This is a post that I wrote for the Altair Innovation Intelligence blog.

I have a grudging respect for Victorian engineers. Isambard Kingdom Brunel, for example, designed bridges, steam ships and railway stations with nothing but intellectual flair, hand-calculations and painstakingly crafted schematics. His notebooks are digitally preserved, and make for fascinating reading for anyone with an interest in the history of engineering.

His notebooks have several characteristics.

• Equations are written in natural math notation
• Text and diagrams are freely mixed with calculations
• Calculation flow is clear and well-structured

Hand calculations mix equations, text and diagrams.

Engineers still use paper for quick calculations and analyses, but how would Brunel have calculated the shape of the Clifton Suspension Bridge or the dimensions of its chain links if he worked today?

If computational support is needed, engineers often choose spreadsheets. They’re ubiquitous, and the barrier to entry is low. It’s just too easy to fire-up a spreadsheet and do a few simple design calculations.

 Spreadsheets are difficult to debug, validate and extend.

Spreadsheets are great at manipulating tabular data. I use them for tracking expenses and budgeting.

However, the very design of spreadsheets encourages the propagation of errors in equation-oriented engineering calculations

• Results are difficult to validate because equations are hidden and written in programming notation
• You’re often jumping about from one cell to another in a different part of the worksheet, with no clear visual roadmap to signpost the flow of a calculation

For these limitations alone, I doubt if Brunel would have used a spreadsheet.

Technology has now evolved to the point where an engineer can reproduce the design metaphor of Brunel’s paper notebooks in software – a freeform mix of calculations, text, drawings and equations in an electronic notebook. A number of these tools are available (including Maple, available via the APA website).

 Modern calculation tools reproduce the design metaphor of hand calculations.

Additionally, these modern software tools can do math that is improbably difficult to do by hand (for example, FFTs, matrix computation and optimization) and connect to CAD packages.

For example, Brunel could have designed the chain links on the Clifton Suspension Bridge, and updated the dimensions of a CAD diagram, while still maintaining the readability of hand calculations, all from the same electronic notebook.

That seems like a smarter choice.

Would I go back to the physical notebooks that Brunel diligently filled with hand calculations? Given the scrawl that I call my handwriting, probably not.

We have just released a major update to MapleSim 2015. MapleSim 2015.2 provides a variety of enhancements that make it even easier to create, simulate, and analyze your multidomain, system-level models, including:

• Advanced diagnostic tools that help you identify the source of problems in your models and simulations, and improve their efficiency and robustness
• Over 50 new components in the magnetic, thermal, electrical, and signal block libraries
• A new connections manager that makes it easier to keep track of connections and port variables
• And more! See What’s New in MapleSim 2015.2 for more information about these and other improvements in MapleSim.

We have also updated and expanded the MapleSim 2015 family of products:

• The new MapleSim CAD Toolbox, which is available as a separate product, helps engineers understand and improve their mechanical designs by making it easy to import CAD models directly into MapleSim and understand how they behave as part of a larger system.
• MapleSim Connector, for connectivity with Simulink®, and the MapleSim Connector for FMI both generate code that provides more detailed run-time error reporting to assist in trouble-shooting on the target platform
• Updates to the specialized component libraries MapleSim Battery Library,  MapleSim Driveline Library, and MapleSim Tire Library provide improved modeling power and scope

This update is being distributed through the automatic Check for Updates system, and is also available from our website. See MapleSim 2015.2  for details on obtaining this update. This new MapleSim release is available immediately on Windows and Linux, with a Mac version following in the coming days. 

eithne

As an Arts major at the University of Waterloo, my first day as a co-op student in the Maplesoft marketing department was a bit of a blur. I was hearing a lot of mathematical jargon that I did not understand. Other than a mandatory statistics class in my second year at university, I haven’t taken a math course since high school, over two years ago. I spent my first week as the marketing assistant educating myself about the basics of marketing complex math software. My favourite method for doing this was to read through the Maplesoft user stories. As I read, I was amazed by the variety of customers and the endless applications that Maplesoft products had contributed to. It became apparent that math is a part of every industry and it is in the design of many products. There were a few stories from the robotics industry in particular that really sparked my interest in the software that I now market. 

We’ve all seen the futuristic movies where robots gradually get smarter and smarter, developing enough intelligence to control the human race, and eventually, take over the world. As it turns out, Engineered Arts, a UK robotics company, is bringing us one step closer to that reality. Well… they’re maybe not ready for world domination just yet, but they are working on one of the most advanced and human-like robots that the world has seen outside of a Hollywood production, and they are doing this using MapleSim. The first generation of the biologically inspired robot was named RoboThespian. With his ability to speak and sing, he was used to educate, entertain, and investigate new developments in robotics. However, he was largely static. That’s when the engineers began work on generation two of their robot, named Byrun, who has the ability to walk, run, jump, and hop as well as speak and sing. Byrun can even express thousands of different facial features thanks to his projective head display. This makes him even more human-like; scary or cool? I’m thinking a bit of both. If you’re interested in the story, click here to continue reading about it.

