Air Conditioning

Synonyms / Other Terms Used

Air Conditioning System, Air-conditioned, Air Conditioner, Cooling

Category

Lodging, Tourism, Travel

Message / Function

To indicate an appliance for regulating the room temperature and to indicate a room or vehicle that is air-conditioned

 

	Source	Description
C)	Scheiber	Liquid-in-glass thermometer with scale, sun and ice crystal symbols on the right
B)	Scheiber	Liquid-in-glass thermometer with scale, sun and ice crystal symbols on the right
	ON Testdesign	Liquid-in-glass thermometer with scale, sun and ice crystal symbols on the right, arrow pointing towards thermometer
	ON Testdesign	Perspective view of rectangular frame penetrated by three arrows, sun and ice crystal symbols on the right
	ON Testdesign	Perspective view of rectangular frame penetrated by three arrows, liquid-in-glass thermometer with triangular control on the right
	Pierce	Liquid-in-glass thermometer with scale, dash, arrow pointing upwards above, arrow pointing downwards below
A)	ÖNORM A 3011	Liquid-in-glass thermometer with scale, dash, arrow pointing upwards above, arrow pointing downwards below
	ON Testdesign	Liquid-in-glass thermometer with scale, arrow pointing downwards, dash at arrow head
	ON Testdesign	Liquid-in-glass thermometer with triangular control
	ON Testdesign	Rectangle with rounded corners, three horizontal lines and sun and ice crystal symbols inside
	ON Testdesign	Rectangle with three horizontal lines, extension with sun and ice crystal symbols below
	ON Testdesign	Sun symbol, filled isosceles right triangle with symbolic ice crystal
	ON Testdesign	Filled isosceles right triangle with sun symbol, symbolic ice crystal
*)	Unknown	Sun symbol and symbolic ice crystal separated by diagonal line
	UIC 413	Symbolic sun above and symbolic ice crystal below, separated by horizontal line
	CNIS	Symbolic sun above and symbolic ice crystal below, separated by horizontal line
*)	ÖBB H	Symbolic ice crystal and sun, arranged horizontally
*)	Dreyfuss	Symbolic ice crystal merged with symbolic sun
	Picto'grafics	Symbolic snow flake or ice crystal
	Kapitzki	Symbolic snow flake or ice crystal
	ON Testdesign	Symbolic snow flake or ice crystal
	Tern	Symbolic snow flake or ice crystal
	ON Testdesign	Symbolic snow flake or ice crystal
	Hora	Symbolic snow flake or ice crystal
	ISO 7000	Symbolic snow flake or ice crystal
	Liebherr	Symbolic ice crystal (asterisk)
	Liebherr	Three symbolic ice crystals (asterisks) differing in size
	BTA 1989	Circle with three vertically aligned isosceles trapezoids inside
*)	ÖBB H	Fan with lines indicating movement
	e.g. VW	Letters AC

Discussion

Based on some conventions and due to standardization of graphical symbols for use on equipment in ISO 7000, the use of a symbolic ice crystal is quite common for indicating Air Conditioning, but this cannot be seen as an established visual stereotype. We included similar symbol variants intended for other messages like the Tern symbol TS2960 Ice or Snow to be used for traffic signs, or the symbol for Cold Storage by Kapitzki as examples, and the Thermostat pictogram from Pierce in the table above does not explicitly stand for Air Conditioning.

There is some test data available:

Initiated by the Austrian Railways, the four variants marked as *) in the table above were examined on basis of a Comprehension Test (Brugger, 1996). Not a single design was understood well with comprehension scores between 25 and 30. If the answers Fan and Ventilation would have been categorized as Correct understanding of the symbol is likely, the variant displaying a fan with lines indicating movement would have reached a comprehension score of 64.2.

Following this study the Austrian Standards Institute attempted to develop a comprehensable pictogram for Air Conditioning. Several variants were designed and fourteen of these subjected to a Comprehensibility Estimation test (Brugger, 1999). Variants showing just a symbolic ice crystal or snow flake were judged as least comprehensable, while combinations with a symbolic sun were rated somewhat better and results were almost identical to previous outcomes. The test design showing a rotated version of the ISO 7000 symbol reached the lowest score. Designs combining elements like a thermometer, ice crystal and sun, or the perspective view of rectangular frame penetrated by three arrows were seen as best solutions, but all scores were insufficient.

In a subsequent Comprehension Test (Brugger, 2000), the three symbols labeled A) to C) were checked providing the context information that one may encounter these symbols in a hotel brochure. A pictogram derived from a variant by Pierce for Thermostat, labeled A) above, performed best with a score of 56.9, but still elicited a number of wrong responses like Meteorological Station, Average Temperature, Min/Max Temperature and even Elevator! With scores of 21.6 and 35.3 for variants B) and C) comprehensibility again was unsatisfactory. Examples of wrong answers registered are: Open all year, Summer and Winter Season, Weather Info, Beautiful plus Snow Guaranteed, Climate at the Destination, and Snowfall at Night.

All in all, in these tests none of the graphical symbols tested could meet comprehensibility requirements defined.

Tests of pictograms of referent Air Conditioning

Brugger: Ch. (1996): Verständnistest UIC Kodex Merkblatt 413. Report to ÖBB GD 02 (Austrian Railways), Vienna, March 1996.

Brugger: Ch. (1999): Verständnisschätzungen - Projekt 1999. Report to the Austrian Standards Institute dated December 1999.

Brugger: Ch. (2000): Verständlichkeitstest ON 2000. Report to the Austrian Standards Institute (ON) dated November 2000, Vienna.

 

Updated 2023-12-03 by Ch.Brugger