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Walkers iCrowd System - User Documentation

Overview

The Walkers System is a specialized crowd simulation tool designed for controlled pedestrian movement along predefined paths. This system creates organized lane-based traffic flow with configurable agent behavior and path following.

Distribution

Viewer

  • Render: Standard visualization mode for agent display

Terrain Configuration

  • Collection: Terrain setup consistent with other systems in the suite

Distribution Setup

Path Definition

  • Distribution Object: Input a collection of curves that define walking paths
  • Walkers Curve: Curves act as the central guide for lane generation
  • Edit: Modify curve properties and placement

Density Control

  • Density: 1.000 - Controls the number of people distributed across lanes
  • Randomness: 1.000 - Randomizes walker distribution along the lanes
  • Seed: 0 - Randomization seed for consistent patterns

Collision Avoidance

  • Personal Space: Individual buffer zone for each agent
  • Min: 0.000 - Minimum personal space distance
  • Max: 1.000 - Maximum personal space distance
  • Seed: 0 - Randomization seed for personal space variation

Note: Personal space system activates when System Type is set to Physics (not Animation)

Settings

Agent Lifecycle

  • Loop Type: Controls agent behavior at path endpoints
  • Respawn: Agents reappear at the start when reaching the end
  • Delete: Agents are removed from simulation when reaching the end

System Configuration

  • System Type:
  • Animation: Uses animated movement (default)
  • Physics: Enables physical interactions and collision avoidance

Lane Management

Lane Generation

  • Count: 4 - Number of lane instances generated left and right of input curves
  • Direction: 0.632 - Controls lane direction variation
  • Values > 0.5 create opposing traffic flows
  • Some agents move forward, others move in reverse direction

Movement Variation

  • Noise: Adds natural variation to agent movement
  • Power: 1.000 - Strength of noise influence
  • Offset: 0.000 - Base offset for noise pattern
  • Scale: 0.100 - Size of noise pattern effect

Speed Control

  • Speed: 1.000 - Controls the movement speed of all agents

Agents Configuration

Agent Collections

  • Single Collection Input: Unlike other systems, accepts only one collection type
  • Animated Walking Meshes: Collection must contain pre-animated walking animation meshes
  • No Gender Separation: All agents use the same animation collection

Simplified Agent Management

  • No individual agent customization (clothes, actions)
  • No probability settings for different agent types
  • Focus on uniform crowd behavior rather than individual variation

Workflow

  1. Path Creation:
  2. Create and position guide curves for desired walking paths

  3. Organize curves into a collection for system input

  4. Distribution Setup:

  5. Set lane count for path width
  6. Adjust density for crowd size

  7. Configure personal space for collision avoidance

  8. Behavior Configuration:

  9. Choose loop type (respawn or delete)
  10. Set system type (animation or physics)

  11. Adjust direction for traffic flow patterns

  12. Movement Tuning:

  13. Set base movement speed
  14. Add noise for natural movement variation
  15. Fine-tune lane directions for realistic traffic patterns

Key Features

  • Lane-Based System: Automatically generates multiple lanes from single curves
  • Bidirectional Traffic: Direction parameter creates natural opposing flows
  • Consistent Animation: All agents use the same walking animation collection
  • Controlled Density: Precise control over agent distribution along paths
  • Collision Awareness: Personal space system prevents agent overlap

Use Cases

  • Sidewalk and pedestrian walkway simulations
  • Museum or exhibition visitor flow
  • Emergency egress and crowd movement studies
  • Architectural planning for public spaces
  • Traffic flow analysis for urban planning

This Walkers System provides a streamlined approach for creating organized pedestrian movement patterns with minimal setup complexity, ideal for architectural visualization and urban planning applications where controlled crowd flow is essential.