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Ergonomics
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Effects of heated seat and foot heater on thermal

comfort and heater energy consumption in vehicle
Hajime Oi

a b

, Kotaro Yanagi , Koji Tabata & Yutaka Tochihara

Department of Human Science , Faculty of Design, Kyushu University , 491 Shiobaru,

Minami-ku, Fukuoka 8158540, Japan
b

Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., 11 Morinosatoaoyama, Atsugi 2430123, Japan

Published online: 17 Aug 2011.

To cite this article: Hajime Oi , Kotaro Yanagi , Koji Tabata & Yutaka Tochihara (2011) Effects of heated seat
and foot heater on thermal comfort and heater energy consumption in vehicle, Ergonomics, 54:8, 690-699, DOI:
10.1080/00140139.2011.595513
To link to this article: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00140139.2011.595513

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Ergonomics
Vol. 54, No. 8, August 2011, 690699

Eects of heated seat and foot heater on thermal comfort and heater energy consumption in vehicle
Hajime Oia,b*, Kotaro Yanagia, Koji Tabataa and Yutaka Tochiharaa
a

Department of Human Science, Faculty of Design, Kyushu University, 491 Shiobaru, Minami-ku, Fukuoka 8158540, Japan;
b
Nissan Motor Co., Ltd., 11 Morinosatoaoyama, Atsugi 2430123, Japan

Downloaded by [York University Libraries] at 00:59 21 November 2014

(Received 6 March 2011; nal version received 28 May 2011)

Subjective experiments involving 12 dierent conditions were conducted to investigate the eects of heated seats and
foot heaters in vehicles on thermal sensation and thermal comfort. The experimental conditions involved various
combinations of the operative temperature in the test room (10 or 208C), a heated seat (on/o) and a foot heater
(room operative temperature 10 or 208C). The heated seat and foot heater improved the occupants thermal
sensation and comfort in cool environments. The room operative temperature at which the occupants felt a neutral
overall thermal sensation was decreased by about 38C by using the heated seat or foot heater and by about 68C when
both devices were used. Moreover, the eects of these devices on vehicle heater energy consumption were
investigated using simulations. As a result, it was revealed that heated seats and foot heaters can reduce the total
heater energy consumption of vehicles.
Statement of Relevance: Subjective experiments were conducted to investigate the eects of heated seats and foot
heaters in vehicles on thermal comfort. The heated seat and foot heater improved the occupants thermal sensation
and comfort in cool environments. These devices can reduce the total heater energy consumption in vehicles.
Keywords: energy consumption; foot heater; heated seat; thermal comfort; thermal environments

1.

Introduction

Recently, eco-friendly vehicles such as electric vehicles

(EV) and hybrid electric vehicles (HEV) have been
brought to public attention due to the increasing
concern about global warming. Conversely, the deterioration of energy or fuel eciency when the heater
system is operated is a problem. A large amount of
energy is needed to heat a vehicle cabin. Comparing
identical room volumes, the energy needed for a vehicle
heater is about 20 times that required for a house heater
(Matsunaga et al. 2010). Conventional gasoline-powered vehicles use hot engine coolant as a source of heater
energy. However, EV have no thermal source. The
energy for the heater system in an EV is thus supplied by
the main battery. Therefore, the operation of the heater
system has a major inuence on the cruising range, the
distance that a vehicle can travel before needing a
battery charge. The cruising range of EV with the heater
system operating is reduced to about one-third of that
without heating (Nakane et al. 2010, Umezu et al. 2010).
Even for HEV, which have gasoline-powered engines,
the improvement in fuel eciency results in a lack of a
thermal source. Therefore, HEV have an auxiliary
electric heater, the power for which is generated using
some of the fuel. The operation of the heater system in
cold environments thus reduces the fuel eciency of

*Corresponding author. Email: h-oi@mail.nissan.co.jp

ISSN 0014-0139 print/ISSN 1366-5847 online
2011 Taylor & Francis
DOI: 10.1080/00140139.2011.595513
http://www.informaworld.com

