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The perception of thermal comfort

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Abstract

26 subjects were exposed either to constant temperature in a water bath or to different air temperatures. A differentiation was made between the comfort temperature and the conscious cutaneous thermal sensation.When thermal sensation of the hand was tested for different internal temperatures it was found that the same superficial (skin) temperature could be agreeable or disagreeable depending on the existing internal temperature. Those skin temperatures which lead to normalization of the internal temperature were agreeable; conversely those skin temperatures which increased deviation of the internal temperature from normal were disagreeable.In man there are two sensory components in thermal perception, one superficial discriminative, and one deep which permits appreciation of agreeable and disagreeable.

Zusammenfassung

26 Personen wurden entweder konstanter Temperatur im Wasserbad oder verschiedenen Lufttemperaturen exponiert und die Komforttemperatur und das HautwÄrmeempfinden bestimmt. Wenn das WÄrmeempfinden der Hand bei verschiedenen Körperinnentemperaturen bestimmt wurde, ergab sich,dass beider gleichen OberflÄchentemperatur der Unterschied zwischen angenehm und unangenehm von der Körperinnentemperatur abhing. Hauttemperaturen, die zu einer Normalisierung der Körperinnentemperatur führten, waren angenehm; umgekehrt, Hauttemperaturen, die die Abweichung der Körperinnentemperatur vom Normalwert verstÄrkten, waren unangenehm.Beim Menschen gibt es zwei sensorische Komponenten des WÄrmeempfindens, eine scharf unterscheidende oberflÄchliche und eine tiefe,die diesen Unterschied zwischen angenehm und unangenehm bestÄtigt.

Resume

Chez 26 sujets (hommes) on pratique soit des bains agités à température constante, soit des expositions à des ambiances aériennes diverses. Des dissociations sont observées entre l'impression de confort et la sensation thermique cutanée consciente. Des tests de sensation thermique au niveau de la main, pratiqués à différentes températures internes, montrent qu'une mÊme température superficielle peut Être perÇue comme agréable ou désagréable selon le niveau de température interne.Sont agréables les températures superficielles qui tendent à corriger l'écart de température interne, à son niveau normal; inversement sont désagréables les températures superficielles qui tendent à éloigner le température interne de ce niveau. On admet que chez l'homme la perception thermique comporte 2 composantes sensibles: l'une discriminative superficielle, l'autre profonde, affective, qui permet d'apprécier l'agréable et le désagréable.

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  1. Faculté de Médecine, Laboratoire de Physiologie, Lyon, France

    J. Chatonnet

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  1. J. Chatonnet
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  2. M. Cabanac
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Chatonnet, J., Cabanac, M. The perception of thermal comfort. Int J Biometeorol 9, 183–193 (1965). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF02188475

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