Parallel implementation of aircraft disembarking and emergency evacuation based on cellular automata

In this paper we present a model based on the parallel computational tool of cellular automata (CA) capable of simulating the process of disembarking in a small airplane seat layout, corresponding to Airbus A320/ Boeing 737 layout, in search of ways to make it faster and safer under normal evacuation conditions, as well as emergency scenarios. The proposed model is highly customizable, with the number of exits, the walking speed of passengers, depending on their sex, age and height, and the effects of retrieving and carrying luggage. Additionally, the presence of obstacles in the aisles as well as the emergence of panic being parameters whose values can be varied in order to enlighten the disembarking and emergency evacuation processes are considered in detail. The simulation results were compared to existing aircraft disembarking and evacuation times and indicate the efficacy of the proposed model in investigating and revealing passenger attributes during these processes in all the examined cases. Moreover, we parallelized our code in order to run on a graphics processing unit (GPU) using the CUDA programming language, speeding up the simulation process. Finally, in order to present a fully dynamical anticipative real-time system helpful for decision-making we implemented the proposed CA model in a field programmable gate array (FPGA) device, and recreated the results given by the software simulations in a fraction of the time. We then compared and exported the performance results among a sequential software implementation, the implementation running on a GPU, and a hardware implementation, proving the consequent acceleration that results from the parallel CA implementation in specific hardware.