Using Adams/Mechatronics - MD Adams 2010

Welcome to Adams/Mechatronics
About Adams/Mechatronics
Adams/Mechatronics is a plug-in to Adams which can be used to easily incorporate control systems into
mechanical models. Adams/Mechatronics has been developed based on the Adams/Controls
functionality and contains modeling elements which transfer information to/from the control system. For
example, using Adams/Mechatronics in Adams/Car, you can quickly create assemblies of vehicle
systems including control systems, and then analyze them to understand their performance and behavior.
Using Adams/Mechatronics you can create control systems with different level of complexity. You can
use function builder to build a simple control function. If you have your control system defined in a
control package such as Easy 5 or Matlab/Simulink, then you can perform a co-simulation between
mechanical model defined in Adams and control system defined in the control package. Alternatively,
you can generate the control system code as a dynamic link library file (a dll file in Windows, also known
as external system library or simply ESL file in Adams/Mechtronics) using the control package and then
do all calculations with Adams.
You will also be able to include control system parameters in a design study in Adams/Insight for
simultaneous optimization of both control system and mechanical system. Furthermore, you will be able
to switch the control code in the model by selecting ESL (external system library) property files which
refer to different ESL files.
You can, for instance, use Adams/Mechatronics together with Adams/Car to:
• Tune both control parameters and suspension/driveline parameters to optimize shunt-and-shuffle
phenomena
• Investigate the influence of active damping control on the forces in the suspension components
or body structure
• Validate your complete vehicle model including control system with a corresponding model for
Hardware-In-The-Loop studies
Based on the analysis results, you can quickly adjust the chassis characteristics or control parameters and
redo the analysis to evaluate the effects of the adjustment. For example, you can quickly change control
code to investigate the best handling characteristics for your vehicle.
Once you complete the analysis of your model, you can easily share your work with others. You can also
create different plots of the controller input/output signals and vehicle dynamic responses. In addition,
you can access other users' models without overwriting their data.
Benefits of Adams/Mechatronics
Adams/Mechatronics enables you to work faster and smarter with control systems, facilitate
understanding the effects of design change in the controls systems and mechanical system on total system
performance.
2 Adams/Mechatronics
From a modeling perspective, Adams/Mechatronics has following benefits:

• A control system has to be setup and coupled to mechanical system only once
• Control systems and control signals are handled as components among others
• The model can easily be used by different users, including those who are not familiar with the
control systems
• Automatic signal unit conversions
• Easy to connect transducer and actuator signals to the control systems
• Overview and modify the control system input and output specifications
Model and Data Reuse

A key benefit of using Adams/Mechatronics is that it shares data and simulation components of control
system with Adams. This means that complete system-level optimization becomes easier for complex
problems such as shunt-and-shuffle, ABS impact on ride/judder, etc. For instance, you can load the
Adams/Car assembly containing a control system as any other assembly, without having to perform
several manual tasks to run the coupled simulation.
In addition, Adams/Mechatronics includes a Signal Manager for setting up the connection (transducer
and actuator signals) between the mechanical system and the control systems. The settings you choose
in the Signal Manager are automatically saved with the subsystems of the assembly, so that the next time
the assembly is opened, no further settings are needed before submitting the simulation.
Starting Adams/Mechatronics
Because Adams/Mechatronics is a plug-in to Adams, you first start Adams and then load
Adams/Mechatronics.
In Windows, you start Adams/Car or Adams/View from the start menu. For more information, see
Starting Adams/Car or Starting Adams/View.
In UNIX, you start Adams/Car or Adams/View from the Adams Toolbar. For information on the Adams
Toolbar, see Running and Configuring Adams.
To start Adams/Mechatronics:
1. Start Adams/Car or Adams/View as explained in respective documentation
2. From the Tools menu, select Plug-in Manager
3. Find Adams/Mechatronics in plug-in list, and then select one or both of the following options
• Load: loads Adams/Mechatronics in the current session
• Load at Startup: instructs Adams to load Adams/Mechatronics in all future Adams
sessions
4. Select OK
Welcome to Adams/Mechatronics 3
Adams/Mechatronics will be loaded into Adams. The Adams interface now includes Mechatronics menu
in last position.
Please also note that the Mechatronics plug-in will load automatically if you open an assembly which
refers to a subsystem which contains a control system related object.
File Architecture in Adams/Mechatronics

In Adams/Car case, figure below shows the database table directories in the shared database of
Adams/Mechatronics.
Note that:
• external_system_libraries.tbl contains property files related to external system files generated by
control software like Matlab/Simulink and Easy5
• disturbance_files.tbl contains property files containing control signal disturbance data in ASCII,
RPCIII or DAC format
In Adams/View case, as there is no database table, dynamic link file is stored in a user-specified target
folder.
Learning the Basics
Basic Concepts in Adams/Mechatronics

Here the basic components and terms used in Adams/Mechatronics are briefly described.
• Transducer Signal
• Actuator Signal
• Control System
• Control System Input
• Control System Output
• Mechanical System
• Signal Manager
• External System Library (ESL)
While the picture below illustrates how the (transducer and actuator) signals from the mechanical
systems are connected to the control systems via the control system inputs/outputs, we will try to describe
each term.
Learning the Basics 7
Transducer Signal
Transducer signals are used to measure a certain signal from an arbitrary location of the mechanical
system. For example, it can measure the rotational velocity of a wheel or the instantaneous brake
pressure. The measured signal is sent to the control system via the control system input.
Actuator Signal
Actuator signals are used to transfer the output from the control system to the mechanical system. For
example, the actuator signal could be a brake pressure of an ABS control system, which would be used
in the force expressions of the brake model in the mechanical system. Typically in Adams/Car, you would
create a point torque actuator in the template builder and in the function expression refer to the actuator
signal.
Note: it is important to pay attention to difference between following terms: the Actuator Signal
which is an Adams/Mechatronics component and Actuators which is an Adams/Car
component.
Control System
A Control System in the context of Adams/Mechatronics is an object which contains information about
the type of controller, the number of input channels and output channels, etc.
Control System Input

Control system inputs are created when you create a control system. The number of inputs specified for
the control system will determine the number of control system input objects that are auto-created. Using
the Signal Manager, you can hook up the appropriate transducer signal (or other control system output)
to the corresponding control system input. Since the control system inputs are always automatically
created, you can only perform Modify operations on them.
Control System Output

Control system outputs are created when you create a control system. The number of outputs specified
for the control system will determine the number of control system output objects that are auto-created.
Using the Signal Manager, you can hook up the appropriate control system output to the corresponding
actuator signal. Since the control system outputs are always automatically created, you can only perform
Modify operations on them.
Mechanical System
In Adams/Mechatronics the mechanical system refers to the mechanical model excluding the control
systems. Note that you can exploit Adams/Mechatronics components such as transducer/actuator signals
without the need for a new version of the model (template in Adams/Car) since you can
activate/deactivate the control system. See Activity in Adams/Mechatronics for more information.
Signal Manager
The Signal Manager is a graphic interface in Adams/Mechatronics where you connect the mechanical
system(s) to the control system(s), i.e., connect the transducer signals to the control system inputs and
control system outputs to the corresponding actuator signals. Note that you can also connect a control
system output of one control system to input of another control system. Typically, you need to use the
Signal Manager only once for a complete model and then connections will be saved within the model.
The next time you open the model, the signal connections will be setup automatically.
Learning the Basics 9
External System Library (ESL)

External system library (ESL) is a general term used for code generated by control packages like
Matlab/RTW (Real-Time Workshop) or Easy5. This code is saved in a file with dll (dynamic link library)
extension on Windows or so (shared objects) extension on Unix operating system.
To provide an effective access to the ESL file, Adams/Mechatronics uses ESL property file, which in turn
points to a ESL file and contains other information such as control system parameters name and value.
This provides the possibilities to perform a design study in Adams/Insight.
In Adams/Car, ESL property files are stored in external_system_libraries.tbl directory in the Adams/Car
database. In Adams/View, they are stored in a user-specified folder.
Working with Adams/Mechatronics
Working with Components
What you can do in the Adams/Car Template Builder and in Adams/View is:
• Create, modify, rename and delete transducer signals and actuator signals
• Create, modify, rename and delete control systems
• Modify, rename, rearrange and delete the auto-generated control system inputs/outputs
Please note that there is no dialog box available to create a control system input/output object; however,
they can be modified by using Modify dialog box.
In contrast to Adams/Car Template Builder and Adams/View, you are only allowed to modify the
components in the Adams/Car Standard Interface mode, i.e., modify different signals and the control
systems.
Transducer Signals
The following picture shows how to create a transducer signal which should measure a state in the
mechanical system. This menu is available in Adams/Car Template Builder and in Adams/View.
Note that in Adams/Car case, the transducer signal should be created in the template where the signal
arises.
The menu choice above will display the following dialog box:
Among other inputs such as name and type (only valid for Adams/Car), you should enter a function
expression that is measuring a state of the mechanical system. Note that you can alternatively consider
the function definition as a user routine subroutine. For more help on this please refer to Create/Modify
Transducer/Actuator or Control System Input/Output dialog box help.
As for all type of signals in Adams/Mechatronics in addition to choosing the applicable unit type and unit
string, you alos have the possibility to scale the function and apply a disturbance and/or delay. The later
options are described more in detail here.
Further, you also have the option to turn on/off the auto-created signal request and measure. The request
and the measure can be expressed in model unit and, if the unit string differs from the model units, also
in the user specified signal unit. In the following example, the signal can be easily plotted in the
Adams/Postprocessor in model units "deg/second" (in this case "degrees" and "second" are angle and
Working with Adams/Mechatronics 13
time model units, respectively) and also in "rpm" (in this case it is assumed that the function expression
is producing result in "rpm").
A transducer signal activity can be set in two different ways:

• Always: the transducer signal object is always active in your model
• Only if connected: the transducer object is inactive until it gets connected to a corresponding
control system input. If it is not connected, it will stay inactive, and will not be visible to the
solver (i.e. not visible in the .adm file)
To understand more about how to use the activity setting, please refer to Activity settings section. More
details about the dialog settings can be found in the dialog box help (F1- help).
Last, by selecting the push button shown in following picture, you will get the option to select entities
located in the model that should be activated/deactivated dependent on if the signal gets connected or not.
Please refer to Activity settings to learn about this feature.
In Adams/Car Standard Interface mode, the function expression cannot be edited as expected. But other
options like request/measure activity, scale factor, disturbance, delay and unit information can still be
modified. These choices are then stored in the subsystem file.
In Adams/View all dialog box options above are available except the possibility to create symmetric
signals. Hence, all signals in Adams/View are of ‘single’ type.
Actuator Signals
The actuator signal is used to transfer the output from the control system to the mechanical system and
is created via the menu below. In Adams/Car the signal should be created in the template where the signal
is used and referred to.
The dialog box of creating a new actuator signal is similar to one for the transducer signal except for the
function expression which is deactivated. The reason is that the actuator signal gets its value from a
control system output and hence the function expression is already defined and cannot therefore be
changed.
The available activity settings for an actuator signal are:

• Always: the actuator signal object is always active in your model
• Only if connected: the actuator object is inactive until it gets connected to a corresponding
control system output. If it is not connected, it will stay inactive, and will not be visible to the
solver (i.e. not visible in the .adm file)
• Only if referred to: If another object is using the actuator signal in a function expression, the
actuator signal will be active. A typical example is if you have a force using the actuator signal in
its expression.
The user has the option – as for the transducer signal – to select entities whose activities depends on if
the actuator signal gets connected or not. To understand more about how to use the activity setting
together with the options to select activity dependent objects, please read Activity settings.
Control Systems
To create a control system, please use the menu below.
Dialog box below will be displayed and more detailed information about each option menu and field can
be found in the Create/Modify Control System dialog box help.
In this dialog box, you specify control system Name, Type (only in Adams/Car), System Type and Number
of Inputs/Outputs.
The System Types can be one of the three following types:
• Function Expression - use the function builder to create a controller based on Adams entities
• Co-simulation - run co-simulation between Adams and a controls package (Easy5 or
MATLAB/Simulink)
• External System Library (ESL) - use an external system library (i.e dynamic link library) that
has been exported from Easy5 or MATLAB/Real-Time Workshop. An ESL Property File refers
to an ESL (also known as dynamic link library) file.
If the System type Function Expression is chosen, no property file or other additional input is needed,
see below. The function expression of the controller is instead defined and saved in each control system
output. In Adams/Car the function expression for each control system output is defined in the Template
Builder mode, however, you are able to modify the control signal output expression using Create/Modify
Control System dialog box.
If the System type Co-simulation is chosen, then you need to select the Control Package software you
want to use and if Initial Static Analysis should be performed or not. The selected co-simulation settings
will be used by default when exporting the plant using Adams/Mechatronics Export Plant for Co-
simulation /Setting up ESL dialog box.
If the System type External System Library is selected, then you need to select the External System
Library file and whether Static Hold should be on or off, which determines if Adams/Solver should keep
the initial value of the control signal constant during static analysis.
By selecting the push button shown in following picture, you can open the Control Signal Editor dialog
box, where you enter Signal Name (port name), Unit type and Unit string and Scale factor for each input
and output of the control system. Typically that information is received from the supplier of the control
system.
Control System Inputs

When you create a control system, you specify the number of control system inputs and thereby control
system inputs are auto-created. After creation, you can – as for all types of signals- modify the unit type,
unit string, delay, disturbance, etc of control system inputs using Create/Modify Control System dialog
box. Using the Signal Manager, you can hook up the appropriate transducer signal to the corresponding
Control System Input.
Control System Outputs

When you create a control system, you also specify the number of control system outputs and thereby
they are auto-created directly. After creation, you can modify the unit type, unit string, delay, disturbance,
etc of control system outputs using Create/Modify Control System dialog box. Using the Signal Manager,
you can hook up the appropriate Control System Output to the corresponding actuator signal.
Naming conventions
In Adams/Mechatronics names of the control system and the different signals conform to the following
conventions:
Transducer Signal: ues_cst_’signal name’ (cst = Control Signal Transducer)
Actator Signal: ues_csa_’signal name’ (csa = Control Signal Actuator)

