Whether your company creates airplanes, cars, widgets, or software, product planning is an essential part of the development process. And if your group is like mine, product planning meetings are seldom boring. I am privileged to work with some pretty sharp folks who are very capable engineers, and very passionate about what they do. Our planning discussions are always interesting, and often animated. … Read More
As engineers we often use “system” to describe different levels of design abstraction. Chip designers refer to integrated circuits as systems on chips. Audio designers refer to an amplifier as a system. Aircraft brake designers create systems for stopping aircraft. There truly are a variety of ways to define and implement a system. And most things we call a system are really just a subsystem … Read More
An important performance metric for any system is reliability — does the system do what it’s supposed to do, when it’s supposed to do it, time after time, without fault or failure. Obviously, system reliability doesn’t just happen; it’s not just dumb luck when a system delivers flawless performance, whether it’s your car, your cell phone, your garage door opener, or your … Read More
It’s software release time in the SystemVision® offices, and we are pleased to announce that SystemVision 5.8 is ready for immediate download. I say “pleased” for two reasons. First, users will no doubt find good value in the many new features and updates. And second, SystemVision Engineering can take a break from their keyboards, and maybe even take a well-deserved nap (getting a … Read More
Once in awhile I work with customers who want to move VHDL-AMS models between multiple simulators. The ability to do so is one of the great promises of standard modeling languages and, at face value, should be an easy task. After all, if a language is an industry standard, and multiple simulation tools claim to support it, then moving models between tools should be a plug-and-play process, right? Well, … Read More
If you plan to be in Frankfurt, Germany on November 17, mark your calendars for Mentor Graphics’ Automotive and Commercial Vehicles Integrated Electrical Solutions Forum (IESF). You’ll enjoy 26 industry sessions planned specifically for E/E design engineers, engineering managers, and executives in the automotive and commercial vehicle industries. This IESF event will be particularly interesting if your … Read More
I’ve spent a fair amount of time recently troubleshooting a system simulation from a prospective customer. It’s always an interesting, and sometimes frustrating, process.
Fixing simulations can be slow going work. Simulation error messages are often cryptic at best, and the customer’s system is sometimes based on a technology that I know little about. Despite these challenges, however, … Read More
One of the most important things I’ve learned during my 20+ years working with simulation tools is simply this: my simulation results will only be as good as my models. While not a revolutionary concept, it’s none the less a fact of system simulation that anyone using a simulator in their design process knows. But there is an equally important companion principle: my model will only give me the … Read More
Mentor Graphics’ Military & Aerospace Integrated Electrical Solutions Forum (IESF) 2011 is coming up fast on the calendar – Tuesday, September 13 in Long Beach, California. This is a companion event to our Automotive IESF 2011 held in Detroit, Michigan in early June. And just like the June event, Military & Aerospace IESF will be chock-full of technical content.
The September 13 event focuses … Read More
There are times in each of our lives when preparation and opportunity come together in a single moment for once in a lifetime experiences. Then there are times when dumb luck rules the day but produces the same result. I would like to say that I am regularly prepared to open the door when opportunity knocks, but more often than not I stumble into worthwhile opportunities, some of which truly are once … Read More
It’s college season in my home. My oldest son is soon off to medical school. My younger son just graduated from high school and will be off to college by summer’s end. It’s an exciting time to see your kids make decisions about their field of study and, ultimately, their profession and future.
My oldest son majored in Biology to prepare himself for medical school. He enjoys science, as does my younger … Read More
I’ve written before about the benefits of visiting customers to discuss their design challenges. If nothing else, I get a brief introduction to some really interesting mechatronic system applications and often learn about new ways to use system simulation tools. I recently visited a customer site as part of a Mentor Graphics sponsored Technology Day. During a typical Technology Day, Mentor Graphics … Read More
Many mechatronic system capabilities depend on software as well as hardware. Hardware and software development methodologies, however, are quite often seperated within a company despite the obvious advantages of an integrated flow. In some ways, trying to combine hardware and software design into a single, integrated flow is much like trying to make a great salad dressing using oil and vinegar: getting … Read More
Hardware/software co-design, Add new tag, SystemVision conneXion, SystemVision SVX
A few weeks ago I wrote a post titled Pushbutton Cars in which I lamented my experience with a rental car whose ignition was activated by a pushbutton, rather than a key in the ignition switch. I still don’t understand all the reasons for using the pushbutton, but I suppose it met some marketing requirement or design specification. Since I don’t see pushbuttons in many cars, it appears the idea … Read More
All EDA companies share a common business objective: convincing customers to buy their tools over the competition. Among other marketing tasks, we search for graphics that best express the value of our tools, graphics that customers can look at and immediately understand. Having worked on many charts and graphs myself over the years, I’ll admit it’s not an easy job to find or develop just the right … Read More
SAE 2013 WORLD CONGRESS EXPOSITION, DETROIT, Mich., April 17, 2013—Mentor Graphics Corporation and Agilent Technologies Inc. (NASDAQ: A), the world’s premier measurement company,... View News Article
System Modeling and Integration Tutorials. These multimedia presentations provide information pertaining to model driven development methodologies. More
This series of brief (3-5 minutes) multimedia presentations explain various aspects of the BridgePoint tool and xtUML essentials in general. More