The purpose of this study is to evaluate Human Centric Lighting in a classroom. Previous studies tend to focus primarily on the biological, non-visual, effects of the HCL. In this study, a more holistic approach to HCL is applied, including both the non-visual aspects as well as the visual and emotional aspects.   In order to fulfil the aim of the study, the three aspects - visual, emotional and biological - will be investigated through five different methodologies; observation and analysis of lighting distribution and behavioural analysis of lighting system as a visual aspect, surveys about the mood and emotions as an emotional aspect and visual performance and visual acuity as a biological aspect.   The evaluation took place in the elementary school Sturebyskolan in Stockholm, where a classroom with a HCL-system is to be found. The system includes three lighting settings; 800 lx, 6000 K (energy light/focus light), 500 lx, 4000 K (standard/normal light) and 300 lx, 3000 K (calm/relaxed light).   Results show positive effect on performance and better visual acuity in focus lighting than in relaxed lighting. Focus lighting was perceived as a cold and hard lighting for tests, while the relaxed lighting was perceived as a warm and calm lighting for a cosy feeling. The lighting characteristics are suited for a typical classroom. The ignorance of the lighting system can be a problem for the experience and usage of the lighting in the classroom.   In summary, to denominate a lighting system as HCL and only consider the altered colour temperature and light intensity is not comprehensive enough. A HCL-system needs to consider the visual, emotional and biological aspects, and the biological aspect is explicitly considered in this lighting-system, whilst the emotional and visual aspects are more ambiguously considered.   As a proposal to consider all three aspects, several layers of light could be added in order to strengthen the visual aspect and create a vivid and interesting atmosphere. Moreover, conscious arrangement of luminaires and luminaires with flexible characteristics could simplify and broaden the opportunities in the classroom and facilitate the use of light layers.

The growth in cities has sparked an increase in the cost of living, making it harder for local residents and families to remain in the city. In Washington DC, the gentrification of neighborhoods and lack of affordable housing is causing low-income residents to be displaced and forcing them to look elsewhere for affordable options. The DC neighborhood, Navy Yard, saw one of the most intense displacements of low-income residents. My thesis asks the question: can architecture and its design sustain the primary function of housing but also create a positive long-lasting effect on the occupants' wellbeing? In navigating that question, my thesis explores how human-centered design provides sustainable housing options for low-income residents while also supporting and strengthening the already existing communities within the city. The building, designed for single-parents with children, serves as a space of refuge and community despite the loneliness and isolation that can come with living in a city. All the individual spaces create a building that understands the needs of its occupants, and re-defines how affordable housing should be designed.The private amenities, used exclusively by its occupants, positively adds to their everyday comfort and serves as a place of gathering for those living in the building. The public spaces included in the building address the needs of the neighborhood and provide support to the surrounding residents as well. This project was designed to create spaces that improve the occupants mental and physical health, and design an infrastructure that will affordably sustain itself for years to come. Incorporating biophilic and human-centric design allows the focus to shift from simply creating housing to also investing in the quality of life of our residents. / Master of Architecture / The growth in cities and rise in the cost of living, has made it harder for local residents and families to continue living in the city. In Washington DC, the development of neighborhoods and lack of affordable housing is forcing low-income residents to move and look elsewhere for affordable options. My thesis asks the question: can affordable housing be more than just a place of refuge, but can it also improve the residents wellbeing and strengthen the surrounding community. The design of this building focuses on the importance and the effect that a healthy building and a strong community can have on a single-parent and their child. Each space within the building was designed with the families in mind and the value it brings to their wellbeing. The private spaces gives the residents a support system and a space to gather. The public spaces included in the building provide support to the neighborhood and allows for the entire community to interact. Using my research and by incorporating design elements that are scientifically-proven to have positive benefits to the residents mental and physical health, a building is created that adds value to the residents everyday life. The goal is to design spaces that improve the occupants mental and physical health, and design a building that creates a community within and with the surrounding neighborhood. With the resident's health and wellness in the center of the design, my building shifts the focus from simply creating housing to also investing in the quality of life of our residents.