Control System: ues_’system name’
Control System Input:ues_csi_’system name’_’input port name’ (csi = Control System Input)
Control System Output:ues_csi_’system name’_’output port name’ (cso = Control System Output)
Here ‘ues’ stands for ‘user-defined entity single’. In Adams/Car it is possible to create symmetric signals
and control systems. In that cases the prefixes for the symmetric (left/right) signals are uel_cst_’signal
name’ and uer_cst_’signal name’ (for a transducer signal)
Signal Manager
The Signal Manager is the key feature of Adams/Mechatronics and is where all connections are set, i.e.,
the connection between the control systems and transducer/actuator signals of the mechanical system.
The following schematic illustrates the signal flow in Adams/Mechatronics.
While an overview of Signal Manager is presented here, a more detailed description can be found in the
Adams/Mechatronics Tutorials.
To open Signal Manager, use the following menu. Note that in Adams/Car this menu is only available in
Standard Interface Mode.
Select the assembly (Adams/Car) or model (Adams/View) in which the control system exists.
As an example from the information in the preceding dialog box, you can notice that there are two control
systems in the assembly and they are located in the two subsystems with major roles 'control system' and
the minor roles are 'ABS' and 'ESP'.
Note that, alternatively, the control systems could have been created in the one single
template/subsystem. In that case, both control systems would have the same major and minor roles.
In Adams/View, as there is no major and minor role concept; the major/minor role columns are hided.
By selecting a control system in the dialog box above (you select by double clicking on any cell in the
row of the corresponding control system), a new dialog box pops up which gives an overview of the
connectivity for each input and output port of the control system (following picture). The information in
the gray area (input port name and unit type) is related to the control system itself - and therefore cannot
be changed here - while the white area is a 'selectable' area.
You also get the information (from the major and minor role) that in which subsystem the connected
signal is located. The name convention of the signals also reveals the type of connected signal. For
instance input port number 8 with port name 'wheel_speed_fl' below is connected to a ('uel_cst') left side
transducer signal named as 'wheel_speed_front'.
By selecting an input port row in the white area, you will have the possibility to choose a signal from the
Available Signal List in ‘Selecting input’ dialog box to connect to the certain input port. Please note that
only the signals of the same unit type as the input port are displayed in the (available signal) list. In the
example below, only the transducer signals and control system outputs of ‘angular velocity’ unit type are
shown in the table as possible candidates to be connected to the ‘wheel_speed_fl’ input port.
The output tab, as depicted in following picture, is quite similar to input tab except that here the gray area
(information related to the control system; i.e., output port name and unit type) is located on the left side
of the table (to resemble the signal flow) and also that more then one signal can be connected to the output
port.
In the following lines, some background or implementation information is presented which may be of
interest to advanced users.
• Note that each signal connection is based on following Connector data
• Signal Name
• Side (left/right/single)
• Major Role
• Minor Role
Once connections have been established, each individual connection is saved into a connector
data section of the signal component.
• Connector info is only stored with control system inputs and actuator signals since these can
only be connected to only one single signal in contrast with transducer signals and control
system outputs which may be connected to more than one signal
• The use of major and minor role makes the connector info independent of assembly and
subsystem name. It is then possible to swap control systems or subsystems without need of
redoing the connecting process in signal manager
• The connector concept is comparable with input communicator in standard Adams/Car. One
difference is though while you work with communicators in the template builder mode, here you
setup the connections on the assembled model in the Standard Interface Mode
• In the Adams/View, only the connector signal name is used when making connections
Units in Adams/Mechatronics
Adams/Mechatronics supports arbitrary units in all signal types. It also takes care of units conversion, for
example, from a transducer signal to the corresponding input signal in the control system. The units are
handled by two attributes in Adams/Mechatronics: unit type and unit string.
Unit type indicates which kind of unit you are using, for example, velocity or torque.
Adams/Mechatronics only allows connection of the same unit types when assigning a transducer signal
to a control system input, a control system output to an actuator signal, or a control system output to input
of another control system.
The unit string is used by Adams/Mechatronics to calculate the appropriate conversion factor. For
example, if you define the wheel speed transducer signal to send signal in mm/s unit and your control
system input requires a km/h unit, the conversion is performed by Adams/Mechatronics. This means that
a unit conversion occurs automatically if the units are not the same, for example, for a transducer signal
and the corresponding control system input.
There is a set of pre-defined unit types and unit strings available in Adams/Mechatronics. However, if
your control system is working with other type of unit, you can create your own unit. See the table below
for more information about how to choose different unit type and unit string alternatives.
Unit type Unit String Used when Comment

length, angle, ... model units The transducer/actuator/control No units conversion if model
signal is (or should be) dependent units is used in both ends
on model units
length, angle, ... mm,centimeter You want the Always conversion
, deg,... transducer/actuator/control signal
to be independent of model units.
Example: user subroutine without
units handling or generated control
code
length, angle, ... user defined You need a unit which is not Unit string can be composed
available in the pre-defined unit using the Adams/View
string list convention (see here for
more info). Make sure to use
the appropriate unit strings
for the unit type selected.
Unit type Unit String Used when Comment

user user defined Desired unit type is not available in Make sure the same unit
select list but unit string can be types are used in "both ends",
composed using the Adams/View e.g. in both transducer and
convention (see here for more info) control system input
user no_units Desired unit type is not available in No units conversion will be
the pre-defined unit type list and done if you use no_units in
unit string can't be composed using "both ends", e.g. in both
Adams convention (see here for transducer and control
more info) system input. You can use
scale_factor to enforce a unit
conversion effect
Disturbance and Delay

In Adams/Mechatronics ‘Disturbance’ and ‘Delay’ can be applied to all four types of control signals.
Disturbance
Disturbance can be introduced to signals by adding or multiplying as illustrated below.
The Disturbance Signal can have one of four following formats

• Run-Time Expression – Enter a constant or an arbitrary function expression
• ACII File – The disturbance signal is defined in a certain Disturbance ASCII File, see file
example below. You need to specify the channel to use
• RPC File - The disturbance signal is defined in a RPCII file. You need to specify the channel
number to use
• DAC File- The disturbance signal is defined in a DAC file
A simple example of a Disturbance ASCII File is shown below:

$-----------------------------------HEADER
[HEADER]
FILE_VERSION = 1.0
FILE_TYPE = 'daf'
$----------------------------CHANNEL_UNITS
[CHANNEL_UNITS]
TIME = 'second'
engine_rpm = 'deg/sec'
body_acc = 'meter/sec**2'
wheel_speed_fl = 'rad/sec'
wheel_speed_fr = 'rad/sec'
$----------------------------SCALE_FACTORS
[SCALE_FACTORS]
body_acc = '9.82'
$----------------------------CHANNEL_DATA
[CHANNEL_DATA]
{ TIME engine_rpm body_acc wheel_speed_fl wheel_speed_fr }
0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0 1.0
2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0 2.0
3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0 3.0
4.0 4.0 4.0 4.0 4.0
Delay
Delay functionality accounts for delayed signal and makes it possible to set a constant time delay or a
user defined time delay expression applied before or after the disturbance.
The following diagram shows the data flow for a control signal. As can be seen, the delay can be placed
in three different “positions” with respect to signal function and disturbance. In addition to delay position,
you need to specify the delay time function (whose value must be positive or zero), and delay initial
history, that is, the initial value of delay function. Please refer to dialog box help (F1- help) for different
settings.
Whether a disturbance/delay is applied or not and where the delay function is applied affect the solver
variable function and request expressions in the control signal UDE. For each configuration a picture
depicts the data flow, in which the request component signal “positions” are marked in blue color. There
exist a total of six disturbance and delay configurations cases as shown enumerated in the following table.
Disturbance
Case # applied Delay applied Comments
Case 1 No No Default settings
Case 2 No Yes Delay setting “function” is the only
choice
Case 3 Yes No
Case 4 Yes Yes (set to “function”) Position 1 in picture above
Case 5 Yes Yes (set to “disturbance”) Position 2 in picture above
Case 6 Yes Yes (set to “disturbed function”) Position 3 in picture above
• Case 1: No disturbance or delay is applied
• Case 2: No Disturbance is applied, Delay is applied (set to function)

• Case 3. Disturbance is applied, no Delay is applied
• Case 4: Both Disturbance and Delay is applied, Delay is set to “function”

• Case 5: Both Disturbance and Delay is applied, Delay is set to “disturbance”
• Case 6: Both Disturbance and Delay is applied, Delay set to “disturbed_function”
Export Plant
Plant export is used to create a control package input file (an inf file for Easy5 or a m file for
MATLAB/Simulink) which is needed to set up either a co-simulation or ESL (external system library)
simulation.
Use the following menu to access the export plant dialog box in Adams/Mechatronics.
The following dialog box will pop up:
Note that by performing a plant export, an adm file will also be generated; however, the adm file only
will be used in case of co-simulation, i.e., the ESL simulation does not need the adm file. Also note that
the content of the adm file differs depending on which type of control system (ESL or Co-Simulation) is
used, therefore it is important that not to use the adm file generated for ESL control system for a co-
simulation analysis.
There are some differences in how to use the plant export in Adams/Car and Adams/View as well as the
purposes of export, i.e., co-simulation or ESL simulation.
In Adams/Car:
• For Setting Up ESL Simulation, display (by yourself) the plant export dialog box via menu as
shown above and then select the control system name and a file prefix for the exported file. You
can export the plant both in Template Builder and in Standard Interface mode. The following
dialog box appears after plant export
• For Co-Simulation, please follow the instruction shown in the preceding information dialog
box or refer to the Running Analysis section. Note that in Adams/Car co-simulation, you need to
generate an adm file by performing a "file only" simulation so that enforce Adams/Car to read
the property files and set up the model parameters property. Here the plant export dialog box
show up automatically
In Adams/View:
• For both ESL simulation setup and Co-Simulation: Display (by yourself) the plant export
dialog box. Select the control system, a file prefix, and other proper settings.
If the control system is not of the co-simulation type, then the following message will appear to
inform that you use the generated files only for settings up external system libraries in chosen
control package software.
If the control system is of the co-simulation type, then the system name field automatically fills
with the names of the control systems that are of type ‘Co-Simulation’ (The ones which exist in
the default model). If the control system type is set to ‘Co-Simulation’, the generated files could
be used for the both purposes.
External System Library (ESL) Property file

In Adams/Mechatronics, a property file called External System Libraries (ESL) property file is used to
incorporate the external system library (aka dynamic link library) files generated by control package
software (Easy5 and Matlab/Real-time Workshop).
An ESL property file is a text file with file extension of esl and consists of the following sections.
• Routine - reference to the external system library file name (without file extension) and the
routine within that library file (generally an ESL file may contain several routines)
• Parameters - external (tunable) parameters specified in the controls package
• Initial conditions – initial conditions of continuous and discrete states of the control system
included in the library file
The use of property files enables you not only to easily switch between different external system libraries
(i.e imported control systems) but also to evaluate different parameter settings for a certain dynamic link
library file. For example in the following picture five different property files are referring to the same
dynamic link library file. In this case, the routine information in these files is the same but the values for
the external tunable parameters differ. Examples of tunable parameters is a certain gain settings or
threshold values for an ABS controller.
To generate an ESL property file in Adams/Mechatronics, use the following menu
The following dialog box appears where you choose the Control Package software that the dynamic link
library (External System Library) originates from and the Property File Name of the file that is going to
be generated.
While in Adams/Car, the files will be stored in the directory called 'external_system_libraries.tbl' in the
default writable database, in the Adams/View you select a target directory where the property file will be
copied to. In both Adams/Car and Adams/View cases, the dynamic link library file will be copied into a
sub directory named after the platform (win32, win64, linux32, linux64, etc). This is to support a
platform independent use of the property files. For instance in the preceding example and on a win32
platform, the ESL property file and the ESL file will be copied into following locations:
C:/Temp/external_system_libraries/abs_system_version1.esl
C:/Temp/external_system_libraries/win32/abs_controller.dll
In case of HPUX platform, the full path to the copied library file would be:
C:/Temp/external_system_libraries/hpux/abs_controller.sl
Other platform follows the same principle.
Finally, if the control system type is set to ‘External System Library’, followings steps are internally
performed by Adams (This is performed prior to an analysis - during reading property file procedure - in
Adams/Car and after a modify action of the system in Adams/View):
1. Locates the ESL file referenced in the ESL property file. The path to the library file is
“path to ESL property file”/ “platform”/ “library file name”.(dll, so, sl ...)
2. Verifies that the dimension of the control system found in the ESL property file corresponds to
the one defined in Adams/Mechatronics, i.e., matches the number of inputs and outputs
3. Activates the General State Equation (GSE) in the control system component and set the
dimension of the different solver arrays related to the GSE
4. Reads the default parameter values and initial conditions defined in the ESL file.
5. Overrides the values of the parameters and initial conditions with the ones specified in the ESL
property file
6. Copies the ESL file to the working directory (as Adams/Solver expects the library file to be
located in the working directory)
Activity settings
Imagine a scenario in Adams/Car where you on the one hand have an assembly with both mechanical
subsystems and control subsystems, and on the other hand have an assembly with only the mechanical
subsystems. In such a scenario, you do not want to store different versions of the same mechanical
(subsystem) template just because they refer to a control system which may or may not be part of the
assembled model.
To allow using the same mechanical template regardless of whether it will be used in an assembly with
control systems or without control systems, the concept of Activity Type is introduced for
transducer/actuator signals. By using different Activity Types in conjunction with selected strategies for
implementing the actuators influencing the mechanical behavior, you can make the mechanical templates
compatible with both user scenarios.
When you create a transducer/actuator signal, you can select the signal activity type. In the table below,
a summary of the different activity options and the corresponding consequences is shown.
When setting up your templates to be used both with and without control systems, there are two "levels"
of activities. One level deals with setting up the activity of the transducer/actuator signal itself that is
named Activity Type and determines whether the signal should be written into adm file or not. The other
level is signal connectivity status which deals with whether the signal is connected to the control system,
actuators, or components of the mechanical system. You can also define activity of a group of Adams
objects to be dependent on the signals’ connectivity. Table below shows different alternatives for signal
activity and signal connectivity. The table columns are explained thereafter.
Signal Activity
Activity Type Connected Referred to state Active object state
Always YES ON ON
NO ON OFF
Only if connected YES ON ON
NO OFF OFF
Only if referred to YES YES ON ON

NO OFF OFF
NO YES ON OFF
NO OFF OFF
Activity Type:
Activity Type deals with setting up the activity of the transducer/actuator signal itself and the following
types of activity are possible.
1. Always: as the name implies, the transducer signal or actuator signal would be always active in
the model
2. Only if connected: the transducer or actuator signal only would be active when it has been
connected to the appropriate control system input/output. In other words, it will not be visible in
the .adm file if it has not been connected
3. Only if referred to: the actuator signal will be active only if another object in the model is referring
to it. As an example, consider the use of a conventional mechanical damper object. You could
replace that damper with a controlled one, and then automatically have the associated actuator
signals become active, since they are referred to by that controlled damper object
Note that the later (“Only if referred to”) option is only applicable to actuator signal (i.e., not applicable
to transducer signals).
Connected
This indicated whether the transducer/actuator signal has been connected or not to a control system
input/output. In each transducer and actuator signal object there is a variable which keeps track of
whether the transducer or actuator signal has been connected to the control system input/output. The
name of this variable is signal_connectivity_flag; and its value is 1 if the connection is successful and 0
if there is no connection made. You can also use this variable in function expressions in the mechanical
template to build in logic supporting the use of the template both with and without control systems.
Referred to
For each type of activity and connection status, the actuator signal may or may not be used in an
expression of some other (mechanical) object, i.e. referred to. If it is referred to by another object, then
the transducer/actuator signal object will be active in the model.
Signal Activity State

This indicates the activity of the transducer/actuator signal itself and determines whether the signal is
written into adm file or not.
Active Object State

This indicates the activity state of those objects which have been selected (if any) to be in the "Active
Objects" group when you created the transducer or actuator signal. This allows you to use the
connectivity of the transducer/actuator signal as a trigger to set activity of arbitrary other objects in your
subsystem. For example, you could have two actuators acting on a brake disk and have one dependent on
the control signal passed through the actuator signal and the other dependent on the open-loop driver
demand. You could thus let only one be active at the time, dependent on the connectivity of the actuator
signal.
“Intelligent” modeling
When selecting the type of signal activity, you should have a strategy in mind in terms of how to use the
transducer/actuator signal in the mechanical system. Let us consider a brake torque as an example.
Normally, the brake torque actuator force expression would be a function of the brake_demand signal
from the driver model. If you want to let the ABS system control the brake torque, you would instead
make the brake torque actuator function be dependent on an actuator signal. However, if you want to be
able to use the same brake subsystem in both assemblies with and without the control system subsystems,
you have a couple of alternatives as follows to make the brake torque "intelligent" enough:
Alternative 1, use signal_connectivity_flag

In this case, the function expression for the brake torque actuator would look something like
FUNCTION = (1-signal_connectivity_flag) * F(brake_demand) + signal_connectivity_flag *

F(actuator_signal)
In this alternative, suitable activity settings for the actuator signal object would be 'Always' or 'Only If
Referred To'.
Note: If you would use 'Only If Connected', you would get an error message in the Solver in case
the actuator signal is not connected, i.e. if you try to use this brake system with no control
subsystem in the assembly. This is because the signal_connectivity_flag will be
deactivated and thus no longer visible in the .adm file, and thus the function expression
refers to a non-existing object.
Alternative 2, use Active/Inactive Objects

Instead of, as in the previous example, writing a complex function expression for one torque actuator
object, you can create two torque actuators. Then you let one actuator be dependent on the brake_demand
variable, and the other actuator be dependent on the actuator signal object. When you create the
actuator_signal, you simply select the ‘arrow button’ to display a dialog box where you can put the proper
actuator objects in the Active Object group and Deactive Object group. In this way, Adams/Mechatronics
will automatically switch the activity of the two torque actuators if the actuator signal is connected to (or
disconnected from) the control system. In other words, you should in this case use the 'Always' or 'Only
If Connected' activity setting when you create the actuator signal.
Note: In this case, the only difference between the use of 'Always' and 'Only If Connected' will
appear when the actuator signal is not connected. What happens with 'Always' then is that
the actuator signal will stay active, producing only zero output whereas with 'Only If
Connected', the actuator signal will be deactivated, thus not being visible to the Solver.
Alternative 3, use UDE replace

