Comparing the Complexity of Wayfinding Tasks in Built Environments

M Raubal and M J Egenhofer
Additional contact information
M Raubal: Department of Geoinformation, Technical University Vienna, Gusshausstrasse 27-29, 1040 Vienna, Austria
M J Egenhofer: National Center for Geographic Information and Analysis, Department of Spatial Information Science and Engineering, University of Maine, Boardman Hall, Orono, ME 04469-5711, USA

Environment and Planning B, 1998, vol. 25, issue 6, 895-913

Abstract: Wayfinding is a basic activity that people do throughout their lives as they navigate from one place to another. Many theories of spatial cognition have been developed to account for this behavior. However, most of the computational models focus on knowledge representation (for example, cognitive maps) and do not consider the process of how people structure wayfinding tasks and space. In this paper we present a computational method to compare the complexity of wayfinding tasks in built environments. As a measure for such complexity, we use a simple wayfinding model that consists of two critical elements: choices and clues. We show that elements of people's perception and cognition can be used to determine the elements of the wayfinding model and, therefore, to compare the complexity of wayfinding tasks in built environments. A case study of wayfinding in airports demonstrates the applicability of the method. The integration of this method into the computational design process of built environments will help to identify architectural problems with regard to wayfinding prior to construction.

Date: 1998
References: View complete reference list from CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1068/b250895 (text/html)

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:sae:envirb:v:25:y:1998:i:6:p:895-913

DOI: 10.1068/b250895

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in Environment and Planning B
Bibliographic data for series maintained by SAGE Publications ().