. As a result of analyzing the relationship between the sensory evaluation value and the sensor value, it was clarified that one of the three types of semiconductor gas sensors had a correlation with 16 out of 20 kinds of odorants and had high sensitivity.

View full abstract

In this study, we investigated the effect of humidity in the sensory laboratory on odor evaluation by the odor bag method. Humidity conditions were two conditions of high humidity ‹62-75% › and low humidity ‹30-35% ›. As for odorants, two substances that constitutes were odors in the living environment were used. We set the substance concentration of each odor substance in 6 levels, injected gas into the odor bag, and presented it to the subjects. Seventeen subjects who passed the panel selection test were employed as subjects. As a result, when the concentration was low, the odor intensity in the low humidity condition tended to be higher than that in the high humidity condition.

View full abstract

Many companies and organizations were forced to accept the teleworking style in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. On the other hand, to operate the teleworking style as a flexible work option, it is necessary to understand the actual situation of workers. This paper reports on the current status, issues, and future demands of teleworking based on the results of an online survey conducted among office workers.

View full abstract

In stores, openings are sometimes left open even during the summer cooling season. In some cases, the air conditioner is set in such a way that the airflow directly moves to outdoor air through the openings, which increases ventilation load. For the evaluation of ventilation rate and ventilation load for energy-saving, ventilation calculation is often used. However, it does not consider the effect of airflow from air-conditioners. In this paper, a new model of buoyancy ventilation calculation was proposed to consider the influence of airflow from air-conditioners by imposing the wind pressure originating from airflow of air-conditioner to the pressure difference due to indoor-outdoor temperature difference. The distribution of the wind pressure was calculated by using a computational fluid dynamics analysis. For a case of a store with a single aperture in summer where airflow from air-conditioner is oriented to outdoor, the calculated results by the proposed model was validated by comparing with the simulated results by computational fluid dynamics.

View full abstract

In the existing measurement method, a thermal stimulus is given with a constant temperature change from the heat flux ≈ 0 W ⁄ m2, and the subject reports the time of perception. With this method, initial adjustment takes time and much time is spent. Therefore, in this study, we used a method in which the heat flux is reversed when the subject perceives a hot or cold stimulus, and the cold and warm thresholds are repeatedly measured. As a result, with the measurement method of this study, the variability within subjects was comparable to that of the conventional measurement method. In the measurement method of this study, the cold stimulus was applied immediately after the warm sensation was perceived, and it is possible that the cold sensation became easier to perceive. It is possible that the site was warmed by the thermal stimulus and the subcutaneous temperature increased, making it difficult to perceive the cold sensation. Differences in threshold values due to different measurement methods differed for each subject, but the average value for all subjects was less than 1°C.

View full abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate the feasibility and problems of using images collected from the Internet as data for Human Pose Estimation. Non-contact, real-time measurement of metabolic rate is expected from the result of discrimination of human posture and motion by Human Pose Estimation. Images collected from a photo sharing site where images of various postures can be searched and a website where images of various poses for drawing practice can be downloaded were estimated by Human Pose Estimation, and the estimation accuracies were examined.

View full abstract

With the introduction of air conditioning systems in schools, interest in indoor thermal environment has increased. The Academic Standard for Measurement Methods of Indoor Thermal Environment established by the Environmental Engineering Committee and the Thermal Environment Subcommittee of the Architectural Institute of Japan ‹AIJ › defines the target range of indoor thermal environment for occupants as the living area, and the measurement position is basically at the center of the space. However, in the case of a classroom, a single central observation point is considered insufficient because many students are present in the entire classroom. Therefore, in this study, we developed and tested a prototype system that uses IoT devices to observe the temperature and humidity in a classroom at multiple points and in multiple layers, in order to understand the thermal environment in detail. As a result, it was found that the system can be used as an alternative to conventional observation methods.

View full abstract

The recent heat environment is so severe as we want to measure that heat environment simply and accurately. A study was conducted on the use of a reflector to enable comparison of thermal images for four directions taken at the same time by a surface mirror on a single image. A simple method of measuring emissivity was described using the instruments to measure radiant temperature. The use of multi-directional thermal radiation reflecting mirrors and their usefulness were discussed. The reflectance of reflective sheets recently acquired was found to be lower than that of the past, and even relatively thick film-based ones showed peripheral warping and lacked uniformity. The sheet based on glass showed lower distortion. However, glass-cutting techniques are required to process them into small pieces. Therefore, the Committee planned to insert small pieces of film-based commercial products into the present proceedings. We would like to find the opinions of the academic society members on its use and contribute to further usage and check for simple accuracy.

