NEWS ARCHIVE

These pages contain an archive of NEWS concerning FSEG activities.  As in the NEWS section, information is arranged under two headings, RESEARCH NEWS and SOFTWARE NEWS.

(A) Research News
(B) Software News

(A) Research News: back

This section lists all news concerning FSEG staff and their research activities.

[01/12/2000] FSEG secures funding for the "VERRES" project as part of an consortium in EU FRAMEWORK V. FSEGs role in the consortium is to undertake evacuation modelling analysis for very large aircraft and to suggest guidelines for future use of models in aircraft certification.

[19/10/2000] buildingEXODUS V3.0 is released.

[01/03/2000] FSEG secures funding for the "SAFETY FIRST" project as part of an consortium in EU FRAMEWORK V. FSEGs role in the consortium is to undertake fire field modelliing of ship board fire scenarios.

[01/02/2000] A major new research project funded under Framework V of the EU is due to commence in March 2000. The project is concerned with fire safety on passenger ships. FSEG will be involved with the simulation of ship fires.

[01/02/2000] A major new release of buildingEXODUS is scheduled for the first half of 2000.  Keep an eye on the Exodus web pages for more details.

[01/02/2000] A major new research project funded by the UK CAA commenced in January 2000. The project is concerned with the analysis of aircraft evacuation data and with field trials of the airEXODUS evacuation model.

[01/02/2000] A new research project funded by DaimlerChrysler commenced in December 1999. The project is concerned with incorporating the airEXODUS aircraft evacuation model in the aircraft design environment.

[01/02/2000] A new research project funded by the UK Home Office commenced in November 1999.  This project is concerned with assessing the capabilities of a range of commercially available fire field models.  The project is intended to establish and demonstrate the viability of a suite of benchmarks for CFD based fire models.  Look up our Projects web pages for the latest details.

[01/02/2000] FSEG has completed a project with LPC involving the SMARTFIRE fire field model. The software was successfully used to simulate a series of fire experiments undertaken by LPC to investigate the external spread of fire in multi-storey buildings.

[01/02/2000] A major new release of the SMARTFIRE fire field model is scheduled for the first half of 2000. Keep an eye on the SMARTFIRE web pages for more details.

[01/10/2000] Mr Peter Friedrich of Airbus Industrie Hamburg takes up a 12 month secondment with the EXODUS group.

[01/09/2000] Mr Nathan Hurst joined FSEG in September 2000. He will be undertaking doctoral research in the field of CFD numerical schemes and fire field modelling.

[25/08/2000] Mr Nigel Mawhnney is married on the 25 August 2000.

[04/07/2000] Mr John Ewer successfully defended his PhD, entitled “An investigation into the feasibility, problems and benefits of re-engineering a legacy procedural CFD code into an event driven, Object Oriented system that allows dynamic user interaction” in July 2000. Dr Ewer is continuing his work as principal software engineer within the SMARTFIRE development team.

[01/02/2000] In September 1999, Prof Galea was invited to become a member of the Human Behaviour Task Group of the Society of Fire Protection Engineers (USA).

[01/02/2000] Following the Paddington railway disaster, Prof Galea appeared on the Channel 4 Television programme DISPATCHES (first broadcast 17th November 1999). The programme considered the evacuation capability of British trains. As part of the programme, an evacuation experiment from an upturned carriage subjected to smoke conducted by FSEG was broadcast. The week after this programme, FSEG was again on television as part of the BBC 1 Tomorrows World Survival Special. On this programme, the buildingEXODUS programme was featured.

[01/02/2000] Mr Simon Blake joined FSEG in January 2000. He will be undertaking doctoral research in the field of human behaviour and evacuation simulation.

[01/02/2000] Mr Daren Blackshields joined FSEG in October 1999. Mr Blackshields was appointed as a research assistant working with the EXODUS development team of FSEG.

[01/02/2000] Mr Steve Gwynne successfully defended his PhD, entitled “The introduction of adaptive social decision-making in the mathematical modelling of egress behaviour” in January 2000.  Dr Gwynne is now working as a Post Doctoral Fellow with the EXODUS development team of FSEG. Picture of the Steve Graduating and shortly afterwards.

[01/02/2000] Mr Fuchen Jia successfully defended his PhD, entitled “The simulation of fire growth and spread within enclosures using an integrated CFD fire spread model” in September 1999.  Dr Jia is now working as a Post Doctoral Fellow with the SMARTFIRE development team of FSEG.  Picture of the Fuchen Graduating and shortly afterwards.

