Development of atrium daylighting prediction : from an algorithm to a design tool

The atrium has become a popular architectural feature in buildings. An atrium provides high marketing value, an environmentally controlled space, natural lighting, and shelter from rain, snow, and wind.1.2 Daylighting represents one of the most aesthetic values of an atrium. However, today's atria are found in continuous need of artificial lighting, or are overlit with excessive solar gains.3.4 This is due to a lack of daylighting prediction tools, which would allow designers to determine at the preliminary design stage the optimal transmittance for daylighting.L?atrium est devenu un am\ue9nagement architectural recherch\ue9 dans les b\ue2timents. Un atrium rehausse la valeur du b\ue2timent sur le march\ue9, et procure un environnement \ue0 ambiance contr\uf4l\ue9e, un \ue9clairage naturel et un abri contre la pluie, la neige et le vent. L?\ue9clairage naturel repr\ue9sente l?un des atouts les plus esth\ue9tiques de l?atrium. Cependant, on constate que les atriums soit ont besoin continuellement de sources d?\ue9clairage artificiel, soit sont sur\ue9clair\ue9s en raison de gains d?\ue9nergie solaire excessifs. Ces probl\ue8mes sont attribuables \ue0 une p\ue9nurie d?outils de pr\ue9diction de l?\ue9clairage naturel, lesquels permettraient aux concepteurs de d\ue9terminer d\ue8s l?\ue9tape de la conception pr\ue9liminaire le facteur de transmission optimum pour l?\ue9clairage naturel.Also published in the Proc. of the Illuminating Engineering Society (IES) Annual Conference, Miami, Aug. 7-11, 1994, pp. 587-612.Peer reviewed: YesNRC publication: Ye