3D spatial information for fire-fighting search and rescue route analysis within buildings

Abstract This study is motivated by the need for a micro-geographic information system (GIS) to represent and analyze 3D spatial data for the plotting of fire-fighting search and rescue routes within buildings. The GIS uses a 3D geometric network model (GNM) and the Dijkstra algorithm to consider smoke movement during different times of a building fire. Therefore, the route calculation algorithm can avoid routes through heavy smoke within buildings. In addition, when firefighters must search an area to find victims, the GNM and Ant Colony Optimization are applied to find the shortest path that passes through each room of the area. Finally, the GNM is implemented to perform a search and rescue route analysis from an actual underground station. The proposed method can not only provide the shortest safe route within a building but can also minimize the time required to search for potential victims.