FlexSim 7 Beta

FlexSim 7 Beta is available. If you would like to check out the new features and help us test it, you can get it from the Account section of the website.

Please post any bugs/issues you find (please no new feature requests) to this thread.

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Release Notes

--- FlexSim 7.0.0 Beta (Sep 5, 2013) ---
* 64-bit version (enables FlexSim to use more RAM).
* Windowing interface overhaul to use a docked window paradigm.
* Created a Quick Properties docked window that is context sensitive. The window will display the most used properties based on the current selection or the active document window.
* Tree Find/Replace is now integrated with the Quick Properties window and has support for case-insensitive searches as well as searching for node names.
* Library Icon Grid enhancements to include filtering, collapsible groups and edit modes.
* Library Icon Grid is context sensitive and changes its display based on the current selection or the active document window.
* Added a sampler button that is placed throughout the software to allow users to sample images, 3D media, objects, nodes, numbers, strings and colors. The sampler helps to eliminate some need for writing code.
* Downloads page that gives functionality to download and install Modules, 3D Shapes, Images and Models.
* Added a Measure/Convert tool
* Improved script console allowing scripts to be saved both in individual models and to the user environment. You can also now debug your script console code.
* Improved Presentation Builder interface.
* Improved the Flowitem Bin interface including making packing modes for container flow items visible and editable. Flowitem shapes may be changed through a drag and drop from the Library Icon Grid.
* Flowitems can now have their own custom animations.
* Improved the employment of shape frames in FR objects and Flowitems.
* Added a No Select flag to all objects.
* Added a multi-table Excel export and overhauled the Excel interface to match the MTEI. The new MTEI includes an option to automatically reimport tables on reset.
* Improved Animation Creator, including dynamic animations using animation variables, more detailed editing of keyframes, and keyframe triggers. 3D shapes may be added to an animation through a drag and drop from the Library Icon Grid.
* Created a global model start date/time that is tied to TimeTables. A stop date/time may also be specified.
* Revamped TimeTable window. A daily or weekly schedule may now be imported through the MTEI.
* Added and updated several picklist popups removing all text based picklist options.
* Improvement in the Code Editor and other areas where logic is defined through draggable constructs in the library icon grid and sampler buttons throughout popups and picklist widgets to automatically add code, etc. FlexSim commands also display a short description when typing in the code editor.
* Picklist fields and many popup’s fields have code highlighting and autocomplete.
* Added some Flexscript implementations of lambda expressions.
* Better debugger that allows you to access the tree and other areas of FlexSim while in debug mode. Hovering over variables during debug mode will display their current value.
* Panel control GUI enhancements.
* Added dashboard constructs that will replace most need for the GUI builder: Users can now do model input through dashboards instead of having to use the GUI builder. Multiple dashboards may be created.
* You can now pick which navigator a TE is connected to through their properties page (allows you remove them from all navigators).
* New hot keys/accelerators. Ctrl+K and Ctrl+L to resize objects up or down by 5%. Ctrl+W to close the active document window or the active floating window. Updated Ctrl+Tab and Ctrl+Shift+Tab to moved between tabs in the active floating or document window.
* Added the FluidConveyor to the default fluid library.
* Can now view an object's events by right clicking an object in the 3D view and selecting View | View Object Events.
* Complete OptQuest overhaul (includes multi-core support and experimenter integration).
* Better support for importing 3D shapes. FlexSim now supports the following formats: *.wrl; *.3ds; *.dxf; *.stl; *.skp; *.dae; *.obj; *.ac; *.x; *.ase; *.ply; *.ms3d; *.cob;*.md5mesh; *.irr; *.irrmesh; *.ter; *.lxo; *.csm; *.scn; *.q3o; *.q3s; *.raw; *.off; *.mdl; *.hmp; *.scn; *.xgl; *.zgl; *.lvo; *.lvs; *.blend
* Added a new mesh class for drawing in OpenGL.
* Stereographic 3d rendering (requires workstation Quadro or FireGL card for frame-sequential rendering).
* Enhanced graphical compatibility with integrated Intel cards.
* Improved 3d rendering, including shadow rendering, specular highlights on 3ds objects, bump maps, parallax maps, etc.
* Module Development SDK, including: SimpleDataType data type, which is a low-overhead class for fast, memory-efficient aggregation of data and for better object-oriented module code, with an easy mechanism for saving in the tree.
* Updated visual studio wizards that work with VS 2012
* A module sample tutorial.
* More Documentation.

