Commercial-off-the-shelf simulation package interoperability: Issues and futures

Commercial-Off-The-Shelf Simulation Packages (CSPs) are widely used in industry to simulate discrete-event models. Interoperability of CSPs requires the use of distributed simulation techniques. Literature presents us with many examples of achieving CSP interoperability using bespoke solutions. However, for the wider adoption of CSP-based distributed simulation it is essential that, first and foremost, a standard for CSP interoperability be created, and secondly, these standards are adhered to by the CSP vendors. This advanced tutorial is on an emerging standard relating to CSP interoperability. It gives an overview of this standard and presents case studies that implement some of the proposed standards. Furthermore, interoperability is discussed in relation to large and complex models developed using CSPs that require large amount of computing resources. It is hoped that this tutorial will inform the simulation community of the issues associated with CSP interoperability, the importance of these standards and its future

Advanced Message Routing for Scalable Distributed Simulations

The Joint Forces Command (JFCOM) Experimentation Directorate (J9)'s recent Joint Urban Operations (JUO) experiments have demonstrated the viability of Forces Modeling and Simulation in a distributed environment. The JSAF application suite, combined with the RTI-s communications system, provides the ability to run distributed simulations with sites located across the United States, from Norfolk, Virginia to Maui, Hawaii. Interest-aware routers are essential for communications in the large, distributed environments, and the current RTI-s framework provides such routers connected in a straightforward tree topology. This approach is successful for small to medium sized simulations, but faces a number of significant limitations for very large simulations over high-latency, wide area networks. In particular, traffic is forced through a single site, drastically increasing distances messages must travel to sites not near the top of the tree. Aggregate bandwidth is limited to the bandwidth of the site hosting the top router, and failures in the upper levels of the router tree can result in widespread communications losses throughout the system. To resolve these issues, this work extends the RTI-s software router infrastructure to accommodate more sophisticated, general router topologies, including both the existing tree framework and a new generalization of the fully connected mesh topologies used in the SF Express ModSAF simulations of 100K fully interacting vehicles. The new software router objects incorporate the scalable features of the SF Express design, while optionally using low-level RTI-s objects to perform actual site-to-site communications. The (substantial) limitations of the original mesh router formalism have been eliminated, allowing fully dynamic operations. The mesh topology capabilities allow aggregate bandwidth and site-to-site latencies to match actual network performance. The heavy resource load at the root node can now be distributed across routers at the participating sites

Distributed Simulation of Heterogeneous and Real-time Systems

This work describes a framework for distributed simulation of cyber-physical systems (CPS). Modern CPS comprise large numbers of heterogeneous components, typically designed in very different tools and languages that are not or not easily composeable. Evaluating such large systems requires tools that integrate all components in a systematic, well-defined manner. This work leverages existing frameworks to facilitate the integration offers validation by simulation. A framework for distributed simulation is the IEEE High-Level Architecture (HLA) compliant tool CERTI, which provides the infrastructure for co-simulation of models in various simulation environments as well as hardware components. We use CERTI in combination with Ptolemy II, an environment for modeling and simulating heterogeneous systems. In particular, we focus on models of a CPS, including the physical dynamics of a plant, the software that controls the plant, and the network that enables the communication between controllers. We describe the Ptolemy extensions for the interaction with HLA and demonstrate the approach on a flight control system simulation

A privacy awareness system for software design

There have been concerting policy and legal initiatives to mitigate the privacy harm resulting from badly designed software technology. But one main challenge to realizing these initiatives is the difficulty in translating proposed principles and regulations into concrete and verifiable evidence in technology. This is partly due to the lack of systematic techniques and tools to address privacy in the software design, hence making it difficult for the designer to measure disclosure risk in a more intuitive way, taking into account the privacy objective that matters to each end user. To bridge this gap, we propose a framework for verifying the satisfaction of user privacy objectives in software design. Our approach is based on the (un)awareness that users acquire when information is disclosed, as it relates to the communication properties of objects in a design. This property is used to determine the expected privacy utility that users will derive from the design for a specified privacy objective. We demonstrate through case studies how this approach can help designers determine which design decision undermines users’ privacy expectations and better design alternatives

A Hybrid Communications Network Simulation-Independent Toolkit

Net-centric warfare requires information superiority to enable decision superiority, culminating in insurmountable combat power against our enemies on the battlefield. Information superiority must be attained and retained for success in today’s joint/coalition battlespace. To accomplish this goal, our combat networks must reliably, expediently and completely deliver over a wide range of mobile and fixed assets. Furthermore, each asset must be given special consideration for the sensitivity, priority and volume of information required by the mission. Evolving a grand design of the enabling network will require a flexible evaluation platform to try and select the right combination of network strategies and protocols in the realms of topology control and routing. This research will result in a toolkit for ns2 that will enable rapid interfacing and evaluation of new networking algorithms and/or protocols. The toolkit will be the springboard for development of an optimal, multi-dimensional and flexible network for linking combat entities in the battlespace

Mechanical properties of 3D-printing polylactic acid parts subjected to bending stress and fatigue testing

This paper aims to analyse the mechanical properties response of polylactic acid (PLA) parts manufactured through fused filament fabrication. The influence of six manufacturing factors (layer height, filament width, fill density, layer orientation, printing velocity, and infill pattern) on the flexural resistance of PLA specimens is studied through an L27 Taguchi experimental array. Different geometries were tested on a four-point bending machine and on a rotating bending machine. From the first experimental phase, an optimal set of parameters deriving in the highest flexural resistance was determined. The results show that layer orientation is the most influential parameter, followed by layer height, filament width, and printing velocity, whereas the fill density and infill pattern show no significant influence. Finally, the fatigue fracture behaviour is evaluated and compared with that of previous studies’ results, in order to present a comprehensive study of the mechanical properties of the material under different kind of solicitations.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Panel on future challenges in modeling methodology

This panel paper presents the views of six researchers and practitioners of simulation modeling. Collectively we attempt to address a range of key future challenges to modeling methodology. It is hoped that the views of this paper, and the presentations made by the panelists at the 2004 Winter Simulation Conference will raise awareness and stimulate further discussion on the future of modeling methodology in areas such as modeling problems in business applications, human factors and geographically dispersed networks; rapid model development and maintenance; legacy modeling approaches; markup languages; virtual interactive process design and simulation; standards; and Grid computing