View full abstract

The purpose of this study was to examine the visual and gustatory impressions of 30 females ‹20-39 years old› concerning pictures of hospital meals served on trays of 10 different tones of red. Regarding the gustatory impressions of trays, the subjects more strongly perceived pale and soft tones as being associated with a sweet taste, bright tones with an acid taste, dark grayish tones with a bitter taste, and deeper tones with a pungent taste. As a result, red hues were found to be associated with various gustatory impressions. Comparison of impressions of trays of different tones, for which saturation and brightness were kept constant, revealed that both brightness and saturation were related. The trays that met all three factors of "safety of food and mealtime atmosphere", "attractiveness of food" and "enjoyment of food " extracted by a factor analysis were pale, soft, and light red respectively.

View full abstract

PURPOSE: The aim of this study was to investigate the effect of 12 weeks springboard pilates on bone mineral density ‹BMD › and functional movement, muscle mass of female college students. METHODS: Twenty-four female college students ‹aged 21.6 ± 1.3yrs, T-score -0.01 ± 0.62 › were divided into two groups, as the pilates group ‹PG, n=12 › and the control group ‹CG, n=12 ›. The pilates springboard exercise was conducted 3 times a week for 60 minutes for 12 weeks. RESULTS: There was significant interaction in the functional movement items such as trunk stability push up ‹p <.05 › and hurdle step ‹p <.001 › , total FMS score ‹p <.05 › . CONCLUSION: These results suggest that although prolonged springboard pilates exercise of healthy college women might be improving functional movement, there is no increasing effect of BMD and muscle mass.

View full abstract

The study aimed to investigate the effectiveness of different cleaning methods for decontamination in tourist accommodations. The results of the study showed that cleaning methods used in the tourist accommodations could increase contamination in places where are floor and door handle after cleaning. However, it was found that cleaning methods using drugs decreased the viable cell count. The adenosine triphosphate ‹ATP› values of the area where hands touched decreased for cleaning methods using drugs as compared to that for the methods that do not use drugs. On the other hand, The ATP value of the floor surface of the cleaning method using the chemical was comparable as that of the cleaning method without the chemical. Therefore, it was found that a cleaning method that physically removes contamination is needed.

View full abstract

Bright light has been known to have an impact circadian system in human. For example, bright light at the night can suppress melatonin secretion, whereas it at the morning can prevent light-induced melatonin suppression at the night. The preventing effect of the morning light might be involved a diurnal variation of an as intrinsically photosensitive retinal ganglion cells ‹ ipRGCs›, which regulates the circadian system. In this study, we evaluated electroretinogram ‹ERG› to the red and blue flickering light after exposure to bright and dim light conditions during the day. Twelve healthy females from 21 to 23 years old were measured ERG during exposed 30 Hz flickering light at the morning and the evening. Although there was no significant difference on the amplitude of ERG to the red light between bright and dim light conditions at the day, the amplitude to the blue light on the bright light condition at the day was significantly decreased compared to that on the dim light condition. As ipRGCs are most sensitive to the blue light, present findings suggest bright light during the daytime can attenuate a sensitivity of ipRGCs.

View full abstract

We have conducted a questionnaire survey on preventive behaviors of heat disorders in daily life while taking prevention against the new coronavirus COVID-19 infection. The questionnaire survey was made from June to September, 2021. In the study, targeted subjects were over 18 years old who were living in Japan. The subjects were divided into 3 groups which were young ‹ranged from 18-39 year-old›, middle-aged ‹ranged from 40-64 year-old›, elderly ‹over 65 year-old›. It was resulted that scores in behaviors in daily life for preventing heat disorders were higher in the elderly group than those in both the young and the middle-aged groups. Higher scores were also seen in the elderly group in using electric devices and ingenuity such as employing Japanese blinds to stay cool in house than those in the other 2 groups. Furthermore, scores about wearing clothes and using textile products such as parasols were also higher in the elderly group than those in the other groups. Furthermore, prevent heat disorder scores through wearing clothes and using textile products such as parasols were higher in the elderly group compared to the other groups. The obtained scores about putting mask on/off situations indicated that the elderly people tended to keep putting their masks on even if physical distancing was kept long enough.

View full abstract

The questionnaire survey was conducted from June to September 2021 on preventive behaviors against heat disorders under COVID-19 infection prevention. A total of 208 respondents aged 18-29 were divided into three groups which were Hokkaido, Kanto and Kansai region. In the Kanto and Kansai regions, people were more aware of the need to prevent heat stroke in summer than in Hokkaido, and took measures to prevent heat stroke by using body cooling products and air conditioners. Air conditioners and dehumidifiers were also used in houses. In Hokkaido, people were less conscious of preventive behaviors against heat disorders, and air conditioners and dehumidifiers were not widely used in houses. People in Kansai had the highest thermal discomfort due to wearing masks, and used cloth masks slightly more than the other regions. The respondents in Hokkaido were the most positive about removing masks, while those in Kanto were the most negative. These results suggest that regional differences in climate and COVID-19 infection status make a difference in people's awareness of heat disorders and preventive behaviors.