HEV. Therefore, the vehicle cabin environment needs to

be designed so that it can be made thermally
comfortable whilst using less heater energy than
conventional vehicle heaters.
Conventional vehicles use heating, ventilating and
air conditioning (HVAC) convective heaters, which
heat the air in the whole vehicle cabin to indirectly
warm the occupants. However, the large amount of
heat loss from the vehicle, including the heat lost
through ventilation, severely limits the heating ability
of this method. To reduce heater energy consumption,
the use of local heating devices that directly heat the
body may be more eective. The present study focused
on the use of heated seats and radiant foot heaters for
local heating.
Arens et al. (2006) conducted subjective
experiments in uniform environments at ambient
temperatures ranging from 16 to 328C. They found
that the feet were consistently cooler than other body
parts under all conditions and thus represented the
major source of discomfort under cool conditions. This
result indicates that foot heating would improve
thermal sensation in cool environments. Matsumoto
and Matsui (2007, 2008) conducted experiments at air
temperatures ranging from 15 to 308C with/without
sole heating and reported that sole heating increased

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Ergonomics
overall thermal sensation. Zhang et al. (2010)
conducted experiments using a conductive hand
warmer and a radiant foot warmer. They reported
that these devices increased overall thermal comfort at
188C. They also simulated the eects of these devices
on heater energy consumption in oce buildings and
reported that they produced heating energy savings in
winter. However these studies, including foot heating,
focused on buildings. The eects in the vehicle
environment are still unclear.
Some reports have assessed thermal comfort
during the use of heated seats. Burch et al.
(1991a,b) conducted subjective experiments using
real vehicles at an air temperature of 208C. They
found that low-power electric heating pads installed
on the seat back and cushion greatly reduced the time
needed to attain thermal comfort under severe winter
conditions. Brooks and Parsons (1999) conducted
subjective experiments to investigate human thermal
comfort using an automobile seat with/without an
encapsulated carbonised fabric, which generated heat,
at ambient temperatures ranging from 5 to 208C.
They found that the heated seat improved overall
thermal sensation at 5, 10 and 158C and overall
thermal comfort at 5 and 108C. Zhang et al. (2007)
also conducted subjective experiments to investigate
human thermal comfort at air temperatures ranging
from 15 to 458C with four dierent seat temperatures.
They found that optimal heat ow in steady state
conditions could be dened as a linear function of
ambient room temperature. Oi et al. (2011) investigated the eects of a heated seat on thermal comfort
during the initial warm-up period. They reported that
heated seats eectively improved occupant comfort
during the initial warm-up period, when the air
temperature is lower than 158C. However, there is
no study describing the eects of heated seats on
heater energy consumption in vehicles.
Bernard et al. (2010) reported that porosity and
permeability of clothing aected heat stress. The
evaporative resistance and thermal insulation of the
sedentary posture was higher than that of a standing
posture (Wu et al. 2011). In vehicles, seat ventilation is
a technical solution. Holmer et al. (1995) reported that
seat ventilation reduced heat stress in summer conditions. Lustbader (2005) investigated the eect of seat
ventilation in subjective experiments and simulations.
He reported that seat ventilation reduced the amount
of cooling energy used in the vehicle by 4% in summer
conditions. Heated seats and foot heaters might reduce
the amount of heater energy required in vehicles in
winter conditions, the same as seat ventilation in
summer conditions.
The rst objective of this study is to investigate the
eects of heated seats, foot heaters and a combination