[01/02/2000] Mr Steve Gwynne delivered a paper at the 6th IAFSS conference in Pointers France in July 1999 entitled, “Adaptive Decision-Making in buildingEXODUS”.

[01/02/2000] Mr Fuchen Jia delivered a paper at the 6th IAFSS conference in Pointers France in July 1999 entitled, “The Numerical Simulation of Noncharring Thermal Degradation and its Application to the Prediction of Compartment Fire”.

[01/02/2000] Mr John Ewer delivered a paper at INTERFLAM 99 at the Edinburgh Conference Centre during June/July 1999. The paper was entitled “The development and application of group solvers in the SMARTFIRE fire field model.”

[01/02/2000] Prof Ed Galea delivered a paper at the 3rd Int Conf on Fire Research and Engineering (Chicago) in September 1999 entitled, “Extending the Capabilities of the buildingEXODUS evacuation model to cater for hospital Evacuations.”

[27/05/1999] Prof Galea delivered an invited paper at the London Fire Brigade organised conference Fire Investigation Beyond the Cause on 27th May 1999 entitled, “The need for data in fire and evacuation modelling”.

[10/05/1999] Prof Galea delivered an invited paper at Cabin Safety Conference held at Cranfield University during May 1999. The paper was entitled “The application of computer modelling to aviation safety.”

[01/02/1999] Congratulations to Mrs Kate Finney, who Gained Her PhD in November 1998.

[01/02/1999] Dr David Purser of the Fire Research Station has been appointed to the position of visiting professor with FSEG.

[30/11/1998] Mr Wang Zhaozhi from Beijing China has joined FSEG and will be undertaking doctoral research in combustion modelling.

[30/11/1998] Mr Piotri Rymarczyk a recent graduate from Poland has joined FSEG and is working on the SMARTFIRE project.

[30/11/1998] Dr David Purser of the Fire Research Station has been appointed to the position of visiting professor with FSEG.

[30/11/1998] A Virtual Reality post-processor for the FSEG developed evacuation model buildingEXODUS is under development. The post-processor enables buildingEXODUS generated evacuation simulations to be replayed in three-dimensional virtual reality. The visualisation includes a CAD representation of the building. A demonstration of the post-processor may be found on the EXODUS web pages found under the FSEG home pages.

[30/11/1998] FSEG have now made available the first general release version of the SMARTFIRE fire field model. The software is currently being used by the Loss Prevention Council, Essex Fire Brigade, Ove Arup Fire, Home Office FRDG and Christchurch University. Details concerning SMARTFIRE may be found on the SMARTFIRE web pages listed under the FSEG home pages.

[30/11/1998] Prof Galea chaired the three day Cabin Safety Workshop which was part of the Very Large Transport Aeroplane Conference held in Noordwijkerhout The Netherlands October 1998.

[30/11/1998] Prof Galea delivered the 1998 Howard Emmons Lecture at WPI in the USA on 11th November 1998, his lecture was entitled, “The Use of Mathematical Modelling in Fire Safety Engineering”. A version of the presentation may be found on the FSEG web pages.

[30/11/1998] Mr Matt Owen, Mr Stephen Gwynne, Prof Ed Galea and Mrs Kate Finney attended the Human Behaviour in Fire Conference held in Belfast in September 1998. The group presented four papers concerned with the airEXODUS aircraft evacuation model, the AASK aircraft accident survivor database, the buildingEXODUS evacuation model and a general paper on the modelling of human behaviour (see recent publications).

[30/11/1998] Prof Galea attended the FAA/JAA organised Aircraft Fire Safety conference held in Atlantic City USA from the 16th to 20th November 1998 and delivered three papers, on the airEXODUS aircraft evacuation model, the AASK aircraft accident survivors database and the FIREDASS water mist model. Copies of these papers and all the other papers may be found on the FAA web site at http://fire.tc.faa.gov

[01/07/1998] Mrs Kate Finney MSc joined the group in July 1998. Kate will be working on the AASK database and evacuation modelling.

[01/07/1998] The development of the prototype vrEXODUS is almost complete. vrEXODUS will post process EXODUS generated evacuation files and replay them in Virtual Reality graphics. Not only will you be able to better visualise the evacuation, but you will also be able to better see the structure as the DXF is also ported into the animation. For a glimpse of vrEXODUS see the demo on the protected pages.