View full abstract

This paper focuses on the evaluation of the equivalent temperature under the heating transient condition in a 3D-CAD vehicle cabin with clothed thermal manikin model by the mesh-free simulation. For this purpose, the experiments of vehicle cabin for the measurements of thermal environment including the equivalent temperature are conducted under the heating transient condition. The calculated results are compared with time series experimental data under the transient condition. Some differences between the actual phenomenon and the ideal situation can be confirmed under the transient behavior of the thermal manikin. Furthermore, effects of thermal capacity of the clothing on the equivalent temperature are also studied.

View full abstract

For the dampness index of in the house, the estimation method of indoor dampness was proposed to quantify as a score by means of a questionnaire survey with condensation of the window, mold generation, and mold odor. On the other hand, in order to examine dampness control measures, it is necessary to quantitatively evaluate the effects of building specifications and lifestyles on dampness, and numerical simulation studies are essential. Therefore, it is necessary to consider a method to calculate scores for the dampness equivalent to the subjective evaluation method by the questionnaire survey from the results of numerical simulation for indoor temperature and humidity, condensations. In this study, the indoor temperature and humidity, surface temperature of the window were measured in the house where the dampness was evaluated by the questionnaire survey. By comparing both surveys, the relationship between the subjective evaluation by the questionnaire survey and the physical quantities by the field measurement was clarified. The method of calculating the dampness score from physical quantities such as indoor temperature and humidity was also discussed.

View full abstract

This study is aimed to investigate the existing conditions of Mise-zukuri in southern Tokushima Prefecture, Japan. In 2021 and 2022, field surveys were conducted in Tomoura and Shishikui, Kaiyo Town, and Yuki, Minami Town. As the result of the field surveys, 46 Mise-zukuri houses were confirmed in the survey areas. Compared to the results of field surveys in 1986 and 1993, the percentage of Mise-zukuri houses still existing was found to be 25%.

View full abstract

The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of thermal environmental factors on physiological quantities in a normal sleep environment. For this purpose, a non-invasive, non-contact mat-type sensor was used to measure physiological quantities, and this was an observational study with no specific sleep conditions specified. In this paper, relatively long-term experiments were conducted in summer and winter. We report differences between summer and winter in the effects of bedroom temperature and relative humidity on mean heart rate during nighttime sleep. In summer, room temperature was positively correlated with heart rate, while relative humidity had no effect. In winter, room temperature showed a negative correlation with heart rate, while relative humidity showed a positive correlation. These results confirm that there is a difference in daily to daily variation of heart rate between winter and summer.

View full abstract

In order to understand the static pressure on the human body surface when exposed to a steady air flow, experiments were conducted using a thermal manikin ‹TM › with pressure taps. The experimental results for the wind pressure coefficient were compared with the results of CFD simulation. The results of the experiment and the CFD simulation showed a general agreement, especially under the high velocity condition. Under the low velocity condition, the wind pressure coefficient shifted to the negative pressure compared to the high velocity condition.

View full abstract

We evaluated the comfort-related performance of corona infection prevention masks, particle collection efficiency, airflow resistance, ventilation rate, thermal insulation and evaporative heat resistance of masks made of seven different types of materials and fit. The results of the particle collection efficiency of the masks showed that masks other than urethane type had a collection efficiency of 80% or higher under both resting and exercise equivalent conditions, which is sufficient for masks used in daily life to prevent infection. Experiments on ventilation rates showed that gaps tend to occur in non-medical masks, and both pleated and three-dimensional masks were affected by the fit of the cheek sides, with increased ventilation from the sides if the fit was not sufficient. Care should be taken to avoid gaps when wearing the mask. The measurement results of thermal insulation and evaporative heat resistance of the entire head showed that the masks with nanofibers tended to have lower resistance, especially in evaporative heat resistance. Masks with low evaporative heat resistance are considered desirable from the standpoint of comfort.

View full abstract

The CO2 concentration, air temperature, and relative humidity had been measured in classrooms of an elementary school with central cooling equipment in Miyazaki since June 2019. The purpose of this study was to investigate the air environment and situation of windows open and use of air conditioner under COVID-19. It was found that the CO2 concentration decreased under COVID-19 pandemic because of classroom windows had opened frequently. The CO2 concentration however tended to increase after winter 2021 in some classrooms.

View full abstract

In this study the authors investigated how semi-music therapy activities were conducted in a closed-access room or in an open-access space at 7private welfare facilities for the elderly in Kinki district, observed how they reacted to the music therapy about voice and rhythm and gave them three different marks. The authors also researched changes of the clients’ lives after the music therapy by conducting a questionnaire survey among the staff, analyzed the data and classified by sex, age and level of nursing care. The data show that clients who obtained better marks were women than men, in the first and second stages of nursing care and in their 90’s while the survey by the staff showed the clients in their 60’s and 70’s obtained better marks. In addition, the markin an open-access room was better than that in close-access space. The average mark was higher at the facilities with staff members who used to be music teachers at junior high schools than music therapy instructors.

View full abstract