691

of both devices on thermal sensation and thermal

comfort. The second objective is to reveal whether
these devices can reduce the total heater energy
consumption of vehicles.
2. Methods
2.1. Participants
Eight male university students who were in good
health were selected as the experimental participants.
Their mean (SD) characteristics were as follows: age
22.1 (1.0) years; height 168.9 (1.9) cm; weight 61.7 (8.7)
kg; body fat percentage 19.0 (4.7). All participants
understood that they could leave the experiment at any
time and provided written informed consent. The
participants were instructed not to drink alcohol or
engage in strenuous exercise the day before the
experiment and not to eat or smoke for 2 h before the
experiment. All experimental protocols were approved
by the Institutional Review Board of Kyushu
University.
The clothing worn during the test period comprised
an undershirt, a long-sleeved shirt, a jacket,
underpants, trousers, socks and shoes. All clothing was
provided for the participants. The clo value of these
garments, which was measured using a thermal
manikin, was 1.0.
2.2. Experimental conditions
The experiments were conducted in two climate
chambers at Kyushu University, Japan. One chamber
was used as a pre-conditioning room, the other as a
test room. The participants could move directly from
the pre-conditioning room to the test room. The
conditions in the pre-conditioning room were as
follows: air temperature radiant
temperature operative temperature 258C; relative
humidity 50%; air velocity 5 0.1 m/s. The
conditions in the test room were as follows: air
temperature radiant temperature operative
temperature 10 or 208C; relative humidity 50%;
air velocity 5 0.1 m/s. In this paper, the experimental
conditions when air temperature radiant
temperature operative temperature 108C or 208C
are described as To,room 108C or To,room 208C.
The experimental equipment is illustrated in
Figure 1. A vehicle seat with a leather surface was used
in the experiment. Silicone rubber heaters were installed
in the seat between the leather and polyurethane layers
of the seat, where the participant came into contact
with the seat. The areas of the heaters in the seat back
and cushion were 0.080 m2 and 0.144 m2, respectively.
The actual area of contact between the participant and
seat was approximately 0.080 m2 and 0.127 m2,

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H. Oi et al.
on a chair in the test room for 10 min, the participant
sat on the heated seat and put their feet in the foot
heater if the test conditions included the use of the foot
heater. In the test conditions involving the heated seat
or foot heater, these devices were pre-heated before the
participant sat on the heated seat. The subjective
measurement was started when the participant sat on
the heated seat and was conducted for 30 min.
2.4.

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Figure 1.

Experimental conditions.

respectively. The mean seat surface temperature was

controlled at 378C.
A radiant foot heater was also used in the
experiment. Five lm heaters were mounted inside a
wooden cube box; the length, width and height of
the box were 345, 450 and 425 mm, respectively.
The thickness of the wood panel was 8 mm. The
participants inserted their feet and lower legs into the
box from the open side. A slatted board was placed in
the bottom of the box to prevent the participants
shoes from coming into direct contact with the heater.
The heater surface temperature was controlled
so that it kept the operative temperature in the
box To,room 108C or 208C. Therefore, when
To,room 108C, the foot operative temperature when
the foot heater was in use was 20 or 308C. When
To,room 208C, it was 30 or 408C. The operative
temperature was calculated as the mean of the air
temperature in the box and the heater surface
temperature. In this paper, foot operative temperature
is described as To,foot.
A total of 12 test conditions were used, involving a
combination of To,room (108C or 208C) and the use (or
not) of the heated seat (on or o) and/or foot heater
(without foot heater: To,foot To,room; or with it:
To,foot To,room 108C or 208C). Each participant
participated in all conditions, one each on 12 dierent
days between October and November.
2.3.

Experimental procedure

Each participant was brought into the pre-conditioning room, where they wore the prepared clothing,
except the jacket and shoes. The participant rested in
the pre-conditioning room in a sedentary position for
30 min. The participant then put on the jacket and
shoes and moved to the test room. After being seated

Measured parameters

The energy consumption of the heated seat and foot

heater was measured by a clamp on power hi-tester
3169 and a clamp on sensor 9694 (HIOKI E. E. Co.,
Ueda, Japan). In this study, the mean of the last 5 min
(from 25 to 30 min) was used for the analysis to discuss
the results in steady state.
The participants provided responses at 5-min
intervals while seated on the heated seat. Overall
thermal sensation was reported using the 7-point
American Society of Heating Refrigerating and AirConditioning Engineers (2004) scale: 3, cold; 2, cool;
1, slightly cool; 0, neutral; 1, slightly warm; 2,
warm; 3, hot. Overall thermal comfort was reported
on a 7-point scale: 3, very uncomfortable; 2,
uncomfortable; 1, slightly uncomfortable; 0,
neutral; 1, slightly comfortable; 2,
comfortable; 3, very comfortable. In this study, the
mean of the last two responses (between 25 and 30
min) was used for analysis to discuss the results in
steady state.
2.5.