Another unexpected use of MapleSim was adopted as a joint research project between Ryerson University and McMaster University. I never would have guessed that math software could be applied to the process of human birth. Nevertheless, a group of researchers used MapleSim to simulate induced labour with a Foley Catheter. In short, this is when a small balloon is inserted through the opening of the cervix creating a downward pressure that effectively tricks the cervix into opening for labour to begin. Though the application of this story surprised me, it makes a lot of sense to use modelling software for a research project like this. It’s more efficient to get all of the kinks out of the virtual model in a simulation program before building a physical model that could end up being dysfunctional. According to Dr. James Andrew Smith, a Biomedical Engineering researcher and Assistant Professor in Electrical and Computer Engineering, who is the lead researcher on the project, “Modern engineering has a lot to offer the medical world,” especially when it saves on time and cost. Click here to read more about this story and to watch a video of the finished model.

After two months at Maplesoft, I have noticed that I don’t look at things in the same way that I used to. I find myself staring at a toaster and imagining how it was designed. Did the engineers use advanced physical simulation and modeling software to make the most efficient toaster possible? Well, if it can still only toast on one side then, my guess is no! Maplesoft has many more user stories that I haven’t had the chance to read yet. With customers ranging from BMW to Pixar, Maplesoft continues to expand its customer base and adapt its software to support more and more unique applications. I can’t wait to hear what new and unexpected things will be done with the software next!

I'm trying to run c code generated from a simple MapleSim example (Spin Up Beam). To makes things even simpler, I set the input real expression to just time, and changed the input function in my c code to:

static void inpfn(double T, double *U)
{
U[0] = T;
}

I set all the state variables to 0 for the initial conditions. I ran the code and my output doesn't resemble the MapleSim output at all, and I'm getting errors. So my question is about the state variables, which I initially set to 0:

* State variable(s):
* x[ 0] = `Main.SpinUpBeam.FB3.uf1`(t)
* x[ 1] = diff(`Main.SpinUpBeam.FB3.uf1`(t),t)
* x[ 2] = `Main.SpinUpBeam.FB3.uf2`(t)
* x[ 3] = diff(`Main.SpinUpBeam.FB3.uf2`(t),t)
* x[ 4] = `Main.SpinUpBeam.FB3.vf1`(t)
* x[ 5] = diff(`Main.SpinUpBeam.FB3.vf1`(t),t)
* x[ 6] = `Main.SpinUpBeam.FB3.vf2`(t)
* x[ 7] = diff(`Main.SpinUpBeam.FB3.vf2`(t),t)

What do these represent for this flexible beam (FB3)? I.e. what is uf1, uf2, vf1, vf2? Should they be set to 0, or no?

Thanks.

Here at Maplesoft, we like to foster innovation in technological development. Whether that is finding solutions to global warming, making medical discoveries that save millions, or introducing society to very advanced functional robots, Maplesoft is happy to contribute, support and encourage innovative people and organizations researching these complex topics. This year, we are delighted to have sponsored two contests in the robotics field that provide opportunities to think big and make an impact: Create the Future Design Contest and the International Space Apps Challenge. 

Create the Future Design Contest

Established in 2002, and organized by TechBriefs, the goal of the Create the Future Design Contest is to help engineers bring their product design ideas to life. The overall ‘mission of the contest is to benefit humanity, the environment, and the economy.’ This year, there were a record 1,159 new product ideas submitted by students, engineers, and entrepreneurs from all over the globe. In the machinery/automation/robotics category, which Maplesoft sponsored, the project with the top votes was designed by two engineers who chose to name their innovation CAP Exoskeleton, a type of assistive robotic machine designed to aid the user in walking, squatting, and carrying heavy loads over considerable distances. It can either be used to enhance physical endurance for military purposes or to help the physically impaired perform daily tasks. A contest like Create the Future is a perfect opportunity, for engineers in particular, to learn, explore, and create. 

The CAP Exoskeleton - ©2015 Create the Future Design Contest

International Space Apps Challenge

The exploration of space has always been unique in its search for knowledge. The International Space Apps Challenge, a NASA incubator innovation program, is an ‘international mass collaboration focused on space exploration that takes place over 48-hours in cities around the world’. It is a unique global competition where people rally together to find solutions to real world problems, bringing humanity closer to understanding the Earth, the universe, the human race, and robotics. These goals, the organizers believe, can be reached much faster if we combine the power of the seven billion or so brains that occupy the planet, not forgetting the six that are currently orbiting above us aboard the International Space Station. The competition is open to people of all ages and in all fields, including engineers, technologists, scientists, designers, artists, educators, students, entrepreneurs, and so on. With an astounding 13,846 participants from all over the world, several highly innovative solutions were presented. 

