Pathfinder Fundamentals
Reading Time: 17 minutes1. Introduction
This series introduces Pathfinder with no assumption of previous knowledge. The topics covered will include all of the necessary functions to create, customize, and analyze a pedestrian evacuation model. The reader will gain the skills to successfully replicate these actions on other evacuation models.
2. Review the Interface
In this section and its sub-sections, you will use an existing model to learn the basic operations of Pathfinder.
- Download the Pathfinder Fundamentals zip file.
Open Windows Explorer and browse to the downloaded file.
Right-click
pathfinder-fundamentals.zip
and click Extract All. - From the extracted folder, open
Fundamentals.pth
to launch Pathfinder with that model. - Review the interface elements as shown in Figure 1. These will be often referred to throughout this series.

2.1. View a Model
This section will demonstrate some of the basic options to control your view of the model. Select the various options in the View toolbar and manipulate the 3D view.
On the View toolbar, click
Switch to the Perspective View.
- On the View toolbar, click
3D Orbit Navigation.
- Drag the mouse to rotate the camera.
- Hold down Shift while dragging the mouse to pan the camera.
- Rotate the mouse wheel, or hold down Alt while dragging the mouse, to zoom the camera.
On the View toolbar, click
Switch to the Top View.
- On the View toolbar, click
Select/Edit Objects.
- Hold down the left mouse button and drag to select objects.
- Hold down the right mouse button and drag to pan the camera.
- Rotate the mouse wheel, or hold down Alt while dragging the mouse, to zoom the camera.

2.2. Manage Objects
In this section, you will learn how to use the Navigation panel to view, hide, and select objects.
On the View toolbar, click
Switch to the Perspective View.
- On the Navigation panel on the Floor list, select
Floor 0.0 ft to show only its objects.
- On the Navigation panel, right-click
Floor 10.0 ft and click Show to add its objects to the current view.
- On the 3D view, right-click any object and click Hide to remove it from the current view.
- On the 3D view, right-click any empty space and click Show All to bring all objects back into the current view.
- On the Navigation panel, select
Auto Expand Selection.
- On the 3D view, click any object. The Navigation panel expands and highlights the matching object in the list.

2.3. Run a Simulation
In this section, you will learn how to initiate a simulation and analyze the results.
Click Run Simulation.
- On the Results window, click Run. The simulation will play until all occupants have exited the model, and should appear similar to Figure 4.
- On the Playback toolbar, click Increase Speed to play the results two times faster than real time.
- Close the Results window and the Run Simulation dialog box.

3. Create a Model
In this section and its subsections, you will create a complete model which can be used in a simulation. The steps in this section demonstrate the fundamental parts of building a model in Pathfinder.
- On the Main toolbar, click
New Model. If prompted by the Save Changes dialog box, click No.
- On the Main toolbar, select
Show values in EN units.
On the Main toolbar, click
Save model.
- Create a new folder at
C:\Documents\Pathfinder\Getting Started
. - In the File Name box, type
myFundamentals.pth
and click Save.

3.1. Import Geometry
In this section, you will import geometry from a model created in another CAD application. This will allow you to draw the navigation mesh faster than starting from a blank file.
- On the Main toolbar and click
Import File.
- Navigate to the
Pathfinder-Fundamentals
folder extracted frompathfinder-fundamentals.zip
and double-clickpathfinder-fundamentals.dwg
. - On the Import dialog box, select Into the current model and click Next.
- Select mm as the file’s length unit and click Next.
- Click Calculate to view information about the model with the selected units.
This will ensure that the selected units are correct.
The Model Height for this file is
70.0 ft
and is confirmed in this dialog box.
- Click Calculate to view information about the model with the selected units.
This will ensure that the selected units are correct.
The Model Height for this file is
- Use the default import settings and click Next.
- Click Finish to import the file.

