1、PDF外文：http:/ 中文4780字 附录 翻译原文 Experimental study on visibility of exit signs in buildings L.T. Wong, K.C. Lo Department of Building Services Engineering, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University, Hong Kong, China Received 26 November 2003； received in revised form 19 January 2006； accepted 23
2、 February 2006 Abstract： Visibility of exit signs in terms of the height of the sign content was studied experimentally in an 18m internal corridor. Four factors affecting the visibility including graphics, colours, lighting conditions and ages of the observers were investigated. Combinations
3、of designations containing the English and Chinese words EXIT, five directional indicators and two exit symbols in different colours under normal and emergency lighting conditions were presented to 30 observers of different age groups to determine their visibility. The sign heights detected, identif
4、ied and identified with confidence were measured. Increased height for correct identification was found for an exit sign containing two symbols as compared to a sign containing only one symbol. A green exit sign was reported to be highly visible. It was also reported that at reduced illumination, th
5、e sign height for correct identification increased. 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved. 1. Introduction Emergency exit signs are installed to provide markings of exits and escape routes in buildings and should be able to assist the occupants to leave the buildings effectively in case of emergenc
6、y 1,2. Exit sign is an essential installation in buildings and the specifications are stated in design guides and regulations 36. Thousands of exit signs can be found in many high-rise buildings. In Hong Kong, exit signs containing the word EXIT in English and Chinese of not less than 125mm height a
7、re specified for local buildings 5,6. A sign shall be designed with a combination of directional indicator, symbol and words: while the general design shall follow the standard specified 4, the Chinese word shall reach a minimum width of 15mm in vertical strokes and 10mm in horizontal strokes 5. Mor
8、eover, the colour-pair of sign content and background shall be green and white (GW) or white and green (WG) 5, though black and green (BG) is being used in some existing buildings 6. Comprehensible symbols, words and directional indicators for exit designation were studied and applied to exit sign d
9、esigns 710. Both signage design and illumination conditions affect the visibility of an exit sign 11. The changes in visibility with size and luminance in terms of the visual angle were studied by Jin et al. 13. Increasing the contrast of the arrow, enlarging the area of the chevron and changing the
10、 aspect ratio of the chevron will increase the distance of identification 12. Larger exit symbols are thus quantified in large spaces. It was found that colour of the sign content (green or red) would increase the identification distance by about 6m in smoke clear conditions 14. The re
11、cognition performance of a green exit sign was found to be high for both colour normal and deficient observers 15. Luminance is also important in determining the visibility of an exit sign in smoky conditions 1620. In fact, sign area, stroke thickness, bounding area of words, word spacing, and lumin
12、ance of characters, contrast, colour, orientation, and visual environment surrounding the sign will all have effects on a preferred exit sign in terms of signage legibility 21. In bilingual context, the visibility of exit signs in Chinese is important in designing an egress system for building
13、s in Hong Kong, but this has not yet been studied in detail. Such visibility was included and examined in this study. Four factors affecting the sign visibility, graphics, colour, lighting condition and age of the observers, were considered. In an internal corridor under normal and emergency lightin
14、g conditions, the visibility of a number of coloured exit signs with different combinations of symbol, directional indicator, English and Chinese words signifying an exit in building environment was studied. The experimental results were then compared with the previous results reported in literature
15、 to highlight the effective designs of an exit sign. 2. Exit sign content Configurations for combination of the symbols, words and directional indicators on an exit sign can be found in the literature 36. For example, a 57-mm-wide chevron in gray fitted onto a 300-mm-wide white s
16、ign containing the word EXIT of 150mm height would be identified correctly at a mean distance of 30m 3. In Hong Kong, an exit sign designed with the word EXIT in English and Chinese and an exit symbol of a running person is specified for local buildings 5,6, and a directional indicator shall be used
17、 in a directional sign with an exit symbol or the English and Chinese words. Exit symbols (E1, E2), words (W1, W2) and directional indicators (D1 to D5) used in this study are shown in Table 1. The following are their sources. The graphics of a person running through an open door (E1) 710 and
18、a person running away from fire (E2) 5 from current codes were used as the exit symbols. E2 is believed to be a good exit indication and prescribed in the local code 6. The English word EXIT (W1) contributed to accurate identification of exit messages 710 and has been widely adopted in design guides
19、 and standards 36. The Chinese word for exit (W2) has also been specified for local applications 5-6. Visibility of directional indicators and their effectiveness in indicating direction were studied extensively 710. A chevron (D1) was identified as the most visible and effective directional indicat
20、or and recommended for building environment 3. Alternatively, an angelfish (D2) was found to be eye catching and a triangle (D3) (of increased area related to D1) would be easily visible 11, 12. An arrow containing a chevron with a tail (D4) prescribed in British Standard 4 has been used in local buildings 5, 6. A triangle with a tail (D5) was hypothesized to have increased visibility because of its increased area relating to the arrow (D4) 11,12.