[28/09/1998] Mr Matt Owen, Mr Stephen Gwynne, Prof Ed Galea and Mrs Kate Finney attended the Human Behaviour in Fire Conference held in Belfast in September 1998. The group presented four papers concerned with the airEXODUS aircraft evacuation model, the AASK aircraft accident survivor database, the buildingEXODUS evacuation model and a general paper on the modelling of human behaviour (see recent publications).

[14/05/1998] Prof Galea gave a presentation to the Institute of Building Control Eastern District AGM entitled, "Burning Questions Model Answers" on the 28th April 1998 at Southend in Essex.

[13/05/1998] Prof Galea gave a presentation entitled, "The Computer Modelling of Evacuation" at the FIREX’98 conference in Birmingham on 13th May 1998.

[01/05/1998] The EXODUS development group completed a project for NHS Estates in which some new features were developed. The new features included the ability for nominated individuals to assist non-ambulant patients and move them to a place of relative safety prior to moving them to the designated place of safety. As this facility requires further development, it has not been made available yet in the general release version of buildingEXODUS however, it can be used by the developers for consultancy applications.

[12/03/1998] Prof Galea gave a presentation entitled, "The use of mathematical modelling in fire safety engineering" at the Eurofire Conference in Brussels on 12th March 1998.

[25/02/1998] In Feb 1998, the beta version of buildingEXODUS V2.0 was used on the 5 day short course Principles and Practice of Evacuation Modelling. The software was used intensively by approximately 20 fire professionals from all over the world. Both the software and the course were highly praised by the delegates. For more information see Course News.

[01/02/1998] Mr David Cooney has joined FSEG and is working on the application of Virtual Reality to evacuation simulation.

[05/11/1997] Mr Daniel Berhane has left the group to take a position with the BMA.

[05/10/1997] Mr Dominik Janes from Poland has joined the group to work on SMARTFIRE.

[28/06/1997] Matt Owen's Wedding 28th June 1997.

[30/06/1997] In June 1997, the beta version buildingEXODUS V1.1 was used on the 5 day short course Principles and Practice of Evacuation Modelling. The software was used intensively by approximately 25 fire professionals from all over the world. The verdict - both the course and software received top marks from all the delegates. For more information see Course News.

[20/06/1997] Prof Margret Law delivered her inaugural professorial lecture at the University of Greenwich on 3rd June 1997. The lecture was entitled Developments in the Discipline of Fire Safety Engineering. Prof Law is the Visiting Professor of Fire Safety Engineering.

[19/06/1997] Prof Galea chaired and made two presentations at a one-day seminar entitled "Raising Standards, Saving Lives" organised by BICC Construction Cables in London on 19th June 1997.

[03/06/1997] Prof Margret Law delivered her inaugural professorial lecture at the University of Greenwich on 3rd June 1997. The lecture was entitled Developments in the Discipline of Fire Safety Engineering. Prof Law is the Visiting Professor of Fire Safety Engineering.

[01/06/1997] FSEG has been awarded a contract to investigate the evacuation efficiency of aircraft designs for BOMBARDIER CANADA

[10/04/1997] Prof Galea has been appointed to the Life Safety Committee of the British Standards Institute (April 1997).

[25/03/1997] Prof Galea presented 2 papers at the IAFSS Symposium on Fire Safety in Melbourne Australia during March 1997 concerning recent developments with the buildingEXODUS evacuation model and the SMARTFIRE fire field model.

[20/03/1997] Mr Fuchen Jia of FSEG presented a paper at the IAFSS Symposium on Fire Safety in Melbourne Australia during March 1997 concerning the prediction of flashover and backdraft using fire field models.

[12/03/1997] Prof Galea presented a paper concerning the airEXODUS evacuation model at Royal Aeronautical Society Symposium on Cabin Safety in London during March 1997.

[15/12/1996] Prof Galea and Mr Owen visited the NTSB in Washington DC to present a paper on airEXODUS and spent a week collecting data from their archive files (Dec 1996).

[05/12/1996] Prof Galea and Mr Owen visited BOEING Seattle and FAA Seattle to present results from the airEXODUS simulations on the B767 Evacuation Demonstration (Dec 1996).

[09/10/1996] Staff from the FSEG presented 2 papers (one concerning airEXODUS) and 2 posters at the NATO AGARD conference in Dresden Oct 1996.

[01/10/1996] Mr Steven Gwynne joined the group in Oct 1996 as a Doctoral Student in Evacuation Modelling.

[07/05/1996] Prof Galea gave an invited presentation to the IFE entitled 'Burning Questions - Model Answers' on 7th May 1996 at the ESSEX Fire And Rescue Headquarters.

