Journal of the Korean Society of Safety (한국안전학회지)

The Korean Society of Safety (한국안전학회)
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A Case Study on the Driver's Glare Hazard Assessment by Light Reflection of Curtain Wall Type Buildings

커튼월 고층 건물 빛 반사에 의한 운전자 눈부심 가능성

  • Song, Hyung-Jun (Department of Safety Engineering, Seoul National University of Science and Technology) ;
  • Seo, Young Kyo (Department of Safety Engineering, Seoul National University of Science and Technology)
  • 송형준 (서울과학기술대학교 안전공학과) ;
  • 서영교 (서울과학기술대학교 안전재난소방방재프로그램)
  • Received : 2021.02.04
  • Accepted : 2021.04.09
  • Published : 2021.04.30
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Abstract

Buildings with glass curtain walls have become popular due to their appealing aesthetics and ability to let in natural light. However, light reflection from the glass surface is unavoidable in these buildings. In particular, the reflection of light from the glass envelope can create afterimage glare, a hazard to nearby drivers and pedestrians. Despite this potential danger, glare from buildings with curtain walls has not been well-studied. Hence, we analyzed the effect of light reflection on glare around a glass-enclosed skyscraper, depending on its surface reflectance. We investigated the potential hazard of glare to drivers using a commercially available software program. The results indicate that the direction of light reflection is distinctive when the incident angle of solar light increases. Moreover, this light reflection is high enough to induce an afterimage to drivers and pedestrians near the building. We found that keeping the reflectance of the building surface under 3% is required to minimize the afterimage hazard to drivers. Consequently, we recommend managing glass reflectance and installing additional traffic safety systems to reduce traffic accidents near curtain wall buildings.

Keywords

Acknowledgement

This study was supported by the Research Program funded by the Seoul National University of Science and Technology.

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