This research has investigated several correlation patterns between spatial behaviour and outdoor thermal comfort for urban spaces. An eight-hour field work of behavioural snapshots has been carried out at Market square, Cambridge, on a sunny day of May. The universal thermal climatic index (UTCI) was acquired from microclimate simulation in ladybug. The thermalcomfort zones were coupled with four featured behaviours: sitting, standing, strolling and walking. The results have shown a tendency toward occupying shady spaces in general. The canvas awnings have proved the correlation between comfort and behaviour. More interestingly, less comfortable areas appear to be acceptable for more than half of the observed groups with a 4°C increase in UTCI.@en

This chapter investigates a model to integrate performance measure and urban design in the context of a high-density urban environment. The objective of this research is to discuss how performance-based modeling can be used for addressing problems of energy self-sufficiency and thermal comfort in a vertical and complex urban environment, in which increasing density may cause climate and ecological consequences. An urban neighborhood in Misono of Tokyo’s metropolitan region is studied to test the relationship between vertical urban form and energy performance. Benchmarking the performance behind urban form and neighborhood typologies leads to criteria of high performance and low carbon emission. The chapter discusses the policy implications of performance-based urban design and development in the context of the Misono Smart City Project, a site for Tokyo’s 2020 Olympics, and proposes a transformative approach to generate better performance for an energy resilient and sustainable urban future.@en

Typologies of the building roof influence the form and the view of a city, and have an impact on its energy performance. “From Flat to Slope Roof” is a governmental project in Shanghai to renovate workers’ villages over the past two decades. The project aimed to change monotonous appearance of the urban roofscape by replacing the flat roof with the slop roof, and to bring benefits of passive cooling through the slide roof to reduce energy demand caused by excessive air-conditioning. However, how different roofing typologies affect the building energy performance requires further investigation. Previous test results have shown that near 6% reduction of total annual building energy consumption could be achieved with the substitution of the polymer material on flat roofs, compared with the reduction by 3% on walls, and the reduction by 2% on floors. In this paper, the numerical modeling with EnergyPlus was applied to test the variation of roofing types and how they would affect the total energy consumption from level of a building to the entire whole community. The results show a connection between the thermal insulation of roof morphology and building energy performance, which conclude an energy reduction strategy through urban design in a neighborhood scale.@en