Modeling the design of urban fabric with solar rights considerations

A model for the design of urban grids and fabric with solar rights consideration taken into account is presented. The model allows the generation and evaluation of the building configurations, preserving the solar rights of each neighboring building, as well as the open spaces among them. The model presents a nomogram of the maximum available volume in which it is possible to build without violating the solar rights of any existing building, as well as the designed one. This volume is determined by two envelopes; the "Solar Rights Envelope" and the "Solar Collection Envelope" that are defined in this paper. We call this volume the "Solar Volume". The nomogram of the solar volume allows the determination of the preferred urban street orientation, proportion, and geometry to assure solar rights to each building and to the pedestrian sidewalks, in winter, as well as shading them in summer. The method is demonstrated by a case study. The results show that it is possible to achieve a high  urban  density  quarter  without  violating  solar rights.