Data analysis

The participants responses were analysed by repeatedmeasures ANOVA using SPSS version 18 software
(IBM, Somers, NY, USA). If Mauchlys sphericity test
showed signicant results, the Greenhouse-Geisser
epsilon correction was used. To test the signicance of
dierences, multiple comparisons analysis was
performed using Bonferronis method. Dierences
were considered statistically signicant at the level of
p 5 0.05.
The adequacy of the sample size (number of
participants 8) was conrmed by power analysis. In
this experiment, ANOVA was applied for each To,room
condition. Two levels of seat heating and three levels of
foot heating were used; thus, the sample size for the
foot heater factor was smaller. Therefore, the sample
size was checked based on the foot heater factor. The
eect size of the foot heater on thermal sensation or
thermal comfort was estimated between medium and
large; i.e. between 0.25 and 0.4 (Cohen 1992). The level
of signicance was set at 0.05 and the epsilon
correction was set at 0.5, which was minimum value

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for the three levels. Using these parameters and

G*POWER version 3.1.2 (Faul et al. 2007), the
sample size to achieve a power value of 0.8 was
calculated. The appropriate sample size (the
appropriate number of participants) was 36 (six) with
a large eect size and 90 (15) with a medium eect size.
Since the number of participants in the present study
(eight) was in the range between six and 15, the sample
size was judged to be appropriate.
2.6. Calculating heater energy consumption by the
HVAC system
Heater energy consumption by the HVAC system in
steady state conditions was estimated using a simple
model. In real vehicle cabins, the eect of radiation,
which is created by the temperature dierence
between the outdoor and indoor environment, cannot
be ignored. Nicol and Humphreys (2010) indicated
that the operative temperature, including the eect of
radiation, is a simple but well performing index, while
more complex indices showed a lower correlation
with the thermal sensation score. Therefore, in the
present study, an equation for calculating the energy
consumption required by the HVAC system to
maintain the vehicle cabin at a certain operative
temperature was used. Since the aim of the present
study is to verify the eects of heated seats and foot
heaters on total heater energy consumption in
vehicles, it is not intended to be a detailed simulation
of the thermal environment in vehicles, and so a
simple heat transfer model was adopted. It assumes
one air node and ignores energy consumption by the
blower, heat loss from the ducts and heat generation
by the occupants. The model is illustrated in Figure 2.
Heater energy consumption by the HVAC system
was calculated in conditions involving no solar heat
load.

Heater energy consumption by the HVAC system,

which produces the heat from electricity, in a steady
state is calculated by Equation (1).
Q Qt Qv

where Q (W) is the heater energy consumption by the

HVAC system, Qt (W) is heat loss due to heat
transmission thorough the vehicle body and Qv (W) is
heat loss by ventilation.
Heat loss due to heat transmission is calculated by
Equation (2).
Qt Ta  Tout =R1 R2

where Ta (8C) is the air temperature in the vehicle

cabin, Tout (8C) is the air temperature in the outdoor
environment, R1 (8C/W) is the thermal resistance
between the outdoor environment and the interior
surface and R2 (8C/W) is the thermal resistance
between the interior surface and the cabin
environment.
The HVAC system used for heating is usually used
in fresh mode, which takes outdoor air through the
HVAC system and expels the same amount of air from
the cabin. This prevents clouding of the window glass.
The heat loss through ventilation is calculated by
Equation (3).
Qv V  r  Cp Ta  Tout

where V (m3/s) is blower air volume, r (kg/m3) is air

density ( 1.2 kg/m3) and Cp (J/kg8C) is the specic
heat capacity of air ( 1006 J/kg8C).
The operative temperature in the vehicle cabin is
calculated by Equation (4). Operative temperature is
the average of the air temperature and the mean
radiant temperature weighted, respectively, by the
convective heat transfer coecient and the radiant heat
transfer coecient (American Society of Heating
Refrigerating and Air-Conditioning Engineers 2004).
Since the blower speed is not so high in the steady
state, the air velocity in the vehicle cabin is low. Since
the convective heat transfer coecient and the
radiative heat transfer coecient are roughly equal in
low air ow environments (e.g. de Dear et al. 1997), the
operative temperature was calculated as the mean of
the air temperature and the mean radiant temperature.
To Ta Tr =2

Figure 2. Model for calculating heating, ventilating and air

conditioning energy consumption.

where Tr (8C) is mean radiant temperature in the

vehicle cabin.
Since the mean radiant temperature is almost equal
to the interior surface temperature in the vehicle cabin,

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H. Oi et al.

the mean radiant temperature can be calculated using

Equation (5).
Tr Ta  Qt  R2

The heater energy consumption required by the HVAC

system to keep the vehicle cabin at a certain operative
temperature is calculated by Equation (6), which was
produced by combining Equations (1)(5).
Q 2To  Tout R1 R2 1 R1 R2 V  r  Cp =

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2  R1 R2

3.
3.1.