****backwards compatibility note: the following changes may slightly change the way updated models behave****

* Many open gl commands have been deprecated. The model update mechanism tries to replace all old usages with the new graphics usages. Usually this should work, but in some cases it may not. Note that glBegin(), glEnd(), glVertex(), glNormal(), glTexCoord() have all been completely deprecated, and eventually will no longer work. Going forward you should use the mesh api.
* The spaceobject() command has been deprecated and no longer works. In optimizing the graphics engine we realized that a 5-20% refresh rate improvement can be attained simply by removing functionality that is solely there to make the spaceobject() command work. So we've deprecated this command. It is still in the command list so models will update, but updated models that use it will have weirdly drawn shapes.
* OnLoad is no longer dispatched by the engine when a project/tree is loaded. If you have custom objects that depend on this event, you will need to use some other mechanism to fire logic when the model loads, i.e. through the OnModelOpen, or through model libraries' OnModelOpen
* Kinematics functionality has changed so that by default kinematics will automatically be pruned off as you pass their individual end times. Note this required a restructuring of the kinematics data, so if your models don't do it on reset anyway, you'll need to re-initialize kinematics in models that are updated from older versions.
* In previous versions, getdatastat() was documented incorrectly for the parameter p2 (degrees of freedom). It was actually interpretting p2 as the number of samples in the set, not degrees of freedom. We've fixed that by simply not using that parameter and inferring the number of samples/degrees of freedom from other parameters. This means if you used this command previously it will return different/better results in this version. Also we've changed the way the confidence interval "clamps" to percentages in order to be "safer". Again this affects the values that were returned in previous versions vs this version. See the command documentation on getdatastat() for more information.
* We changed the name of the class FlexsimObject to FlexSimObject in-line with our naming scheme going forward. We have implemented an update script that replaces all instances of "FlexsimObject" with "FlexSimObject" in updated models. This means if certain things in your model are dependent on the name "FlexsimObject" (I don't know what that could be, except for maybe dll code that uses the name FlexsimObject) there may be issues with the update.
* The assimp 3ds importer is translating some of the files (namely the robot clamps) in a way that is different than our old 3ds importer. It is possible that other 3ds files may need their offsets manually adjusted after updating.
* Fixed the per-event 50-flowitem receive limit on the queue. This will break old models if your model is dependent on this bug.
* Fixed a bug with deceleration on a network when the task executer is blocking space and is given two travel tasks in a row (backwards compatibility note: this might change old models)
* Several attributes were removed, so if you use these attributes in your model you will need to update your model properly:
Removed Attributes: assertshape, asserttexture, billboard, distcutoff, events, instances, OnCaptured, OnCollision, OnInterrupted, state_graph, state_histo, state_percent, stats_contenthisto, stats_customgraphs, stats_throughputgraph, stats_throughputgraphmaxpoints, stats_throughputhisto, tables, textureaxis_s, textureaxis_t, travelstarttime, traveldirection, travelendtime, traveltimealpha, traveltimebeta, travelvpeak, traveldistance, travelstartx, travelstarty, travelstartz, travelendx, travelendy, travelendz, travelvmax, travelacc, traveldec
Removed Draw Attributes: ignoredraw, ignorezbuffer, nochildrotate, nochildscale, noondraw, nopredraw, shapetype, reflective, luminous
Removed Commands: travelto, traveltoupdate, ntravelto, ntraveltoupdate

This is an exciting update!

