Looking for fingertip control of your complex simulations? Need to easily remap
your I/O without changing your Simulink model? Looking for fast access to simulation
data? Concurrent’s SIMulation Workbench is the answer. SIMulation Workbench
provides a complete framework to develop and execute realtime hardware-in-the-loop
and man-inthe-loop simulations.
Complete GUI Operation
SIMulation Workbench’s powerful GUI allows users to conveniently configure, start, stop, record and
play back simulation runs. SIMulation Workbench provides fast, direct shared memory access to all
parameters and signals needed by your simulation. SIMulation Workbench’s inmemory design optimizes
performance and data conversion speed.
SIMulation Workbench is built upon a client-server architecture. A real-time server provides the
run-time environment for simulation while network-based GUI clients control and
display simulation activities. Realtime performance is maximized because the GUI
clients run outside of the simulation server.
Benefits
Real-Time Database
At the heart of SIMulation Workbench is a memory-resident database called RTDB that
can be accessed by all simulator processes. RTDB stores the definition of all data
items used by the simulation such as model variables and their mapping to I/O boards
and model parameters. RTDB is configured externally via a GUI and provides for complete
I/O independence. All the information necessary to configure I/O points and data
bus protocols and to read, convert, write and store simulation variables is maintained
in the database.
RTDB is organized as a dictionary where a main hash table index points directly
to any individual item within the database. Values can be stored as any C language
scalar type such as char, unsigned char, short, int, float, double, etc. RTDB also
contains the engineering unit conversions for analog values, override flags, values,
alternate values as well as raw unit values. If I/O points need to be reassigned,
GUI panels provide convenient, model-independent remapping.
Data Recorder
SWB’s powerful Data Recorder tool allows simulation data points to be logged individually
and independently at the rate they are produced. Hardware and engineering values,
as well as run-time flags and time stamps, can be recorded. Depending on the performance
required, data recording can be run on the real-time host or on a separate networked
server. Data recording can be turned on and off during simulation runs by GUI command,
real-time script or user program.
Simulation Playback
SWB’s Playback tool allows recorded test runs to be replayed into the system. The
user selects the recorded session and simply starts a test run in playback mode.
Playback of recorded test runs is an alternate mechanism for storing data values
into the RTDB. Instead of the data values being acquired from hardware, they are
read from recorded files. Similarly, output variables that have been recorded override
the outputs computed by the models. During a playback session, values for the data
items that have not been recorded can be read from hardware as in a normal session
run.
The playback interface allows a user to forward to a specified time within a recorded
session as well as stepping through its execution frame-by-frame.
Support for Simulink and Legacy Models
SIMulation Workbench fully supports simulation models developed using The MathWorks’
products. MATLAB/Simulink models can be integrated seamlessly into the SWB environment
using Real-Time Workshop (RTW) and S-functions to the RTDB. Simulink model parameters
are automatically extracted from the RTW model and mapped into the RTDB so they
can be changed at run-time. An extensive API also allows C, C++ and Fortran legacy-code
models to be integrated directly into SWB and executed together with Simulink models.
Multi-rate execution is also supported.
Complete Real-time Linux Platform Support
SWB is fully supported on Concurrent iHawk™ multiprocessor platforms running RedHawk
Linux. Simulation models are scheduled using RedHawk’s Frequency Based Scheduler
(FBS) under control of the iHawk’s Real-Time Clock & Interrupt Module hardware
(PCI) card. All I/O devices and Linux drivers required for your simulation are available
directly from Concurrent.
Users can assign models to different system CPUs to achieve parallel execution.
RedHawk Linux shielding features can also be used to guarantee real-time response
by dedicating a CPU to a process.
Real-Time Scripting
SWB also provides the ability to control a simulation via a simple scripting language.
Scripts give the user access to RTDB item values as well as access to test control,
frame timing information and data recording. A script is run synchronously during
its own subcycle as part of the synchronous execution loop. The scripting language
also has the ability to attach signal generators and ramp functions to an RTDB item.
Data Visualization and Plotting
SWB’s data browsing tool allows the value of all RTDB items to be viewed and plotted
in real-time. This tool also provides a basic GUI to modify RTDB values. Visualization
into real-time execution can be extended by designing custom user interfaces using
industry standard National Instruments’ LabVIEW virtual instruments.
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