Ingeniero Civil en Computación / Los avances en computación móvil y redes inalámbricas están posibilitando grandes oportunidades de desarrollar sistemas colaborativos. La concepción y diseño de estos sistemas representa un desafío para los diseñadores de software debido a la heterogeneidad y dinamismo de las interacciones que deben ser soportadas. El poder modelar y evaluar el sistema en fase de diseño permite detectar errores y sugerir mejoras que ayuden al desarrollo dirigido a un producto final que realmente soporte el trabajo colaborativo. En este contexto, investigadores del Departamento de Ciencias de la Computación de la Universidad de Chile propusieron un lenguaje visual de modelamiento de sistemas colaborativos. El lenguaje asume que el sistema puede ser estructurado como una Human-centric Wireless Sensor Network. Éste es un tipo de red que permite modelar y entender los flujos de información de un sistema colaborativo que tiene como protagonistas a las personas. El lenguaje de modelamiento permite representar un sistema colaborativo como un grafo, en el que se encuentran caracterizados sus participantes y la forma en que estos interactúan. En este trabajo de memoria se diseñó e implementó una herramienta gráfica destinada a diseñadores de software que permite el modelamiento de sistemas colaborativos usando el lenguaje propuesto por los investigadores. La herramienta fue desarrollada como una aplicación web en la que interactivamente se pueden definir los participantes del sistema colaborativo y sus interacciones. La representación de los escenarios en forma de grafo permite aplicar metodologías de análisis en forma automática. En esta memoria se adaptaron e implementaron dos análisis que fueron desarrollados para un lenguaje similar. El primero es un análisis que permite evaluar la coherencia en las interacciones entre los participantes. Para este análisis se desarrolló un algoritmo eficiente que permitió la evaluación automática a medida que el diseñador va realizando cambios en el modelo. El segundo análisis permite generar requerimientos generales de software que deben estar presentes en la aplicación colaborativa para soportar apropiadamente las interacciones modeladas. La lista de requerimientos se genera para cada participante de la red, basado en como estos interactúan con los demás. La lista generada puede ser refinada por el diseñador del sistema, de acuerdo con las necesidades particulares de cada aplicación. Se espera que la herramienta contribuya a fomentar el uso del lenguaje y de esta forma facilitar el desarrollo de sistemas colaborativos que aprovechen los nuevos e interesantes escenarios de colaboración que está permitiendo el auge de los dispositivos móviles.

Modern changes in lifestyle have inadvertently disconnected urban inhabitants from experiences known to be good for our well-being, including spending time in nature and having a sense of community and connectedness to those around us. We spend 90% of our time indoors in limited and artificial environments, mostly in our homes or places of work. The internet and a global pandemic have advanced this disconnection to our surroundings through the rise of remote work and a slew of apps ready to deliver whatever you desire to your front door. This thesis seeks to remedy these unintended consequences of modernity by reconnecting District of Columbia residents back to nature and to their surrounding communities through the design of a public library that incorporates nature to promote the holistic health of the community and the individual. The incorporation of nature into the built environment is proven to have physiological and psychological benefits and improve overall well-being. Neighborhood libraries have always been important institutions in our social infrastructure; functioning as places of self improvement, providing free resources, and acting as central public spaces in the communities they serve. In urban environments where public and private outdoor spaces are limited, a beneficial experience of nature can be one of the resources that public libraries provide to their communities. Through the use of natural materials, vegetation, passive ventilation, and natural light, this project utilizes biophilic design to promote wellbeing, enhanced cognition, and create a welcoming environment that draws District residents out of their homes and together to create a sense of community. The proposed project pairs D.C. Branch Library programming with outdoor spaces, including a courtyard and a public plaza, creating a permeable indoor/outdoor social center within the dense Washington D.C. neighborhood of Adams Morgan. The neighborhood is vegetated by a field of ginkgo trees taking over 18th Street and an lush internal courtyard between the library's volumes. Community oriented spaces are located on the ground level of the site while the traditional library volume becomes an urban oasis floating over the plaza in a sea of trees. / Master of Architecture / Living in urban areas and the continuing shift of professional and social interactions to online have disconnected people from experiences known to be good for our well-being, including spending time in nature and having a sense of community and connectedness to those around us. This thesis seeks to reconnect Washington D.C. residents back to nature and their surrounding communities through the design of a public library that incorporates elements of nature, which have physical and mental health benefits and improve overall well-being. Libraries have always been an important anchor in their neighborhoods, providing free resources and acting as central public spaces in the communities they serve. In dense urban environments where public and private outdoor spaces are limited, access to nature can be one of the resources that public libraries provide to their communities. This project incorporates elements of nature, like natural materials, plants, passive airflow, and natural light, to promote wellbeing, enhanced cognition, and create a welcoming environment that draws D.C. residents out of their homes and together to create a sense of community. The proposed project is a D.C. branch library with added outdoor spaces, including a courtyard and a public plaza, creating a permeable indoor/outdoor social center within the dense Washington D.C. neighborhood of Adams Morgan. The new plaza and courtyard are each populated by trees to green the neighborhood. Louder, gathering areas of the building are located on the ground level and the quieter traditional library spaces are located on the overhanging upper levels which become an urban oasis floating over the plaza in a sea of trees.

