A survey of algorithms and systems for evacuating people in confined spaces

Abstract

The frequency, destruction and costs of natural and human-made disasters in modern highly-populated societies have resulted in research on emergency evacuation and wayfinding, which has drawn considerable attention. The subject is now a multidisciplinary area of research where information and communication technologies (ICT), and in particular the Internet of Things (IoT), have a significant impact on sensing and computing dynamic reactions that mitigate or prevent the worst outcomes of disasters. This paper offers state-of-the-art knowledge in this area so as to share ongoing research results, identify the research gaps and address the need for future research. We present a comprehensive review of research on emergency evacuation and wayfinding, focusing on the algorithmic and system design aspects. Starting from the history of emergency management research, we identify the emerging challenges concerning system optimisation, evacuee behaviour optimisation and data analysis, and the additional energy consumption by ICT equipment that operates the emergency management infrastructure.