[01/05/1996] Exodus Group has started work on a CAA funded project concerned with the analysis video footage of evacuation trials performed by the worlds major aircraft manufacturers. This information is being used in the continued development of the airEXODUS evacuation model.

[06/03/1996] Staff from the FSEG presented 2 papers and 2 posters at the INTERFLAM'96 conference at Cambridge during March 1996.

[01/02/1996] FSEG has started work on an EC funded project concerned with investigating the use of water mist as a replacement for Halon extinguishment systems on Feb 1996. FSEG's role on the project, which has a three year duration, involves the mathematical modelling of the water mist, its interaction with the fire atmosphere and the extinguishment of the fire.

[] FSEG has started work on a CAA funded project concerned with the analysis video footage of evacuation trials performed by the worlds major aircraft manufacturers. This information is being used in the continued development of the air-EXODUS evacuation model.

[] Prof Galea has been awarded an EPSRC grant to continue work on the development of the SMARTFIRE fire field model. In addition to the EPSRC, the project - which runs for three years - is supported by, The Loss Prevention Council, The Home Office (FRDG), Ove Arup and Partners, and the Essex Fire Brigade.

[] Prof Galea has been awarded a further two year research and development contract by the UK CAA for the continued development of the airEXODUS evacuation model.

[] Mr L Filippidis MSc has joined the group as a software engineer/modeller in the area of evacuation modelling.

[] Mr A Grandison MSc has joined the group and is working in the area of water spray modelling.

[] Mr A Dixon MSc who has a background in Psychology has joined the group and is working in the area of evacuation modelling.

[] Mr E Alessandri has left the group to take up a position in the German insurance industry.

[] Prof Galea and Mr Owen attended the CAA/FAA evacuation certification test of the B777 and modified B767 at BOEING Seattle USA during April. Prof Galea also presented results from that air-EXODUS predictions of the B767 aircraft evacuation to the Boeing and CAA/FAA certification team. Model predictions were extremely accurate.

(B) Software News: back

This section lists all news concerning FSEG software products.

CLICK HERE FOR FULL PRESS RELEASE

19 Feb 2003 Prof Galea and Vice Chancellor Prof Trainer accept award from HRH and Prince Phillip

19 Feb 2003 Prof Galea introducing Princess Anne to the FSEG team

19 Feb 2003 FSEG team at Buckingham Palace

19 Feb 2003 Prof Galea introducing HRH to Jason, one of the EXODUS team

[14/11/2002] FSEG WINS QUEEN'S ANNIVERSARY PRIZE FOR EVACUATION RESEARCH

It was announced today at St.James Palace in London that the EXODUS research group of FSEG was awarded a Queen's Anniversary Prize. The prize was in acknowledgement for the development of the EXODUS suite of software, the fundamental research into human behaviour and evacuation and the role the group play in disseminating these tools and knowledge all around the world. The Award Citation reads:

"The University is a recognized world leader in the area of evacuation model development.  Use of its software technology by businesses and public authorities greatly enhances public safety and its specialized training offers vital expertise to the user community world-wide."

The biennial Queen's Anniversary Prizes for Further and Higher Education recognise and reward the outstanding contribution that universities and colleges in the United Kingdom make to the intellectual, economic, cultural and social life of the nation.   It is the most distinguished award that can be made to a UK institution for higher or further education.  The Queen will present a Gold Medal and an illuminated Prize Certificate to the EXODUS team at an honours ceremony at Buckingham Palace in February 2003.

Click here for full press release

With the release of maritimeEXODUS V3.0, maritimeEXODUS  is fully compliant with the new IMO requirements as set out in MSC circular 1033.  In addition, maritimeEXODUS incorporates several important changes and a number of additional features. These are:

NEW FEATURES:

New Behavioural Features:

-        The Radiative Flux Feature concerns the introduction of a radiative component into the FED model. The Radiative Flux model has now been developed so that it can reflect several options relating to the time to achieve threshold limits such as pain, incapacitation or a user specified limit. In addition the response of the occupants can now be overridden by values of the radiative flux exceeding a user specified limit.

-        The mustering procedures implemented on board the simulated craft can now be represented. Four types of procedure (RO-RO, High Speed Craft, Cruise Ship and Undefined) can now be represented, including the location of the individual’s vest, muster stations and associated LSA. This is achieved through the use of automated itineraries, so that the user now no longer has to perform this task manually.

-        The impact of the inclination of the vessel (e.g. Trim and Heel) can be represented within the model. This is derived from experimental data (TNO and SHEBA) and will have an impact on the travel speeds of the evacuees.

