Comparative evaluation of terrain-generation tools for rail and road traffic simulation: Hermes, Carmen and Presagis Creator

This paper presents a comparative analysis of three terrain-generation tools used in simulation environments: Hermes, Carmen and Presagis Creator. The evaluation covers tasks from both railway and road simulator workflows and applies a unified assessment framework combining automation, precision, AI/GPS support, time efficiency, error reduction, and data integration. Scoring is based on a weighted model derived from industry standards and detailed performance measurements taken from real modelling steps. The results show that Hermes clearly outperforms the legacy tools in majority of criteria. Its high level of automation, multi-source data integration, and GPS/AI-assisted processing significantly reduce manual workload and improve geometric accuracy. Hermes also shortens project execution times, reduces critical errors, and delivers more repeatable outputs. Presagis Creator and Carmen remain limited by manual procedures, narrower format support, and lower precision. Overall, the study confirms Hermes as a more advanced and effective solution for large-scale, high-fidelity terrain and infrastructure generation in modern simulation pipelines.