Abstract:

Following the pandemic, many studies have focused on the human comfort of the interior space, especially in universities and home offices, the work-focus spaces. Human comfort may be achieved through the five senses: hearing, smell, vision, touch, and taste; Meanwhile, as a designer dealing with the interior, the senses that count are only four. Interior designers consider acoustics, indoor air quality, interior materiality, and lighting of any given space. These interior characteristics compose a given interior space’s overall environment and contribute to its occupants’ success. These characteristics are the primary composite of any micro-environment which participates in the success of the performance of the space.

Lighting, the highlight of this study, is a significant aspect associating human beings and related comfort in work-focus learning. Many studies have discussed the circadian rhythm and the importance of simulating it when using an indoor space for prolonged hours, as in the case of offices. However, the visual comfort in the work-focused interior spaces requires more thorough investigations to reach optimal solutions to support a better environment for its occupants. The users, who consist of students, instructors, and supportive admin, are all forced to complete their duties remotely.

This paper will explore and specify visual comfort criteria for instructors and students at different times of the day (simulating natural lighting) while they complete paper and computer-based tasks. Visual comfort includes light intensity and color temperature of light. An additional criterion of light is a condition where natural and artificial light is present in one interior space. The different variables are a natural light source, artificial light source, light intensity, and light color appropriate for the two types of tasks, paper-based and computer-based.

This paper’s methodology follows a qualitative approach through a theoretical, analytical process to reach the optimum lighting scenes for paperwork and computer work within the workplace, considering all the variables mentioned. Moreover, the type of task differs based on the need for light intensity and light color temperature.

This study will give educators and interior designers the foundational knowledge they need to implement to create a comfortable workplace-learning environment. After selecting the design contest for a particular project’s condition and adding openings and the building allocation towards the four directions’ criterion, the design development proceeds according to these basics. It is essential to keep updating guidelines, enhance them, and simplify these principles as life becomes more complex to produce more effective interior designs that satisfy the demands of its users. These rules are crucial for developing the teaching component of an interior design curriculum and developing the lighting course to give more solutions for rising conditions.

Keywords:

Lighting Design, Interior Design, Visual Comfort, Work-focus learning.