-        The model now includes a dedicated method to represent the Life Saving Appliances on board. These include dedicated attributes designed to represent the evacuee’s interaction with the LSA and increased flexibility in their usage, so that LSA chains can be formed to represent complex evacuation systems.

-        Dedicated population panels have been created to meet the IMO requirements for the cases designed to meet regulatory compliance

-        A Communication feature has been included, whereby evacuees sharing a social gene can share information related to their response times, and their understanding of the craft.

-        Ability to import and export itineraries. This reduces the time required to create itineraries and greatly increases the flexibility of the technique.

-        More intuitive methods to connect multi-deck geometries allowing the location and connectivity between decks to appear on-screen. This is particularly useful in large geometries where numerous connections may exist between decks.

-        The inclusion of the Range substitution, so that boundaries may be specified for a number of attributes within which the substituted value will fall.

-        Function to calculate the number of people in a specified area

-        Function to calculate the area selected

-        Response zones may be generated which locally override the evacuees attributes response times

-        Instead of randomising an individual’s location, it can instead be swapped with another member of the population using the Swap Location function. This is particularly useful if the occupancy levels need to be maintained within an area.

-        Instead of the instant response flag, the Specified Response flag has been included, allowing the user to force the evacuees to respond before a specified time.

-        The navigation of the evacuees now can take into consideration their Angle of movement, the density of the population around them and their proximity to the boundary of the geometry.

-        Evacuees can now be defined as passengers or as crew members. This can influence the effect that their presence can have on the activity of LSAs.

-        Each evacuee can collect a vest during the simulation, which is recorded by a dedicated attribute, as well as by their appearance.

-        The Footfall contour has been introduced to visually describe the usage of specific locations within the geometry.

-        The Potential Route map has been introduced to describe both the spread of the potential map throughout the geometry and the direction of its spread.

-        Expansion of itinerary tasks. Itineraries can now be formed from several different tasks, including collecting a vest, evacuating to a specific location and delaying.

-        Deck potential map. The potential map for each deck can now be controlled instead of the movement being dependent purely upon the potential of the eventual exit point.

-        Instead of the evacuees being static prior to evacuating, the user now has the option of allowing them to ‘mill’ around randomly.

Usability Enhancements:

-        The ability of the user to incorporate Lines, Text and Polygons into the WorkSpace area, allowing them to modify the appearance of the workspace for presentations

-        The user is now able to select irregular areas of the geometry using Polygon select tool

-        Standard Copy, Cut, Paste and Undo features have now been introduced

-        Appearance of an on-screen ruler, allowing approximate measurements to be made

-        User can now determine which buttons appear on the toolbar and the number of buttons available has been increased

-        When the user moves the pointer across an on-screen object, the option is available to display small amounts of information using the Node tips tool

-        A Selection control dialogue box has been developed, allowing the visibility and selectability of on-screen objects to be determined.

-        The rate of the graphical output can now be controlled by the user using the Speed Control feature.

-        The appearance of the model has now been updated so that it now has a more standard window appearance.

-        Zone Contours have been introduced to improve on the quality of the Contour system previously used. 

MODIFIED FEATURES:

-        Stair behaviour: the behaviour of the evacuees on staircases has been altered slightly to remove a number of potential anomalous events that may previously have developed. Previously, the evacuees treat each component node of each step equally (i.e. they find them equally attractive). This prevents the unnatural bunching of evacuees around certain nodes on dog-leg staircases. The exception to this is when evacuees are relatively close to the edge of a stair case (within five nodes) then the individuals will attempt to move towards the edge of the staircase, simulating their preference for using the handrails. If they are further than that from the edge of the staircase then they will attempt to utilise the space available to them as per the other rules governing staircase movement.

-        Improved flow rate performance for capped Internal Exits: Several users had brought to our attention that when they capped the flow rate capability of an Internal Exit, the flow rate achieved was lower than expected.  When capping the flow rate capability of an Internal Exit, maritimeEXODUS ensures that the instantaneous flow rate never exceeds the capped value, so the average flow rate will always be smaller than the capped value.  The new version of maritimeEXODUS ensures that when capped exits are used, the average flow rate achieved is closer to the capped value.  Thus, higher flow rates through Internal Exits should be achieved when capped internal exits are used (e.g. HMSO).