Results
Overall thermal sensation and comfort

The results for overall thermal sensation are shown in

Figure 3. At To,room 108C, signicant main eects of
the heated seat (F(1,7) 16.29, p 5 0.01) and foot
heater (F(2,14) 5.65, p 5 0.05) were observed. The
use of the heated seat or foot heater increased the
overall thermal sensation under cool conditions. When
the heated seat and foot heater were not used at
To,room 108C, overall thermal sensation was about
2, cool, it was improved to about 1.3, between cool
and slightly cool, with the use of the heated seat and it
was improved to about 0.5, between slightly cool
and neutral, with use of the heated seat and foot
heater together. On the other hand, at To,room 208C,
only main eects of the heated seat (F(1,7) 5.98,
p 5 0.05) were observed. At To,room 208C, overall
thermal sensation was higher than 0 (neutral) without
the heated seat and foot heater. When the room was
not cool, the use of a heated seat increased thermal
sensation; however, the use of the foot heater did not
increase it.
The results for overall thermal comfort are
provided in Figure 4. At To,room 108C, signicant
main eects of the heated seat (F(1,7) 11.37,

p 5 0.05) and foot heater (F(2,14) 8.32, p 5 0.01)

were observed. Signicant dierences were observed
between To,foot 108C and 308C and between
To,foot 208C and 308C. The use of the heated seat or
foot heater increased the overall thermal comfort
under cool conditions. On the other hand, at
To,room 208C no signicant dierence was observed.
At To,room 208C, the overall thermal comfort was
higher than 0 (neutral) and the highest score was
achieved when neither the heated seat nor foot heater
was used. The use of the heated seat or foot heater did
not increase overall thermal comfort when overall
thermal comfort was not uncomfortable.
3.2. Room operative temperature at which the
participants felt a neutral overall thermal sensation
The optimal To,room; i.e. the room operative
temperature at which the participants felt a neutral
overall thermal sensation, was calculated by linear
interpolation using the experimental data. The optimal
To,room during the use of the foot heater was calculated
in the following conditions: To,foot To,room 208C.
The results of this calculation are shown in Figure 5.
The To,room each line crossed thermal sensation 0 was
18.78C without the heated seat and foot heater, 15.98C
with the heated seat, 16.18C with the foot heater, and
13.18C with both devices. The optimal To,room was
determined 19, 16, 16, 138C respectively. The optimal
To,room could be decreased by 38C by using the heated
seat or foot heater and by 68C by using both devices.
3.3. Heater energy required in vehicles in steady state
conditions
The heater energy required in a vehicle to maintain a
neutral thermal sensation in steady state conditions
was calculated in two steps. First, the energy required
by the HVAC system was calculated using Equation
(6). Next, the total heater energy required was
calculated by adding the energy for the heated seat and

Figure 3. Overall thermal sensation in each condition at To,room 108C (a) and 208C (b). Values are mean with SD.
*p 5 0.05; **p 5 0.01; p 5 0.10.

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Figure 4. Overall thermal comfort in each condition at To,room 108C (a) and 208C (b). Values are mean with SD.
*p 5 0.05; **p 5 0.01; p 5 0.10.

with the heated seat: energy required by the

HVAC (To 168C) 2  10 (W);
with both devices: energy required by the HVAC
(To 138C) 2  (60 10) (W).

Figure 5.