If you are working with UDE components, there is a third alternative. For example, if you replace a
conventional damper with an active damper, you want the actuator signal from the control system to
automatically connect to the damper force object. An example of an active damper has been included in
the Mechatronics installation as the amech damper. If your UDE is already created and implemented in
Adams/Mechatronics continue at step 2.
1. Create the UDE with the necessary elements and dependencies. The UDE is created as any other
UDE with a few alterations described here. The actuator has to be created in the UDE as a data
element variable
data_element create variable &

variable_name=.tmp_damper.actuator_signal &
function="0"
The actuator variable is then implemented in the UDE as intended, for example in a force
expression
force modify direct single_component_force &

single_component_force_name=.tmp_damper.force &
function=".tmp_damper.scale_factor*VARVAL(.tmp_damper.actuator_signal)" &
i_marker_name=(.tmp_damper.i_marker) &
j_marker_name=(.tmp_damper.j_marker)
When the UDE is created the actuator variable has to be defined as an object
ude create definition &

def=.AMECH.udes.ac_amech_damper &
inp=.tmp_damper.i_marker, &
.tmp_damper.j_marker &
par=.tmp_damper.scale_factor, &
.tmp_damper.geoScale &
obj=.tmp_damper.force, &
.tmp_damper.actuator_signal, &
.tmp_damper.graphic, &
.tmp_damper.dmCalc, &
.tmp_damper.request
When the UDE is created in the correct approach, it is time to look at the methods used to handle
the UDE. To be able to use UDE replace to turn on and off the control system the replace method
has to include a command to find the actuator signal
macro create &

macro=.AMECH.udes.ac_amech_damper.replace &
user_entered_command="amech template_builder instance
ac_amech_damper replace" &
wrap_in_undo=no &
commands="! $instance_name:t=ac_amech_damper", &
"!END_OF_PARAMETERS", &
"!", &
"amech toolkit get actuator_signal &", &
" entity=$instance_name &", &
" function_object=$instance_name.actuator_signal", &
"", &
"ude modify instance instance_name=$instance_name"
Now the UDE is created and the replace method handles the connection to the actuator signal. But
to be able to replace another damper with the new active damper our new UDE has to be added
to the same group
ude modify definition &

def=.AMECH.udes.ac_amech_damper &
isa=.ACAR.forces.ac_damper
The UDE is now created in the correct way and ready to be used in models.
There are a few utility macros available in Adams/Mechatronics. These macros are designed to
perform some simple tasks and can be used in developing new UDEs. Utility macros together with
definition, macros and templates for the active damper can be found under examples in the
installation.
The first macro can be used to find the related actuator signal, it returns a variable with the name
of the actuator
amech toolkit find actuator_signal &

entity = (the entity for which you want to find a dependency) &
actuator_variable = (a variable where the macro will return the actuator
signal)
The second macro finds the control system connected to a control signal
amech toolkit find control_system &

control_signal = (the control signal for which you want to find the control system) &
control_system_variable = (a variable where the macro will return the control system)
The last macro look at the type of your function object and adjust it to be dependent of the actuator
signal. If your function object is a gforce or vforce you can specify in which direction the
adjustment should be done
amech toolkit get actuator_signal &

entity = (the entity for which you want to create a dependency) &
function_object = (the object that should be dependent of an actuator signal)
2. The template is created with the standard element, in our example the standard damper. Even
though the standard damper isn't connected to any actuator signals it is essential to plan ahead and
create the actuator signal needed by the active damper. When you create the actuator signal you
use the button to specify the UDE object that should be dependent on the actuator signal.
3. In the standard interface, when working with subsystems, the standard damper can be replaced by
an active damper of our amech_damper type. Right-click on the damper for which you want to
change UDE definition, and choose Replace. The definition for the new UDE appears in the list
if it is implemented correctly. Our active damper is called Amech_damper.
Adams/Mechatronics replaces the standard damper with a damper of the Amech_damper type and
then finds the actuator associated with the damper. The dialog box for modifying the damper
appears automatically (if you create your own UDE you have to create your own modify dialog
box). In the dialog box you can see the name of the actuator signal, and if the actuator signal in
turn is connected to a control system also the name of the control system is displayed in the dialog
box. Use the modify buttons to the right to modify the actuator signal and the control system. The
name of the control system will appear in this dialog box when you have connected the actuator
signal to a control system in the signal manager.
4. You can switch between a standard damper and an active damper by using replace in both
directions. The UDE definition that is in use when the subsystem is saved will be the default UDE
definition in that subsystem.
Components in Adams/Mechatronics
In this section, Adams/Mechatronics components which all are of UDE (User Defined Element) type are
explained in detail. A UDE is actually just a collection of standard elements in Adams. The UDE is
treated as a single element in the interface instead of just every standard element for itself.
There are two types of UDE components in Adams/Mechatronics; control signal UDE object which is
the base for all signal components, and control system UDE object which is used by control system. So
these two types of UDEs cover all five components available in Adams/Mechatronics.
1. Transducer signals
2. Actuator signals
3. Control System Input
4. Control System Output
5. Control System
Please note that control system inputs/outputs are automatically created when you create a control system
object. This means that there is no dialog box available to create a control system input/output object;
however, they can be modified by using Modify Control Signal Input/Output dialog box. The control
system input/output objects are entirely managed internally by Adams/Mechatronics and only serve as a
convenient and efficient way to transfer information from/to transducer signals and actuator signals.
Control Signal
UDE definition
.AMECH.udes.ac_control_signal
UDE description:
The control signal UDE is used to create control signal objects. The central object in this UDE is the
signal variable. Transducer signal, Actuator signal, control system input and control system output are
all based on this UDE
UDE Specification
Parameters:
Parameter Type Function

signal_type string value Type of Control signal. There are four different
types of signals:
• Transducer_signal
• Actuator_signal
• Control_system_input
• Control_system_output
function string value Variable function. The User can provide an
expression in two cases:
• Transducer_signal
• Control_system_output (if control system
type is set to function)
For all other signal types the expressions are set
automatically in the control system connect
procedure.
function_type integer value 1. = function expression
2. = user parameters for a VARSUB
template_function string_value Storing the Adams/Car template function
expressions. Used when the control system type is
set to ‘function’.
user_parameters string value Expression containing user parameters for a
VARSUB call
routine string value The routine in the VARSUB
disturbance string value The options are:
• none
• add
• multiply
Components in Adams/Mechatronics 45

disturbance_type string value The disturbance type. There are four types:
• user_function
• file_ascii
• file_rpc
• file_dac
disturbance_function string value Additional disturbance of the signal. This could a
time function or just a single constant.
disturbance_function_unit string value The unit of the disturbance function.
disturbance_file string value Additional disturbance signal from a file (ascii, rpc,
dac).
disturbance_channel string value Channel in disturbance file
disturbance_channel_unit string value The unit of the disturbance file channel. Valid for
rpc and dac disturbance files.
disturbance_time_unit string value The time unit of the disturbance file channel. Valid
for rpc and dac disturbance files.
disturbance_scale_factor real value Disturbance scale factor. Valid for file input
disturbances.
disturbance_active_flag integer value Disturbance active flag. Dependent on the
disturbance variable. If the disturbance is set to
“none” the value is 0. If not “none”, the value is set
to 1.
scale_factor real value Scale factor to the complete function.
request_active_flag string value Can contain following activity options:
• "active:model_and_signal_units"
• "active:model_units"
• "active:signal_units"
• "not_active"
"active:model_units" means that the request which
is expressed in model_units is active.
measure_active_flag string value See comment for request_active_flag. The same
options are available for measures as well.
unit_type string value Unit type of the signal. For instance
"rotational_velocity".
unit_string string value Unit of the signal. For instance "deg/s"

unit_conversion_factor1 real value Unit conversion factor from control signal unit to
model units.
unit_conversion_factor2 real value Unit conversion factor from disturbance unit to
model units.
unit_conversion_factor3 real value Degrees to radians. (used when angle is a part of
the unit type)
time_unit_conversion_factor real value From disturbance time unit to model units. Valid
for disturbance files.
control_system object value The related control system. Valid for control
system inputs and control system outputs.
signal_index integer value Index of specific input / output for the control
system. Valid for control system inputs and control
system outputs
connector_name string value Connected control signal name. Valid for the
control signal of types actuator signal and control
system input.
connector_major_role string value Major role of the connected control signal. For
instance "ESP_system". Only valid for template
based products like Adams/Car.
connector_minor_role string value Minor role of the connected control signal. For
instance "front". Only valid for template based
products like Adams/Car.
connector_side string value Either left, right or single.
connector_signal object value The connecting signal variable. (solver variable)
connector_signal_solver_id integer value The Adams id of the connector object.
property_file string value A Dummy variable. Needed for the read property
file ude method functionality.
asymmetric integer value Since connector information data can be
asymmetric, the control signal is always set to
asymmetric. In the subsystem file there are always
separate blocks for left and right side of a control
signals.
symmetric_dbox_data string value "Yes" or "No". Even though the control signal is
asymmetric, the user can specify if the data which
appear in the create/modify dialog box should be
the same for left and right side. Disturbance, scale
factors, units etc.

signal_connection_flag integer value Indicates if the control signal has been connected
on not. Valid for control system input and actuator
signal.
active_flag string value The are a total of four possible values of the
parameter:
• "always"
Valid for transducer signals and actuator
signals. Active even if not connected (the
signal is set to zero)
• "only if connected"
Valid for transducer signal and actuator
signal. The Control signal gets deactivated
if not connected.
• "only if referred to"
Valid only for actuator signal. If no
elements are dependent on the
actuator_signal the signal gets deactivated.
• "dependent_on_control_system"
The only "option" for control system input
and control system output. Is not valid for
other type of control signals.
active_objects object value Object that will be activated if the signal gets
connected. (They are deactivated if the signal does
not find any connection.)
inactive_objects object value Object that will be deactivated if the signal gets
connected. (They are activated if the signal does
not find any connection.)
dependent_object object value Useful when replacing to an UDE entity that
should use Adams/Mechatronics functionality. The
"Amech" UDE entity will look for an actuator and
find the only actuator which has set the specific
UDE as a dependent object.
delay_type string value Can be “none”, “function”, “disturbance” or
“disturbed_function”
delay_active_flag integer value Help variable, 0 if Delay is set to “none” otherwise
1
delay_time_type string value “run_time_expression” or “template_expression”
delay_time_function string value Either a constant value or a function expression

delay_time_template_function string value Valid only for Adams/Car. It is possible to set a
model dependent delay time in template model.
The user can choose to use the template expression
or override it in the standard interface mode.
delay_time_unit string value Time unit the delay_time_function is expressed in.
delay_time_template_unit string value The time unit the delay_time_template_function is
expressed in.
delay_time_unit_conversion_factor real value Conversion factor from delay time unit to
modeling time unit.
delay_function_init_history_flag integer value If set to 1, the init history value is used
delay_function_init_history real value Initial history value of the delay function
Input Parameters:
Input Parameter Type Function
Objects:
Object Type Function

signal_variable state variable Holding the resulting output signal value from the
control signal.
function_variable state variable Holds expression that measure a state of the
mechanical/control system. Works as an “input” to the
control signal.
disturbance_variable state variable Disturbance signal variable
template_function_variable state variable Contains the functions which are defined in the
template builder.
delay_time_variable state variable Depends on delay_time_function
delay_time_template_variable state variable Depends on delay_time_template_function
delay_function_variable state variable Solver variable containing the solver expression that
should be delayed.
request_model_units request Signal request in model units.
For details refer to disturbance and delay section


request_signal_units request Signal request in signal units.
For details refer to disturbance and delay section

signal_model_units measure Signal measure in model units
disturbance_model_units measure Disturbance measure in model units
undisturbed_model_units measure Undisturbed signal in model units
signal_signal_units measure Signal measure in signal units
disturbance_signal_units measure Disturbance measure in signal units
undisturbed_signal_units measure Undisturbed signal in signal units
spline spline Disturbance signal data values
Create Macro: (call: amech template_builder instance ac_control_signal create). This macro is
executed when an instance of the definition ac_control_signal is created.
Modify Macro: (call: amech template_builder instance ac_control_signal modify). This macro is
executed when an instance of the definition ac_control_signal is modified.
Destroy Macro: (call: amech template_builder instance ac_control_signal destroy). This macro deletes
all the entities which have been created for the instance exclusively.
Request definition:
Disturbance/Delay settings Component Component name

No disturbance, no delay f2 signal
No disturbance, delay_type is set to “function”, f2 signal
f4 function
Disturbance, no delay f2 signal

f3 disturbance
f4 undisturbed signal
f7 function
Disturbance/Delay settings Component Component name

Disturbance, delay_type is set to “function” f2 signal
f3 disturbance
f6 delayed_function
f7 function
Disturbance, delay_type is set to “disturbance” f2 signal
f3 delayed disturbance
f4 disturbance
f7 function
Disturbance, delay_type is set to “disturbed_function” f2 signal
f3 disturbed function
f4 disturbance
f7 function
Measure definition:
Function_name Function
signal complete_function
Subsystem parameters in Adams/Car:
signal_type
symmetric_dbox_data
unit_type
unit_string
scale_factor
delay_type
delay_time_type
delay_time_function
delay_time_unit
delay_function_init_history_flag
delay_function_init_history
disturbance
disturbance_type
disturbance_function
disturbance_function_unit
disturbance_file
disturbance_channel
disturbance_channel_unit
disturbance_time_unit
request_active_flag
measure_active_flag
connector_name
connector_major_role
connector_minor_role
connector_side
Design parameters:
scale_factor
disturbance_scale_factor
Template Builder (Adams/Car) - Standard Interface (Adams/Car) - Adams/View

.AMECH.dboxes.dbox_tem_con_sig
The dialog box has two modes - create or modify - that calls either the create or modify macro.
.AMECH.macros.mac_tem_con_sig_cre
Command: amech template_builder control_signal create
Creates left/right or single control_signal by calling the screate macro.
.AMECH.macros.mac_tem_con_sig_scr
Command: amech template_builder control_signal screate
Creates a single control_signal.
.AMECH.macros.mac_tem_con_sig_mod
Command: amech template_builder control_signal modify
Modifies left/right or single control_signal by calling the smodify macro.
.AMECH.macros.mac_tem_con_sig_smo
Command: amech template_builder control_signal smodify

Modifies a single control_signal.
Control System
UDE definition:
AMECH.udes.ac_control_system
UDE description:
The control_system UDE is used to create control system objects.
UDE Specification
Parameters:

active_flag integer value 1= active control system, 0 = inactive control system
active_objects object value Object variable holding objects that are activated if the
control system is active and is of type Function. (Objects get
deactivated if control system is not active or if the type is not
function).
Valid for Function Control System

type string value Type of Control system. There are three different types of
systems:
Function Expression
External System Library
Co-Simulation
num_inputs integer value Number of inputs
num_outputs integer value Number of outputs
input_signal_array object value Object array holding input control signal objects
output_signal_array object value Object array holding output control signal objects
x_num integer value number of continuous states of the GSE (ESL).
xd_num integer value number of discrete states of the GSE (ESL)
x_IC_values real value Initial conditions of the continuous states of the GSE (ESL)
xd_IC_values real value Initial conditions of the discrete states of the GSE (ESL)

parameter_num integer value Number of parameters that are passed to the GSE routines
(ESL)
parameter_names string value Names of the parameters that are passed to the GSE routines
(ESL)
parameter_values real value Values of parameters that are passed to the GSE routines
(ESL)
library string value Name of the dynamic link library (ESL)
library property file string value Property file which refer to the dynamic link library file.
Contains also input values for the library file such as
parameter values and initial conditions.
routine_name string value Name of the routine used for ESL Control System (ESL)
routine_name_length integer value Length of the routine used for ESL Control System (ESL)
property_file string value Dummy variable that is needed to be able to update values
via a read_property_file macro. This parameter is not a
subsystem parameter.
static_hold string value Indicates that the continuous GSE states are not permitted to
change during static and quasi-static simulations. (ESL)
cosim_control_package string value Select one of the following (Cosim):
EASY5
MATLAB
cosim_initial_static string value Select one of the following (Cosim):
Yes: Performs initial static analysis.
No: Does not perform initial static analysis.

