What's New in MapleSim 4

3-D Model Construction

You can now build multibody models by dragging and manipulating 3-D objects in MapleSim. In the 3-D workspace, you can add, connect, and lay out 3-D objects, and you can use graphical controls to set initial conditions for joints and other multibody components interactively. You can build a model in a 3-D view and a block diagram view simultaneously. As you build a model in the 3-D view, the corresponding changes are shown in the block diagram representation of your model at the same time. Also, the corresponding changes that you make in the block diagram view are shown in the 3-D representation of your model at the same time.

For more information, see Visualizing a Multibody Model in Chapter 4 of the MapleSim User's Guide.

Centralized Attachments Palette

You can use the new Attachments palette in the Project tab to attach a file of any format to a MapleSim model. When you open your model in a future MapleSim session, you can access the files that you attached previously in the Attachments palette. You can attach, for example, Maple worksheets that are related to your model or design documents created in another application. You can also attach MapleSim templates for model analysis tasks.

For more information, see Attaching a File to a Model and Opening a MapleSim Template.

New Probe Management Tools

You can use the new Probes palette in the Project tab to view a list of probes that are attached at all hierarchical levels in your MapleSim model. You can select entries in this palette to browse to a probe in the model workspace or to modify and manipulate a probe in the Inspector tab. You can also right-click (Control-click for Macintosh®) entries in this palette and manipulate probes using context menus.

View Results for New Quantities Based on Previously Generated Simulation Data

After simulating your model, you may want to view simulation results for a different set of quantities. Instead of simulating your model a second time, you can select new quantities or attach new probes, and display simulation graphs for the new quantities based on the data that was generated in your previous simulation.

For more information, see Viewing Simulation Results for New Quantities After Simulating a Model.

New Debugging Console

The new debugging console displays diagnostic messages that can help you identify potential errors as you build a model. You can display the debugging console by clicking the debugging button ( ) at the bottom of the MapleSim window. When you click the diagnostic tests button ( ) below the console, MapleSim verifies whether your model contains unconnected lines, or subsystems that have an identical configuration but are not linked to a subsystem definition. When either of these issues is detected, diagnostic messages are displayed in the console. You can right-click (Control-click for Macintosh) the diagnostic messages for options that can help you to resolve these issues.

New ck45 Solver

A new solver based on the ck45 (Cash-Karp) method can be used to simulate your MapleSim models. This semi-stiff solver provides faster integration than the rkf45 method for stiff systems. The ck45 solver is the default solver for all simulations.

Subsystem Management

Several new enhancements allow you to manage and reuse subsystem copies in your model more easily. You can create shared subsystems, so that you can edit a group of common subsystems without having to edit subsystem copies individually. You can also create stand-alone subsystems that can be edited individually without affecting other subsystem copies in the model workspace.

For more information, see Creating and Managing Subsystems in Chapter 2 of the MapleSim User's Guide.

Enhanced MapleSim Templates

MapleSim templates, which can be used to perform analysis tasks, create custom components, and generate data sets in Maple, have been significantly redesigned and enhanced in this release.

Also, a new Multibody Analysis Template has been added. You can use this template to retrieve and manipulate multibody equations specifically.

For more information, see Opening MapleSim Templates.

New Modeling Components