VisSim: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 00:30, 9 December 2009

Revision as of 09:39, 10 December 2009

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VisSim is widely used in [[control system]] design and [[digital signal processing]] for multidomain simulation and design. It includes blocks for arithmetic, Boolean, and [[transcendental function]]s, as well as [[digital filter]]s, [[transfer function]]s, [[numerical integration]] and interactive plotting.

===Basic shareware for educational purposes===

The free [http://www.vissim.com/downloads/demos.html VisSim Viewer] lets anyone run VisSim diagrams, including standard functions for most engineering student curricula. Though really meant as a way to share mathematical models (and the code generator kit is not included), most students will find the VisSim viewer useful because of the 150+ built-in runtime functions.

==Code generation==

Coupled with VisSim/C-Code, an add-on product, VisSim performs code generation for real-time implementation of [[embedded systems]]. ItThe code generated is lean and more readable than many other code generator kits, mostly because VisSim's designer was a Computer Engineering teacher who co-authored a book on C in the 1980s and based the original design for VisSim on his own [[ANSI C]] code [[compiler]].<ref>[http://scholar.google.nl/scholar?q=Peter+A.+Darnell&hl=nl&btnG=Zoeken&lr= Books on C by Peter A. Darnell and Philip E. Margolis]</ref> This close following of ANSI standards is the sound basis upon which VisSim interfaces with popular C compilers and can quickly generate [[machine code]] to target small [[16-bit]] [[fixed point]] systems like the [[Texas Instruments]] [[MSP430]], such as (using only 340 bytes flash and 64 bytes of RAM for a small closed loop [[Pulse-width modulation]] (PWM) actuated system), as well as larger [[32-bit]] [[floating point processor]]s like [[Texas Instruments]] C6713. This technique of simulating system performance off-line, and then generating code automatically from the simulated diagram to run on the embedded system is known as "Model Based Development". Model based development for embedded systems is becoming widely adopted for production systems because it shortens development cycles for hardware development in the same way that [[Model-driven architecture]] shortens production cycles for software development.

==Virtual plants==

Since VisSim is able to handle nested block diagrams, it is possible to build ''virtual plants'' with various VisSim layers, combined if necessary with proprietary software. More and more hardware designers find it necessary to perform "What-If?" scenarios before executing ''repairs'' that may damage their design. This technique of simulating system performance off-line, and then generating code automatically from the simulated diagram to run on the embedded system is known as "Model Based Development". Model based development for embedded systems is becoming widely adopted for production systems because it shortens development cycles for hardware development in the same way that [[Model-driven architecture]] shortens production cycles for software development.

==Supported versions==

Though Visual Solutions supports all releases, it is only available in English and typically only the most recent versions of VisSim are well supported. The company is understandably dependant on user feedback to carry functionality forward with each release. VisSim Version 7 has introduced 3D plotting and interactive 3D [[VRML]] animation.

For users wishing to build block diagrams in their native language, various webfora exist where users post findings using the viewer or customized older versions of VisSim.

VisSim Version 7 has introduced 3D plotting and interactive 3D [[VRML]] animation.

== VisSim add-ons ==

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* [[Fixed-point arithmetic]] blockset for bit-true simulation and code generation

* Embedded system targeting for Texas Instruments [[C2000]] and [[MSP430]] chips. Supports on-chip peripherals like serial ports, CAN, PWM, Quadrature Encoder Pulse (QEP), Event Capture, [[Serial Peripheral Interface Bus]] (SPI), [[Analog-to-digital converter]] (ADC), [[Digital-to-analog converter]] (DAC), and [[GPIO]].

==References==

{{reflist}}

==See also==

* [[Vensim]]

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* [http://www.ieeecss.org/columns/October2007/Oct2007VisSimProductSpotlight.pdf Texas Instruments MSP430 spotlight article] published in [[IEEE]] magazine.

* [http://www.vissim.com VisSim web site]

* [http://books.google.com/books?isbn=0387946756 C: A Software Engineering Approach], by Peter A Darnell, Philip E Margolis, 3rd edition, 1996, ISBN 8185198969

[[Category:Mathematical modeling]]

[[Category:Numerical software]]