A space-time object model - An object oriented model for parallel and distributed simulation

This paper proposes a Space-Time Object Model, an object oriented model tha t possesses space and time management mechanisms. The goal of this object m odel is to provide a common software infrastructure for implementing large- scale moving object simulations efficiently, such as car traffic simulation s and disaster evacuation simulations, using a direct mapping scheme on a p arallel and distributed computing environment. In this object model, the so ftware infrastructure provides two principal functions, "Space Management" and "Time Management," which allows programmers to focus on application pro gramming instead of parallel programming. Although there are several known infrastructure software, which provide the environment needed to develop an d execute parallel and distributed simulations, they only provide a "Time M anagement" mechanism. In this paper, we present a Space-Time Object Model a nd an overview of a program called OSim, which is an implementation of the Space-Time Object Model. Then, we demonstrate the applicability and efficie ncy of this model by introducing the overview and evaluation results of a p arallel car traffic simulation system using OSim.