Louver

For other uses, see Louvre (disambiguation).
Type of louver in concept
Louver Used in a Stevenson screen
Louvered cupola bell house

A louver (American English) or louvre (English) is a window blind or shutter with horizontal slats that are angled to admit light and air, but to keep out rain and direct sunshine. The angle of the slats may be adjustable, usually in blinds and windows, or fixed.[1]

History

Louvers originated in the Middle Ages as lantern-like constructions in wood that were fitted on top of roof holes in large kitchens to allow ventilation while keeping out rain and snow. They were originally rather crude constructions consisting merely of a barrel. Later they evolved into more elaborate designs made of pottery, taking the shape of faces where the smoke and steam from cooking would pour out through the eyes and mouth, or into constructions that were more like modern louvers, with slats that could be opened or closed by pulling on a string.[2]

Construction

Modern louvers are often made of aluminium, metal, wood, or glass. They may be opened and closed with a metal lever, pulleys, or through motorized operators.[3]

Jalousies

Often used interchangeably by mistake, the key difference between louvers and jalousies is that louvers are fixed position. Jalousies are installed within a movable adjustable mechanism which positions all jalousies into any parallel position with respect to each other. [4]

Use

In architecture

Louvers are rarely seen as primary design elements in the language of modern architecture, but rather simply a technical device.

Some modern louver systems serve to improve indoor daylighting. Fixed mirrored louver systems can limit glare and of redirect diffuse light. Such louvers may be integrated in between two panes of double glazing.[5]

In industrial facilities such as steel foundries and power plants, louvers are very common. They are utilized for natural ventilation and temperature control.

In infrastructure

Louvers may be used as a type of flood opening, usually covered by one or more moving flaps. They are designed to allow floodwaters to enter and leave the building, equalizing hydrostatic pressure on the walls and mitigating structural damage due to flooding.

In transportation

Louvers are used as semi-passive means of thermal control on spacecraft as well.[6] They are also available as an accessory for some automobiles.

Louvers may also be used on traffic light lenses to prevent traffic from seeing the wrong traffic signal.

Examples

There are examples of architects who use louvres as part of the overall aesthetic effect of their buildings. The most well-known example is Finnish modernist architect Alvar Aalto who would create aesthetic effects in the facades of his buildings through the combination of different types and sizes of louvers, some fixed some moveable, and made mostly from wood (e.g., the various buildings of the Helsinki University of Technology). A second example, taking influence from Aalto, is the second-generation modernist architect Juha Leiviskä.

See also

Look up louver in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

References

Notes
  1. ↑ "Definition from "The Free Dictionary"". Retrieved 2 March 2014.
  2. ↑ Henisch (1976), pp. 96–97.
  3. ↑ "Louver from "Encyclopedia Britannica"". Encyclopedia Britannica. Retrieved 2 March 2014.
  4. ↑ Architectural Terms & Definitions Textbook
  5. ↑ Dariusz Heim and Kamil Kieszkowski: Shading Devices Designed to Achieve the Desired Quality of Internal Daylight Environment, PLEA2006 - The 23rd Conference on Passive and Low Energy Architecture, Geneva, Switzerland, 6–8 September 2006
  6. ↑ http://www.esa.int/Our_Activities/Space_Science/Rosetta/Frequently_asked_questions "The system devised for Rosetta employs several new techniques, including the installation of louvres over the radiators, to keep spacecraft hardware at proper operating temperatures"
Bibliography
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