3.2. Extract Floor
In this section, you will create a navigation mesh over the imported floor so that rooms, doors, and occupants can be created.
- On the Draw toolbar, click
Extract Floor from Imported Geometry.
- On the 3D view, click anywhere on the surface of the first floor.
- On the View toolbar, clear
Show Imported Geometry.

3.3. Create Doors
In this section, you will create doors over the imported geometry so that rooms are connected and occupants can make decisions about where to go.
On the Draw toolbar, double-click
Add a New Door.
- On the property panel in the Max Width box, type
60 in
. - On the property panel in the Max Depth box, type
10 in
. On the property panel, click in any other box to set the value.
- On the 3D view, zoom in on a particular doorway. Point to the center of the doorway so that the door is previewed and click on the doorway.

Repeat step 5 for each of the 11 doorways.
On the 3D view, point to a corner of the outer grounds. Drag to an adjacent corner.
- Repeat step 7 for the other three sides of the outer grounds.
- Press Esc once all doors have been created.

3.4. Create Occupants
In this section, you will add occupants to the rooms.
- On the Navigation panel, select
Floor 0.0 ft.
- On the 3D view, hold down Ctrl and click the elevator rooms and the outdoor floor to unselect.

- On the 3D view, right-click any selected area and click Add Occupants.
- On the Add Occupants dialog box in the By Number box, type
100
and click OK.
The necessary components for a model are rooms, exits, and occupants. With all of these in place, a simulation can now be run.

4. Add Floors
In this section and its subsections, you will complete the rest of the geometry by adding components for multi-floor models.
- At the top of the Navigation panel, in the Floor list dropdown, select Add New.
- On the New Floor dialog box in the Enter Floor Location box, type
10 ft
and click OK. - Repeat steps 1 - 2 for each floor until you have created
Floor 60.0 ft.
- On the View toolbar, select
Show Imported Geometry.
At the top of the Navigation panel, in the Floor list dropdown, select
Floor 10.0 ft.
- On the 3D view, right-click the Floor 10.0 ft ceiling and click Hide.

- On the Draw toolbar, click
Extract Floor from Imported Geometry.
- On the 3D view, click anywhere on Floor 10.0 ft.
- On the View toolbar, clear
Show Imported Geometry.
- Excluding the elevator room doors, add the 9 doors, similar to Floor 0.0 ft in Section 3.4.
- On the Navigation panel, right-click
Floor 10.0 ft and click Add Occupants.
- On the Add Occupants dialog box in the By Number box, type
100
and click OK.

4.1. Copy Floors and Occupants
In this section, you will copy objects from the second floor to other floors of the model. This is faster because the middle floors are identical.
- On the Navigation panel, expand the Occupant list.
- On the Navigation panel, select
Floor 10.0 ft. Hold down the control key and also select the occupant group for Floor 10.0 ft.
- On the Draw toolbar, click
Copy/Move Objects.
- On the property panel, select Copy Mode.
- On the property panel in the Copies box, type
4
. - On the property panel in the Move Z box, type
10 ft
. On the property panel, click Copy/Move.
4.2. Add Rooftop Floor
The top floor is different than the middle floors, so we need to extract it separately.
- On the Navigation panel, right-click
Floors and click Show.
- On the View toolbar, select
Show Imported Geometry.
- On the Draw toolbar, click
Extract Floor from Imported Geometry.
- On the 3D view, click anywhere on the rooftop floor.
- On the Navigation panel, right-click
Floor 60.0 ft and click Add Occupants.
- On the Add Occupants dialog box in the By Number box, type
100
and click OK.
4.3. Create Landing and Stairs
In this section, you will create a navigation mesh over the imported stairs so that occupants can traverse between floors.
- On the Navigation panel in the Floor list, select Show All.
- On the View toolbar, select
Show Imported Geometry.
- On the Draw toolbar, click
Extract Floor from Imported Geometry
- On the 3D view, click anywhere on the landing connected to the four stairs.

