Simulation of queuing time in crowd evacuation by discrete time loss queuing method

Abstract

We have proposed a new evacuation model based on discrete time loss queuing method in order to effectively depict the queuing of pedestrians in an indoor space and its effect over evacuation performance. In this model, the calculation formula of pedestrian movement probability is given first based on field value and average queuing time; the average queuing time is depicted with the discrete time loss queuing method and the adopted evacuation strategy is set forth through defining cellular evolution process. Moreover, with the use of the established simulation platform for experiment, we have made a deep study of relations of parameters such as evacuation time, pedestrian density, exit number and average queuing time to obtain the pedestrian flow characteristic more in line with the reality. The result has shown that there is a great change in the evacuated population in the change of crowded state at the exit, and in the background of high population density, it is beneficial for reducing queuing time to prefer faraway exit to overcrowded exit for evacuation.