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The use of vegetation for the energy efficiency of buildings is an increasingly widespread practice; therefore, the possibility of representing these systems correctly with the use of simulation software is essential. VGS performances have been widely studied, but currently, the lack of a unique simulation method to assess the efficiency of different types of VGS and the absence of studies evaluating the performances of all the systems available, proposing simulation models for each of them, leads to an incomplete energy representation. The aim of this study is to achieve a consistent and complete simulation method, comparing the different systems’ performances. The research is made up of five main steps. Firstly, a classification to group these systems into specific categories was proposed; secondly an in-depth analysis of existing literature was worked out to establish the methods used for different types of VGS. The study of plant physiology allowed the definition of an energy balance, which is valid for all vegetated surfaces; then, each category was associated to a mathematical formula and finally integrated into the EnergyPlus software. The results achieved for each model were compared evaluating two important parameters for the termohygrometric conditions control: outside walls face temperatures and operative temperatures.
Alberto Arenghi; Camilla Perra; Marco Caffi. Simulating and Comparing Different Vertical Greenery Systems Grouped into Categories Using EnergyPlus. Applied Sciences 2021, 11, 4802 .
AMA StyleAlberto Arenghi, Camilla Perra, Marco Caffi. Simulating and Comparing Different Vertical Greenery Systems Grouped into Categories Using EnergyPlus. Applied Sciences. 2021; 11 (11):4802.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlberto Arenghi; Camilla Perra; Marco Caffi. 2021. "Simulating and Comparing Different Vertical Greenery Systems Grouped into Categories Using EnergyPlus." Applied Sciences 11, no. 11: 4802.
There is a fil rouge connecting Universal Design and sustainability which within the Brundtland Report can be recognized in the pillar of social sustainability. The demographic and epidemiological aspects that are affecting western countries, the definitions of health and healthy cities given by the World Health Organization and the international documents dealing with sustainable development oblige building designers and urban planners to reconsider their social role and become “health operators”. The strict link between human beings and the built environment underlined both by Universal Design and International Classification of Functioning is the reasons why our cities and settlements need high quality urban spaces in order to enhance everyday life social dimension. Three urban projects in Manhattan, Den Haag and Copenhagen will be presented to show how sustainable urban planning can promote social interaction and inclusion, cohesion of communities, human health and well-being, cultural expression and dialogue among a wide diversity of people and cultures.
Alberto Arenghi. Universal Design in Sustainable Urban Planning. CoDesign for Public-Interest Services 2020, 119 -138.
AMA StyleAlberto Arenghi. Universal Design in Sustainable Urban Planning. CoDesign for Public-Interest Services. 2020; ():119-138.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlberto Arenghi. 2020. "Universal Design in Sustainable Urban Planning." CoDesign for Public-Interest Services , no. : 119-138.
This paper investigates the problem of urban accessibility and proposes a system for the generation of accessible paths in an urban university campus. Universal Design has been adopted to explore the different perspectives of the involved stakeholders; an interdisciplinary team has iteractively developed a web application targeted at public administrators and two versions of a mobile app (one for Android and one for iOS) to be used by citizens. The mobile app is able to propose and guide users on paths that best fit their characteristics and preferences; for example, if a user declares some motor and/or visual impairement, the app proposes paths that avoid the architectural barriers related to such impairments. Not only pedestrian paths are considered in the system, but also routes for private cars or public transportation, and thus information about reserved parking lots and limited traffic zones are also managed. The app has been currently tailored to the campus of the University of Brescia, which is distributed in different districts of Brescia, a town in northern Italy; however, it can be easily scaled to other organizations or whole towns, since Google Maps and its APIs have been used as mapping service. Twenty five participants, including blind people and persons with motor disabilities, have been involved in the evaluation of the usability and accessibility of the two versions of the mobile app.
Daniela Fogli; Alberto Arenghi; Fulvio Gentilin. A universal design approach to wayfinding and navigation. Multimedia Tools and Applications 2019, 79, 33577 -33601.
AMA StyleDaniela Fogli, Alberto Arenghi, Fulvio Gentilin. A universal design approach to wayfinding and navigation. Multimedia Tools and Applications. 2019; 79 (45-46):33577-33601.