sensor_active_flag integer_value Sets to 1 if sensor object is active (dependent on external
system library file)
Input Parameters:
Input Parameter Type Function

Objects:

GSE gse General State Equation.
PLANT_INPUT plant input Plant input used for Co-simulation and setup of ESL
dynamic library file.
PLANT_OUTPUT plant output Plant output used for Co-simulation and setup of ESL
dynamic library file.
X_ARRAY array ARRAY that is used to define the continuous states for the
GSE
XD_ARRAY array ARRAY that is used to define the discrete states for the GSE
X_IC_ARRAY array ARRAY that specifies the initial conditions for the
continuous states in the GSE.
XD_IC_ARRAY array ARRAY that specifies the initial conditions for the discrete
states in the GSE.
Y_ARRAY array ARRAY that holds output values of a GSE.
U_ARRAY array ARRAY that is used to define the input variables for the GSE
PARAMETER_ARRAY array ARRAY that holds parameter values that are passed to GSE
routine calls.
ROUTINE_STRING Adams STRING that hold the name of the routine that are passed to
string the GSE routine(s).
SENSOR sensor Sensor object. The sensor is active if control system type is
set to ‘ESL’ and the library file requires one.
Create Macro: (call: amech template_builder instance ac_control_system create)

This macro is executed when an instance of the definition ac_control_system is created.
Modify Macro: (call: amech template_builder instance ac_control_system modify)
This macro is executed when an instance of the definition ac_control_system is modified.
Destroy Macro: (call: amech template_builder instance ac_control_system destroy)
This macro deletes all the entities which have been created for the instance exclusively.
Request definition:
No requests in the UDE definition
Subsystem parameters:
type
library_property_file
static_hold
cosim_control_package
cosim_initial_static
active_flag
Template Builder (Adams/Car) - Standard Interface (Adams/Car) - Adams/View

.AMECH.dboxes.dbox_tem_con_sys
The dialog box has two modes - create or modify - that calls either the create or modify macro.
.AMECH.macros.mac_tem_con_sys_cre
Command: amech template_builder control_system create
Creates left/right or single control_system by calling the screate macro.
.AMECH.macros.mac_tem_con_sys_scr1
Command: amech template_builder control_system screate1
Creates a single control_system (1).
.AMECH.macros.mac_tem_con_sys_scr2
Command: amech template_builder control_system screate2
Creates a single control_system (2).
.AMECH.macros.mac_tem_con_sys_mod
Command: amech template_builder control_system modify
Modifies left/right or single control_system by calling the smodify macro.
.AMECH.macros.mac_tem_con_sys_smo1
Command: amech template_builder control_system smodify1
Modifies a single control_system (1).
.AMECH.macros.mac_tem_con_sys_smo2
Command: amech template_builder control_system smodify2
Modifies a single control_system (2).
Running Analyses
Running Analyses in Adams/Mechatronics
You submit analysis using the standard Adams and Adams/Controls functionality since
Adams/Mechatronics does not have its own analysis type.
In case of Co-Simulation, select the control system type as “Co-Simulation” in control system dialog box
and proceed as follows.
In Adams/Car:
1. Set the mode of the full vehicle simulation to file_only to generate all necessary files for co-
simulation
2. In the Adams/Mechatronics plant export dialog box which automatically pops up, verify that all
control systems of type ‘co-simulation’ are shown in the system name field
3. Select the generated adm file
4. Choose control software package and other settings such as initial static analysis and solver
choice. More information about the settings can be found in the dialog box help
5. Once all files have been exported, follow the instruction in Adams/Control manual of how to
perform a co-simulation.
In Adams/View:
1. Display the Adams/Mechatronics export plant dialog box, via Mechatronics --> Tools -->
Export Plant.
2. Verify that the control systems of type ‘Co-simulation’ in the default model are shown in the
system name field.
3. Enter a file prefix of the files that will be generated
4. Choose control software package and other settings such as initial static analysis and solver
choice. More information about the settings can be found in the dialog box help.
5. Once all files have been exported, follow the instruction in Adams/Control manual how to
perform a co-simulation.
Plotting
Plotting in Adams/Mechatronics
Adams/Mechatronics automatically creates requests and/or measures for all type of signals. This saves
time when you want to verify that the input/output signals to/from the controller are as expected.
Moreover, studying the output and input relation can give you an understanding on how an unknown
controller code works.
Plotting Control Signals in Adams/Mechatronics

The control systems you create in Adams/Mechatronics contain request signals (and optionally
measures) for each input and output signal. The request signals names end with either model_units or
signal_units, depending on what unit type you have assigned to the signal. In all other aspects, the
plotting is handled exactly as in all other analyses.
Request components depend on selecting signal disturbance and delay. For more information please refer
to delay and disturbance section.
In the example above, the body yaw rate transducer signal can be expressed both in model and signal
units. The model units in that case was “deg/second” and the signal unit was “rad/second”
Tutorials
Template Builder - Create ESP and ABS control Systems
Template Builder - Create ESP and ABS control

Systems
Overview
This tutorial guides you through the process of creating the appropriate transducer signals, actuator
signals and control systems in the Template Builder mode. One ABS control system and one ESP
(Electronic Stability Program) control system will be created. Required transducer and actuator signals
will be created in the body and brake system templates.
It is assumed that you have already started Adams/Car and loaded the Adams/Mechatronics plug-in.
The overall Template Builder process is:
1. Create control systems
2. Create transducer signals in appropriate templates
3. Create actuator signals
4. Invoke actuator signal variables in appropriate force/motion expressions in the mechanical system
Note that you can also create transducer signals and actuator signals before creating the control system,
i.e. using the following process:
1. Create transducer signals in appropriate templates
2. Create actuator signals
3. Invoke actuator signal variables in appropriate force/motion expressions in the mechanical system
4. Create control systems
The main steps in the tutorial are listed as:
• Create an ABS control system
• Create transducer signals in body and brake system template
• Create actuator signals in brake system template
• Create an ESP control system
• Create transducer signals in body template
Create an ABS control system

An ABS control system with following specification will be created:
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Inputs:.
Unit Get transducer/control system

# Name Unit type string output signal from:
1 brake_demand user no_units brake_system
2 ESP_active user no_units control_system (ESP)
3 body_long_vel velocity mm/sec body
4 ESP_signal_front_left user no_units control_system (ESP)
5 ESP_signal_front_right user no_units control_system (ESP)
6 ESP_signal_rear_left user no_units control_system (ESP)
7 ESP_signal_rear_right user rad/sec control_system (ESP)
8 wheel_speed_front_left angular_velocity rad/sec brake_system
9 wheel_speed_front_right angular_velocity rad/sec brake_system
10 wheel_speed_rear_left angular_velocity rad/sec brake_system
11 wheel_speed_rear_right angular_velocity rad/sec brake_system
Outputs:
Unit Unit
# Name type string Transmit to actuator signal in:
1 ABS_signal_front_left user no_units brake_system
2 ABS_signal_front_right user no_units brake_system
3 ABS_signal_front_left user no_units brake_system
4 ABS_signal_front_right user no_units brake_system
Note that five input transducers need to be created in the brake system template and one in the body
template. This particular example of ABS system also uses input signals from another control system,
that is, the ESP controller.
Units
Please note the usage of Unit Type and Unit String. Units are handled in Adams/Mechatronics as follows:
You may specify units for transducer signal, actuator signal and control system input/output.
Unit Type indicates which kind of unit you are using, for example velocity or torque.
Adams/Mechatronics allows only connection of the same unit types when assigning a transducer to a
control system input. The same principle applies when you
• assign a control system output channel to another control system's input channel
• assign a control system output channel to an actuator
The unit string is used by Adams/Mechatronics to calculate the appropriate conversion factor. For
example, if you define the wheel speed transducer to send out mm/s and your control system requires
km/h, the conversion is automatically taken care of by Adams/Car Mechatronics.
There is a set of pre-defined unit types and unit strings available in Adams/Car Mechatronics. If your
control system is working with other types of units, you can create your own units. See the following
table for more information.
Unit type Unit string Used when signal from: Comment

user no_units desired unit type is not available in the No units conversion will be done if
pre-defined unit type list. you use no_units in "both ends", e.g. in
both transducer and control system
input. You can use scale_factor to
Unit string can't be composed using enforce a units conversion effect.
Adams/View convention (see Units in
Adams/Mechatronics for more info)
user user defined desired unit type is not available in select Make sure the same unit types are used
list unit string can be composed using the in "both ends", e.g. in both transducer
Adams/View convention (see Units in and control system input.
Adams/Mechatronics for more info)
length, angle, ... model units the transducer/actuator/control signal is No units conversion if model units is
(or should be) dependent on model units used in both ends
length, angle, ... mm, you want the transducer/actuator/control Always conversion
centimeter, signal to be independent of model units.
deg, ... Example: user subroutine without units
handling or generated control code
length, angle, ... user defined you need a unit which is not available in Unit string can be composed using the
the pre-defined unit string list Adams/View convention (see Units in
Adams/Mechatronics for more info).
Make sure to use the appropriate unit
strings for the unit type selected.
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Creating the control system

In this example, we choose to create the control system in a separate template with the major_role
control_system. (We could have chosen to create the control system in any template. There is no
limitation in this regard.)
Display the Create Control System dialog box via the menu Mechatronics  Control System  New:
Click on the button in the lower left side of the Create Control Signal dialog box, to display a new
dialog box, Control Signal Editor, in which you can specify information for each input and output signal:
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When you have entered all the information for the input and output signals, select Apply to save the
information and return to the Create Control System dialog box. Select OK there, and the following
message window appears:
Close the message window and save the template. Proceed to create appropriate transducer signals.
Create transducer signals in body and brake system template

To feed the ABS controller with input signals from the vehicle model, we will add virtual transducer
signals in the brake system and the body templates. The following transducer signals will be created:
Inputs to the control system were:
# Name Unit type Unit string Create transducer signal in:

1 brake_demand user no_units brake_system
2 ESP_active user no_units control_system (ESP)
3 body_long_vel velocity model_units body
4 (left) ESP_signal_front user no_units control_system (ESP)
5 (right) ESP_signal_front user no_units control_system (ESP)
6 (left) ESP_signal_rear user no_units control_system (ESP)
7 (right) ESP_signal_rear user no_units control_system (ESP)
8 (left) wheel_speed_front angular_velocity rad/sec brake_system
9 (right) wheel_speed_front angular_velocity rad/sec brake_system

10 (left) wheel_speed_rear angular_velocity rad/sec brake_system
11 (right) wheel_speed_rear angular_velocity rad/sec brake_system
Note that five input transducer signals need to be created in the brake system template and one in the body
template. This particular example of ABS system also uses five input signals from another control
system, that is, the ESP controller (control system output channels).
Units
Please note the use of Unit Type and Unit String and how the units differ from those defined in the control
system. Adams/Mechatronics will automatically convert the units from the transducer to the control
system.
Creating the transducer signals

Open the template _brake_system_4Wdisk_mech_00.tpl from the <amech_shared> database:
Create the five transducer signals in the brake system. Use the following menu to display the dialog box
for creating transducer signals:
We will start by creating the 'brake_demand' transducer signal. Use the Function Builder (click on the
[...] button on the right) to enter the expression for the brake demand. After completing function
expression in the Function Builder select Apply to go back to Create Transducer Signal dialog box and
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fill the Function text field. Note that you have the possibility to set request and measure activity on or
off, and if you set it on, you can select which unit you want the signal to be expressed in.
We use the same method to create the wheel_speed_front transducer signals. Note that the Unit Type and
Unit String are changed to angular_velocity and rad/s, respectively. Also note that we here take advantage
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of the left/right symmetry capability. Let's start by setting the expression for the front left wheel speed
transducer signal:
Now we will set the expression for the right front transducer:
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The reason why we ‘hardcode’ the unit string to rad/s is that the results from the solver variables
left/righ_wheel_omega always are expressed in rad/s regardless of model units.
Click Apply to execute the dialog box. Note that you have now created two transducers,
ue[l,r]_cst_wheel_speed_front.
Repeat this procedure for the rear wheel speed transducer signals (name them wheel_speed_rear).
Save the template and then open the _rigid_chassis_lt_mech_00.tpl template from the <amech_shared>
database. We will now create the body longitudinal velocity transducer signal:
Note the use of a scale factor of -1 to switch sign of the signal before sending it into the ABS controller.
Save the body template. Proceed to create the actuator signals.
Creating the actuator signals in brake system template

We have now created all necessary transducer signals in the brake system and the body. Our next step is
to create the actuator signals which control the brake torque in the brake system. Use View  Template
to display the brake system template again.
The following actuator signals will be created:.

1 (left) ABS_signal_front user no_units brake_system
2 (right) ABS_signal_front user no_units brake_system
3 (left) ABS_signal_rear user no_units brake_system
4 (right) ABS_signal_rear user no_units brake_system
Display the Create Actuator Signal dialog box via the menu Mechatronics  Mechanical System 
Actuator Signal  New:
Click Apply. You have now created the two left/right actuators ue[lr]_csa_ABS_signal_front. Repeat for
the remaining actuator signals left/right ABS_signal_rear.
Connecting the actuator signals to the mechanical system

To transfer the actuator signals into the mechanical system, in this case the brake torque, we will modify
the existing expression used for the brake pressure.
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Now use the menu Build  System Elements  State Variable  Modify to display the following
dialog box (click on the [...] button to display the Function Builder). Start by modifying the
._brake_system_4Wdisk_mech_00.left_front_brake_line_pressure variable:
Note:
1. The use of Insert Object Name with the All Objects option to replace the selected item with the
uel_csa_ABS_signal_front.signal_variable object in the expression in the top of the Function
Builder. Click Apply in the Function Builder to load the new expression into the Modify State
Variable dialog box, and then click Apply there too.
2. We created an expression where we use the signal_connection_flag of the actuator signal object
to make this template fully compatible with use both with and without a control system. By using
the formula
(1 - signal_connection_flag) * brake_demand + signal_connection_flag * actuator_signal
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we thus make the brake pressure dependent on the brake_demand instead of the control system
signal when the actuator has not been connected, which of course happens if we do not have the
control system subsystem in our assembly.
Repeat this process for the remaining state variables:
._brake_system_4Wdisk_mech_00.left_rear_brake_line_pressure
._brake_system_4Wdisk_mech_00.right_front_brake_line_pressure
._brake_system_4Wdisk_mech_00.right_rear_brake_line_pressure
For your reference, the following figures show how ADAMS looks for the right rear brake line pressure:
Save the template.

Please proceed to the Standard User Mode to create the assembly and run an analysis, or proceed to create
the ESP control system first.
Create an ESP control system

Now the ESP control system with following specification will be created:
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Inputs:

2
1 body_lat_acc acceleration mm/s body
2 body_yaw_rate angular_velocity rad/sec body
Outputs::

1 ESP_active user no_units control_system (ABS)
2 ESP_signal_front_left user no_units control_system (ABS)
3 ESP_signal_front_right user no_units control_system (ABS)
4 ESP_signal_rear_left user no_units control_system (ABS)
5 ESP_signal_rear_right user no_units control_system (ABS)
Note that the five output channels will be connected to input side of ABS control system we created
earlier. This is just to illustrate the possibility to connect several control systems to each other. Therefore
no additional actuator signals need to be created in the mechanical system.
Creating the control system

In this example, we choose to create the control system in a separate template with the major_role
control_system. Note that we could have chosen to create the control system in any template instead.
There is no limitation in this regard.
Display the Create Control System dialog box via the menu Mechatronics  Control System  New:
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Click on the button in the lower left side of the Create Control Signal dialog box, to display a new
dialog box in which you can specify information for each input and output signal:
Close the message windows and save the template. Proceed to creating the transducers.

To feed the ESP controller with input signals from the vehicle model, we will add virtual transducer
signals in the body template. The following transducer signals will be created:
Inputs to the ESP control system were::

1 body_lat_acc acceleration model_units body
2 body_yaw_rate angular_velocity rad/sec body
Units
Please note the use of Unit Type and Unit String and how the units differ from those defined in the control
system. Adams/Mechatronics will automatically convert the units from the transducer to the control
system.

