A survey of evaluation methods used for holistic comfort assessment

The complexity of a subject such indoor comfort has encouraged the development of evaluation methods and scoring systems aimed to present multiple indicators in a reduced set of results, a score, or a single classification, which can be more comprehensible for all the stakeholders involved. This paper examines these existing indoor comfort assessment models, taking into consideration both objective and subjective methods. Their aggregating, weighting and rating systems are summarized and compared. Important issues have risen with such formalizations. A multilevel hierarchical structure seems to be most suitable for a structured evaluation but weights need to be used to show the different importance of the four commonly considered main criteria, namely thermal and visual comfort, acoustical and indoor air quality. There are numerous weight assignment techniques, some of the most common are the Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) and multivariate linear regression of occupant responses. However, weighting factors may vary between geographic region, cultural conditions, and individual circumstances. In addition, there is the need to find a model that offers a formal and logical way to include qualitative values in the analysis. Furthermore, the interactions of factors or parameters at different levels are not all known and are not considered in the models here reviewed, although regarded as important. A survey of techniques for sorting and presenting the performance values, such as scorecard models, radar diagrams or overall index, is also presented. The framework drawn in this review will set the basis for the formulation of a comprehensive formal evaluation model.