Chicago/Turabian StyleDaniela Fogli; Alberto Arenghi; Fulvio Gentilin. 2019. "A universal design approach to wayfinding and navigation." Multimedia Tools and Applications 79, no. 45-46: 33577-33601.
Straw is an organic material with hygroscopical properties. The high capacity it has of storing moisture from the surroundings can furthermore influence the performance and lead to the possible degradation of the material thereof. The aim of this study was to assess the conductance C-value of a complex material such as straw. A climatic chamber was used to study a sample, which reproduces a traditional plastered straw bale wall. Tests were conducted under different boundary conditions, setting constant values for temperatures and relative humidity. The revision of the assessment's results allowed the calculation of conductance and conductivity values under different conditions. A numerical model was then designed starting from the laboratory data, which was used to characterize material properties. The match between software simulations and laboratory analyses will be a starting point for further tests. Determining the straw conductance C-value is a difficult task to achieve, due to the complexity and the unique properties of the material. In spite of all this, laboratory tests have shown encouraging results, which reflect the great potential of straw as a building material.
Alessandra Mesa; Alberto Arenghi. Hygrothermal behaviour of straw bale walls: experimental tests and numerical analyses. Sustainable Buildings 2019, 4, 3 .
AMA StyleAlessandra Mesa, Alberto Arenghi. Hygrothermal behaviour of straw bale walls: experimental tests and numerical analyses. Sustainable Buildings. 2019; 4 ():3.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlessandra Mesa; Alberto Arenghi. 2019. "Hygrothermal behaviour of straw bale walls: experimental tests and numerical analyses." Sustainable Buildings 4, no. : 3.
The experimental assessment of building components represents a complex task, which involves the measurement and control of a wide number of physical phenomena. The use of the dynamic approach in outdoor real scale facilities provides a good representation of real operating systems, thanks to the inclusion of rather complex parameters, such as the occupants’ behaviour. However, the adoption of outdoor test solutions is usually characterized by a high uncertainty of the results, due to the complexity of the physical model and to the large variability of the input parameters. On the other hand, the use of indoor tests under controlled conditions has proved to be able to provide reliable results, thanks to the strict control of boundary conditions and of input parameters. The main drawback of this approach is represented by the scarce significance of the results, due to the rather simple modelling of the real behaviour of building physics. The aim of this paper is thus to present a test facility which represents a compromise between the dynamic control approach in real scale systems and the use of indoor tests under controlled conditions: the Building Envelopes ouTdoor Thermal Test (BEsT3) facility of the University of Brescia. Thanks to application of the dynamic behaviour of real environmental conditions to outdoor test cells with controlled indoor thermal parameters, the proposed system has proved to be able to provide reliable results, while also satisfactorily reproducing the conditions of real operating systems. Experimental studies have been conducted to assess three different window solutions under real dynamic conditions. Measured data have been used to create a correspondent numerical model designed in Energy Plus. The model has been validated with different dynamic simulations, in which the complexity of the parameters has been increased step by step. The numerical results provided by the model have shown a good correspondence with the real behaviour of the outdoor test cells.
Alessandra Mesa; Alberto Arenghi; Marco Pasetti. A Testing Facility for the Thermal Characterization of Building Envelopes in Outdoor Operating Conditions. Robotics in Education 2019, 91 -104.
AMA StyleAlessandra Mesa, Alberto Arenghi, Marco Pasetti. A Testing Facility for the Thermal Characterization of Building Envelopes in Outdoor Operating Conditions. Robotics in Education. 2019; ():91-104.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlessandra Mesa; Alberto Arenghi; Marco Pasetti. 2019. "A Testing Facility for the Thermal Characterization of Building Envelopes in Outdoor Operating Conditions." Robotics in Education , no. : 91-104.
This paper describes a web-based system composed of an authoring tool and a cross-platform mobile application, based on augmented reality and Bluetooth Low Energy technology, aimed at improving the visitor experience in a museum through tailored, accessible and engaging content and interaction. The system proposes itself as a low-cost solution for museum organizations, both in terms of required technical devices (visitors’ smartphone is exploited for experiencing the augmented reality solution) and professional skills needed for long-term content maintenance. As to the latter, the authoring tool allows museum curators to create and manage all necessary contents that make up an app instance, including the structure of the museum, artwork descriptions and related materials (photos, videos and speeches) suitable for the different user profiles. A preliminary experimentation of the system demonstrates the feasibility of the proposal.