In the _rigid_chassis_lt_mech_00 template that you modified earlier, we will now create the body
longitudinal velocity transducer signal.
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We will start by creating the 'body_lat_acc' transducer. Use Mechatronics  Mechanical System 
Transducer Signal  New to display the following dialog box:
Create the yaw velocity transducer signal:
Save the body template and close it.

You have now successfully finished the Adams/Car Mechatronics Template Builder tutorial.
Tutorials 85
Standard Interface - Use Signal Manager and run interactive analyses
Standard Interface - Use Signal Manager and run

interactive analyses
Overview
This tutorial guides you through the process of how to connect control systems, run full vehicle
simulations with different setup of the control systems, and review the results in the Standard Interface
mode. The process of adding disturbance signal is also covered here.
It is assumed that you have already started Adams/Car and loaded the Adams/Mechatronics plugin.
The main steps in the tutorial are listed as:
• Open assembly which includes ABS and ESP control systems
• Connect control systems with Signal Manager
• Run analyses with ESP turned on and off
• Review the result differences
• Add disturbance and rerun the analysis
• Study disturbance results
• Study delay result
Open assembly which includes ABS and ESP control systems

Open the demo assembly model MDI_Demo_Vehicle_lt_ABS_ESP_00.asy located in the
Adams/Mechatronics shared database:
The assembly originates from a standard Adams/Car demo model with two additional subsystems added,
the ABS and the ESP (Electronic Stability Program) control subsystems. The control systems are not yet
connected to each other or to the mechanical model.
Examine and verify the connectivity status of the control systems in the assembly by choosing
Mechatronics  Info  Connectivity… The Info Connectivity dialog box below shows the number of
existing control systems in the assembly.
Connect control systems with Signal Manager

The next step is to define how the control systems are connected to the transducer and actuator signals of
the mechanical system. To do this, go to the Signal Manager using Mechatronics  Signal Manager.
First the Signal Manger – Select Assembly will show up to let you select from the active assemblies. In
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addition, here you can see how many control system exist in each assembly as a text under the Assembly
field. By selecting OK or Apply the Signal Manager dialog box will be displayed.
Here you can review all existing control systems in the selected assembly and then select one by double-
clicking on control system name or any cell in the row. Let’s start with the ABS control system by double-
clicking on ues_ABS cell or any other cell in the same row.
Now the Signal Manager loads the selected control system information such as the (control) System
Name, its corresponding Major Role, Minor Role, and Comment. Furthermore, it lists all existing ports
in two separate Inputs and Outputs tables.
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Note that:
• Each table is divided into white and gray areas; the gray areas are related to port information
(name and unit type) of the control system and the white areas are related to connectivity
information (connected signal name, major, and minor role), i.e., information of connected
signals to the ports
• In Inputs table, the columns related to Connected Signal (white area) are in the left side of the
table whereas in Outputs table, they are in the right side of the table. This is basically to resemble
the following model. Input and output signals are normally connected to the control system from
left and right side, respectively.
The next step is to connect the proper signals to the ports in which the Connected Signal Name column
shows ‘Connectivity Is NOT SET’. By clicking on the each cell related to connectivity information
(white area), a new windows pops up where you select and connect the appropriate (transducer or control
system output) signal to the selected input port name.
Getting familiar with Selecting Input… dialog box

• On the top of Selecting Input dialog (first row), information related to selected input port index,
port name, unit type, and comment is displayed.
• By changing the port index (leftmost field in the first row) you can display the other input ports
and edit the connectivity information.
• Clicking on Connectivity info button (rightmost in the first row) you can see whether any signal
is already connected to the port. The usage of this button is concerned with cases where a port
might be connected to a signal from a previous model.
• The second row shows which signals are already connected (or selected to be connected) to the
input port, and its major and minor roles.
• Clicking the Unselect button (leftmost in the either row) unselects the selected connector signal,
however, this will not take effect until the OK or Apply button is clicked.
• Available Signal List (lowermost field and table) displays all selectable signals in a table, i.e.,
(transducers or control system outputs) signals which have the same unit type as the input port.
Let’s explain this by an example; in the current case, because the brake_demand signal has user
unit type, all signals (either transducers or control system outputs) which have a unit type of user
are listed in the table.
• The available signal list can be filtered by Signal Type (curtain menu) and Name Filter field.
This is to help you to find the appropriate signal more conveniently.
• You can select a signal (to be connected to a selected port) from the table by selecting one of the
signal’s cell and then clicking the Select button (lower leftmost). However, this will not take
effect until either the OK or Apply button is clicked.
• Double-clicking on a signal in the table is implemented as a short cut for
• select a signal
• apply the selection
• show the next port
This is to speed up the process of connecting signals to the ports one after another.
• When a signal from the table is already selected, it appears with blue background color in the
table.
• Similar to other dialog boxes in Adams, the OK button closes the Selecting Input dialog box and
returns to the previous window while the Apply button applies the changes and keeps the current
dialog box open.
Now try to get the feeling of the Selecting Input dialog box by connecting the input signals as shown in
the following picture. As explained earlier, a quick way to select signals is to double-click on them (see
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preceding explanation). After connecting all input signals, return to Signal Manager by clicking OK or
Cancel.
Now we want to connect the Outputs signals. Therefore you go to Outputs table by selecting its tab as
shown in following illustration.
Similar to the Inputs table, the port information (name and unit type) columns are distinguished by gray
background, however, in contrary to the Inputs side, they are located in the left side of the table to
resemble the following model illustration.
As can be read from the Outputs table, the “connectivity DOES NOT SET OR MATCH” for the output
ports at the moment. Therefore we try to connect the output ports by using Selecting Output … dialog
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box via double-clicking on Connected Signals column or any cell on the same row (white area). This will
display the Selecting Output … dialog box.
Getting familiar with Selecting Output… dialog box

The Selecting Output dialog box is very similar to Selecting Input dialog box except from that here the
connected signal(s) are displayed in a table instead of a single row. The reason is that an output port can
principally be connected to more than one actuator signal or control signal input. Knowing this, the other
features are as follows.
• Connected Signal(s) table lists signals which are currently connected (or selected to be
connected) to the output port, and their signal type, symmetry, major role, minor role, and
comment.
• Use Unselect button (lower the connected signal(s) table) to unselect one or several connected
signals from the table. However, keep in mind that this will not take effect until either the OK or
Apply button is clicked.
• Use Unselect All buttons (lower the connected signal(s) table) to unselect all connected signals
in the table. However, again note that this will not be applied until either the OK or Apply button
is clicked.
• The Available Signal List is similar to the Input side, however, in the output port side, only
actuators and control system inputs of the appropriate unit type are listed. As an example, in
current case, all signals (either actuators or control system inputs) that have a unit type of user
are listed in the table because the signal ABS_Signal_fl has user unit type.
• You can select one or more signals (to be connected to a selected port) from the table by
selecting on one of the signal’s cells and then clicking the Select button (leftmost lower). Use the
Ctrl button on your computer keyboard to choose more than one signal. By pressing select, the
selected signal will appear in upper table, however, the selection will not take effect until either
the OK or Apply button is clicked.
• If one or several signals are selected by clicking the Select button, their cells’ background color
changes from white to blue in the Available Signal List table and consequently they will also
appear in the Connector Signal(s) table.
• If a signal (actuator or control signal input) appears with gray background color in the Available
Signal List table, it means that the signal has been already connected to an output port and
therefore can not be selected.
• Right-clicking on the comment column in the Available Signal List table pops up a small window
where it is possible to review the connectivity information and a Disconnect Signal button for
disconnecting the signal to make it available for selection.
• Double-clicking on a signal in the table is a short cut for

• select the signal
• apply the selection
• show the next port
Now try to get the feeling of Selecting Output … dialog box by connecting the input signals as shown in
the following figure. As explained earlier, a quick way to select signals is to double-click on them (see
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preceding explanation). After connecting all input signals, return to Signal Manager by selecting OK or
Cancel.
By now you have completed the setup of the ABS control system connections. Now we go back to select
and setup the EPS control system by clicking the Arrow Icon on the top-left of the Signal Manager.
Proceed then by repeating the preceding steps for the ESP control system by selecting (double-clicking)
the ESP control system:
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Note that the ESP control system outputs already have the proper connections to the ABS control system.
In fact, they have been set in the previous steps (input side of ABS control system).
Press OK in the Signal Manager dialog box and following text will appear in the message window:
Now use the info connectivity feature for verifying that all control system inputs and actuator signals in
the assembly are properly connected:
Save the assembly and the subsystems via File  Save. Note due to the connections that were defined
by using the Signal Manager following subsystems have been modified:
• ABS_system_00.sub
• ESP_system_00.sub
• TR_Brake_System_mech_00.sub
All these subsystem files have now been updated with the appropriate connectivity data. This means that
next time you open the assembly, all connections are already made.
Run the analyses with ESP turned on and off

Now we will submit a single lane change manoeuvre to see how the ESP influences the handling behavior
of the vehicle. The ESP control system is activated by default.
Before executing the full vehicle analysis and to compare the results later on, we need to activate two
requests from the ESP control system outputs. Start to modify the ESP control system output
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ESP_signal_fl by using Mechatronics  Control System  Output. This displays the following dialog
box:
Repeat the same step for the ESP control system output ESP_signal_fr
Now submit the single lane change analysis with the following settings:
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During the read property file procedure the control system inputs and actuator signals get connected:
We are now going to deactivate the ESP controller to compare the results. Use Mechatronics  Control
System to display the following dialog box:
Set the activity to 'off' and select OK. The following message window appears:
Consequently, we have now deactivated the ESP controller. Therefore, all the control system inputs of
the ABS system which were dependent on the output from the ESP have been disconnected, meaning that
they will receive zero values on those channels.
Rerun the analysis with the same settings as before.
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Review the result differences

Open the post processor and select the body yaw rate signal as shown in the following picture:
Clearly, deactivating the ESP causes the car to reach much higher yaw rates during this particular
manoeuvre.
Please note that Adams/Mechatronics has predefined requests for all types of control signals:
..._model_units (expressed in model units):
..._signal_units (expressed in transducer/actuator signal specific unit)
Add disturbance and rerun analysis

Now a sinusoidal disturbance signal will be added to the ESP control system input body_yaw_rate.
But before that, first activate the ESP control system again and proceed by displaying the control signal
dialog box using Mechatronics  Control System  Input:
Choose to add a disturbance ASCII file (sin_amp1to5_freq2_3s.daf) from the shared database and
activate all requests in the general tab container. All control system inputs and output requests are
deactivated by default.
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The beginning of the disturbance file looks like:
In this case the channel label signal1 is chosen and according to the channel unit block the channel unit
is deg/s. With raw signal amplitude of 1 from the file and a channel scale factor set to 2 in the dialog box,
we can expect a disturbance amplitude of 2 deg/s.
Now change the values for the End Time and Number Of Steps to 3 sec and 300 steps respectively and
rerun the analysis.
Study disturbance results

Open the postprocessor and select the different result set components available for the ESP control
system input body_yaw_rate as following figure:
The following result set components are available for the request
ues_csi_ESP_body_yaw_rate_model_units:
..._model_units.signal (signal into ESP control system):
..._model_units.disturbance (sinusoidal signal with amplitude of 2 deg/s)
..._model_units.undisturbed_signal (received from connected transducer signal)
..._model_units.function (same as undisturbed_signal in this case)
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The disturbance affects the behavior of the ESP control system. Compare the new results from the ESP
control system output signals ESP_signal_fl and ESP_signal_fr with those from the first run:
Add delay and rerun analysis

Now you remove the disturbance and consider adding a delay time function. Go to Modify Control
System Input dialog box and activate the delay with value of 0.02 s as illustrated in picture below.
Select Apply.
In order to run the analysis, you need to choose the C++ Adams solver as the delay function is defined
in this solver. You can do this from the Settings  Solver  Selection … .
Rerun the analysis, and go to the post processor to see the delay applied in the signal.
The delay affects the behavior of the ESP control system. Compare the new results from the ESP control
system output signal ESP_signal_fl with one from the first simulation.
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You have now finished the tutorial.

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Standard Interface - Setup and run co-simulation

Overview
This tutorial guides you through the process in the Standard Interface how to setup a control system for
a co-simulation analysis. Steps on how to perform the co-simulation from the control package software
are also included.
It is assumed that you have already started Adams/Car and loaded the Adams/Mechatronics plugin.
The main steps in the tutorial are listed below:
• Open assembly which includes ABS and ESP control systems
• Modify ESP control system type
• Run full vehicle analysis setup
• Export plant
• Run co-simulation from control package software
Open assembly which includes ABS and ESP control systems

The assembly contains connectivity information about how to connect the different control system to
each other and to the mechanical system. To verify the connectivity status of the control systems in the
assembly by choosing Mechatronics  Info  Connectivity…
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Modify ESP control system type

Both control systems in the assembly are of type ‘Function Expression’. However, in this tutorial we want
to use the co-simulation functionality and we will therefore modify the ESP control system. To modify
control systems use Mechatronics  Control System  Modify and fill in the dialog box:
The control package settings above will be the default choices in the export plant dialog box.
Run full vehicle analysis setup

Submit a single lane change manoeuvre to use it for a co-simulation:
The mode of simulation choice ‘files_only’ is used create the Adams/Car solver files needed for co-
simulation. All files will be created in the working directory.
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The following message will inform the user that one control system is of type ‘CoSim’ and
Adams/Mechatronics specific export plant dialog box will be displayed:
Press OK and select the previously generated file ESP_cosim_test_sin.adm in export plant dialog box.
Keep default values of other the dialog box settings (also the Host Name):
Now everything is done in the Adams/Car environment. All files that the control package needs for the
co-simulation are created.
Run co-simulation from control package software

Start MATLAB and change working directory to the directory where the Adams/Car files were created.
At the MATLAB prompt type the name of the m-file, ESP_cosim_test_sin. All the signals are created.
Copy the following MATLAB and Simulink example files from
install_dir/amech/examples/simulink_models/esp_model to the working directory:
• esp_variables.m
• esp_cosim.mdl
The ESP model requires some variables to be set so remember to read them in from the esp_variables.m
by typing esp_variables at the prompt.
Create the Adams block by typing adams_sys at the prompt. This builds a new model in Simulink named
adams_sys.mdl. This model contains the block representing the mechanical system:
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Open the esp_cosim model and replace the adams_sub block with the adams_sub block you just created.
This ensures that the proper version of the block will be used.
A tip is to flip the adams_sub block before replacing the old adams_sub_block (right mouse button click
on adams_sub block  Format  Flip Block).
Set Communication Interval to 0.01 sec in the Adams Plant block (adams_sub block  Adams Plant).
This time increment value corresponds to the output time step set in Adams/Car analysis dialog box.
Verify your block settings below:
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Start the MATLAB simulation. After the simulation the scope plots for the body yaw rate, body lateral
acceleration, ESP active signal, ESP demand front left and right will look as below:
The Adams result file ESP_cosim_test_sin.res can also be read into Adams for plotting the results in
Adams/Postprocessor.
You have now finished the Adams/Mechatronics Co-Simulation tutorial.
Standard Interface - Create and use External System Library
Standard Interface - Create and use External System

Library
Overview
This tutorial guides you through the process of how to create and use external system libraries in the
Standard Interface.
It is assumed that you have already started Adams/Car and loaded the Adams/Mechatronics plug-in.
The main steps in the tutorial are:
• Open an assembly which includes ABS and ESP control systems
• Export Adams Plant
• Create an external system library within a control system package
• Import the library into Adams and create a library property file
• Set ESP control system type to External System Library
Open an assembly which includes ABS and ESP control systems

In this assembly, the ABS and ESP control systems have been already connected to each other and to the
mechanical model properly.
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Verify the connectivity status of the control systems in the assembly by choosing Mechatronics  Info
 Connectivity.
Export Adams plant

The next step is to export plant from Adams and create an external system library suitable for Adams
within a control package, Easy5 or MATLAB/RTW. To export the plant, choose Mechatronics  Tools
 Export Plant. Select the ues_ESP control system, choose a file prefix, and keep the default values in
the rest of the dialog box:
Press OK and the following information dialog box below will appear.
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In case of choosing MATLAB as target software, the following information dialog box will be shown
instead.
Proceed by selecting OK.

