ABSTRACT
The outdoor environment is characterised by wide spatial and temporal variations of meteorological variables, hence the need to define suitable models and indices to assess the outdoor thermal comfort. Such models have to take into account the heat transfer between the human body and the surroundings, as well as the regulation mechanisms taking place in the body in response to the environmental conditions. This chapter presents some indices used to evaluate thermal comfort in the outdoor environment, and then describes the main software tools available to calculate urban microclimate and the most relevant comfort indices.