- On the View toolbar, clear
Show Imported Geometry.
- On the Draw toolbar, click
Create stairs between two edges by choosing a point on each.
For one of the four stairs connected to the bottom landing, click a point along the bottom and top edge to create the stairs.
- Repeat steps 6 - 7 for the other three stairs connected to the bottom landing.

4.4. Copy Landings and Stairs
- On the 3D view, hold down Ctrl while clicking the four stairs and the landing.
- On the Draw toolbar, click
Copy/Move Objects.
- On the property panel, select Copy Mode.
- On the property panel in the Copies box, type
5
. - On the property panel in the Move Z box, type
10 ft
. - On the property panel, click Copy/Move.

4.5. Create Elevators
In this section, you will create elevators. This will complete the model’s geometry.
- On the Navigation panel in the Floor list, select
Floor 0.0 ft.
- On the View toolbar, clear
Show Imported Geometry.
- On the 3D view, right-click one of the two elevator rooms and click Create Elevator.
- On the New Elevator dialog box, click OK.
- Repeat steps 3-4 for the other elevator room.

5. Modify Occupants
In this section and its subsections, you will customize the way that the occupants interact with the model. This allows for greater customization and accuracy in various scenarios.
- On the Navigation panel in the Floor list, select Show All.
Expand the
Occupants list.
- Right-click the occupant group on Floor 0.0 Ft and click Rename.
- On the Rename dialog box in the Enter the new name box, type Floor 1 and click OK.
- Repeat steps 2 - 3 for Floor 2 - Floor 6 occupant groups. Rename the final occupant group as Rooftop.
- On the Navigation panel, select the Floor 1 occupant group.
- On the property panel, select Color, and click the color box.
On the Color dialog box in the Color Code box, type
FF2222
, and click OK.- Repeat steps 5 - 7 for Floor 2 - Floor 6 occupant groups to make them each different colors. Leave the Rooftop occupant group as their default color.

5.1. Create Behaviors
In this section, you will create a behavior for occupants to use the elevator. During evacuation, it has been observed that occupants on lower floors are more likely to use stairs than occupants on higher floors. We will use behaviors to assign different probabilities of stair usage by floor. In general, behaviors define a list of goals that occupants will accomplish before they exit or go to a refuge room.
- On the Navigation panel, right-click
Behaviors and click Add a Behavior.
- On the New Behavior dialog box in the Name box, type Elevator and click OK.
- On the property panel, select
Goto Elevators from the Add Action list.
- On the property panel, click Create.
- On the Navigation panel, right-click the
Floor 3 occupant group and click Properties.
- On the Edit Group Distributions dialog box, click the Behavior link.
- On the Behavior dialog box, enter
10
next to the Elevator behavior and enter90
next to the Goto Any Exit behavior. - Click OK on both dialog boxes.
- Repeat steps 5 - 8 for the Floor 4 and Floor 5 occupant groups.
Use
20
and80
as the Elevator and Goto Any Exit distribution percentages. - Repeat steps 5 - 8 for the Floor 6 and Rooftop occupant groups.
Use
30
and70
as the Elevator and Goto Any Exit distribution percentages.

5.2. Create Profiles
In this section you will create occupant profiles so that each individual occupant has different characteristics.
- On the Navigation panel, right-click
Profiles and click Add a Profile.
- On the New Profile dialog box in the Name box, type Office and click OK.
- On the Edit Profiles dialog box on the 3D Model box, click the list of models.
- On the 3D Model dialog box, select models that represent a typical office environment and click OK.
- On the Edit Profiles dialog box on the Characteristics tab in the Speed list, select Uniform.
- On the Uniform Distribution dialog box in the Min box, type
2.0
. - On the Uniform Distribution dialog box in the Max box, type
4.3
and click OK. - On the Edit Profiles dialog box, click Apply.
- On the Edit Profiles dialog box, click New.
- Repeat steps 2 - 8 for an Apartment profile.
Use casually dressed models.
Use a uniform speed of
[3.0 ft/s, 5.3 ft/s]
and click Apply. - On the Edit Profiles dialog box, select Default and click Delete.
On the Remove dialog box, click Yes. On the Profile in Use dialog box on the Replace with box, select Office and click OK.
Figure 20. The Profiles are Ready to be Assigned. - On the Edit Profiles dialog box, click OK.
- On the Navigation panel, right-click the
Rooftop occupant group and click Properties.
- On the Edit Group Distributions dialog box, click the Profile link.
- On the Profile dialog box in the Rooftop box, click Distribute Evenly and click OK.
- On the Edit Group Distributions dialog box, click OK.
- Repeat steps 14 - 17 for
Floor 5 -
Floor 6 and assign 100% of the occupants the Apartment profile.

