A Simple Pedestrian Simulator Using Node-Edge Graphs for Floorplan Models

Some simulation environments may wish to evaluate effects on flow and movement, such as in a pedestrian simulation. Analysis of the flow is particularly useful when the map in which the flow occurs is modeled as a node-edge graph. I create a simple pedestrian simulation in which pedestrian movement occurs in a node-edge graph and the pedestrians direct themselves towards an “escape” node as their goal. The node-edge graph allows designers to analyze the performance results in terms of number of nodes and connectivity and to run trials in layouts created by random graph generators. I base pedestrian behavior in the simulation on physics-based models developed in other pedestrian simulations. The result is an extremely simple pedestrian simulation that allows the user to estimate the effect of unevenly-distributed crowds, floorplan size, and number of pedestrians on escape time. Furthermore, the simulation can be augmented with different methods of providing instructions to pedestrians to see the effect of those instructions on escape time. The focus on simplicity allows for quick analysis and extension as well as easy integration with other simulations.