A worldwide approach to the LESO-QSV method for assessing the visual impacts of solar systems in urban environments

[Display omitted] •Assessment of visual impacts of solar systems in urban environments.•Evaluation of worldwide city surfaces’ “criticity” to set integration quality.•A more explicit definition of “criticity” was proposed to the LESO-QSV method.•The definitions of the context sensitivity classification levels were expanded.•The accessibility of the LESO-QSV method to worldwide contexts was refined. Architectural integration quality is the result of coherent photovoltaic (PV) building integration, which considers functional, constructive, and formal/aesthetics aspects. Functional and constructive features are clear to evaluate. However, when it comes to aesthetics, the evaluation of integration quality becomes descriptive and subjective. Some studies attempt to ease this subjectivity, such as the LESO-QSV (for Laboratoire d’Energie SOlaire – Qualité-Sensibilité-Visibilité) method recently published in this journal, which helps authorities to set and implement local integration quality acceptability requirements. It objectivizes the notion of architectural integration quality and the innovative concept of “criticity” of city surfaces is set through a matrix. The “criticity” grid, as defined by Munari Probst and Roecker (2019), combines a city surface’s visibility with its urban/architectural context sensitivity. The “criticity” grid is then related to the need for architectural integration quality. This paper has carried out the method’s application in two sunbelt countries (Brazil and Singapore). Results have shown that the classification of the case studies’ context sensitivity level through the original “criticity” definition was unclear; therefore, a more explicit definition of “criticity” was proposed. The descriptions of the context sensitivity classification levels were increased to enable the LESO-QSV method to be useful in the most variable, worldwide urban and architectural contexts.