   SMARTFIRE V3.0 has a host of new features.  The major new developments include:

•  Gaseous combustion models and associated control parameters have been incorporated within SMARTFIRE and can be fully activated via the user interface.
•  A smoke model is available for use with the gaseous combustion model and the standard heat release rate model. In the standard heat release rate model the smoke is specified as a mass release rate. When the gaseous combustion model is used, smoke is concentration is determined by assessing the mass of smoke produced by burning 1 unit of fuel.
•  A multi-ray radiation model has been included. This model is analogous to the discrete transfer radiation model but is fully compatible with unstructured meshes. It has the benefit of using the same computational mesh as the other models. 
• The ability to specify forced ventilation systems such as fans. 
• Horizontal vents are now available via the user interface with suitably sized extended regions that are automatically created in the vertical direction. 
• The automated meshing tool has been significantly improved and generates improved quality meshes with smaller mesh budgets than in earlier versions of SMARTFIRE.  The automatic meshing tool has object awareness for improved meshing of complex geometries. This enables the use of meshing rules that specify the minimum number of cells that MUST be used within an object. E.g. a vent must have at least 3 cells in both the “height” and “width” directions in order to provide for both inflow and outflow simultaneously. 
• A manual mesh specification tool has been included that allows the user to modify the mesh through the addition of cells and the specification of cell distributions. This tool allows experts to fine tune meshes generated by the automated mesh generator. 
• Additional ‘objects’ have been specified in object libraries allowing the user to create simulation cases with greater complexity. 
• 2D objects such as Thin Plates and Inlets can be specified anywhere in the flow domain (previously, 2D objects were limited to the surfaces of the geometry region). 
• Smart data entry menus and case specification checking now provide easier and more reliable fire modelling.

The release of version 3.01 of buildingEXODUS incorporates several important changes to the software and an additional feature.

NEW FEATURES:

New Behavioural Features:
-        Radiative Flux Feature: The new features concern the use of the radiative component of the FED model. The Radiative Flux model has now been developed so that it can reflect several options relating to the time to achieve threshold limits such as pain, incapacitation or a user specified limit. In addition the response of the occupants can now be overridden by values of the radiative flux exceeding a user specified limit.

MODIFIED FEATURES:
-        Stair occupant behaviour on stairs: the behaviour of the evacuees on staircases has been altered slightly to remove a number of potential anomalous events that may previously have developed. In version 3.01, the evacuees treat each component node of each step equally (i.e. they find them equally attractive). This prevents the unnatural bunching of evacuees around certain nodes on dog-leg staircases. The exception to this is when evacuees are relatively close to the edge of a stair case (within five nodes) then the individuals will attempt to move towards the edge of the staircase, simulating their preference for using the handrails. If they are further than that from the edge of the staircase then they will attempt to utilise the space available to them as per the other rules governing staircase movement.

 -        Improved flow rate performance for capped Internal Exits: Several users had brought to our attention that when they capped the flow rate capability of an Internal Exit, the flow rate achieved was lower than expected.  When capping the flow rate capability of an Internal Exit, buildingEXODUS ensures that the instantaneous flow rate never exceeds the capped value, so the average flow rate will always be smaller than the capped value.  The new version of buildingEXODUS ensures that when capped exits are used, the average flow rate achieved is closer to the capped value.  Thus, higher flow rates through Internal Exits should be achieved when capped internal exits are used (e.g. HMSO).

EXODUS stand at BCS Awards 7 Nov 2001

EXODUS team at BCS awards dinner 7 Nov 2001

EXODUS team celebrating winning BCS Award 8 Nov 2001

[15/01/2001] VERSION 3.0 of SMARTFIRE INCLUDES THE FOLLOWING FEATURES:

• NEW CFD MODEL CAPABILITY:
• Combustion model added using either eddy mixing controlled or diffusion controlled simple gaseous combustion. Specified by stoichiometric equation for the combustion, mass fractions of fuel and oxygen in the inlets, molecular weights of fuel and the dilutant, and heat of combustion, combustion efficiency and the eddy break up constant (- for eddy mixing controlled combustion).
• Smoke model added (concentration release rate for heat release model OR a rate determined from rate of combustion when using the combustion model).
• Fan objects added specified as 3D objects in the setup GUI (these are specified by pressure-difference vs velocity, fan area and blowing direction).
• Multi-stage fire added for 3 stage growth, mid-period and decay for a fire.

• NEW MESHING CAPABILITIES:
• Manual mesh specification tool added to allow the KBS generated mesh to be modified on a slice by slice basis (a slice is a section of the domain between actual object geometry points). The meshing tool uses easy point and click operation to select the slice and gives visual feedback of the current mesh and easy access to change the mesh within each slice.

