Advanced occupant behavioural features of the building-EXODUS evacuation model

The purpose of this paper is to describe and demonstrate some of the advanced behavioral features currently being developed for the building-EXODUS evacuation model. These advanced features involve the ability to specify roles for particular individuals during the evacuation. With these enhancements to the Behavioral Sub model of building-EXODUS, it is possible to include a number of procedural and behavioral aspects previously ignored in evacuation simulations. These include the behavioral aspect of group bonding, the procedural aspects involved with the role of the fire warden and rescue operations undertaken by the fire services. The importance of these enhancements are discussed and demonstrated through three simple simulations.

Advanced occupant behavioural features of the building - Exodus evacuation model

The purpose of this paper is to describe and demonstrate some of the advanced behavioural features currently being developed for the building-EXODUS evacuation model. These advanced features involve the ability to specify roles for particular individuals during the evacuation. With these enhancements to the Behavioural Submodel of building-EXODUS, it is possible to include a number of procedural and behavioural aspects previously ignored in evacuation simulations. These include the behavioural aspect of group bonding, the procedural aspects involved with the role of the fire warden and rescue operations undertaken by the fire services. The importance of these enhancements are discussed and demonstrated through three simple simulations.

The EXODUS evacuation model applied to building evacuation scenarios

The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the potential of the EXODUS evacuation model in building environments. The latest PC/workstation version of EXODUS is described and is also applied to a large hypothetical supermarket/restaurant complex measuring 50 m x 40 m. A range of scenarios is presented where population characteristics (such as size, individual travel speeds, and individual response times), and enclosure configuration characteristics (such as number of exits, size of exits, and opening times of exits) are varied. The results demonstrate a wide range of occupant behavior including overtaking, queuing, redirection, and conflict avoidance. Evacuation performance is measured by a number of model predicted parameters including individual exit flow rates, overall evacuation flow rates, total evacuation time, average evacuation time per occupant, average travel distance, and average wait time. The simulations highlight the profound impact that variations in individual travel speeds and occupant response times have in determining the overall evacuation performance.