6. Analyze Results
In this section and its subsections, you will compile a simulation, explore the post-processing options, and create a video report.
- On the Main toolbar, click
Run Simulation.
- Close the Run Simulation dialog box when the simulation is finished running.
- On the Main toolbar, click
View Room Usage.
- On the Occupant Counts window on the Navigation panel, clear all and select Level 0.0 ft. This is the usage of the first elevator.
- Close the Occupant Counts window.

6.1. Modify Contours
In this section, you will load contour plot data and modify the output display.
- On the Main toolbar, click
View 3D Results.
- On the 3D Results window on the Navigation panel, double-click the
Time to Exit contour plot.
- On the Optimize Contour dialog box, click Yes.
- Once the Generating Occupant Contour dialog box has completed, click
Play to view the results with the contour overlay.
- On the Navigation panel, right-click the
Time to Exit contour plot and click Properties.
- On the Time to Exit Properties dialog box, in the Opacity Source dropdown, select feather below.
In the Feather Threshold box below the Opacity Source dropdown, type
1
and click OK.
- Close the 3D Results window once you are done viewing the contour.

6.2. Create Camera Tour
In this section, you will create a camera tour to highlight key areas in the simulation. These instructions are for Pathfinder 2018.3 and later where we create the camera tour in the Results view. In earlier versions, you create the camera tour in Pathfinder.
- In the Results view, on the Navigation panel right-click
Views and click New Tour.
- On the View toolbar, click
Reset All to show the rooftop view. Scroll the mouse wheel to zoom in and get a closer view. Move the viewpoint so that you are looking at the elevator doors.
- On the property panel, click Add.
Set the Time to
0
and the Transition to Stationary as seen in Figure 24. This means we will hold the first view. - Move the time slider to about 10 seconds.
- On the property panel, click Add.
Set the Time to
10
and the Transition to Move to Next. This means at 10 seconds we will begin to move to the next keyframe. - On the 3D view, drag to rotate down to the front face of the building with the stairs. Pan and zoom as necessary to capture the whole building inside the 3D view.
- Move the time slider to about 30 seconds.
- On the property panel, click Add.
Set the Time to
30
and the Transition to Stationary. This means we will hold this view. - Move the time slider to about 40 seconds.
- On the property panel, click Add.
Set the Time to
40
and click Close to complete the tour. This is the end of the tour. - To run the tour,
- Double-click Tour, move the time slider to 0 seconds and click Play.

6.3. Create Movie
In this section, you will create a video file using the tour.
- On the 3D Results window on the Navigation panel, double-click the
Tour camera tour.
- On the Navigation panel, double-click the
Density contour plot.
- Move the time slider to 0 seconds.
- On the File menu, click Create Movie.
- Save the file as
C:\Documents\Pathfinder\Getting Started\Fundamentals.wmv
. - On the Movie Properties dialog box click OK.
- Once the Movie Progress dialog box completes, the file should play in your default video player application.

7. Conclusion
Thank you for completing the Pathfinder Fundamentals series. You should now have a basic understanding of the basics. There are still more advanced topics to cover. Refer to Pathfinder Support for additional learning material, or visit our Training page for details on instructor led courses.
To download the most recent version of Pathfinder, please visit the Pathfinder Support page and click the link for the current release. If you have any questions, please contact support@thunderheadeng.com