• IMPROVED FUNCTIONALITY:
• Added outlet patch to setup GUI with prescribed surface pressure.
• Added inlet patch to setup GUI with prescribed physical properties including velocity, temperature, etc.
• Walls can now have unique thicknesses and (if applicable) emmisivities to over-ride the default behaviour.
• Improved handling of heat transfer through walls and obstacles so that behaviour is consistent and that heat transfer to other compartments is consistent with expectations.
• Improved heat transfer handling for objects and walls when using radiation and turbulence.

• USER INTERFACE:
• Regrouped GUI features for problem setup to be in menus of related items e.g. radiation settings are grouped separately from the combustion settings.

VERSION 3.0 MODIFICATIONS.
The release of version 3.0 of buildingEXODUS incorporates a large number of additions and alterations that are designed to make the software more user friendly, more efficient and more useful.  More specifically, the alterations address the user interface and the speed of performance of the code.  The new features address the process by which fire hazards are incorporated within the model, the inclusion of a set of post processing data tools and a Virtual Reality (VR) post processing interface, the inclusion of additional scenario specific features and most importantly, the behavioural capabilities.  Concerning the latter, several new behavioural capabilities have been developed to increase the sophistication of the behavioural model and therefore further advance the modelling of occupant behaviour.

V3.0 NEW MODEL FEATURES:
New Software Components:
- The introduction of a VR post-processor interface, allowing the three dimensional representation of buildingEXODUS simulations.
- The introduction of a set of tools – known as askEXODUS – to aid in the analysis of multiple buildingEXODUS simulations.
- The introduction of an interface to CFAST V4.01 history files allowing direct import of results produced by a recognised zone model into the buildingEXODUS Hazard model.

New Behavioural Features:
- An Occupant Itinerary List function has been added allowing occupants to perform simple tasks prior to exiting. This can either be specified for individuals or groups of occupants.
- The ability to credit occupants with a localised understanding of the exits available (using the Local Familiarity system). The occupant has an internal list of known exits (referred to as the Occupant Exit Knowledge) which then form potential egress route. This can be attributed manually or automatically.
- Exits can be categorised according to their usage (either being emergency exits or in constant use). This is particularly important in the use of localised exit familiarity.
- Exits have a new attribute known as the Attractiveness. This can be used to determine the likelihood of occupants being aware of specific exits, whilst using the Local Familiarity system.
- Occupants moving through a smoke-filled environment may now exhibit inefficient movement caused by the reduced visibility levels. This will include occupant staggering and subsequently attempting to follow the walls of the geometry to aid in navigation.
- Occupants faced with a consistent barrier of smoke have the option to redirect away towards other available exits. The likelihood of this happening is dependent upon the selection of a data-set or the provision of new data. A Smoke Redirection option is situated on the OCCUPANT CONTROL dialogue box.

New Tools:
- An Analysis feature is provided to aid the user in understanding the occupant behaviour. This allows the simulated occupant to change colour according to their circumstances or their behaviour.
- Introduction of Census Regions, enabling the automatic recording of information concerning specific areas of the geometry.

Improved Capabilities:
- The ability to represent Internal exits is now consistent with External exits and are able to produce similar levels of output data.
- The user is now able to represent the Potential Map, the Population Density, the Smoke level and the Temperature level conditions as a Contour map.
- An additional environmental variable, namely Radiative Flux (kW/m2) has been included.  The effect of this on the occupant – FIHr – is modelled according to functions derived by Purser.
- Several of the Purser functions representing the impact of the environment upon an occupant have been updated according to more recent research.
- Stair behaviour has been updated so that the constituent nodes that form risers are seen as being equally attractive allowing more realistic overtaking manoeuvres.
- The function used to model the reduction in occupant mobility in relation to the extinction coefficient of the smoke within the environment has been updated so as to more accurately reflect the original Jin data.
- To reduce the user workload, the model can now automatically generate boundary nodes according to the connectivity and configuration of the nodal mesh.
- The avoidance of locations with fatalities. Occupants will attempt to avoid nodes that have single or multiple fatalities situated on them.
- Alteration in the development of occupant speed in relation to the obstacle value of arcs.

V3.0 SOFTWARE ENHANCEMENTS:
Performance Enhancements:
- The interactive graphics algorithms have been improved making the software faster in graphics mode.
- The loading of DXF files/ boundary files is quicker as EXODUS now generates its own internal version of the file.