The information contained in this thesis explores ways to develop a habitat for human settlement on Mars. Currently, most designs for living on Mars focus primarily on survival and emphasize the technological aspects necessary for sustaining life. However, there is a lack of holistic consideration for what life on Mars would entail beyond mere survival. These existing designs are understandably geared towards astronauts who will spend only a few months on Mars. In contrast, this project is dedicated to envisioning the future of Mars settlement, aiming to support astronauts who intend to permanently live and establish communities on Mars, ultimately transforming them into Martians. The project adopts a human-centric approach by integrating biophilic design principles to enhance the well-being of future Martian inhabitants. It seeks to address potential psychological challenges that settlers on Mars may encounter, offering innovative solutions rooted in biophilia. This approach aims to create environments that foster connection with nature, promote mental health, and support overall quality of life for individuals living on Mars. Humans have evolved over millions of years to thrive on Earth, and many of our primal instincts are deeply rooted in our hunter-gatherer ancestry. Transitioning humans to live on another planet would uproot them from their natural environment, potentially depriving them of these primal instincts and causing psychological challenges. (Szocik, n.d.) This project aims to address these issues through architectural solutions. By designing habitats that consider and accommodate our innate instincts and connections to nature, we can mitigate the psychological impacts of living on a different planet. The goal is to create environments on Mars that resonate with our evolutionary heritage, fostering psychological well-being and adaptation in extra-terrestrial settlements. / Master of Architecture / This thesis looks at how to create a habitat for humans to live on Mars. Right now, most designs focus mainly on survival and the technology needed to sustain life. Most don't really consider what everyday life would be like beyond just staying alive. Most current designs are for astronauts who will only be on Mars for a few months. This project, however, imagines a future where people live on Mars permanently and form communities, essentially becoming Martians. The project uses a design method that focuses on human needs at a subconscious and psychological level. It incorporates biophilic design principles, which emphasize our connection to nature, to improve the well-being of future Martian inhabitants. This approach aims to address psychological challenges that settlers on Mars might face, offering innovative solutions based on biophilia. The goal is to create environments that foster a connection with nature, promote mental health, and support a good quality of life. Humans have evolved over millions of years to live on Earth, and many of our basic instincts are tied to our hunter-gatherer ancestors. Moving to another planet could take us away from our natural environment and cause psychological challenges. This project aims to tackle these issues through thoughtful architectural design. By creating habitats that consider our natural instincts and connections to nature, we can reduce the psychological impacts of living on Mars. The goal is to design environments that align with our evolutionary background, helping people adapt and thrive in extra-terrestrial settlements.

xi, 51 p. : ill. (some col.) / Conducting field studies for human centric research often demands a significant amount of time and effort. Virtual Environments (VE) can be a potential alternative to reduce such requirements and help scale the field studies. However, we may experience a performance difference between (1) a virtual trial, and (2) a field trial of the same study. To learn under what circumstances a VE can successfully replace a field study and when it fails, this thesis describes a route-following experiment that compares the participants' performance between a simple VE and a field setup. The experiment results unveil that there is a significant difference in performance between a physical and a virtual setup for more challenging navigational tasks, whereas no significant difference is observed for simpler tasks. This finding encourages us to replace a less challenging field study with a simple VE, and explore the possibilities for a complex one. / Committee in charge: Dr. Stephen Fickas, Chairperson; Dr. Christopher Wilson, Member

På jordklotets nordliga breddgrader påverkas människor av mörka säsonger med liten tillgång till dagsljus, med fysiska påföljder så som sömnproblem och energibrist. Problemet kan minskas med ljuskällor som kan imitera soldygnet men dessa produkter lämnar föga åt fantasin. Denna studie har undersökt möjligheten att genom produktdesign imitera nordbors perception av dagsljus inomhus för att erbjuda användaren en emotionell upplevelse. Genom användarcentrerad design och kvalitativa metoder sammanställdes empiriska data för att skapa en samlad bild av nordbors perception av dagsljus inomhus. Studiens teoretiska ramverk berörde även ljusdesign och framför allt human-centric lighting samt ludisk design. Studien visar att det är av stor vikt att erbjuda individanpassning i denna typ av produkt för att förse användaren med en emotionell upplevelse. Slutkonceptet är en takarmatur för hemmet som erbjuder användaren lekfull design och interaktion, möjlighet att återskapa dygnsrytm samt en imitation av den egna perceptionen av dagsljus. / On the northern latitudes of the globe, people are affected by dark seasons with little access to daylight, with physical effects such as problems sleeping and loss of energy. The problems can be reduced with light sources that can imitate the sun, but these products leave little to the imagination.This study has investigated the possibility of imitating northerners’ perception of daylight indoors through product design to offer the user an emotional experience. Through user-centered design and qualitative methods, empirical data were compiled to create a unified image of northerners’ perception of daylight indoors. The study's theoretical framework also included lighting design, above all, human-centric lighting and ludic design.The study shows that it is of great importance to offer individual customization in this kind of product in order to provide the user with an emotional experience. The final concept is a light fixture for the home that offers the user playful design and interaction, the opportunity to recreate the circadian rhythm and an imitation of one's own perception of daylight.