Maplesoft sponsored the University of York location in the UK where the winning team of five modeled an app called CropOp, a communication tool that connects the government to local farmers with the goal of providing instantaneous, crucial information regarding pest breakout warnings, extreme weather, and other important updates. This UK-based team believes the quality and quantity of food produced will be improved, especially benefiting the undernourished communities in Africa. Maplesoft supports the Space Apps Challenge because it proves that collaboration makes for bigger and better discoveries that can save millions of people.

Donating Maplesoft software for contestants to use is part of the sponsorship. The real delight is to wait and see what innovative concepts they come up with. When we sponsor contests like these, we find it benefits our software as much as it does the participants. Plus, if the contestants can provide solutions to real world issues, well, that benefits everyone! 

For those who are running Maple and/or MapleSim on the Mac, and who may have missed an earlier question on this site, we wanted to let you know that there are some problems with running Maple and MapleSim on the new Mac OS, Mac OS X 10.11 (El Capitan). We’re working on a solution, which we expect will be ready in a few weeks. We’ll keep you posted, but in the meantime, please delay updating your Mac OS for now to avoid problems.

eithne

Hello,

Thanks to the function Exports, it is possible to see the differents functions and modules which are in a module.

For example, I find in the module GetMultibody a module called GetLGM which permits to conduct some linear graph analysis. I'm interested by this module.

However, to my knowledge, I didn't see any help on this module.

How can I do so as to understand the inputs to give to the functions of this module in order to use the functions of this module ? In other words, how it is possible to use functions from a module when you don't have any help at your disposal ? 

Thanks a lot for your help.

Hello,

I would like to know : how I can get all the contents of the module GetMultibody of MapleSim?

Is there in classic maple a function enabling me to ask the content of a module ?

Thank a lot for your help.

Do you have physical components like MOSFETs and IGBTs in your library? How can I have a look at the tool and library block sets?

I would like to define all the geometry parameters in a multibody model in MapleSim in mm.

Consequently, i define the mm unit for a parameter in 3 places :
1)  in the Parameters area of the subsystem 

2) in the Tab Inspector of the subsystem

3) in the Tab Inspector of the rigid body frame of the subsystem

The problem is that I receive the warning "Possible double conversion unit on a parameter" and the dimension seems to be as 10^-3 *mm soit too much reduced.

I see that in some examples of the library of Maplesim the parameters of the parameters area of a subsystem are defined as real and consequently, it doesn't cause this kind of problem.

However, how can I do if I want to define my parameters in the parameters area of a subsystem as a position in mm ?

Thanks a lot for your help

Hello,

I use for the 3D visualization the component CAD geometry with STL files.
My STL files are created from CATIA with parts mesured in mm.
In MapleSim, in order to keep mm, I have, of course, to set "mm" in the inspector tab of the components "CAD geometry".
But, I have also to put the scale factor to 0.001.
I don't understand why I should to set it to 0.001 because :
- the CADs from CATIA are in mm.
- and the option in the inspector tab of the components "CAD geometry" is also in mm.
Would you have some precisions about the scale factor for the "CAD geometry" element ?

Thank you for your help.

When I run a simulation (i.e. Double Pendulum Example) MapleSim crashes with no errors or dialogues - completely shuts down. The simulation seems to compile ok, then as the plots are opening it crashes. My video card driver is up to date. Anyone know how to fix this?

Thanks.

in maplesim 7

when run example below

http://www.maplesoft.com/products/maplesim/modelgallery/detail.aspx?id=120

got error in linear_string and linear_string2

prototype must be a structured record type or a record, but received squeezed

2.

http://www.maplesoft.com/products/maplesim/modelgallery/detail.aspx?id=247

There is a problem with the modelica code for custom component named CorneringForce
Regenerate or delete this component to correct this porblem....

........Matrix2Euler

i click the web said USD99

but after click into it, academic version is USD1,555

there are commercial version, academic version , what are difference?

i see that there are self balance robot and humanoid walk robot

what are the specification of size, length of components are they?

if simulate robot hand which has a string make a tension to grip object

what kind of string is it? where can buy robots components which fit the simulations it do?

will maplesoft cooperate with 3D printer to fit the reality of robots?

As i  want to build a model of engine an want to supply compressed air for same ii prepared a engine model but now i am not geeting how to prepare model flow of compressed air and its expansion in enige and force crated on engine head.