Known issues:
1. The DWG importer is not working properly. We're still working to update that dll to work properly with both 32-bit and 64-bit.
2. The "Shadows Beta" view and settings are still a work in progress. We are still working on optimizing performance and ease-of-use in controlling lighting and shadow effects in models.

To test the current shadow functionality, you can use the right-click options in the 3d view to open a shadow 3d view and a shadow settings window. Then you can push the "on" enable button in the shadow settings view to enable shaders. Shadows are cast on other objects so you will need to drag out a visual plane object or something else for a floor for best results.

I installed 7.0 beta 64 bit without any error.
But I met an error window attached on starting flexsim.

The error message is Korean but it shows the meaning of 'No starting point'.

X "The procedure starting point'
?.... @@@Z DLL can't be found in flexsimcontent.dll...

After closing the error window, flexsim looks like running well.

But when opening the 6.0 model, it gives some error.


thanks.

Hi,

just a few things:

1. I think the tabbing options on Global Preferences>Fonts and colors may need removing. Changing them has no effect and they always default back to "Do Not Use Auto-Tabbing". I guess this has something to do with the new docking of windows.
2. Breakpoints are not created properly when they are added into a code window that has been opened for the first time (was apparant in earlier versions of FlexSim too).
3. View code from breakpoints window does not work
4. When opening a model from an earlier version of Flexsim each object is given a no select value of TRUE. Meaning that you cannot click on any objects from the 3D view by default.

Syseo,
I think this is caused because you have the AStar module installed from the previous beta. You can remove it by deleting the directory C:\Program Files\FlexSim7\modules\AStar. At this point we don't have the AStar module updated to this current beta, but should have it ready by the final release.

The quick properties > view settings of a 3D view aren't refreshed if you close the 3D view (having made some changes to test this) and then open a new one.

In the quick properties for view settings of the 3D view the checkboxes (Perspective Projection, Show Connections, Snap to Grid, and Show Grid) become reversed (uncheck = enable and checked = disable) after adding a new window tab to the dock position. To create the issue, I dragged and dropped a script window onto quick properties. The reversal seems to continue until the model is reloaded or FlexSim is restarted.

Originally Posted by mark.gormley

When opening a model from an earlier version of Flexsim each object is given a no select value of TRUE. Meaning that you cannot click on any objects from the 3D view by default.

Sorry, we'll have this fixed by the final release, but if you want to correct this issue in your updated models, you can run the following script once the model has updated.

forobjecttreeunder (model()) {
	if (objectexists(drawflags(a))) {
		set(drawflags(a), get(drawflags(a)) & (~DRAW_FLAG_IGNORE_PICKING));
	}
}

Originally Posted by mark.gormley

I think the tabbing options on Global Preferences>Fonts and colors may need removing. Changing them has no effect and they always default back to "Do Not Use Auto-Tabbing". I guess this has something to do with the new docking of windows.

Changing them and applying does have an effect. The combo box just isn't showing the currently selected value properly when you open the window. I'll fix that for the release.

Auto-Tabbing has to do with tab characters within code, not with code windows docked together.

Simple Auto-Tabbing makes it when you press enter, it automatically sets the indent to the level of the previous line.

Active Auto-Tabbing (the default) does simple auto-tabbing, but it also adds an extra indent when you press enter after an opening scope character '{'.

Hi,

Here are just a few comments:

Experimenter
- In FlexSim 6, it was possible to edit the number of experiment scenarios and variables. In FlexSim 7, if you have 20 scenarios (or variables) you have to click 20 times on the "+" button.
- The button "Remove a scenario from the experimenter" has the label "Remove a variable from the experimenter"




OptQuest
- I have an OptQuest license activated. I am able to run an optimization with OptQuest, but I can't see the results. Once the optimization has finished, there is an empty error window, and behind we can read "No OptQuest License Found".