By now depending on the choice of control system, a .inf file or a .m file has been created and saved in
the working directory. These files can then be used to create the input and output ports for the control
system in the external control package. This is necessary in order to setup the external system library.
Note that the export plant can similarly be performed in the template builder mode.
Create an External System Library within the control package software

The two related Easy5 model files for the ESP control system can be found in the directory
install_dir/amech/examples/acar/easy5_models/esp_system:
• esp_controller.0.ezadb
• esp_controller.0.ezmf
The corresponding model file for MATLAB/Simulink can be found in directory

install_dir/amech/examples/acar/simulink_models/esp_model/esp_cosim.mdl
These files should be used to create a library suitable for Adams within the control package. This
procedure is covered in detail in standard Adams/Controls documentation. While creating external
system library file, make sure to publish the parameters which are controlling the ESP control value, yaw
rate gain and lateral acceleration gain when exporting the control system into an external system library
format.
If you intend to import a library built using Easy5, you will first need to ensure your environment has
been properly set up. See Setting Up the Environment section for more information.
In case you don't want to build a library here, use one of the provided 'esp_controller' libraries located in
<amech_shared>/external_system_libraries.tbl/ directory. These were built using Easy5. Be sure to
select the version appropriate for your platform and Adams installation. For example, if you are running
64-bit Adams on a 64-bit Windows machine, select the win64 version. If you are running 32-bit Adams
on a 64-bit Linux machine, select the linux32 version.
Import library into Adams and create a library property file

It is now assumed that an external system library file is available. To import it and to generate a default
library property file choose Mechatronics  Tools  ESL Property File ...
The dialog box shown below will be displayed:
Choose the control system package which the library is originating from and type a name of the library
property to be created. Then select OK. Please note that the External System Library file could be
esp_controller.so if oyu are using UNIX operating system.
A message window dialog box appears which confirms that a library property file has been created:
As can be seen from the preceding message window, a library property file is created and copied into the
default database in the following directory, namely /private.cdb/external_system_libraries.tbl/win32/.
Note that the resulted files are saved in a platform-specific directory depending on the platform type (in
this case win32). You can now close Message Window.
Set ESP control system type to ‘External System Library’

Modify the ESP control system to be of type ‘External System Library’ by choosing Mechatronics 
Control System  Modify.
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Select the External System Library as System Type. By this the control system depends on the external
system library and the default function expression control system hides. Select the ESP control system
and property file as below:
First, review the content in the library property file by selecting the button. The following
information window pops up.
In fact, Adams/Mechatronics verifies also that the library referred to in the property file matches the
control system, i.e., the number of inputs and outputs defined in the library is the same as in the control
system. Close information windows and then select the Apply button.
The information message window below appears after a successful verification:
The control system is now prepared to be used in simulation.

You have now finished the tutorial.
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Adams/View - Setup and run Ball and Beam model

Overview
This tutorial will guide you through the process of creating control system, transducer signals, actuator
signal, connect the signals and run a simulation. For this tutorial the ‘ball and beam’ example model
delivered with standard Adams/Controls will be used as a base. The control system will later on uses the
code generated from MATLAB/Simulink.
The main steps covered in this tutorial are:
• Open and review the base model
• Create the Control System
• Create the Transducer Signals
• Create the Actuator Signal
• Applying the Control System
• Connect Signals with Signal Manager
• Export Plant
• Create the MATLAB/Simulink External System Library
• Create Easy5 External System Library (optional alternative to MATLAB ESL)
• Generate ESL Property File
• Modify Control System for new ESL Property File
• Simulate Model with ESL
• Create Disturbance and Delay and Simulate
Open and review the base model

Copy the tutorial directory <install_dir>/amech/examples/aview/tutorial_ball_beam to your working
directory. Start MD Adams/View, and select the just created directory as working directory and import
the Adams command file ball_beam_start.cmd to load the model.
This is a model of a ball rolling on a beam and the position of the ball will be controlled by a control
system torque applied in the pin joint attaching the beam to the ground.
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Create the Control System

In this tutorial we will start with creating the control systems however, alternatively we could as well
have started by creating the transducer and actuator signals.
First we will create the regulator control systems. The MATLAB/Simulink model is shown with the
required angle and positions input and the produced torque output. Alternatively the model can be created
in Easy5.
Then we create a control system in Adams/Mechatronics. Load the Mechatronics plugin if it is not
already loaded:
Tools  Plugin Manager  Adams/Mechatronics Load (Yes)  OK

Next, create the Control System:
Mechatronics Control System  New…

Fill in the dialog box as you see below, and then select the icon to start the Control Signal Editor.
Control Signal Editor is used to define the Control Signal Inputs/Outputs specification such as Name,
Unit Type, Unit String. Fill in the three control signal input names, unit type, and unit string as depicted
below.
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And then the control signal output specification as shown in next picture.
Then select OK in Control Signal Editor dialog box to close the dialog box and return to the Create
Control System dialog box, where you select OK button again. The following Message Window
informs you that the control system output signals will be set to zero since no property file was selected.
Close the dialog box by selecting the OK button. The following Message Window appears to verify that
the control system with given specification are created. You can close the Message WIndow.
Create the Transducer Signals

Now you create the appropriate transducers so that you can connect the mechanical system to the control
system, by using the menu Mechatronics Mechanical System  Transducer Signal  New ….
Start with creating the transducers as the following pictures show. Here you may take advantage of the
Function Builder by selecting icon to build the function expression. Make sure to activate the
requests for all three transducers.
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Create the Actuator Signal

Next you create an actuator signal using the menu Mechatronics  Mechanical System  Actuator
Signal  New …
You do not need to choose a function for actuator signal of controller_torque as its value is fed by the
control system. Also note that for all signals so far, we have niether applied any disturbance nor any delay.
Applying the Control System

Now you need to modify the torque function which is applied to beam so that it gets its value from the
actuator. To modify the torque, double-click the background of the Adams/View main window to clear
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any selections. From the Edit menu, select Modify which shows the Database Navigator. Then select the
torque as shown below.
Connect Signals with Signal Manager

Next you start the Signal Manager from Mechatronics  Signal Manager  Display …
Select the Apply button, with the shown model to see the control system.
Double-click any cell of the control system in the table to select the control system of interest.
As can be seen from the following picture, no signal is connected to the input ports of the controller, i.e.,
Connectivity is NOT SET.
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Neither any signal is connected to the output port.
You can select and connect appropriate signals by double-clicking on any cell of interest that has a white
background. For instance, start with a double-click on the first cell under the connected signal name in
the inputs list. The Selecting Input… dialog box pops up.
As you see, there is only one signal of unit type of Angle in Available Signal List. You select this signal
to be connected the input port of beam angle by clicking on one of the corresponding cells in the table,
and consequently selecting the select button in the lower-left area of the dialog box.
Upon selecting the select button, the transducer signal name will appear in Selected Connector Signal
Name. Select Apply to save the selection. Note that when a selection is saved, the corresponding row in
the Available Signal List table gets a blue background color.
Now by changing Port Index counter, review the next input port, i.e., ball_postion.
As there are two signals of unit type of Length which can be seen in the Available Signal List table, you
should select the ues_cst_ball_x_position_rel_beam transducer signal by double-clicking on one of the
corresponding cell in the table. Note that after selection by double-clicking, you have automatically
guided to the next (third) input port.
Hint: Double-clicking in this table is short cut for selecting the signal, selecting the Apply button,
and going to the next port.
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In the third input port, select the ues_cst_ball_x_position_set_value by clicking in a cell in the
corresponding row, clicking the select button, and then selecting the OK button to both confirm the
selection and close the Selecting Input … dialog box in the same time.
Now you are back again in the page that you could review the input/output ports. As you see now all the
input ports are connected to appropriate transducer signals.
Similarly, you navigate to the output port side by selecting the Outputs tab and then by double-clicking
the connected signal cell (white area) in the table, you go to the Selecting Output … dialog box.
Similarly, select the controller_signal to be connected to output port of the controller.

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As a result, the selected actuator signal will show up in the connected signal(s) list. Click OK to confirm
the selection and close this dialog box.
Now you can see that the torque_out output port is connected to controller_torque actuator signal.
Select OK to confirm all selection you have done in the signal manager. The following message windows
reports the connection made.
Export Plant
You now export the plant in order to create the External System Library (ESL) file in MATLAB/Simulink
or Easy5. Go to the Mechatronics  Tools  Export Plant
Fill out the dialog box as shown below. In particular, select a File Prefix (in this case, ball_beam_export),
verify the control System Name and Target Software have chosen correctly, and keep the default values
for other parameters. Finally, select OK; the message window confirms that the MATLAB file
ball_beam_export.m, or Easy5 ball_beam_export.inf has been successfully created.
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Since this is an External System Library system, you will see this message:
Create the MATLAB/Simulink External System Library

Now Start the MATLAB/Simulink and open the model ball_beam_amech.mdl which is provided in the
example directory. Read in the file ball_beam_amech_param.m to set the PID parameters for the two
PID-Controllers.
Read in the exported plant file ball_beam_export.m. The following message appears.
Enter setio to generating the input and output ports in MATLAB/Simulink as depicted below.
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You now merge the two models (ball_beam_amech.mdl and the io model) by connecting the signal and
then save the model as ball_beam_amech_esl. The model should look like below.
Follow the instructions on how to generate the ESL file in standard Adams/Controls. In particular, you
need to setup the Adams files for Real-Time workshop by manually running process.py or using the
command setup_rtw_for_adams which will do this for you. Do not forget to verify that the PID
parameters are defined as inline parameters (i.e. tunable parameters).
Create Easy5 External System Library (optional alternative to MATLAB ESL)

Copy the files from <install_dir>/amech/examples/ball_beam/easy5 into your working directory. The
file from the Mechatronics Plant Export need to be in the same directory as the Easy5 model.
Start Easy5 in your working directory and open the model ball_beam.0.ezmf. Double click on the Adams
block and go to the Documentation/Configuration tab. Click on Select/Configure Adams model
Select the exported plant file and choose Function Evaluation - No Feed through as the simulation
mode. Click Done in this dialog box and OK in the AD- Component Data Table dialog box to apply these
changes.
Now, go to the Build menu to create the External System Library
Build  Export Model As ADAMS External System Library…

The following dialogbox is displayed:
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To expose the PID gains as design variables in Adams/View, change Use Design Parameters to Yes, and
select gains K_GN2, K_GN3, K_GN4, K_GN5, K_GN6, and K_GN7 from the PID controller
submodels.
Select Export in this dialog box to create the ESL (that is, ball_beam.dll on Windows) and supporting
ball_beam.xfe.ezanl file. You can now close Easy5.
Generate ESL Property File

Now go back to Adams/View to generate ESL property file via Mechatronics  Tools  ESL
Property File …
Select the Control Package to use, as well as the .dll just created in MATLAB or Easy5. Choose a name
of the property file you want, as well as the location of the property file, as shown below:
Upon successful creation of the ESL property file, you will see the following message:
The generated ESL file looks like the following.

$---------------------------------------------------------MDI_HEADER
[MDI_HEADER]
FILE_TYPE = 'esl'
FILE_VERSION = 2.0
FILE_FORMAT = 'ASCII'
HEADER_SIZE = 9
(COMMENTS)
{comment_string}
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'Number of Inputs = 3, Number of Outputs = 1'

$------------------------------------------------------------ROUTINE
[ROUTINE]
CONTROL_PACKAGE = 'MATLAB'
LIBRARY = 'ball_beam_amech_esl'
ROUTINE = 'ball_beam_amech_esl'
$----------------------------------------------------------PARAMETER
[PARAMETER]
d_gain1 = 1.3
d_gain2 = 0.16
i_gain1 = 0.0
i_gain2 = 0.005
p_gain1 = 1.0
p_gain2 = 0.2
$------------------------------------------------X_INITIAL_CONDITION
[X_INITIAL_CONDITION]
IC_state_1 = 0.0
IC_state_2 = 0.0
IC_state_3 = 0.0
IC_state_4 = 0.0
IC_state_5 = 0.0
IC_state_6 = 0.0
IC_state_7 = 0.0
IC_state_8 = 0.0
$-----------------------------------------------XD_INITIAL_CONDITION
[XD_INITIAL_CONDITION]
Modify Control System for new ESL Property File

Select Mechatronics  Control System  Modify … to select the generated ESL property file as
input for the control system.
Upon selecting Apply, the library file is verified, i.e., checking the number of inputs/outputs of library file
vs control system defined in Adams.
Simulate Model with ESL

Next, perform a 4 second, 400 step simulation as follows.
After finishing simulation, go to the Adams/Post Processor to review the results. Save your results as
“Original_ana”.
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The following plot illustrates the actual and desired ball position with respect to time.
The beam angle signal can now be plotted both in signal unit (rad) and model units (deg) as shown below.
And finally the torque from the controller.
Create Disturbance and Delay and Simulate

Now you apply some disturbance and compare the results. Switch back from Adams/PostProcessor to
Adams/View.
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Go to the Mechatronics  Mechanical System  Transducer Signal  Modify… to modify the

ball_position signal by adding a disturbance signal as shown below.
Rerun the simulation, save the result as “Disturbance_Run”, and plot the result. You can easily plot the
different signal components as depicted below. You may refer to the online help to review the request
definition with existence of disturbance.
Review the disturbance effect on output torque.

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Now return to Adams/View and you deactivate the disturbance by modifying the Transducer Signal
shown below:
And apply a Delay of 0.03 sec
Set the solver type to C++ (which must be used to support the DELAY function) and rerun the simulation.
Save the analysis result as “Delay_Run”, and plot the following requests to observe the difference in ball
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positions. Delay can be seen ball_x_position.signal and ball_x_position.function. For more information
on the details of the delay function, see Solver guide, DELAY function.
And review the effect of applied delay on the controller torque.

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Adams/View - Setup and run Excavator model

Overview
This tutorial will guide you through the process of creating four systems in Easy5, connecting the signals
in Adams/Mechatronics and running a simulation for the combined system. For this tutorial a model of
an excavator is used. The control systems are imported as four different external library files and consist
of three different PI-controllers and a simple hydraulic system.
The main steps covered in the tutorial are:
• Open the model and perform a test simulation
• Create external system library files
• Create four control systems
• Create transducer signals
• Create actuator signals
• Apply the control system to the mechanical system
• Connect the signals in signal manager
• Simulate the model and review the results
Import the model file and simulate a test.

First, copy the tutorial directory <Adams installation>/amech/examples/aview/tutorial_excavator to
your working directory. Start MD Adams/View, select the just created directory as working directory and
import the Adams command file excavator_start.cmd to load the model.
This is a model of an excavator where the turret, boom, arm, and bucket are controlled by four different
motion statements. In this tutorial the motions for moving the hydraulic cylinders for the boom, arm and
bucket will be replaced by a hydraulic system controlled by three different controllers.
First examine how the excavator moves using motions by performing a scripted simulation using the
motions. A simulation script named simple_run is prepared. This simulates 25 seconds with 1250 output
steps and starts with an initial equilibrium simulation.
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Simulate  Scripted Controls…
Animate the results to see how the excavators move. The motion of the hydraulic cylinders will be used
as the desired values sent to the controllers that will regulate the hydraulic system to deliver correct
forces.
Go to the Postprocessor tool by pressing F8, switch the Source to Result Sets, and plot the desired boom
displacement boom_ACT_set_value and then overlay the actual boom hydraulic cylinder position
boom_l_ACT_EZ5_position. Note that they follow each other since the system is controlled by a motion
statement. After reviewing the results, leave your Adams session open so that you can work on the model
later. Otherwise, you will need to reload the model after finishing the next section.
Create External System Library files

In this tutorial we will start with creating the four control systems, but we could as well have started by
creating the transducer and actuator signals. But before we use the control systems in Adams we need to
build the Easy5 External System Libraries (ESL’s) and we also need to create property files in
Adams/Mechatronics to be able to import the external control systems. Start by opening MSC Easy5 and
open the model arm_controller found in <adams_installation>\amech\ examples\aview\
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tutorial_excavator\easy5 folder. In Easy5 you now have a model of a PI controller and an Adams block
as illustrated below.
Please note that in all control systems in this tutorial the Adams block is already defined and exists to
save time. In a real application, the Adams block should be manually created or defined. This procedure
has been covered in standard Adams/Control manual in detail or tutorial for ball and beam example of
Adams/Mechatronics. The procedure can be summarized as follows:
1. define the (number/name of inputs/outputs of) control system in Adams/Mechatronics
2. perform a Plant Export in Adams/Mechatronics
3. create an Adams block in the control system package from the exported plant, and
4. connect the control system and Adams block as depicted in the above picture.
The above controller, similar to all other controllers in this tutorial, is a simple PI-controller that takes a
desired signal and a feedback signal as input and delivers a current output that will control the servo valve
in the hydraulic system.
We need to export this model to get our external system library from Easy5. In Easy5, from the top menu
select
Build menu  Export Model As  Adams External System Library… .

