Using Isovist Application to Explore Visibility Area of Hospital Inpatient Ward

This paper reports an on-going project that explores the use of digital application to study human field of view. The focus of discussion is to study the patients' visual experience, in relation to the arrangement of interior elements in patients' ward. The physical qualities of the environment can influence the healing process of the patient. Typical layout of interior elements often fails to provide visual stimulus that could support the healing process of the. This study explores the experience of seeing by simulating the hospital ward setting into 3D model using isovist analysis. Isovist is used to represent the experience of seeing by the patient from particular point of view and also to represent the object and surfaces that are being seen. Isovist has a function to show us the boundary of the visible areas, which can reveal which elements can and cannot seen by the patient. Isovist provides a way to understand the experience of seeing and being seen by visualizing the visibility area through three dimensional modelling. This study suggests the possibility to study human field of view to support the design of architecture for health.