Daniela Fogli; Davide Sansoni; Emanuele Trivella; Alberto Arenghi; Ivana Passamani. Advanced Interaction Technologies for Accessible and Engaging Cultural Heritage. Lecture Notes of the Institute for Computer Sciences, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering 2018, 364 -373.
AMA StyleDaniela Fogli, Davide Sansoni, Emanuele Trivella, Alberto Arenghi, Ivana Passamani. Advanced Interaction Technologies for Accessible and Engaging Cultural Heritage. Lecture Notes of the Institute for Computer Sciences, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering. 2018; ():364-373.
Chicago/Turabian StyleDaniela Fogli; Davide Sansoni; Emanuele Trivella; Alberto Arenghi; Ivana Passamani. 2018. "Advanced Interaction Technologies for Accessible and Engaging Cultural Heritage." Lecture Notes of the Institute for Computer Sciences, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering , no. : 364-373.
Alberto Arenghi; Simone Belometti; Francesca Brignoli; Daniela Fogli; Fulvio Gentilin; Nicola Plebani. UniBS4All. Proceedings of the 4th EAI International Conference on Smart Objects and Technologies for Social Good - Goodtechs '18 2018, 124 -129.
AMA StyleAlberto Arenghi, Simone Belometti, Francesca Brignoli, Daniela Fogli, Fulvio Gentilin, Nicola Plebani. UniBS4All. Proceedings of the 4th EAI International Conference on Smart Objects and Technologies for Social Good - Goodtechs '18. 2018; ():124-129.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlberto Arenghi; Simone Belometti; Francesca Brignoli; Daniela Fogli; Fulvio Gentilin; Nicola Plebani. 2018. "UniBS4All." Proceedings of the 4th EAI International Conference on Smart Objects and Technologies for Social Good - Goodtechs '18 , no. : 124-129.
Giulia M L Bencini; Ilaria Garofolo; Alberto Arenghi. Implementing Universal Design and the ICF in Higher Education: Towards a Model That Achieves Quality Higher Education for All. Studies in health technology and informatics 2018, 256, 464 -472.
AMA StyleGiulia M L Bencini, Ilaria Garofolo, Alberto Arenghi. Implementing Universal Design and the ICF in Higher Education: Towards a Model That Achieves Quality Higher Education for All. Studies in health technology and informatics. 2018; 256 ():464-472.
Chicago/Turabian StyleGiulia M L Bencini; Ilaria Garofolo; Alberto Arenghi. 2018. "Implementing Universal Design and the ICF in Higher Education: Towards a Model That Achieves Quality Higher Education for All." Studies in health technology and informatics 256, no. : 464-472.
Improving the usability conditions for all is one of the basic concepts underlying the enhancement of cultural heritage. Usability must be declined both in terms of physical accessibility and sensory-perceptive of the places of cultural interest, both as accessibility of contents of which they are witnesses. In this field, ICT technology can become very useful especially in terms of communication and thus effective before and during the visiting of a site. ICT technology is analyzed, also by examples, by identifying the limits, mainly due to the fact that in most cases the means are preferred rather than the goal, and the potential that is very promising if the same are designed to support undifferentiated users with the aim of transmitting cultural and not spectacular messages.
Alberto Arenghi; Maria Agostiano. Cultural Heritage and Disability: Can ICT Be the ‘Missing Piece’ to Face Cultural Heritage Accessibility Problems? Lecture Notes of the Institute for Computer Sciences, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering 2017, 195, 70 -77.
AMA StyleAlberto Arenghi, Maria Agostiano. Cultural Heritage and Disability: Can ICT Be the ‘Missing Piece’ to Face Cultural Heritage Accessibility Problems? Lecture Notes of the Institute for Computer Sciences, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering. 2017; 195 ():70-77.
Chicago/Turabian StyleAlberto Arenghi; Maria Agostiano. 2017. "Cultural Heritage and Disability: Can ICT Be the ‘Missing Piece’ to Face Cultural Heritage Accessibility Problems?" Lecture Notes of the Institute for Computer Sciences, Social Informatics and Telecommunications Engineering 195, no. : 70-77.