Comparative study of SFPE and steering modes in Pathfinder to optimise evacuation routes

Abstract

This paper investigates the possibilities of using an agent-based evacuation model to analyse the formation of queues at the exits of enclosed spaces and the evacuation process of people. The aim is to investigate how the density of people in a crowd affects the safe movement of people and how the width, number, and location of exits affect evacuation time. The analysis was carried out using the Pathfinder evacuation model, which provides two modes to simulate the movement of people: steering and SFPE. An enclosed space of 20 m x 30 m was investigated. First, the differences between the modes of the evacuation model to simulate the movement of people were compared. Then, the steering mode with limited door flow was set and the effect of the width, number, and location of the exits with a total width of 4 m on the evacuation time was investigated. The results of this study highlight differences in the simulation of the movement of people according to the different modes and provide valuable information for the design of safe escape routes. Proper design of escape routes can prevent an adverse situation that could arise when evacuating a large number of people.