Clima 2007 Congress 10-14 June 2007, Helsinki, Finland Theme C: Intelligent building management C5 Sensors and Methods Manuscript A Sense Diary System for Intelligent Buildings W. Mao, D.J. Clements-Croome, *L. Mao, Z. Chen Intelligent Buildings Research Group The University of Reading Reading, UK *University of Manchester <w.mao@reading.ac.uk> Abstract: This paper presents a novel device called Sense Diary for intelligent buildings. To introduce the new device and its applied system, a brief review of sensor-based systems applied in buildings has been conducted, which is based on current literature and products. The aim of this review is to understand current research and development situation of sensor-based systems that have been developed for all kinds of buildings and their systems across the world, and to further identify specific research tasks for an UK government EPSRC funded project focusing on innovative solutions of building façade systems. For acquiring the knowledge of sensor-based systems for buildings, some target information sources have been subjectively chosen. According to the literature and products review, several key research tasks of a Sense Diary System have been identified and discussed. It is concluded that the proposed Sense Diary and its applied system have advantages in balancing well-being and energy efficiency in buildings. Keywords: sensor, sensor-based system, buildings, intelligent buildings Introduction This paper aims to introduce a novel sensor-based subjective opinion feedback system called Sense Diary for intelligent buildings. The initiative of this research was led by Clements-Croome (2004) and is being deployed through an IDCOP (Innovation in Design, Construction & Operation of Buildings for People) research project <http://www.idcop.soton.ac.uk/>, which is funded by the Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (EPSRC) in UK. The UK government EPSRC (2006) has been conducting a research programme called Sustainable Urban Environment (SUE) since 2001. The key drivers of the SUE programme are to improve the quality of life of UK citizens, to support the sustainable development of the UK economy and to meet the needs of users of EPSRC funded research in industry, commerce and the service sector. At current stage, the four areas with 12 research projects have been supported, including - Urban and Built Environment (3 projects); - Waste, Water and Land Management (4 projects); - Transport (4 projects); and - Metrics, Knowledge Management and Decision Making (2 projects). Among these research projects, the IDCOP research project aims to develop innovative solutions with respect to the maintenance and refurbishment of existing buildings, specifically the aim of the IDCOP consortium is to find new ways to improve the performance of building envelopes over the 1/9