Discomfort glare assessment and prevention for daylight applications in office environments

Discomfort glare from daylight is a common problem in many office environments. It has been the subject of a significant body of research and many attempts have been made to develop reliable assessment and prediction models to address this problem. This paper reviews and discusses the advantages and limitations of using existing glare indices for daylighting conditions. It concludes that available assessment and prediction methods are of limited practical use in daylit situations and currently have no provision for integrated systems that combine daylighting and electric lighting. The paper also presents selected findings from a case study of daylit office environments which identify a number of important design considerations. On the basis of the discussion and the findings from the case study, additional research needs are identified to overcome current limitations. In the meantime, until results from such research are available and can be practically applied, this paper suggests ways to better integrate computer workstations in daylit offices.