Simulink Release Notes

Simulation Enhancements

Simulink 5.0 includes the following new features and enhancements to simulation of Simulink models.

• Invalid Loop Highlighting
• Algebraic Loop Highlighting
• Conditional Input Branch Execution
• Reorganized Simulation Diagnostics
• Enhanced Diagnostic Viewer

Invalid Loop Highlighting

Simulink now detects and highlights several kinds of invalid loops:

• Loops that create invalid function-call connections or an attempt to modify the input/output arguments of a function call
• Loops containing non-latched triggered subsystems
• Self-triggering subsystems
• Loops containing action subsystems in a cycle

This makes it is easier to identify and fix the loop. See Avoiding Invalid Loops for more information.

Algebraic Loop Highlighting

Simulink now optionally highlights algebraic loops when you update or simulate a model. See Highlighting Algebraic Loops for more information. The ashow debug command without any arguments now lists all of a model's algebraic loops in the MATLAB command window.

Conditional Input Branch Execution

This release introduces a new optimization called conditional input branch execution. Previously, when simulating models containing Switch or Multiport Switch blocks, Simulink executed all blocks required to compute all inputs to each switch at each time step. In this release, Simulink, by default, executes only the blocks required to compute the control input and the data input selected by the control input at each time step. Similarly, code generated from the model by Real-Time Workshop executes only the code needed to compute the control input and the selected data input. This optimization speeds simulation and execution of code generated from the model. See "Optimizations" for more information.

Reorganized Simulation Diagnostics

The Diagnostics Pane of the Simulation Parameters dialog box now groups diagnostics by functionality. This makes it easier to find and configure related diagnostics.

Enhanced Diagnostic Viewer

This release introduces an enhanced Diagnostic Viewer. Improvements include

• Identical appearance on UNIX and Windows
• Hyperlinks to Simulink, Stateflow, and Real-Time Workshop objects that caused the errors displayed in the viewer
• Sortable error list

• Clicking a column head sorts the error list by the contents of that column.

• Configurable content

• The View menu allows you to choose which information to display in the viewer.

• Selectable font size

• The FontSize menu allows you to choose the size of the font used to display error messages.

See Simulation Diagnostic Viewer for more information.

Block Enhancements

Modeling Enhancements