Effective Robot Evacuation Strategies in Emergencies

Mollik Nayyar, Alan R. Wagner

Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceedingConference contribution

12 Scopus citations

Abstract

Recent efforts in human-robot interaction research has shed some light on the impact of human-robot interactions on human decisions during emergencies. It has been shown that presence of crowds during emergencies can influence evacuees to follow the crowd to find an exit. Research has shown that robots can be effective in guiding humans during emergencies and can reduce this 'follow the crowd' behavior potentially providing life-saving benefit. These findings make robot guided evacuation methodologies an important area to explore further. In this paper we propose techniques that can be used to design effective evacuation methods. We explore the different strategies that can be employed to help evacuees find an exit sooner and avoid over-crowding to increase their chances of survival. We study two primary strategies, 1) shepherding method and 2) handoff method. Simulated experiments are performed to study the effectiveness of each strategy. The results show that shepherding method is more effective in directing people to the exit.

Original languageEnglish (US)
Title of host publication2019 28th IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication, RO-MAN 2019
PublisherInstitute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers Inc.
ISBN (Electronic)9781728126227
DOIs
StatePublished - Oct 2019
Event28th IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication, RO-MAN 2019 - New Delhi, India
Duration: Oct 14 2019Oct 18 2019

Publication series

Name2019 28th IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication, RO-MAN 2019

Conference

Conference28th IEEE International Conference on Robot and Human Interactive Communication, RO-MAN 2019
Country/TerritoryIndia
CityNew Delhi
Period10/14/1910/18/19

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • Artificial Intelligence
  • Human-Computer Interaction
  • Control and Optimization

Cite this