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The following dialog box is displayed
Make sure that in General tab the value for Use Design Parameters is set to Yes (this enables the
previously selected Easy5 parameters in arm_controller.0.ezadb to be used as design parameters in
Adams) and then select Export and then close the dialog box. Upon a successful model export, a library
file is generated called arm_controller.dll (.so, .sl) located in the Easy5 working directory.
Now redo the same steps for the boom_controller, bucket_controller and the hydraulic_system model to
build all necessary External System Libraries). After exporting the ESL's from Easy5, you may close
Easy5.
Create External System Library Property Files

We now need to create External System Library property files to be able to use these libraries in
Adams/Mechatronics in a effective way. In Adams/View, using the excavator model from the previous
section, create the External System Library property files:
Mechatronics  Tools  ESL Property File… .

(Note that these Mechatronics menus are loaded by the Mechatronics Plugin. In this case, the plugin was
automatically loaded by this Adams model, but this can be loaded manually by selecting Tools  Plugin
Manager  Mechatronics  Load)
The following dialog box displays where you need to fill in the external system library file name, the ESL
property file name, and make sure the Target Directory is your working directory.
Select OK or Apply to create the ESL property file. You should see a message similar to the following
in Adams:
Copying 'file://C:/examples/aview/tutorial_excavator/easy5/arm_controller.dll' to 'file://C:/
/examples/aview/tutorial_excavator/win32/arm_controller.dll'.
Copying 'file://C:/examples/aview/tutorial_excavator/easy5/arm_controller.xfe.ezanl' to
'file://C:/examples/aview/tutorial_excavator/win32/arm_controller.xfe.ezanl'.
Copying 'file://C:/examples/aview/tutorial_excavator/easy5/arm_controller.dll.manifest' to
'file://C:/examples/aview/tutorial_excavator/win32/arm_controller.dll.manifest'.
Library property file 'file://C:/examples/aview/tutorial_excavator/arm_controller.esl' is created
successfully.
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Now, create ESL property files also for the other External System Library files i,e., boom_controller,
bucket_controller, and hydraulic_system. Use the same name for the ESL property file name as the ESL
file name.
Create Control Systems

Next we will create the four control systems in Adams/Mechatronics of external system library type.
From the top menu select
Mechatronics  Control System  New…

to show the Create Control System dialog box. You select the control system and type, the external
Library Property File (.esl), and number of inputs and outputs as shown in the figures below.
Before selecting OK or Apply, select icon on the lower left corner to start the Control Signal Editor,
where the input/output ports, unit types, unit strings, and so on are defined. Click on the first cell below
the Signal Name column and start to fill the table as following picture depicts. It is required that the
signals are defined in the same order as the External System Library.
By defining the correct units that the external control system expects, Adams/Mechatronics
automatically converts the signals to correct units.
The output signal is created in the same way, but in this case we set the unit type to user since current is
not defined in Adams/Mechatronics. This output signal will later be connected to an input in the
hydraulic system that expects a current signal.
Then select OK in Control Signal Editor, followed by OK in the Create Control System. A message
window verifies that the control system inputs/output have been created as shown below.
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Two more control systems for the other two controllers also needs to be created in the same way as above,
with the following specifications.
Control system name: boom_controller
Library property file: boom_controller.esl
Inputs:
# Name Unit type Unit string Scale

1 boom_demand length Model units 1.0
2 boom_position length Model units 1.0
Outputs:

1 boom_cur_sig user Model units 1.0
Control system name: bucket_controller

Library property file: bucket_controller.esl
Inputs:

1 bucket_demand length Model units 1.0
2 bucket_position length Model units 1.0
Outputs::

1 bucket_cur_sig user no_units 1.0
Now we will create the control system for the hydraulic system in the same way, but with 11 inputs and
4 outputs. The hydraulic system needs a current input for each hydraulic cylinder to regulate the servo
valve which controls the hydraulic cylinder. Hydraulic cylinder position and velocity are also sent as
feedback to the hydraulic control system. Output from the hydraulic system is four cylinder forces. This
totally yields 11 inputs and 4 outputs. Now create the hydraulic control system as shown in the following
figures.
The inputs should be defined as the following figure shows.

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And the output should be defined as the following figure shows.
Then select OK in Control Signal Editor, followed by OK in the Create Control System. A message
window verifies that the control system inputs/output have been created.
By now we have created all the control systems needed for the model. Next we will move on to create
the transducer signals that will feed the control systems with appropriate information.
Create Transducer Signals

To feed the control systems with input signals from the mechanical model, virtual transducer signals are
created. We need to create transducer signals that measure the hydraulic cylinder positions and velocities.
We start with one of the arm transducers. Go to
Mechatronics  Mechanical System  Transducer Signal  New…

to create the first transducer according to picture below. Note that you have the possibility to set request
and measure activity on or off.
You may use Mechatronics  Info  Signals… to verify that the rest of the transducers are already
prepared according to the table below..
Name Function Unit type Unit string

arm_velocity VZ(MARKER_65,MARKER_66,MARKER_66) velocity Model units
arm_set_value VARVAL(arm_ACT_set_value) length Model units
Boom_l_position DZ(MARKER_63,MARKER_64,MARKER_64) length Model units
Boom_l_velocity VZ(MARKER_63,MARKER_64,MARKER_64) velocity Model units
Boom_r_position DZ(MARKER_61,MARKER_62,MARKER_62) length Model units
Boom_r_velocity VZ(MARKER_61,MARKER_62,MARKER_62) velocity Model units
Boom_set_value VARVAL(boom_ACT_set_value) length Model units
Bucket_position DZ(MARKER_67,MARKER_68,MARKER_68) length Model units
Bucket_velocity VZ(MARKER_67,MARKER_68,MARKER_68) velocity Model units
Bucket_set_value VARVAL(bucket_ACT_set_value) length Model units
Tutorials 173
You have now created all necessary transducer signals in the mechanical system. Our next step will be to
create the actuator signals which control the hydraulic cylinders.
Create Actuator Signals

Actuator signals are signals that are received from the control system and should be connected to the
mechanical system. In this case there are four hydraulic cylinder force signals that should be connected
to the system. First we need to create the actuators and then we need to use them in the mechanical
system. Display the Create Actuator Signal dialog box via the top menu
Mechatronics  Mechanical System  Actuator Signal  New…

to create an actuator signal according to the figure below.
Select OK or Apply to create the actuator signal. You may use Mechatronics  Info  Signals … to
verify that the actuator signals for the boom and bucket are already prepared in the model.
Apply the control system to the mechanical system

Next we need to reference these actuator signals in the mechanical system. This is done by modifying the
force statements that are used in hydraulic cylinders. The actuator signal is stored in a variable named
signal_variable under the actuator signal object. The force function should be set to get the value of this
signal. To modify the arm_ACT_actuator, you may use the top menu Edit  Modify and look for all
forces using Filter. See figure below for how to modify the arm_ACT_actuator force.
Next, continue to modify the remaining forces, that is, boom_l_ACT_actuator, boom_r_ACT_actuator,
bucket_ACT_actuator to reference the corresponding actuator signal variable.
Connect the signals in Signal Manager

The next step is to define how the control systems are connected to the transducer and actuator signals.
To do this, go to the Signal Manager using the menu
Mechatronics  Signal Manager  Display…

First the Signal Manager – Select Model will show up to let you select from the active models (in this
case only one model exists, that is, excavator_model). Additionally you can also see how many control
systems exist in each model.
Tutorials 175
By selecting Apply the Signal Manager will be displayed.

In the Signal Manager you can review all existing control systems in the selected model and then select
one by double clicking on the control system name.
Let us start with the arm controller and double click on ues_arm_controller cell (or on any other cell in
the same row). Now the Signal Manager loads the selected control system information and lists all
existing ports in two separate Input and Output tabs.
Note that:
• Each table are separated into white and gray areas; the gray area are related to port information
(name and unit type) of the control system and the white area is related to connectivity
information (connected signal name), that is, information of connected signals to the ports
• In Inputs table, the columns related to Connected Signal (white area) are in the left side of the
table; whereas in Outputs table they are in the right side of the table. This is basically to resemble
the signal flow model illustrated in the following figure. Input and output signals are normally
connected to the control system from left and right side, respectively.
Tutorials 177
By double clicking on “Connectivity Is NOT SET” cell, the Selecting Inputs dialog box will be displayed
as follows.
Getting familiar with Selecting Input… dialog box

• On the top of Selecting Input dialog box (first row), information related to selected (in previous
step) input port index, port name, unit type, and comment is displayed
• By changing the port index (leftmost field in the first row) you can navigate through other input
ports and edit the connectivity information
• Second row shows which signal are connected (either already or selected to be connected) to the
input port, and its corresponding major and minor role
• Clicking the Unselect button (leftmost in the second row) unselects the selected connector
signal, however, this will not take effect until the OK or Apply are selected
• Available Signal List (above the table) displays all selectable signals in a table, that is,
(transducers or control system outputs) signals which have the same unit type as the input port.
Let’s explain this by an example. In current case as the arm_position signal has length unit type,
all signals (either transducers or control system outputs) which have a unit type of length are
listed in the table
• The available signal list can be filtered by Signal Type (‘curtain’ menu) and Name Filter field.
This is to help you to find the appropriate signal more conveniently
• You can select a signal (to be connected to selected port) from the table by selecting one of the
table cell in which signal attributes are shown and then clicking the Select button (lower below
table). However, this will not take effect until the OK or Apply are subsequently selected
• Double-clicking on a signal in the Available Signal list table is implemented to be a short cut for
• selecting a signal
• applying the selection
• showing the next port.
This is to help you in the process of connecting signals to the ports one by one.
• When a signal from the table is already selected, its row in the table have blue background color
in the table
• Similar to other dialog boxes in Adams, OK closes the Selecting Input dialog box and returns to
the previous windows while Apply button applies the changes and keep the current dialog box
alive
Now try to get the feeling of Selecting Input dialog box by connecting ues_cst_arm_set_value to
arm_demand. As explained earlier, you may just double click on ues_cst_arm_set_value which select the
signal and lead you directly to the next port, that is, arm_position. Similarly, select ues_cst_arm_position
to be connected to arm_position and then select OK. The arm_controller input signals should be
connected as the following picture.
The outputs from the control systems will remain unassigned for now (those will get completed when
dealing with hydraulic system controller). Select icon in top left area of dialog box to continue
with the input side of the boom and bucket controller in a similar way as following pictures shows.
Tutorials 179
Next, continue with the hydraulic system controller and connect the input signals according to the
following figure.
Now we want to connect the Outputs signals. Therefore we select the Outputs tab and select the
appropriate signal connections as shown in following illustration.
After connecting all input signals, return to Signal Manager by selecting OK.
Tutorials 181
Next, display the arm controller again to verify that the output is now connected to the hydraulic system.
By now, you have completed the setup of assigning all transducer and actuator signals to the control
systems. Select OK twice to go back to the main Adam windows. A message window pops up with
messages confirming that the control system signals are connected.
Deactivate the Motions

Before performing a simulation, we need to deactivate the motion statements used in the introductory
simulation. First from the top menu, select
Edit  Deselect All

to make sure that nothing is selected, then from top menu select
Edit  Deactivate
This will open the Database Navigator. In the list find and select, arm_Motion, boom_Motion, and
bucket_Motion (following picture) and select OK. This will deactivate the motion statements that were
used to control the motion of the excavator.
Simulate the model and review the results

Rerun the simulation script that was used in the beginning of this tutorial and animate the model again.
Once again plot the signal ues_cst_boom_set_value in the Adams/Postprocessor and then overlay the
actual boom hydraulic cylinder position ues_cst_boom_l_position. Note the difference of using these
control systems instead of the motion controlled system.
You have now finished this tutorial.

Dialog Box - F1 help 1
Dialog Box - F1 help

Connectivity Information
Connectivity Information
Mechatronics -> Info -> Connectivity
Displays information on all actuator signals and control system inputs connections in an assembly.
For the option: Do the following:

Model Enter the name of the model.
Display in information If you check this option, you can see the information in a window.
window
Save information to a file If you check this option, you can write the file name in the adjoining field,
and the information will be saved to the provided file.
Control System Overview
Control System Overview

Mechatronics -> Info -> Control Systems
Displays overview information about the control system(s) in the model.

Model Select the model you want to get information about.
All Systems / Single System Select one or all control systems.
System Side Select the type of signals you want to include in the overview.
• Both Input and Output

• Only Input
• Only Output
Signal View Options Select the content of the information. You can select:
• Unit Types
• Unit Strings
• Scale factors
• Request/Measure
• Connector Info
• Comments
• Disturbances
• Delay
window
Save information to a file If you check this option, you can write the file name in the adjoining
field, and the information will be saved to the provided file.
Convert Controls Plant
Convert Controls Plant

Mechatronics -> Tools -> Convert Controls Plant...
Converts Controls Plant.

Controls Plant Select the Controls Plant to be converted.
Create/Modify Control System

Mechatronics -> Control System -> New/Modify
Creates or modifies a Control System.

Name Enter the name that you want assigned to the control system.
Type This option is only available in Adams/Car. (In Adams/View this option is
disabled as there is no symmetry). Select one of the following:
• left/right - Define if the left or the right signal are displayed in the
dialog box. The corresponding opposite control system will be
created/modified in the same manner.
• single - A nonsymmetric control system will be created/modified.
System Type Here you can select among the following alternatives:
1. Function Expression
The controller is expressed by its output control signals as function
expressions of input signals. For instance, a control system with 4
inputs and 2 outputs:
output1 = 3*input1 + 2*input2 / 6*input3 - input4
output2 = -9*input1 * 2*input2 + 12*input3 / input4
In addition to the control system inputs, the output could also be
dependent on any other Adams/Solver entity. If other solver entities are
used in the function expressions and they are only valid when the
control system type is set to function, use select objects dialog box for
activating/deactivating the entities which are dependent on the type and
activity of the control system.
2. External System Library
The controller is modelled in Matlab/Simulink or Easy5. By using
Real-Time Workshop (RTW) in Simulink or code generator in Easy5,
together with Adams interface routines, a dynamic link library file can
be created to be used in Adams/Controls and Adams/Mechatronics. In
order to effectively access the library file in Adams/Mechatronics, a
special external system library property file (*.esl file) is created. Learn
more about Control System Import.
3. Co-Simulation
The controller is defined in a separate control application and the
(discrete) communication between Adams and the control application
is handled via the Co-Simulation functionality in Adams/Controls.

Library Property File If you selected the External System Library option as the controller type, you
need to select an ESL property file (*.esl) which points to the ESL (aka
dynamic link library) file. In Adams/Car you may postpone selecting ESL
property file to the Standard User mode prior to starting the simulation.
While in Adams/Car the ESL property file is saved in the Adams/Car database
under the external_system_libraries.tbl directory, in Adams/View it is saved in
a user specified target directory. The ESL file itself, is saved in a subdirectory
named as the operative system platform (e.g. win32 in Windows), which is
located under the ESL property files directory. See an Example of ESL file.
Static Hold Determines if you want Adams/Solver to keep the initial value of the control
signal constant during static analysis.
Control Package If you have selected Co-Simulation as control system type, select the controls
software you are using.
Initial Static Analysis Adams/Car will automatically run the appropriate static analysis, and therefore
you should normally select 'No' on this option.
Number of Inputs Enter the number of inputs of the control system.
Number of Outputs Enter the number of output of the control system.
Active Select whether the control system should be active or not in the assembled
model.
Select to add any comments about the control system to help you manage and
identify it.
Select to define the input and output control signals. Please note that you must
perform this task before selecting Apply or Done in the current dialog box.
Select to import a library file and generate an ESL property file.
Select to export files to a control package. This (shortcut) button is only

available for a control system of type ESL, and when you select to generate an
ESL property file. To make an export for Co-Simulation, run an analysis first.

