Some commonly encountered problems:
1. An error occurs when a person tries to assess his/her route-to-exit. Using multiple distance maps, make sure that those used by the occupants are always calculated. You should do a quick test of each distance map before executing a simulation (Menu Item: Routes > Test Position). Alternatively, if you have replaced a floor, with a new layout, and maintained the same occupant positions, it is possible that a body may now be inside a wall. Check the area that has changed for any potential solid object/person position conflicts. If you have reduced the perimeter space of a distance map, then check that there were no people present in the old space that has now been deleted. In all cases, you should delete the person whose position is invalid.
2. People are jamming close to links. Note that there must be enough space around the link for people to move around, behind and in front of the link. There should be a minimum of 0.5 metres clear space behind and in front of a link. You may need to delete some lines from the source DXF file, to delete any obstruction test the new link position by using Test Position under the Routes menu. Also, remember that the edges of a link are used to define the edges of a doorway into a staircase. The corresponding link marker on a floor plan MUST also have solid wall lines which go up to and stop at the edges of the link marker. Remember that peoples’ positions are being transferred across the link, so a different immediate geometry around the opening will cause problems.
3. An error message appears saying that a link cannot transfer information - the link is located in a faulty place. No part of the link marker must cross any of the blue lines indicating a wall obstruction. The link must fit in the opening to the staircase. Remember that link markers on floor plans must be positioned accurately between the edges of the surrounding door frame or opening. Look at the sample projects for examples of link positioning.
4. An error message tells you that not enough memory is available to calculate another distance map. You probably have a large, multi-level building, and simply do not have enough memory in your computer to be able to model a building of this size with more than 1 or 2 distance maps. Remember that each 1 square metre of distance map occupies 100 bytes in memory, so a single distance map with dimensions 100 metres by 100 metres occupies 1Mb in memory.
5. A person tries to walk through a space that is too small for his/her body. You will need to either increase the width of the opening, or close it off in new DXF file. Simulex tries to close these narrow gaps, but the ability of people to get through the gaps depends on individual body sizes, so this may happen sometimes with openings less than 0.6 metres wide.
6. You cannot place a person into a particular place in the building. Either you haven’t calculated any distance maps, or you are trying to place a person into a space which the distance mapping functions have identified as too narrow for the distance mapping to work. You may need to widen the space available.
7. The menu commands are very slow to respond during a simulation. This is due to the fact that Simulex only process Windows messages (commands) after each single time-step calculation is completed for the whole population. You will notice this effect especially when you have large, crowded populations. To pause a simulation, just click once onto the Simulation menu, and wait for it to respond - it will usually respond when it has finished one calculation step for the whole population. The best way to interrupt a simulation is to make sure that a floor plan or staircase window is the currently focused window, and press F8. The evacuation will pause when the next time-step calculation is finished. The processing of Windows commands is slowed down to try to make Simulex calculations as fast and uninterrupted as possible.
8. Not all of the walls are drawn on the screen. Very few types of video card (usually integrated video capture & mjpeg cards) do not appear to properly support Microsoft’s ROP2 graphics mode, which Simulex uses. The only card this has been encountered on so far is the MiroVideo TD Live TV integrated capture & compression video card. The only solution is to use another, more conventional video card.
