Quantitative analysis of the effectiveness of real-time indoor navigation and information sharing for collaborative fire response

Recent developments in indoor navigation and information sharing present great potential for building fire responses. However, the impacts of these technologies on participant behaviors and response collaboration have inadequately been evaluated. This study aims to examine the effectiveness of real-time indoor navigation and information sharing on fire responses using agent-based simulations and user experiments in virtual reality (VR). First, a multi-agent model is established to simulate crowd evacuation and investigate macroscopic relations between technology utilization and response performance. Second, a multiplayer experiment is implemented in VR to reveal microscopic phenomena about how these technologies affect the behaviors and decision-making of emergency participants. The results demonstrate that real-time navigation and information sharing help most emergency participants avoid being lost, stay away from the danger, enable proactive rescue, and reduce response time. The findings present quantitative evidence that underscores the importance of real-time indoor navigation and information sharing for collaborative fire responses.