Select to view property file information. By default, your template-based
product displays this information in the Information window, but you can
choose to display the information in a text editor.
Learn about:
• The Information window

• Displaying files in a text editor
Select to set the entities that should be activated/deactivated depending on
whether the control system type is set to "function" or not.
Example below shows the content of an ESL file:

The LIBRARY keyword in this example points to a dynamic link library file called
'Case4_ABS_GSE.dll' (the file suffix may be .so or .sl in other platforms). The .esl property file can be
created using the following menu Mechatronics -> Tools -> ESL Property File.
$--------------------------------------------------------MDI_HEADER
[MDI_HEADER]
FILE_TYPE = 'esl'
FILE_VERSION = 1.0
FILE_FORMAT = 'ASCII'
HEADER_SIZE = 9
(COMMENTS)
{comment_string}
'Num. Inputs: 11, Num. Outputs: 4'
$-------------------------------------------------------------UNITS
[UNITS]
LENGTH = 'mm'
ANGLE = 'degrees'
FORCE = 'newton'
MASS = 'kg'
TIME = 'second'
$------------------------------------------------------------ROUTINE
[ROUTINE]
LIBRARY = 'Case4_ABS_GSE'
ROUTINE = 'Case4_ABS_GSE'
$------------------------------------------------------------------
PARAMETER
[PARAMETER]
dummy = 1.0
$------------------------------------------------------------
X_INITIAL_CONDITION
[X_INITIAL_CONDITION]
IC_state_1 = 0.0
IC_state_2 = 0.0
IC_state_3 = 0.0
IC_state_4 = 0.0
$-----------------------------------------------------------
XD_INITIAL_CONDITION
[XD_INITIAL_CONDITION]
IC_discrete_state_1 = 0.0
Create/Modify Transducer/Actuator or Control System Input/Output
Create/Modify Transducer/Actuator or Control System

Input/Output
Mechatronics -> Mechanical System -> Transducer Signal/Actuator Signal -> New/Modify
Mechatronics -> Control System -> Input/Output -> Modify
Creates or modifies a Transducer Signal or an Actuator Signal or a Control System Input/Output.

Signal Name Enter the name that you want assigned to the transducer/actuator signal.
Type This option is only available in Adams/Car. (In Adams/View this option
is disabled as there is no symmetry).
• left/right - Define either the left or the right signal, and your
template-based product creates the corresponding opposite signal
by default.
• single- Define a nonsymmetric signal.
Active Select one of the following:
• always - The signal is always active (i.e., appears in adm file). If

it is not connected it is set to zero.
• only if connected - The signal is active only when it is connected.
• only if referred to - (only applicable to actuator signals) - If
another object is using the actuator signal in a function
expression, the actuator signal will be active.
General: If you select Run-time Expression, enter the function expression that
defines the variable. Select the [...] button to display the Function Builder
Function Definition and build an expression. See Function Builder and Using the Adams/View
Function Builder
General: If you selected User written subroutine, enter constants to the user-written
subroutine VARSUB to define a variable.
Parameter List (VARSUB)

General: If you select User written subroutine, enter the routine name of the
varsub if you want to call the varsub from your own dynamic link library.
Routine Example of syntax you can use are:
my_dll::my_varsub (will look for 'my_varsub' in

the dynamic link library called 'my_dll')
my_dll:: (will look for 'varsub' in the dynamic

link library called 'my_dll')
my_varsub (will look for 'my_varsub' in the std

available solver dll's)
General: Select type of unit (user, length, acceleration, etc.)
Unit Type
General: Select the appropriate unit identifier string. Learn more about Units in
Adams/Mechatronics.
Unit String
Some examples of available unit strings for different unit types:
• length
• model_units
• millimeter
• meter
• ...
• angular_velocity
• model_units
• deg/sec
• rad/sec
• rpm
• user_defined
• user
• no_units
• user_defined
General: Scale factor applied to the total signal:
Scale Factor Total signal = scale_factor * (general_function* unit_factor1)

Disturbance: Determines if disturbance should be applied or not.
Active

Disturbance: There are two alternatives
Operator • Add - the disturbance is added to the original signal.

• Multiply - the disturbance is multiplied with the original signal.

Disturbance: There are four ways to specify the disturbance signal:
Disturbance Signal • Run-time expression:

• Function Expression
In Adams/Car, the expression must be a function on time or set
to a constant value
In Adams/View, it can be any arbitrary function
• Function Unit
Choose a unit string available the unit type
Total signal = scale_factor * (general_function * unit_factor1 +/*
disturbance_function* unit_factor2)
• ASCII file (*.daf):
• ASCII File
Disturbance ASCII file
• Channel Label
Specifies with column data to use in the file
• Scale Factor
Disturbance Scale Factor:
disturbance_file_data * disturbance_scale_factor * unit_factor2)
• RPC file:
• RPCII file
• Channel Number¨
• Scale Factor
• Channel Unit
Set the specific unit used by the channel
• Time Unit
Set the time unit that is used in the RCPII file
RPCII_file_data (channel_bnumber)* channel_scale_factor*
unit_factor2)

• DAC file
• DAC file
• Channel Unit
Set the specific unit used by the channel
• Time Unit
Set the time unit that is used in the DAC file
DAC_file_data * DAC_scale_factor * unit_factor2)
Delay: Determines if any delay signal effect should be applies or not
Active
Delay: If disturbance is not active, there is only one choice (function). In that case
delay applies to the function specified in the general tab container.
Signal To Delay
If disturbance is active, then there are three choices on where to apply the
delay as follows.
• Function (only)
• Delays only the function (specified in the general tab
container)
Total Signal = scale_factor * (delayed[general_function] * unit_factor1
+/* disturbance * unit_factor2)
• Disturbance (Only)
• Delays only the disturbance input
Total Signal = scale_factor * (general_function * unit_factor1 +/*
delayed[disturbance] * unit_factor2)
• Disturbed Function
• Delays the disturbed general function, i.e., after disturbance
has been applied on the function signal
Total Signal = scale_factor * delayed [general_function * unit_factor1 +/*
disturbance * unit_factor2]
Delay: If active, you enter the delay function initial history value which is used
when time is less than delay time.
Initial History
If inactive, the initial history value is calculated from the initial value of
function being delayed. (not implemented)

Delay: Shown only in the Adams/Car Standard Interface mode
Delay Time Type Determines the type of delay time function to be used:
• Run time expression

• Function dependent only on time or a constant value
• Template Expression
• A delay time function that has been defined and stored in the
template.
• The function could also be dependent on a state
• You can not modify the template expression. You can only
override it with the run time expression above.
Delay: Adams expression defining the magnitude of the delay. The delay can be
constant, function of time or state dependent. In Adams/Car standard
Delay Time Function Interface, the function should only dependent on time or set to a constant
value.
The magnitude must be positive. Negative values will be taken as zero.

Request Active Turns auto-created signal request on or off
Measure Active Turns auto-created signal measure on or off
Select to add any comments about the control system to help you manage
and identify it.
Select to open a dialog box where you can set active and inactive objects
and also dependent object.
Delete Control System
Delete Control System

Mechatronics -> Control System -> Delete
Deletes a Control System.

Control System Use the right mouse button to browse for the control system object you want to
delete.
Delete Transducer/Actuator or Control System Input/Output
Delete Transducer/Actuator or Control System

Input/Output
Mechatronics -> Mechanical System -> Transducer Signal/Actuator Signal -> Delete
Mechatronics -> Control System -> Input/Output -> Delete
Deletes a Transducer or Actuator Signal or Control System Input/Output.

Transducer Signals/ Right click to browse for the control signal object you want to delete.
Actuator Signals/
Control System Inputs/
Control System Outputs

Export Plant for Co-simulation /Setting up ESL
Export Plant for Co-simulation /Setting up ESL

Mechatronics -> Tools -> Export Plant
Exports necessary files for a chosen control package.

System Name Right-click to browse for the control system of type co-simulation or ESL.
File Prefix This option is only used in case of ESL simulation preparation. Specify the
file prefix for the exported files.
Adm File This option is only used in case of co-simulation in Adams/Car. Pick the
appropriate adm file (you must run a 'file only' analysis before choosing this
option to generate an adm file which provides the analysis name to Adams).
Target Software Select the controls software you want to use for creating your controller.
Analysis Type Currently it is always set to non_linear, which exports the plant for dynamic
analysis. Previously you might select between non_linear and linear, which
created a linearized representation of the model in terms of (A, B, C, D)
matrices to perform a linear analysis
Initial Static Analysis Select one of the following:
• Yes: Performs initial static analysis.

• No: Does not perform initial static analysis.
Adams will automatically run the appropriate static analysis, and thus you
should normally say 'No' on this option.
Initialization Select and provide the command for initialization.
Command
Adams/Solver Choice Select one of the following:
• Fortran - Uses the default Adams/Solver (FORTRAN) for this

simulation.
• C++ - Uses Adams/Solver (C++) for this simulation.
User Defined Library Enter the name of the user-defined library.
Name
Adams Host Name Enter the name of the host machine from which the Adams plant is being
exported. This host name is used if you choose TCP/IP-based
communication to perform co-simulation or function evaluation between
Adams and MATLAB or Easy5.
External System Library (ESL) Property File
External System Library (ESL) Property File

Mechatronics -> Tools -> ESL Property File...
Creates a property file for an ESL.

From Control Package Select either Easy5 or MATLAB as the control package which has been
used to generate the External System Library file.
External System Library Right-click to select the existing ESL file (.dll or .so) which includes the
subroutines you want to use in your ESL controller.
Property file name Enter a name for the property file. The file will be stored in the
external_system_libraries.tbl directory in the Adams/Car database. In
Adams/View, it will be placed in target directory (see below).
Target Directory (only in Adams/View) Select path to where the ESL property file will be
stored
(only in Adams/View) Select to easily choose the path of target directory
Rearrange Control Signal Input/Output
Rearrange Control Signal Input/Output

Mechatronics -> Control System -> Input/Output -> Rearrange
Changes the channel number of a Control Signal Input/Output.

Input/Output Control Signal Use the right mouse button to browse for the control signal you want
to move.
Signal Index Enter an integer value indicating on which channel you want the signal
to be.
Control System This field is automatically filled in.
Number of Inputs/Outputs This field is automatically filled in.
Select to display a dialog box where you can get information about the
control system and its input and output signals.
Rename Control System
Rename Control System

Mechatronics -> Control System -> Rename
Renames a Control System.

Old System Name Use the right mouse button to browse for an existing control system.
New System Name Enter the new name that you want assigned to the control system.
Rename Transducer/Actuator or Control Signal Input/Output
Rename Transducer/Actuator or Control Signal

Input/Output
Mechatronics -> Control System -> Input/Output -> Rename
Mechatronics -> Mechanical System -> Transducer Signal/Actuator Signal -> Rename
Renames a Transducer or Actuator or Control Signal Input/Output.

Old Signal Name Right click to browse for an existing control signal.
New Signal Name Enter the new name of the transducer/actuator signal.
Select Model
Select Model
Mechatronics -> Signal Manager -> Display..
Select the model with the control systems to display the Signal Manager.

Model Select the model with control systems.
Select Objects
Select Objects
Select objects that should be activated or deactivated depending on the connection of the related
actuator/transducer signal. If the dialog box is entered via the control system create/modify dialog box,
you specify the objects which should be activated if the control system is set to function.
Note: There is no symmetry functionalities when selecting objects. Therefore, the user has to
select objects for the left and right sides separately. The same applies when selecting
function objects for control systems of type function.

Object Shows the name of the actuator or control signal input (not editable).
Active objects Right click to select all the objects that should be active if the actuator/transducer
signal is connected. For control systems, select the objects that should be activated
when the control system is active and of function type.
Inactive objects Right click to select all the objects that should be inactive if the actuator/transducer
signal is connected.
Dependent Object Right click to find the object that should be dependent on the actuator signal.
Signal Manager
Signal Manager
Mechatronics -> Signal Manager -> Display
Select Model dialog box opens and the text box is populated with the available models. Select the
appropriate model and click OK. Signal Manager dialog box enables you to hook up transducer signals
and actuator signals to the appropriate input/output channel in the control system.

Assembly Assembly you want to work on is already displayed.
Control System Select the control system you want to hook up.
Name
Nume Inputs Click on the button to display a list of available Transducer Signals or other
control system's Output Signals. Note that the list will only display those
Transducer Signals (or Control System Output Signals) which have the correct
Unit Type.
Num Outputs Click on the button to display a list of available Actuator Signals or other
control system's Input Signals. Note that the list will only display those Actuator
Signals (or Control System Input Signals) which have the correct Unit Type.
Further, on the right-hand side of the selected Actuator or Input Signal, there is an
integer indicating how many Actuators or Control System Input Signals make use
of the same Control System Output.
Select to display a dialog box where you can get information about the control
system and its input and output signals.
Signal Overview
Signal Overview
Mechatronics -> Info -> Signals
Displays overview information about the different kinds of signals in the assembly; Transducer Signals,
Actuator Signals, Control System Inputs and Control System Outputs.

Model Select the model you want to get information about.
Signal Type Select the type of signals you want to include in the overview.
View options Select the content of the information.
window
Save information to a file If you check this option, you can write the file name in the adjoining field,
and the information will be saved to the provided file.
Signal Overview

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Welcome to Adams/Mechatronics

From a modeling perspective, Adams/Mechatronics has following benefits:

Model and Data Reuse

File Architecture in Adams/Mechatronics

Basic Concepts in Adams/Mechatronics

Control System Input

Control System Output

External System Library (ESL)

A transducer signal activity can be set in two different ways:

The available activity settings for an actuator signal are:

Control System Inputs

Control System Outputs

Actator Signal: ues_csa_’signal name’ (csa = Control Signal Actuator)

Unit type Unit String Used when Comment

Unit type Unit String Used when Comment

Disturbance and Delay

The Disturbance Signal can have one of four following formats

A simple example of a Disturbance ASCII File is shown below:

• Case 1: No disturbance or delay is applied

• Case 2: No Disturbance is applied, Delay is applied (set to function)

• Case 3. Disturbance is applied, no Delay is applied

• Case 4: Both Disturbance and Delay is applied, Delay is set to “function”

• Case 5: Both Disturbance and Delay is applied, Delay is set to “disturbance”

• Case 6: Both Disturbance and Delay is applied, Delay set to “disturbed_function”

The following dialog box will pop up:

External System Library (ESL) Property file

To generate an ESL property file in Adams/Mechatronics, use the following menu

Only if connected YES ON ON

Only if referred to YES YES ON ON

Signal Activity State

Active Object State

Alternative 1, use signal_connectivity_flag

FUNCTION = (1-signal_connectivity_flag) * F(brake_demand) + signal_connectivity_flag *

Alternative 2, use Active/Inactive Objects

Alternative 3, use UDE replace

data_element create variable &

force modify direct single_component_force &

ude create definition &

macro create &

ude modify definition &

amech toolkit find actuator_signal &

amech toolkit find control_system &

amech toolkit get actuator_signal &

Parameter Type Function

Parameter Type Function

Parameter Type Function

Parameter Type Function

Parameter Type Function

Input Parameter Type Function

Object Type Function

For details refer to disturbance and delay section

Object Type Function

For details refer to disturbance and delay section

Disturbance/Delay settings Component Component name

No disturbance, delay_type is set to “function”, f2 signal

Disturbance, no delay f2 signal

Disturbance/Delay settings Component Component name

Subsystem parameters in Adams/Car:

Template Builder (Adams/Car) - Standard Interface (Adams/Car) - Adams/View

Command: amech template_builder control_signal smodify

Parameter Type Function

Valid for Function Control System

External System Library