Numerical investigation of agent-controlled pedestrian dynamics using a structure-preserving finite volume scheme

Abstract

We provide a numerical realization of an optimal control problem for pedestrian motion with agents that was analyzed in Herzog et al. (Appl. Math. Optim. 88(3):87, 2023). The model consists of a regularized variant of Hughes’ model for pedestrian dynamics coupled to ordinary differential equations that describe the motion of agents which are able to influence the crowd via attractive forces. We devise a finite volume scheme that preserves the box constraints that are inherent in the model and discuss some of its properties. We apply our scheme to an objective functional tailored to the case of an evacuation scenario. Finally, numerical simulations for several practically relevant geometries are performed.