This paper addresses the need to include the radiation nonuniformity commonly found in indoor environments in body heat loss calculations. An approach based on representing the actual radiant environment with an equivalent nonuniform spherical enclosure about the body is presented. This equivalent enclosure maintains the radiant heterogeneity of the actual environment but simplifies the calculations with respect to body radiant heat exchange. Equations to generate the equivalent enclosure and equations describing the heat exchange between the body and this enclosure are derived. The resulting equations allow the radiant exchange between individual body segments and the environment to be determined. The equations are developed to be appropriate for computer rather than hand calculations. Applications and limitations of the method are discussed.

Units: SI