Visual Comfort, Discomfort Glare, and Occupant Fenestration Control: Developing a Research Agenda

This article compares and contrasts existing and emerging discomfort glare analysis metrics that can be used to predict occupants’ acceptance of and preference for competing design solutions and to evaluate the likelihood of manual blind deployment or automated blind overrides upon occupancy. It documents and synthesizes how discomfort glare and other factors affect the use of both manually controlled and automated blinds in buildings with vertical fenestration, based on a review of several laboratory and field studies. Finally, this article identifies current knowledge gaps; defines a prioritized list of research needs of the lighting, daylighting, and architectural fields; and suggests potential future research modes that may lead to new breakthroughs in order to minimize discomfort glare while promoting occupant visual preference and whole-building energy efficiency.