| Title |
Evaluation of Light Environment in Apartment Balconies for Smart Farming Applications |
| Authors |
임은택(Lim, Eunteak) ; 손동화(Shon, Donghwa) |
| DOI |
https://doi.org/10.5659/JAIK.2025.41.9.265 |
| Keywords |
Carbon emissions; Food crisis; Smartfarm; Apartment complexes; Crop production; Balcony spaces; Light environment |
| Abstract |
The twenty-first century faces pressing challenges from climate change driven by carbon emissions and an emerging food crisis. In response, this study proposes integrating smart farms into existing residential buildings by channeling building-emitted CO₂ to balcony-installed growth beds and directly supplying harvested crops to residents. For analysis, seven representative apartment complexes in Cheongju City, each with more than 1,000 units, were selected based on the main building’s form and layout. Each tower was modeled as a 30-storey structure comprising four apartment units per floor. On each south-facing balcony (1.5 m × 6.0 m), growth beds (1.0 m × 0.3 m × 1.0 m) were arranged in a single row of four beds spanning three adjacent units. The light environment on the bed surfaces was simulated for the summer solstice, autumnal equinox, and winter solstice using Rhino3D, Rhino Grasshopper, and the validated Ladybug light-environment simulator. Simulation results indicated pronounced seasonal variations in irradiance, even for identical configurations. Nonetheless, in most cases, the irradiance satisfied the minimum requirements for rosemary cultivation, demonstrating the feasibility of balcony-based smart farms. However, to enable crops requiring consistently high and uniform light throughout the year, appropriate architectural design strategies are needed to reduce and evenly distribute seasonal irradiance deviations. |