The Exodus evacuation model applied to building evacuation scenarios

The purpose of this paper is to demonstrate the potential of the EXODUS evacuation model in building environments. The latest PC/workstation version of EXODUS is described and is also applied to a large hypothetical supermarket/restaurant complex measuring 50 m x 40 m. A range of scenarios is presented where population characteristics (such as size, individual travel speeds, and individual response times), and enclosure configuration characteristics (such as number of exits, size of exits, and opening times of exits) are varied. The results demonstrate a wide range of occupant behavior including overtaking, queuing, redirection, and conflict avoidance. Evacuation performance is measured by a number of model predicted parameters including individual exit flow rates, overall evacuation flow rates, total evacuation time, average evacuation time per occupant, average travel distance, and average wait time. The simulations highlight the profound impact that variations in individual travel speeds and occupant response times have in determining the overall evacuation performance. 1. Jin, T., and Yamada T., "Experimental Study of Human Behavior in Smoke Filled Corridors," Proceedings of The Second International Symposium on Fire Safety Science, 1988, pp. 511-519. 2. Galea, E.R., and Galparsoro, J.M.P., "EXODUS: An Evacuation Model for Mass Transport Vehicles," UK CAA Paper 93006 ISBN 086039 543X, CAA London, 1993. 3. Galea, E.R., and Galparsoro, J.M.P., "A Computer Based Simulation Model for the Prediction of Evacuation from Mass Transport Vehicles," Fire Safety Journal, Vol. 22, 1994, pp. 341-366. 4. Galea, E.R., Owen, M., and Lawrence, P., "Computer Modeling of Human Be havior in Aircraft Fire Accidents," to appear in the Proceedings of Combus tion Toxicology Symposium, CAMI, Oklahoma City, OK, 1995. 5. Kisko, T.M. and Francis, R.L., "EVACNET+: A Computer Program to Determine Optimal Building Evacuation Plans," Fire Safety Journal, Vol. 9, 1985, pp. 211-220. 6. Levin, B., "EXITT, A Simulation Model of Occupant Decisions and Actions in Residential Fires," Proceedings of The Second International Symposium on Fire Safety Science, 1988, pp. 561-570. 7. Fahy, R.F., "EXIT89: An Evacuation Model for High-Rise Buildings," Pro ceedings of The Third International Sym posium on Fire Safety Science, 1991, pp. 815-823. 8. Thompson, P.A., and Marchant, E.W., "A Computer Model for the Evacuation of Large Building Populations," Fire Safety Journal, Vol. 24, 1995, pp. 131-148. 9. Still, K., "New Computer System Can Predict Human Behavior Response to Building Fires," FIRE 84, 1993, pp. 40-41. 10. Ketchell, N., Cole, S.S., Webber, D.M., et.al., "The Egress Code for Human Move ment and Behavior in Emergency Evacu ations," Engineering for Crowd Safety (Smith, R.A., and Dickie, J.F., Eds.), Elsevier, 1993, pp. 361-370. 11. Takahashi, K., Tanaka, T. and Kose, S., "An Evacuation Model for Use in Fire Safety Design of Buildings," Proceedings of The Second International Symposium on Fire Safety Science, 1988, pp. 551- 560. 12. G2 Reference Manual, Version 3.0, Gensym Corporation, Cambridge, MA. 13. XVT Reference Manual, Version 3.0 XVT Software Inc., Boulder, CO. 14. Galea, E.R., "On the Field Modeling Approach to the Simulation of Enclosure Fires, Journal of Fire Protection Engineering, Vol. 1, No. 1, 1989, pp. 11-22. 15. Purser, D.A., "Toxicity Assessment of Combustion Products," SFPE Handbook of Fire Protection Engineering, National Fire Protection Association, Quincy, MA, pp. 1-200 - 1-245, 1988. 16. Hankin, B.D., and Wright, R.A., "Pas senger Flows in Subways," Operational Research Quarterly, Vol. 9, 1958, pp. 81-88. 17. HMSO, The Building Regulations 1991 - Approved Document B, section B 1 (1992 edition), HMSO publications, London, pp. 9-40. 18. Polus A., Schofer, J.L., and Ushpiz, A., "Pedestrian Flow and Level of Service," Journal of Transportation Engineering, Vol. 109, 1983, pp. 46-47. 19. Muir, H., Marrison, C., and Evans, A., "Aircraft Evacuations: the Effect of Passenger Motivation and Cabin Con figuration Adjacent to the Exit," CAA Paper 89019, ISBN 0 86039 406 9, 1989. 20. Muir, H., Private communication to appear as a CAA report, 1996.

SMARTFIRE: an intelligent CFD-based fire model

This paper describes a project aimed at making Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD) based fire simulation accessible to members of the fire safety engineering community. Over the past few years, the practise of CFD based fire simulation has begun the transition from the confines of the research laboratory to the desk of the fire safety engineer. To a certain extent, this move has been driven by the demands of performance based building codes. However, while CFD modelling has many benefits over other forms of fire simulation, it requires a great deal of expertise on the user’s part to obtain reasonable simulation results. The project described in this paper, SMARTFIRE, aims to relieve some of this dependence on expertise so that users are less concerned with the details of CFD analysis and can concentrate on results. This aim is achieved by the use of an expert system component as part of the software suite which takes some of the expertise burden away from the user. SMARTFIRE also makes use of the latest developments in CFD technology in order to make the CFD analysis more efficient. This paper describes design considerations of the SMARTFIRE software, emphasising its open architecture, CFD engine and knowledge based systems.

Further validation of the buildingEXODUS evacuation model using the Tsukuba dataset

In this paper, the buildingEXODUS (V1.1) evacuation model is described and discussed and attempts at qualitative and quantitative model validation are presented. The data set used for the validation is the Tsukuba pavilion evacuation data. This data set is of particular interest as the evacuation was influenced by external conditions, namely inclement weather. As part of the validation exercise, the sensitivity of the buildingEXODUS predictions to a range of variables and conditions is examined, including; exit flow capacity, occupant response times and the impact of external conditions on the developing evacuation. The buildingEXODUS evacuation model was found to be able to produce good qualitative and quantitative agreement with the experimental data.

Validation of the buildingEXODUS Evacuation Model

In this paper, the buildingEXODUS (V1.1) evacuation model is described and discussed and attempts at qualitative and quantitative model validation are presented. The data sets used for validation are the Stapelfeldt and Milburn House evacuation data. As part of the validation exercise, the sensitivity of the buildingEXODUS predictions to a range of variables is examined, including: occupant drive, occupant location, exit flow capacity, exit size, occupant response times and geometry definition. An important consideration that has been highlighted by this work is that any validation exercise must be scrutinised to identify both the results generated and the considerations and assumptions on which they are based. During the course of the validation exercise, both data sets were found to be less than ideal for the purpose of validating complex evacuation models. However, the buildingEXODUS evacuation model was found to be able to produce reasonable qualitative and quantitative agreement with the experimental data.

