Residence Layout Examined and Optimized by Sunshine: A Comparative Study between Barcelona and Northern Chinese Cities
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
Comments and Suggestions for AuthorsI have thoroughly reviewed your manuscript titled 'Residence Layout Examined and Optimized by Sunshine: A Comparative Study between Barcelona and Northern Chinese Cities' and find the idea intriguing. However, there are some aspects that could be enhanced in the current version. Therefore, I recommend the following comments and suggestions:
· The first sentence in the abstract is too lengthy; it should be split into two or three sentences for improved readability.
· I suggest that the authors present the main contributions in bullet form to enhance clarity.
· It is recommended to include a study outline paragraph at the conclusion of the Introduction section. This will provide readers with a roadmap for the paper.
· In Sections 3 and 4, consider including summary paragraphs before delving into subsequent sections. This will assist readers in grasping the key points and findings.
· Ensure consistency in the text within figures and tables to maintain clarity and coherence.
Comments on the Quality of English LanguageN/A
Author Response
Dear Reviewers,
Thank you for your comments on our article titled "Sunshine Inspection and Optimizing Residential Layout: A Comparative Study of Barcelona and Northern Chinese Cities". We appreciate the reviewer's careful reading of our paper and their positive comments, constructive suggestions, which greatly improved the presentation of our manuscript.
We have carefully considered all comments from the reviewers and revised our manuscript accordingly. The manuscript has also been double-checked, and the typos and grammar errors we found have been corrected. In the following section, we summarize our responses to each comment from the reviewers. We believe that our responses have well addressed all concerns from the reviewers. We hope our revised manuscript can be accepted for publication.
In our revision, we pay special attention to 1) dividing the first sentence of the abstract into two to three sentences to improve the readability of the article. 2) Present the main contributions in the form of bullet points to improve the clarity of the article. 3) Add a research summary paragraph in the introduction section. Facilitate readers to understand the roadmap of the paper. 4) In sections 3 and 4, add a summary paragraph before delving deeper into the following chapters. Help readers grasp key points and discover. 5) Check and modify the text in the charts to ensure consistency, in order to maintain clarity and coherence in the article.
Comment1: The first sentence in the abstract is too lengthy; it should be split into two or three sentences for improved readability.
Response: I will interrupt the first sentence of the abstract appropriately to improve the readability of the article. Here is my revised paragraph: “This article compares the differences and similarities in residential layout and scale between Barce-lona, Spain and Tianjin, a northern Chinese city, using ladybugs. We obtained sunshine simula-tion results under the same conditions in terms of building facades, lower floors, streets, court-yards, and other aspects in two cities. Based on this, draw on the advantages and disadvantages of the dense street network in the Eixample district of Barcelona, and provide suggestions for the residential layout of cities in northern China.”
Comment2: I suggest that the authors present the main contributions in bullet form to enhance clarity.
Response: In order to improve the clarity of the article, I presented the main contributions in the form of bullet points. It mainly covers the following five aspects.
- By establishing a simulation model to analyze the sunlight conditions of residential layouts in Barcelona and Tianjin, the impact of urban design on sunlight can be compared and studied.
- This study used Grasshopper to establish a residential area model.
- Established two testing models, panel and point, for cities in northern China, and used eight surrounding blocks as site occlusion objects. This study conducted sunshine simulation on 672 test models and optimized residential area planning in northern cities of China.
- Emphasized the advantages of small communities and dense street networks in optimizing sunlight exposure, such as the Eixample district in Barcelona.
- On this basis, optimization suggestions for residential layout in northern cities of China were proposed to enhance the sustainability of residential areas by enhancing the building's ability to capture solar energy.
Comment3: It is recommended to include a study outline paragraph at the conclusion of the Introduction section. This will provide readers with a roadmap for the paper.
Response: The main framework of this article includes the following aspects. Firstly, review the relevant literature on urban sunlight exposure and its impact on sustainable development. Next, we will provide a detailed introduction to our method, including simulation models used to analyze the solar performance of residential layouts in Barcelona and Tianjin under various conditions. The following chapters will introduce our research findings, compare the effects of different residential layouts on sunlight exposure, and discuss the impact of these research findings on urban sustainability. Finally, this article will provide recommendations for urban planning in northern Chinese cities and similar urban environments, emphasizing the importance of incorporating sustainable design principles to optimize natural sunlight exposure.
Comment4: In Sections 3 and 4, consider including summary paragraphs before delving into subsequent sections. This will assist readers in grasping the key points and findings.
Response: In order to help readers grasp the key points and findings, we have added a review and summary of the content of this section in Sections 3 and 4 before delving deeper into subsequent chapters. Analyzed the establishment and testing process of the simulation model in the third section and the results of the simulation in the fourth section, and proposed guidance and suggestions for future residential layout.
Comment5: Ensure consistency in the text within figures and tables to maintain clarity and coherence.
Response: We have rechecked and revised the text in the chart to maintain clarity and consistency.
We tried our best to improve the manuscript and made some changes in the manuscript. These changes will not influence the content and framework of the paper. We mark the revised document in red.
