Abstract
Abstract Purpose A crowd of pedestrians is a complex system in which individuals exhibit conflicting behavioural mechanisms leading to self-organisation phenomena. Computer models for the simulation of crowds represent a consolidated type of application, employed on a day-to-day basis to support designers and decision makers. Most state of the art models, however, generally do not consider the explicit representation of pedestrians aggregations (groups) and their implications on the overall system dynamics. This work is aimed at discussing a research effort systematically exploring the potential implication of the presence of groups of pedestrians in different situations (e.g. changing density, spatial configurations of the environment). Methods The paper describes an agent-based model encompassing both traditional individual motivations (i.e. tendency to stay away from other pedestrians while moving towards the goal) and an adaptive mechanism representing the influence of group presence in the simulated population. The mechanism is designed to preserve the cohesion of specific types of groups (e.g. families and friends) even in high density and turbulent situations. The model is tested in simplified scenarios to evaluate the implications of modelling choices and the presence of groups. Results The model produces results in tune with available evidences from the literature, both from the perspective of pedestrian flows and space utilisation, in scenarios not comprising groups; when groups are present, the model is able to preserve their cohesion even in challenging situations (i.e. high density, presence of a counterflow), and it produces interesting results in high density situations that call for further observations and experiments to gather empirical data. Conclusions The introduced adaptive model for group cohesion is effective in qualitatively reproducing group related phenomena and it stimulates further research efforts aimed at gathering empirical evidences, on one hand, and modelling efforts aimed at reproducing additional related phenomena (e.g. leader-follower movement patterns).
Highlights
Crowds of pedestrians are generally recognised as a form of complex system (Batty 2001): even without making a serious attempt of providing a formal definition of the term crowd, and adopting a simplistic and common sense intuitive notion of “(too) many people in little space” (Kruse 1986), the dynamics that can be identified in a crowded environment, in which several pedestrians move towards their own goals, are good indicators supporting this statement
The model produces results in tune with available evidences from the literature, both from the perspective of pedestrian flows and space utilisation, in scenarios not comprising groups; when groups are present, the model is able to preserve their cohesion even in challenging situations, and it produces interesting results in high density situations that call for further observations and experiments to gather empirical data
The introduced adaptive model for group cohesion is effective in qualitatively reproducing group related phenomena and it stimulates further research efforts aimed at gathering empirical evidences, on one hand, and modelling efforts aimed at reproducing additional related phenomena
Summary
Crowds of pedestrians are generally recognised as a form of complex system (Batty 2001): even without making a serious attempt of providing a formal definition of the term crowd, and adopting a simplistic and common sense intuitive notion of “(too) many people in (too) little space” (Kruse 1986), the dynamics that can be identified in a crowded environment, in which several pedestrians move towards their own goals, are good indicators supporting this statement. There are evidences of imitation among pedestrians whenever they need to cross a road (see, e.g., Helbing et al 1997), but basic proxemic considerations indicate that normal behaviour includes a tendency to stay at a distance, to preserve a personal space (Hall 1966). Pedestrians continuously adapt their behaviour to the contextual conditions, considering the geometry of the environment and social aspects. Models and simulators have proved their adequacy in supporting architectural designers and urban planners in their decisions by creating the possibility to envision the behaviour of crowds of pedestrians in specific actual environments and planned designs, to elaborate what-if scenarios and evaluate their decisions with reference to specific metrics and criteria
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
