An experimental study on pedestrian walking speed considering combined effect of heeling and trim

• Experiments studied slope effects on walking speeds. Built 9 ship corridor simulators with 15 trim/heeling combinations to mimic inclined conditions. • Conducted individual/crowd walking tests. Delivered ship evacuation data under combined trim-heeling conditions, addressing knowledge gaps. • Speed attenuation models for individual/crowd walking were developed, including dynamic analysis of crowd velocity distribution under combined trim and heeling angles . • The results show that under combined trim and heeling conditions, the average pedestrian speed in crowd walking mode is more sensitive to variations in heeling angle compared to individual walking mode. This study investigates the impact of inclined conditions on pedestrian walking speeds, focusing on both individual and crowd walking modes. A total of fifteen different combinations of heeling and trim angles were simulated to conduct a comprehensive evacuation experiment. The heeling angles α considered were 0 ∘ , 5 ∘ , and 10 ∘ , while the trim angles β were 0 ∘ , ± 10 ∘ , and ± 15 ∘ . Results indicate that average pedestrian walking speeds in both individual and crowd walking modes follow a similar trend as the trim angle β varies from − 15 ∘ to 15 ∘ , with the heeling angle α at 0 ∘ , 5 ∘ , or 10 ∘ . Under combined trim and heeling conditions, the average pedestrian speed in crowd walking mode is more sensitive to changes in heeling inclination compared to individual walking mode. Furthermore, under the same inclination angles, pedestrian walking speeds in crowd walking mode exhibit a more concentrated distribution compared to those in individual walking mode. Moreover, analysis of the spatiotemporal distribution of instantaneous velocities reveals that the trends in walking speeds during crowd walking mode in inclined scenarios follow a similar pattern to those observed in individual walking mode. The results will provide fundamental guidance to the practical human evacuation from passenger ships.