FlowItemBin
- No help topic defined if you click on the help button at the bottom of the FlowItem Bin window




Dashboard
- If you add a combo box to your dashboard, you can't select an option with your mouse. The current selected item of the picklist does not follow your mouse.

Clair,
Thanks for your feedback.

I can't replicate your issue with the Dashboard. Make sure you've turned off Edit Mode from the Quick Properties window (although the image looks like you have already done that). Is anyone else having Clair's issue? Could you retest it and maybe see if there are times when it does work, and if so, what do you do to make it not work and what do you do to make it work?

With OptQuest I can't replicate your issue either. You should double check that your optquest license has been upgraded to version 7.0. It is usually a separate fulfullment record than your regular license, so it upgrades separately.

On the experimenter scenarios button we figured creating scenarios was going to be a relatively manual operation since you're entering the values for each variable anyway, so it wasn't a huge deal to press a button for each scenario. I guess you could copy and paste from Excel but we just didn't see that as an often-used use case (maybe I'm wrong though). We were revamping the experimenter at the time and it was the quickest way to get everything working and look uniform as well, so we went with it. For now we plan to leave it as it is. We'll see if we get negative feedback.

Anthony Johnson

Anthony,

Please find attached a sample model to illustrate the issue with a combo box in the Dashboard. The combo box works fine when the model is stopped, but you can't select another option in the combo box while the model is running.

I noticed some other issues by using this sample model:

- launch FlexSim 7, create a new model, then open my sample model file. No 3D view, no access to the tree.
- launch FlexSim 7, open my sample model file by clicking in the section recent models, the 3D view is not shown. It appears only once I click somewhere inside the 3D view or if I move my mouse.
- edit the checkbox text, save your model, reopen it. The checkbox text was not saved.
- sometimes the operator is sliding instead of walking



Concerning OptQuest I will follow up with you by email (the sample model I used cannot be shared here).

Hi, I also have some issues to report.

Property windows on project load

Property windows which are open when a project is saved, will have all flags (General/flags) unset when the project is later loaded.
Not a big deal, but I thought it was worth mentioning.

BasicConveyor

The BasicConveyor object causes "Clock overflow" errors upon items being released in some cases. Here is a simple model which demonstrates the problem.
v7_basicconveyor_clock_overflow.fsm

Change the output port of the queue to one of the following :
1 : Working, speed=1, no added spacing, natural spacing due to conveyor speed
2 : Broken, speed=0.5, no added spacing
3 : Broken, speed=0.5, added spacing

FlexsimModuleDLL wizard

The header attributes_table.h referenced in FlexsimContentHeaders.inf is missing. This causes the wizard to crash before it has copied/added all of the necessary content.
Incase anyone needs a workaround for now : copy over the rest of the "flexsimcontent" files and add them to the project manually after the wizard crashes.

Clair, as pointed out to me, you can try running suspenddraw(0) to show the 3D view and tree until a new version with the fix is available.

where is Downloads page? I do not find it.

Linweixu,

You can download FlexSim 7.0.0 through your FlexSim account:
http://www.flexsim.com/account/login/

where is Recorder object? 7.0 do not have Recorder object?

Originally Posted by Clair A

Linweixu,

You can download FlexSim 7.0.0 through your FlexSim account:
http://www.flexsim.com/account/login/

I mean " Downloads page "== Downloads page that gives functionality to download and install Modules, 3D Shapes, Images and Models.

Linweixu,

Thanks for your precision.

There used to be a shortcut in your toolbar to access online sample models, but I noticed that this link is broken in v7. Looks like applicationcommand("samplemodels") has no effect in v7.



In the menu Help, you have a shortcut to access online content, but there is currently only one module (the A* navigator, which is not yet fully functional on this beta version).



I think that the Recorder object has been removed from the library window because since version 6 it is much easier to display statistics in the dashboard.