Modelling pedestrian behaviour using swarm techniques

Authors

  • Yago Ávila Moré School of Industrial Design and Engineering, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain https://orcid.org/0009-0000-9779-6743
  • Basil Mohammed Al-Hadithi School of Industrial Design and Engineering, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain https://orcid.org/0000-0002-8786-5511
  • Victor Cadix Martín School of Industrial Design and Engineering, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain https://orcid.org/0009-0008-4853-7700

Keywords:

Swarm algorithms, Crowd simulation, Pathfinding, Pedestrian modeling, NPCs, Obstacle avoidance, Crowd dynamics, Flocking, Environment modeling, Autonomous agents, Path planning.

Abstract

Modelling pedestrians and groups of people is a highly multidisciplinary technique, given the significant interest it attracts from various branches of science and engineering. This results in many different methodologies that may arise from diverse objectives. The model developed in this work is an agent-based model, in which pedestrian behaviour is defined by a set of forces. Each force models an aspect of pedestrian gait, with the objective of creating a virtual environment to train and test control systems for collaborative robots or autonomous vehicles. To meet the modelling requirements, the system employs various algorithms, such as "flocking"\, which simulates the coordination and formation of groups, "pathfinding", which enables agents to discover optimal routes within a given space, and algorithms specialized in avoiding walls and dynamic obstacles. These components collaborate to accurately depict how crowds move and react in different environments and situations. Thanks to the modularity of this approach, which facilitates the adjustment and expansion of the components, the developed system can be integrated into various applications, such as simulating non-playable characters (NPCs) in video games or modelling the evacuation of a building.

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Author Biographies

Yago Ávila Moré, School of Industrial Design and Engineering, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

Yago Ávila Moré got the title of B. Sc. in Industrial Electronics and Automation Engineering in 2023 from the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM) (Spain). His interests are mainly focused on systems control, navigation, artificial intelligence and robotics. He is currently working at Perseo Techworks, a company dedicated to the development of autonomous unmanned vehicles.

Basil Mohammed Al-Hadithi, School of Industrial Design and Engineering, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

Basil Mohammed Al-Hadithi got the title of B. Sc. in control and system engineering in 1983 and the M. Sc. in control and instrumentation engineering in 1988. He received a Ph.D. in process control and artificial intelligence in 2002 from Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM) (Spain) with a thesis on analysis, design and stability of fuzzy slide-mode control systems. He is a full professor at UPM. His teaching activity covers control engineering and analogue electronics, being an author and co-author of seven textbooks and having supervised and co-supervised several B. Sc. final year projects and M. Sc. theses and 6 Ph.D. theses. He is a researcher at the Centre for Automation and Robotics UPM-CSIC. His interest is mainly focused on fuzzy control and slide mode control. He has several publications (JCR), book chapters and conference papers. Moreover, he has participated in several research projects and industrial contracts with companies. He is a board member and reviewer of several international scientific societies and International journals in modelling and designing control systems.

Victor Cadix Martín , School of Industrial Design and Engineering, Universidad Politécnica de Madrid, Madrid, Spain

Víctor Cadix Martín got the title of B. Sc. in Industrial Electronics and Automation Engineering in 2019 and the M. Sc. In Automation and Robotics in 2021 from the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid (UPM) (Spain). His interests are mainly focused on systems control, navigation, legged robots and swarm robotics. He is currently working at Perseo Techworks.

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Published

2024-07-31

How to Cite

Ávila Moré, Y., Al-Hadithi, B. M., & Cadix Martín , V. . (2024). Modelling pedestrian behaviour using swarm techniques. IEEE Latin America Transactions, 22(8), 670–677. Retrieved from https://latamt.ieeer9.org/index.php/transactions/article/view/8927