Calculated optimal To,room values.

foot heater to the HVAC energy. It was calculated

under the assumption that heated seats and foot
heaters were installed in two seats; i.e. for the driver
and passenger.
Fujita (2005) investigated vehicle heat resistance by
the measuring interior and exterior temperatures of a
vehicle when the cabin was heated, using a constant
amount of heater power. According to their study, the
parameters of a parked mid-size sedan were as follows:
R1 0.0188C /W, R2 0.008W8C /W. In the present
study, these values were used to calculate the energy
required by the HVAC system.
The total heater energy required in a vehicle was
calculated by adding the energy for the heated seat and
foot heater to the required HVAC energy. In the
present experiments, the mean energy consumption
required for the heated seat was 10 W. The mean
energy consumption required for the foot heater when
To,foot To,room 208C was 58 W. In the present
study, it was determined to be 60 W to calculate energy
consumption in 10 W units. Therefore, the total
required heater energy was calculated as follows:

The total amounts of heater energy required, as

calculated in conditions involving an outdoor air
temperature of Tout 08C and a blower air volume of
V 0.05m3/s are shown in Figure 6. The energy
required for the HVAC to maintain the operative
temperature of the vehicle cabin at 19, 16 and 138C was
2220, 1870 and 1520 W, respectively. The total
required energy was 2220 W (with neither device),
1990 W (with the foot heater), 1890W (with the heated
seat) and 1660 W (with both devices). The total
amount of heater energy required could be reduced by
230 W by using the foot heater, 330 W by using the
heated seat and 560 W by using both devices.
Although the outdoor temperature does not aect
the energy reduction, which is the dierence in the total
amount of heater energy required between the
condition with the heated seat or/and the foot heater
and that with neither device, the other calculation
parameter does. Increasing the driving speed, which
means decreasing R1 by increasing the convective heat
transfer coecient for the vehicle exterior, increases
the degree of the energy reduction. A decrease in the
blower air volume decreases the extent of the energy
reduction. However, even if the blower air volume is
zero, an energy reduction is expected. Thus, the results
of the present study indicate that the heated seat and
foot heater are eective at reducing total heater energy
consumption in vehicles.
4.
4.1.

with neither device: energy required by the HVAC

(To 198C) (W);
with the foot heater: energy required by the
HVAC (To 168C) 2  60 (W);

Discussion
Overall thermal sensation and comfort

In the present study, a signicant increase in overall

thermal sensation was observed when the heated seat
was used at To,room 10 and 208C (Figure 3). Brooks
and Parsons (1999) conducted subjective experiments

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Figure 6. Calculated required heater energy values.

HVAC heating, ventilating and air conditioning.

at air temperatures ranging from 5 to 208C with and

without a heated seat. They reported that the use of a
heated seat increased overall thermal sensation at air
temperatures of 5, 10 and 158C, but not at 208C. In the
present study, overall thermal sensation was increased
not only at To,room 108C but also at 208C (Figure
3b). The result obtained at 208C may be attributable to
the seat temperatures employed. The seat temperatures
in their experiment were adjusted by the participants
themselves. In both their and the present experiments,
overall thermal sensation was higher than 0 neutral
when no additional heating device was used at 208C. In
such environments, the participants felt neither cool
nor cold, and so the heated seat might not have been
strongly heated in their experiment. It is thus supposed
that the heated seat did not increase the overall
thermal sensation in their experiment at 208C.
The foot heater increased overall thermal sensation signicantly at To,room 108C (Figure 3a).
Conversely, no signicant increase was observed at
To,room 208C (Figure 3b). Matsumoto and Matsui
(2007, 2008) conducted subjective experiments at air
temperatures ranging from 15 to 308C with/without
sole heating at 298C. They reported that sole heating
increased the overall thermal sensation more when the
air temperature was higher. This contradiction might
have been caused by dierences in the heating
apparatus. While the whole foot and lower leg were
heated in the present experiment, only the sole was
heated in their experiment. Matsuo et al. (2006)
pointed out that thermal sensation in the lower body
is more sensitive when air temperature is lower and
skin temperatures in the anterior leg are closely
correlated with thermal sensation in the lower body.
These results indicate that heating the leg is eective
at improving overall thermal sensation in cool
environments. Thus, heating of the lower leg might
have improved overall thermal sensation at To,room
10 in the present study.