SMARTFIRE: an intelligent CFD based fire model

This paper describes a project aimed at making Computational Fluid Dynamics (CFD)- based fire simulation accessible to members of the fire safety engineering community. Over the past few years, the practice of CFD-based fire simulation has begun the transition from the confines of the research laboratory to the desk of the fire safety engineer. To a certain extent, this move has been driven by the demands of performance based building codes. However, while CFD modeling has many benefits over other forms of fire simulation, it requires a great deal of expertise on the user’s part to obtain reasonable simulation results. The project described in this paper, SMARTFIRE, aims to relieve some of this dependence on expertise so that users are less concerned with the details of CFD analysis and can concentrate on results. This aim is achieved by the use of an expert system component as part of the software suite which takes some of the expertise burden away from the user. SMARTFIRE also makes use of the latest developments in CFD technology in order to make the CFD analysis more efficient. This paper describes design considerations of the SMARTFIRE software, emphasizing its open architecture, CFD engine and knowledge-based systems.

Extending the capabilities of the buildingEXODUS evacuation model to cater for hospital evacuations

This paper describes the extension of the building EXODUS evacuation model in order to: allow occupants to be assigned a limited set of tasks, display co-operation

The recovery mechanism of platinum group metals from catalytic converters in spent automotive exhaust systems

The recovery of platinum group metals (PGMs) from catalytic converters of spent exhaust systems is considered in this paper. To be cost-effective, recovery processes must be well over 90% efficient and so the optimisation of their operation is vital. Effective optimisation requires a sound understanding of the operation and the underlying process mechanisms. This paper focuses on pyrometallurgical recovery operations used and typified by the Johnson–Matthey process. Analysis of this process reveals that it cannot be simply explained by the gravity model that is normally assumed. The analysis reveals that the affinity of PGM particles for the melted collector metal is a key factor in the behaviour of the process. A rational explanation of the key issues that govern the process behaviour is proposed and shown to be consistent with available operational data. The results generated would be applicable to other similar processes.

Collector-metal behaviour in the recovery of platinum-group metals from catalytic converters

A commercial pyrometallurgical process for the extraction of platinum-group metals (PGM) from a feedstock slag was analysed with the use of a model based on computational fluid dynamics. The results of the modelling indicate that recovery depends on the behaviour of the collector phase. A possible method is proposed for estimation of the rate at which PGM particles in slag are absorbed into an iron collector droplet that falls through it. Nanoscale modelling techniques (for particle migration or capture) are combined with a diffusion-controlled mass-transfer model to determine the iron collector droplet size needed for >95% PGM recovery in a typical process bath (70 mm deep) in a realistic time-scale (<1 h). The results show that an iron droplet having a diameter in the range 0.1–0.3 mm gives good recovery (>90%) within a reasonable time. This finding is compatible with published experimental data. Pyrometallurgical processes similar to that investigated should be applicable to other types of waste that contain low levels of potentially valuable metals.

Distributed belief revision as applied within a descriptive model of jury deliberations

Belief revision is a well-research topic within AI. We argue that the new model of distributed belief revision as discussed here is suitable for general modelling of judicial decision making, along with extant approach as known from jury research. The new approach to belief revision is of general interest, whenever attitudes to information are to be simulated within a multi-agent environment with agents holding local beliefs yet by interaction with, and influencing, other agents who are deliberating collectively. In the approach proposed, it's the entire group of agents, not an external supervisor, who integrate the different opinions. This is achieved through an election mechanism, The principle of "priority to the incoming information" as known from AI models of belief revision are problematic, when applied to factfinding by a jury. The present approach incorporates a computable model for local belief revision, such that a principle of recoverability is adopted. By this principle, any previously held belief must belong to the current cognitive state if consistent with it. For the purposes of jury simulation such a model calls for refinement. Yet we claim, it constitutes a valid basis for an open system where other AI functionalities (or outer stiumuli) could attempt to handle other aspects of the deliberation which are more specifi to legal narrative, to argumentation in court, and then to the debate among the jurors.