We appreciate for Reviewers’ warm work earnestly, and hope that the correction will meet with approval.
Once again, thank you very much for your comments and suggestions.
Sincerely Yours,
Wenxuan Chen
School of Architecture and Design, Beijing Jiaotong University
E-Mail: [email protected]
Reviewer 2 Report
Comments and Suggestions for Authors1. it is necessary to revise the abstract of the paper. It is necessary to reflect in the abstract the relevance, purpose of the study, materials and methods used, and results of the study.
2. In the introduction, it is necessary to more clearly justify why Barcelona was chosen as an example. The cities are located in different parts of the world. Is the course of the Sun the same and similar throughout the year? What other cities can be taken as analogies?
3. All the cited references are relevant to the research of Residence Layout. A review of related works is conducted to emphasize the advantages and disadvantages of each work, and also to identify the gap in the knowledge. The research is provided with previous and present theoretical and empirical backgroun on the topic.
4. From the text of the paper it is clear that only mathematical modeling was carried out. Were his results supported by data from experimental studies, and is the state of the atmosphere taken into account? How reliable is the simulation data? How can you check their reliability?
Author Response
Dear Reviewers,
Thank you for your comments on our article titled "Sunshine Inspection and Optimizing Residential Layout: A Comparative Study of Barcelona and Northern Chinese Cities". We appreciate the reviewer's careful reading of our paper and their positive comments, constructive suggestions, which greatly improved the presentation of our manuscript.
We have carefully considered all comments from the reviewers and revised our manuscript accordingly. In the following section, we summarize our responses to each comment from the reviewers. We believe that our responses have well addressed all concerns from the reviewers. We hope our revised manuscript can be accepted for publication.
In our revision, we pay special attention to 1) making modifications to the abstract of the paper. Reflect the relevance of the research, research objectives, materials and methods used, and research results. 2) In the introduction, the reasons for choosing Barcelona as an example were explained, and other comparable cities were listed. At the same time, an explanation of the direct relationship between the laws of solar motion and our sunlight simulation was added. 3) Explain the accuracy of the Ladybug sunlight simulation results used in the article. And our consideration of atmospheric conditions in the experiment.
Comment1: It is necessary to revise the abstract of the paper. It is necessary to reflect in the abstract the relevance, purpose of the study, materials and methods used, and results of the study.
Response: We agree with your suggestion and will include it in our paper. We have added the research purpose, methods used, and results in the abstract of the paper to better express the content of the paper. In the abstract, it is pointed out that our research aims to improve the residential layout of cities in northern China, while meeting the requirements of plot ratio, and utilizing the favorable sunlight conditions of Barcelona's residential layout. And propose research methods and results to obtain a layout similar to that of residential buildings in Barcelona, and make it similar to the plot ratio of point panel residential buildings in northern Chinese cities, with better hygiene conditions such as sunlight.
Comment2: In the introduction, it is necessary to more clearly justify why Barcelona was chosen as an example. The cities are located in different parts of the world. Is the course of the Sun the same and similar throughout the year? What other cities can be taken as analogies?
Response: In the introduction, the reason for choosing Barcelona as an example is explained. Barcelona and Tianjin are both mid to high latitude cities with high population density and poor sunshine conditions. However, Barcelona has better housing and urban public spaces due to its sunshine conditions. This has reference significance for the residential layout in Tianjin. At the same time, we have listed other comparable cities and added an explanation of the direct relationship between the solar movement pattern and our sunshine simulation. Simulate sunshine and choose the coldest day of the year, which has the most unfavorable sunshine. These cities are located in different parts of the world, and on cold days there, the sun's trajectory at the same longitude and latitude is similar. Therefore, our simulation is reliable.
Comment3: All the cited references are relevant to the research of Residence Layout. A review of related works is conducted to emphasize the advantages and disadvantages of each work, and also to identify the gap in the knowledge. The research is provided with previous and present theoretical and empirical background on the topic.
Response: We thank the reviewer for reading our paper carefully and giving the above positive comments.
Comment4: From the text of the paper, it is clear that only mathematical modeling was carried out. Were his results supported by data from experimental studies, and is the state of the atmosphere taken into account? How reliable is the simulation data? How can you check their reliability?
Response: Sunlight simulation is currently a mathematical modeling test that can achieve a relatively accurate level. The Ladybug used in research is a widely used tool for analyzing sunlight and energy consumption in the fields of architecture and urban planning. It is developed based on the Rhino and Grasshopper platforms. Ladybug allows users to import and analyze meteorological data, simulate and evaluate the thermal performance, sunlight, shadows, wind flow, etc. of buildings and urban environments. The imported meteorological data is real data from a year, and considering the state of the atmosphere, the simulation data is reliable.
We tried our best to improve the manuscript and made some changes in the manuscript. These changes will not influence the content and framework of the paper. We mark the revised document in red.
We appreciate for Reviewers’ warm work earnestly, and hope that the correction will meet with approval.
Once again, thank you very much for your comments and suggestions.
Sincerely Yours,
Wenxuan Chen
School of Architecture and Design, Beijing Jiaotong University
E-Mail: [email protected]
