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MATLAB® and SIMULINK® Integration with D-Six
In order to leverage off of the powerful developmental and analysis tools afforded by MathWorks MATLAB and SIMULINK applications, Bihrle Applied Research Inc. (BAR) has tightly integrated their simulation environment, D-Six, with the functionality of these tools. The combination of the rapid prototyping and analysis functions provided by the MathWorks software, combined with the simulation specific tools, interfaces and functionality provided by D-Six, provides simulation developers with an unprecedented development and analytic capability.
D-Six is a simulation specific application that allows users to build validate and deploy simulations using a wide range of interfaces and plug in modules for simulation specific activities. This powerful environment and interface suite allows users to support the entire simulation application spectrum with a single, expandable application; from desktop development and evaluation to trainer flight model host - from hardware-in-the-loop applications to networked simulation development and evaluation. In order to further extend D-Six's developmental capabilities, BAR has coupled D-Six with a range of MATLAB capabilities, such as those described below.
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 Database Exchange
Using D-Six's Aeroport tool, the user can export the entire tabular database (or components) can be exported to MATLAB as a structure that can be manipulated plotted or operated on using MATLAB functionality. Similarly, data may be exported from the MATLAB environment and automatically entered into D-Six's tabular data buildup. This capability allows users to export their simulation databases and conduct a range of activities: develop auto document and plot functions, reformat the database, manipulate the individual tables, etc, and then re-import the modified model into D-Six for simulation operation. |
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 D-Six Script-Level Access to MATLAB
D-Six's scripting function (using either VbScript or JavaScript) allows users to operate D-Six via command line as well as to build complex operational functions that can perform a wide array of operations. This powerful capability allows the user to, through a script or command line, to operate all D-Six functions and interfaces. Further, the scripting operation allows the D-Six user to build scripts that invoke other Vb and Java script enabled software, i.e, MATLAB, Microsoft Excel, Access, etc. In this fashion the script can command D-Six runs and operations, export and command operations in other applications using the exported data. This powerful capability allows users to perform a wide range of advanced simulation recording and data analysis operations, for example; set up an incremental loop through D-Six, generating a series of simulation runs varying specified parameters, outputting each simulation run results to MATLAB for reduction (i.e, take the max, min and average of certain parameters), transfer reduced results to an Excel spreadsheet for auto reporting. Simulation Auto Fidelity Test (AFT) capabilities have also been built with the scripting interface. |
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 Simulation Project Access in SIMULINK
MATLAB SIMULINK provides users with a powerful tool to rapidly build and evaluate system models using simple block diagram development tools and no coding. Incorporating a database representation of a physical plant (such as the airframe aerodynamics) in SIMULINK for the development of controllers, such as an auto pilot or flight control system, is more complex, and is frequently simplified for ease of development. Using the project access capability provided by D-Six, the user can load, run and operate an entire D-Six project as a block in the SIMULINK workspace. This capability allows the user to incorporate the entire simulation database as the plant in the control system development for example, and gives SIMULINK access to all simulation variables, function calls and interfaces. Using this feature, a control system developer can easily use the entire simulation database as the plant in his control system development, and rapidly evaluate the behavior of the controller(s) on the airframe response. The ability to incorporate an entire simulation project in an environment were graphical development tools can operate on the database enables a number of simulation analytic functions such as controller and autopilot design, model analysis and reduction, automated testing and plotting as well as linear model extraction from a complex non-linear database. |
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 D-Six Target and RTW® Interface Module
Once a particular system has been built using SIMULINK as described above, the user would naturally need to integrate the control function into D-Six for real time simulation operation employing D-Six's simulation specific features and real time operation. In order to expedite this need, BAR has developed a D-Six Target for SIMULINK's Real Time Workshop (RTW) feature. This interface allows the developer to directly compile the system blocks from the SIMULINK application to a D-Six compatible code object. The D-Six target interface performs a number of simulation interface functions that makes the transition from graphical system block elements to operational simulation code automatic and user code free. These include the integration of asynchronous operation of the block elements with the simulation frame rate, the ability to access and integrate multiple independent SIMULINK models simultaneously, and the provision to automate or allow user defined variable mapping between D-Six and the new model components. Further, all system mapping and function call source code is auto generated and integrated as required for the simulation operation. Using D-Six and MATLAB with this interface, simulation developers can now rapidly build, evaluate and deploy the most complex models and systems with the minimum of model coding and validation. Further, this rapid development and prototyping capability provides a portable, easily maintained and updated system record in the SIMULINK project. The development, deployment and maintenance of the most complex simulation systems has never been so straightforward! |
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