Background: The use of technologies and digitization has become unavoidable in recent years to improve organizational efficiency and competitiveness. Even though companies are still adopting Industry 4.0 technologies, the next industrial revolution is approaching. Researchers argue for the importance of human-centricity in industries to provide benefits for all stakeholders involved. However, in literature, it is unexplored how human-centricity can be achieved with Industry 4.0 technologies, especially in a supply chain context.  Purpose: The purpose of this study is to explore how Industry 4.0 technologies can support a human-centric supply chain. Method: An exploratory, qualitative study was conducted to gain an in-depth understanding of the research phenomenon. A holistic multiple case study provided empirical findings through semi-structured interviews. An inductive thematic analysis has been performed, which enabled the findings to emerge from the data. Conclusion: The human-centric focus is being acknowledged and the case companies are actively focusing on technological implementations to improve it. Thecreation of a safe, creative, and attractive work environment, where workers are actively involved in implementation processes, and heavy labor and repetitive tasks are replaced, will result in a positive cycle towards human-centricity and technological innovations. Companies will first have to overcome implementation barriers and focus on technological innovations that support human-centricity within the boundaries of the firms. This can then be followed by enhanced supply chain collaborations.

It is critical to provide an efficient and accurate information system in the post-disaster phase for individuals' in order to access and obtain the necessary resources in a timely manner; but current map based post-disaster management systems provide all emergency resource lists without filtering them which usually leads to high levels of energy consumed in calculation. Also an effective post-disaster management system (PDMS) will result in distribution of all emergency resources such as, hospital, storage and transportation much more reasonably and be more beneficial to the individuals in the post disaster period. In this Dissertation, firstly, semi-supervised learning (SSL) based graph systems was constructed for PDMS. A Graph-based PDMS' resource map was converted to a directed graph that presented by adjacent matrix and then the decision information will be conducted from the PDMS by two ways, one is clustering operation, and another is graph-based semi-supervised optimization process. In this study, PDMS was applied for emergency resource distribution in post-disaster (responses phase), a path optimization algorithm based ant colony optimization (ACO) was used for minimizing the cost in post-disaster, simulation results show the effectiveness of the proposed methodology. This analysis was done by comparing it with clustering based algorithms under improvement ACO of tour improvement algorithm (TIA) and Min-Max Ant System (MMAS) and the results also show that the SSL based graph will be more effective for calculating the optimization path in PDMS. This research improved the map by combining the disaster map with the initial GIS based map which located the target area considering the influence of disaster. First, all initial map and disaster map will be under Gaussian transformation while we acquired the histogram of all map pictures. And then all pictures will be under discrete wavelet transform (DWT), a Gaussian fusion algorithm was applied in the DWT pictures. Second, inverse DWT (iDWT) was applied to generate a new map for a post-disaster management system. Finally, simulation works were proposed and the results showed the effectiveness of the proposed method by comparing it to other fusion algorithms, such as mean-mean fusion and max-UD fusion through the evaluation indices including entropy, spatial frequency (SF) and image quality index (IQI). Fuzzy set model were proposed to improve the presentation capacity of nodes in this GIS based PDMS.

How do we humans feel the light? Is there a correspondance between our inner feelings and emotions and the outer space that surrounds us? Are we aware/conscious of it? Which personal meanings-values and emotions arise in us and how we consequently link them to a certain light-environment Atmosphere (indoor and outdoor) lit by natural or artificial light? Driven by these questions, this thesis will investigate via a visual qualitative experiment driven among photography amateurs, how their emotional sensibility is deeply bonded with light and how this emotional atmosphere is felt and portrayed throughout the day. A collection of two pictures per day, for one week, in the morning and in the evening will be firstly analyzed under the lens of each singular participant’s emotional sensibility, and then collectively grouped into common lighting Atmospheres. The wide and colorful spectrum of the possible combinations between light and emotions investigated in this research shows the richness and the complexity of the human sensibility towards light, and raise awareness in consider these intangible human factors as essential in the lighting process.