Office thermal comfort state analysis based on physiological signal from wearable device

Monitoring occupants' thermal state is important in various aspects of occupants and the building. Along with subjective questionnaires, physiological signals that reflect physical and psychological changes are used to analyze the state of occupants. This study sought to collect data via an office experiment which made use of a wearable device, as well as by observing the physiological signals between the different thermal states. Occupants wore the device - which measures skin temperature, heart rate, and electrodermal activity - and answered the thermal comfort-related questionnaires. As a result, thermal comfort-related responses showed a significant degree of correlation with the physiological signals. Thermal sensation, skin temperature, and electrodermal activity all displayed a positive degree of correlation, while observed heart rates were lower in more comfortable conditions. Furthermore, among differing levels of thermal comfort, different levels of physiological responses were observed. This implies the possibility of distinguishing the thermal comfort state using physiological signals of the wearable device and could, thus, be used in the future development of personal comfort systems.