Qingping Zhang

Classroom window views are important components of the visual environment in university buildings, yet campus-scale assessment remains largely manual. This study developed an AI-assisted method for the relative screening of outdoor visual content in classroom window views by integrating DeepLabV3+ semantic segmentation with MiDaS monocular relative depth estimation. The dataset comprised 812 standardized window view images from four university buildings in Nanjing, China. Five visual proxy metrics—Visible Vegetation Ratio, Framed Sky Visibility, Relative Visual Depth, Hard Facade Ratio, and Trunk Exposure Ratio—were combined into a Composite Screening Score (CSS). The segmentation model achieved a mean intersection over union of 0.76 on an independent test set. In a range-stratified sample of 80 images, CSS was strongly associated with the mean ratings of five experts judging restorative visual potential from the photographs (Spearman’s ρ = 0.76, p < 0.001). The method supports interpretable relative ranking, metric-specific diagnosis, preliminary screening, and prioritization of on-site inspections in university building management.

Rapid urbanization increasingly threatens urban cultural heritage. While buffer zones are crucial for mitigating external pressures, conventional delineation relies on value-based or geometric rules, overlooking parcel-scale heterogeneous externalities. This study addresses this gap by proposing a parcel-based, risk–value coupling framework that delineates heritage buffer zones and supports differentiated land-use regulations. In this study, “negative-impact risk” is operationalized as a composite proxy of cumulative urban development pressures that may increase the likelihood and potential severity of adverse externalities on heritage settings, rather than a full hazard–exposure–vulnerability risk model. And we construct a multi-source indicator system with 12 parcel-level indicators to characterize negative impact risk and heritage value, and adopt a hybrid weighting strategy integrating an AHP, entropy weighting, and game-theoretic combination to reconcile expert judgement and data-driven heterogeneity. To address uncertainty in multi-criteria evaluation, a cloud model maps indicator sets into discrete management levels. The framework is applied to the Pingjiang Historic District in Suzhou, China, using 121 land parcels as decision units. Results show that the approach identifies spatial risk–value patterns and delineates an operational buffer prioritizing parcels with elevated coupled scores. Compared with a fixed-distance buffer, it achieves greater coverage of high-risk parcels while maintaining a smaller regulatory scope. The parcel classification is then translated into tiered planning controls, including development intensity limits, land-use rules, and monitoring priorities. The framework integrates risk management and heritage conservation to support uncertainty-aware, proactive, and transferable zoning decisions.

Rapid urban development has exacerbated heat events. Vulnerable groups, due to deficiencies in physical functions and social support, often face higher health risks and survival pressures during heat events. Effectively identifying and assessing the heat risks they face and developing effective management strategies still pose many challenges. This study develops a heat risk assessment model based on the “hazard–accessibility–vulnerability” framework, incorporating circuit theory modeling to assess the health benefits of ventilation corridors for vulnerable populations and identifying high-temperature risk areas to better support science-based planning. The results show the following: (1) The urban heat island levels in the study area were classified based on the mean-standard deviation method, identifying that high-level heat islands account for 14.2% of the total area, with surface temperatures in urban built-up areas being significantly higher than in rural areas. (2) Based on the circuit theory model, 54 ventilation corridors were identified and 12 major corridors and 42 minor corridors were determined. (3) Based on the thermal risk assessment model, five residential areas covering 1.45 km² were identified as having the highest thermal risk, and 5.68 km² of residential areas had an imbalance between the ventilation demand and ventilation supply for vulnerable populations. This study innovatively assesses the health benefits of urban ventilation corridors from a social equity perspective and proposes urban renewal strategies such as introducing ventilation corridors, adjusting building layouts, enhancing green infrastructure, and promoting cooling technologies, offering new insights for future research.

The Jiangnan Garden Rockery heritage site holds the largest number and highest aesthetic value of rockery among China’s classical gardens. However, its surface has significantly deteriorated. To support conservation planning, this study developed a quantitative evaluation system using a cloud model to enhance reliability and accuracy.. The system classifies deterioration into five levels and was validated through on-site surveys. Digital modelling of artificial rockery provided the ratio of deteriorated to total surface area, indicating Level 3 deterioration. Comparative experiments used ultrasonic velocity and Leeb hardness as degradation indicators. Based on existing standards and prior research, classification criteria for stone cultural relic deterioration were established. Measurements taken from degraded surfaces matched Grade III deterioration. Consistent results over three sets of experiments verified the evaluation system’s scientific validity.

The rockeries of classical Chinese gardens are masterpieces of classical Chinese garden art and form a key element of garden heritage. Consequently, a quantitative study of “rockery shadows” is of considerable importance to the study of “rockery forms.” In this study, we selected the representative North Rockery in Zhanyuan Garden of Nanjing and Ruiyunfeng, Guanyunfeng, and Yulinglong as the objects of the study. This study aims to explore the shadow images of rockeries using image extraction and targeted quantitative analysis methods. Macroscopically, the overall shape of rockery shadows was described using fractal dimensions; microscopically, the aspect ratio, angle, and refinement indexes of each shadow based on each observation angle of the rockery were measured using the PAT-GEOM plug-in in ImageJ software. SPSS Statistics was used for the normal distribution test of the angular distribution data. Consequently, the shadow data of the North Rockery in Zhanyuan Garden and Ruiyunfeng, Guanyunfeng, and Yulinglong, respectively, were analyzed and compared, and four rockery-shadow laws were derived. Finally, the results were applied to the design of the rockery morphological translation based on quantitative analysis of the shadows. The approach presented here will enhance landscape design, support environmental planning, and preserve cultural heritage.

Rockeries have a complex and significant role in classical Chinese garden designs. They present distinct artistic characteristics and spatial hierarchies and are crucial to garden heritage conservation. Craftsmanship in rockery construction is a significant part of China’s intangible cultural heritage. Rockeries are primarily composed of naturally occurring rocks chosen for their uniqueness and complex shapes and textures. These rocks present challenges as nonstandard elements within the traditional Chinese garden context, as it is not easy to depict them using conventional blueprints and models. This complicates the design, adjustment, display, and construction of rockeries, which lacks tangible bases for reference. Consequently, the preservation and restoration of garden rockeries is difficult, and the perpetuation and dissemination of rockery construction skills face numerous challenges. This study introduces a method that combines laser scanning and photographic measurements to digitize precisely nonstandard elements of rockery stones. This approach presents an innovative design and construction workflow for rockeries by refining design processes, showcasing real effects, and resolving assembly issues. The results demonstrate that the combination of three-dimensional laser scanning and close-range photogrammetry can accurately replicate the complex forms and textures of these nonstandard elements. The stone coding and digital management system devised based on the logic of construction effectively satisfies the design and building requirements of rockeries. Correspondingly, the proposed digital construction workflow enhances the accuracy of rockery design, presentation, and evaluation, thereby contributing to the protection and restoration of rockery heritage sites and the transmission of rockery construction techniques.