A signicant increase in overall thermal comfort

was observed when the heated seat was used at
To,room 10 (Figure 4a). Brooks and Parsons (1999)
also reported that overall thermal comfort was
improved when they used a heated seat at 5 and 108C.
These results indicate that heated seats are eective at
improving thermal comfort in cool environments.
Conversely, the heated seat in the current study did not
increase overall thermal comfort at To,room 208C
(Figure 4b). When no additional heating device was
used at 208C, overall thermal sensation was higher
than 0 neutral and overall comfort was between
neutral and slightly comfortable. In addition,
overall thermal comfort was highest in these
conditions. These results suggest that environments
that do not include an additional heating device are
suitable at 208C, whereas environments containing a
heated seat at this temperature are uncomfortable
because it is too warm. Thermal comfort was also
improved by the use of a foot heater at To,room 10
(Figure 4a), although it was not improved by the use of
a foot heater at To,room 208C (Figure 4b). It is
supposed that these results were produced by the same
mechanism as was described for the heated seat; i.e.
when overall thermal sensation was higher than 0
neutral, foot heating did not improve thermal
comfort.
4.2. Room operative temperature at which participants
feel a neutral overall thermal sensation
According to the predicted mean vote index (Fanger
1970, International Organization for Standardization
1994), overall thermal sensation is proportional to the
operative temperature, except in hot environments. In
the present study, the overall thermal sensation at
To,room 10 was always below 0 neutral, and those
at To,room 20 were between 0 neutral and 1
slightly warm. The optimal To,room was thus
calculated by linear interpolation.
Cengiz and Babalik (2007) investigated the eects
of three dierent seat cover materials, velvet, jacquard
and microbre, on thermal comfort and reported that
there was negligible dierence in thermal sensation and
objective measurement result between the three seats.
Holmer et al. (1995) reported that a seat ventilation
system, which cooled the seat, allowed for 1.51.98C
higher ambient conditions for unchanged general
thermal sensation. These results indicate that the seat
temperature might be important to change optimal
To,room.
Brooks and Parsons (1999) reported that a heated
seat was able to decrease neutral air temperatures by
nearly 58C. Zhang et al. (2007) also pointed out that a
heated seat was able to expand the 90% satised

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Ergonomics
range of room temperatures by 5.58C in a downwards
direction. These studies showed a larger eect of
heated seats than the present study (38C). In the
experiment by Brooks and Parsons, the seat
temperatures were adjusted by the participants
themselves. In the study by Zhang et al. the heater
power of the heated seat was larger when the room
temperature was lower. Thus, the seat temperatures in
these two studies might have been higher than that in
the present study: 378C, when the room temperature
was low. This phenomenon might have caused the
observed dierences in the eects of heated seats. In
reality, although the overall thermal sensations
observed in the Brooks and Parsons study and the
present study were almost the same (cool) when no
heated seat was used at 108C, overall thermal sensation
was higher in Brooks and Parsons study (higher than
neutral) than that in the present study (between cool
and slightly cool) when a heated seat was used. These
results suggest that the seat temperature in their study
was higher than that in the present study, when room
temperature was 108C. On the whole, heated seats are
able to decrease the optimal room temperature by at
least 38C, and can decrease it by more depending on
the seat temperature.
Matsumoto and Matsui (2007, 2008) reported that
the room temperature at which participants felt a
neutral thermal sensation could be decreased by 28C by
sole heating. In the present study, the foot heater
decreased the optimal room temperature by about 38C,
which was a larger decrease than was found in their
study. This dierence might have resulted from the
dierence in the size of the heating area. Stevens et al.
(1974) provided thermal stimulation using electric
lamps for various body parts. They revealed that
feelings of warmth increased as the heated area was
extended. In the experiments by Matsumoto and
Matsui, only the sole was heated, while the whole
foot and lower leg were heated in the present study.
Moreover, as described above, it is supposed that
heating of the leg was eective at improving overall
thermal sensation in cool environments (Matsuo et al.
2006). These ndings might have caused the larger
eect detected in the present study. In addition, since
females tend to feel discomfort in their lower body
(Hashiguchi et al. 2010) the eects might be even larger
in females.
In the present study, the optimal To,room was
decreased by about 38C with the use of a heated seat
and by 38C with the use of a foot heater. The optimal
To,room was decreased by about 68C when both devices
were used. The sum of the eects of each device
(38C 38C) was identical to the eect achieved by
using both devices (68C). This result was consistent
with the results for overall thermal sensation; i.e.