User Interface Enhancements:
- The menu lists and dialogue boxes have been entirely restructured. The new interface is presented in a more logical and consistent format.
- An “Impatient” RuleBase switch has been added to the Occupant Control dialogue box, forcing occupants to respond instantly.
- An “All Main Exits” switch has been added to the Occupant Control dialogue box, guaranteeing occupant familiarity with exits that are in constant use, whilst using the Local Familiarity system.

Feature Enhancements:
- Node lock/ move/ copy have been improved
- Fast node has been improved, replicating the functionality of Normal mode
- The user is able to manipulate components of the DXF file and of the Boundary produced for geometries created within buildingEXODUS.
- On the DOOR dialogue box, a graph option is now available that enables graphs to be switched on and off for particular exits.
- Magnification has been simplified so that it now includes the ability to double-click on the magnification buttons. This produces a 10% increase or decrease in the size of the geometry in the current window.
- Due to the increase in behavioural and simulation options, the user now has ability to export option settings to an option library, enabling re-use.
- The Batch Mode controls have been simplified and their functionality has been increased.
- Door titles are now automatically generated.
- Fast nodes can now be applied to all windows automatically.
- Nodal locations can be identified by using the search facility.
- The ability to relocate occupants by dragging them between locations.
- The ability to determine the floor area within a specified section of the geometry.
- The provision of a more detailed contour key.
- The ability to label .EXO and .MTA with a specification of the nature of the scenario.
- The ability to control whether certain nodes types (e.g. SEAT, INTERNAL EXITS, etc.) are visible during the simulation.

• Version 1.1 of buildingEXODUS began shipping on 19 September 1997.
• Licenced users of buildingEXODUS include, fire safety consultants, unversities, research laboratories, regulatory authorities, fire brigades, defence establishments (August 1997).
• New or improved features of buildingEXODUS V1.1 include:
• 
  Interface
  • The toolbars now have all the common mode buttons in the same locations.
  • The DXF file reader now accepts the Autocad version 13 DXF standard.
  • The size of data files have been reduced, .MTA, .EXO, .RUX, .RUN.
  • A playback file (.RUX, .RUN) can now be recorded in Simulation Mode (previously only available in Batch Mode).
  • The method of defining fire scenarios has been completely restructured.
  • Batch Mode now allows a simulation to be viewed as if in Simulation Mode
  • Output files now have a different naming convention.
  • The floodfill algorithm has been speeded up
  • The undo function now only works for the first 2000 objects
  • Movie file player - a new piece of software is included that replays movie files. This software is not licenced to a single machine and may be freely distributed by users. The player will play simulation at normal speed, or a factor thereof, e.g. 2, 3, 4 etc.
  • Simulation Mode allows MOVIE files (.EMX) files to be saved - these allow an exact simulation to be played through.
  • A summary of the input parameters is available as an output option.
  • The process of connecting staircases has been simplified.
  • An option to over-ride response times has been included in simulation mode.

  Rulebase

  • Movement over arcs with obstacle values > 1 is now conducted at walk speed.
  • Occupants can now be assigned to external exits.
  • Contraflow rules have been added to allow opposing crowds flow.

• Version 2.03 of buildingEXODUS shipped on October 1999.  [October '99]

• Version 2.0 of buildingEXODUS shipped in February 1999.  [February '99]

Version 2.0 of buildingEXODUS include the following enhancements:

New Features

• Vast Improvement in execution times (new 32-bit architecture)
• Percent Done is displayed in Batch Mode.
• Ability to prescribe flow rates on internal exits.
• An Instant Response Rulebase switch has been added to Simulation mode.
• Flow Time and No Flow Time parameters now available for exits.
• A summary of input parameters can now be selected for inclusion in output files.
• The potential map can be displayed using a coloured contour map.
• Population density can be viewed as a coloured contour map.
• The approximate area of a selected region can now be viewed.
• A distance map around a selected point for a specified region can be viewed.

Usability Enhancements

• New hardware key (dongle) protection
• Fire Hazard Definition dialog boxes have been standardised to work in the same way.
• Auto Connect can now connect arcs in all directions.
• Staircase dialog box has been simplified.
• A connect option is available when adding nodes in regions.
• The default potential for an exit is now 100.
• Arcs can now be deleted according to their direction, i.e. horizontal, vertical and diagonal.
• Arcs and Nodes in a region can be viewed using the same method.
• The Local Potential option has been added to Scenario Mode (prev. Simulation Mode)
• As of July 1998, buildingEXODUS was being used in 13 countries. Users may be found in the following countries: Australia, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, Germany, Hong Kong, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Portugal, Sweden, and the UK. (July ‘98)