697

signicant main eects of the heated seat and foot

heater were observed but no interaction of these
factors was observed (Figure 3a). This phenomenon
indicates that the eects of the heated seat and foot
heater were independent of each other and, when using
both devices, the eects of each device were additive.
4.3. Heater energy required in vehicles in steady
state conditions
In the present study, Fujitas parameters (Fujita 2005)
were used to calculate the energy required by the
HVAC system. Kaynakli and Kilic (2005) measured
room air temperature and inner surface temperature in
a sedan parked in a climate chamber. As a result, the
mean interior surface temperature was about 17.58C
when the outdoor temperature was 08C and room air
temperature was about 278C. The mean inner surface
temperature as calculated by Equations (2) and (5)
with Fujitas parameter in Kaynaklis experimental
conditions was 18.78C. The dierence between the
measured and calculated values was small. Therefore,
it was supposed that Fujitas parameters were suitable
for calculating the energy required by the HVAC
system.
Lustbader (2005) investigated the eects of seat
ventilation, which cooled the seat by taking in ambient
air inside the seat, on the amount of cooling energy
required in vehicles using a mock-up vehicle in summer
conditions. He reported that the seat ventilation
increased the air temperature at which the vehicle
occupants felt comfortable by 18C. From this result, he
estimated that the cooling energy required by the air
conditioning system could be reduced by 4%. In the
present study, the heated seat reduced total heater
energy by 330 W, which corresponded to 15% when
the outdoor temperature was 08C. Some of this
dierence came from the dierence in the calculation
conditions. However, the main dierence was due to
the diering eects of the ventilated seat and heated
seat. In the present study, the eect of the heated seat
was 38C, which was three times higher than the eect
of his ventilated seat (18C). Brooks and Parsons (1999)
and Zhang et al. (2007) reported even larger eects for
their heated seats, which decreased the neutral air
temperature by around 58C. According to their results,
an even greater energy reduction could be realised.
Zhang et al. (2010) conducted subjective
experiments using a conductive hand warmer and a
radiant foot warmer. They simulated the energy
consumption of conventional HVAC systems and
HVAC systems with additional heaters in oce
buildings in three cities. They reported that the energy
savings achieved by using the additional heaters
ranged from 22 to 65% in winter, depending on the

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698

H. Oi et al.

calculation conditions. In the present study, the energy

saved by using the foot heater was 230 W, which
corresponded to 10% when the outdoor temperature
was 08C. Although, it is dicult to directly compare
these two results, the dierence in the results might
have occurred due to the dierence in the heat loads of
buildings and vehicles, outdoor temperatures, hand
heating conditions.
When both the heated seat and foot heater were
used, the energy saving was 560 W, which corresponded to 25% when the outdoor temperature was
08C. This means that a greater eect is expected when
using both devices than when only using one of the
devices. In a comparison between the heated seat and
foot heater, the heated seat was more eective at
reducing total heater energy consumption than the
foot heater. This is because the heated seat used less
energy than the foot heater while its ability to decrease
the neutral To,room was the same as that of the foot
heater. When the radiant foot heater is applied to an
actual vehicle, its energy consumption might vary
depending on the shape of the foot space and the
thermal insulation on the rear side of the heater.
However, the energy consumption of the foot heater
was six times higher than that of the heated seat in the
present study. This indicates that heated seats are more
eective at reducing total heater energy consumption
in vehicles than foot heaters.
5.

Conclusion

The eects of heated seats and foot heaters on thermal

comfort and heater energy consumption in vehicles
were investigated. The main ndings were as follows:
(1) Heated seats and foot heaters in vehicles can
eectively improve the occupants thermal
sensation and comfort in cool environments.
(2) The room operative temperature at which the
occupants felt a neutral overall thermal
sensation was decreased by about 38C by using
a heated seat (seat surface temperature 378C)
or foot heater (foot operative temperature
room operative temperature 208C) and by
about 68C when both devices were used.
(3) Heated seats and foot heaters can reduce total
heater energy consumption in vehicles.

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