Global qualitative flow-path modeling for local state determination in simulation and analysis

Claim 2

A recording medium readable by a computer, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the computer to perfom method steps of modeling and analysis of flow configurations, said method step comprising: qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements for systems of connected components and their connections to an environment, constructing flow transmission path structures from said path elements, aggregating said flow transmission path structures into aggregate data structures that are circuits of sub-graphs, inputting local flow state change data into said path structures form models in simulations or analyses, evaluating effects of local flow changes from a simulation or analysis model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model in order to produce flow state information, and outputting the flow state information to local component models, and using the flow state information and the local component models in simulations and analyses.

Claim 3

The recording medium of claim 1 wherein the step of qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements includes providing a set of qualitative flow path elements for use in the steps of constructing flow transmission path structures, aggregating said flow transmission path structures into circuits of sub-graphs, and evaluating effects of local flow changes on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system.

Claim 4

The recording medium of claim 2 wherein the step of providing a set of qualitative flow path elements includes providing resistive types, effort-source types, and flow-source types for representing components and aggregates, and junctions for representing divergences and convergences of flow.

Claim 5

The recording medium of claim 2 wherein the step of providing a set of qualitative flow path elements includes providing an abstraction of flow transmission variables, including flow and effort variables, for elements of flow paths that includes combining flow and resistance into a qualitative-potential variable, and includes qualitative information on resistance indicating substantially finite and substantially infinite resistance, net flow indicating substantially zero and flow in first and second directions, permissible directions of flow, and effort-input.

Claim 6

The recording medium of claim 1 wherein the step of qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements includes providing flow-related variables and an internal flow map for each type of component model for simulations or analyses that inputs local flow state changes for said evaluation of global and local effects.

Claim 7

The recording medium of claim 5 wherein the step of providing flow-related variables and an internal flow map for each said type of component model includes providing "virtual" circuits that include a junction to the external model environment for storage device types.

Claim 8

The recording medium of claim 1 wherein the step of constructing flow transmission path structures includes the steps of: manually establishing the connections between component models, and automatically establishing the internal connections of path elements contained within the device model by reference to said flow map for that type of component model.

Claim 9

The recording method of claim 1 wherein the step of aggregating said flow transmission path structures into circuits of sub-graphs includes the steps of: clustering the serial and parallel structures of the flow transmission path structure into sub-graphs, including said clusters in circuit structures for sub-graphs of said path structure that cannot be clustered by strict reduction of serial and parallel paths, and using said sub-graphs as individual nodes in a circuit.

Claim 10

The recording medium of claim 8 wherein the step of including said clusters in circuit structures uses circuits that are any collection of system components defining a cyclic path such that no path element nodes are repeated in the path sequence.

Claim 11

The recording medium of claim 8 wherein the step of using said sub-graphs as individual nodes in a circuit includes using qualitative information on resistance indicating substantially finite and substantially infinite resistance, net flow indicating substantially zero and flow in first and second directions, permissible directions of flow, and effort-input, and also directional path information and cluster-circuit interface information.

Claim 12

The recording medium of claim 1 wherein the step of inputting local flow state change data into said path structures from models in simulations or analyses includes providing for each internal node in a component model in a simulation or analysis, a corresponding map node for the component type, to establish internal connections for said component that mirror the connections of the corresponding flow map nodes, and providing that any change in a flow-related device variable in the simulation or analysis triggers flow-path determination.

Claim 13

The recording medium of claim 1 wherein the step of evaluating effects of local flow changes from a simulation or analysis model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model includes the steps of: identifying components that may be affected, collecting for each affected node, flow-related attributes favoring flow in the two possible directions, and determining flow-related properties for each affected path element.

Claim 14

The recording medium of claim 12 wherein the step of evaluating effects of determining flow-related properties for each affected path element includes considering possibly conflicting flow tendencies and choosing the flow direction while resolving any ambiguities.

Claim 15

The recording medium of claim 13 wherein the step of resolving any ambiguities when comparing flow tendencies includes using information on permissible directions of flow, favoring flow sources over effort sources, distinguishing qualitative values of significant magnitude from those of relatively insignificant magnitude, or else asking the user.

Claim 16

The recording medium of claim 1 wherein the step of outputting flow state information to local component models in simulations or analyses includes linking to associated local flow states of components of the simulation or analysis that triggered the determination method.

Claim 17

A computer program product for controlling a computer to model and analyze flow configurations, the program product comprising: a recording medium readable by the computer, means recorded on the recording medium for qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements for systems of connected components and their connections to an environment, means recorded on the recording medium for constructing flow transmission path structures from said path elements, means recorded on the recording medium for aggregating said flow transmission path structures into aggregate data structures that are circuits of sub-graphs, means recorded on the recording medium for inputting local flow state change data into said path structures from models in simulations or analyses, means recorded on the recording medium for evaluating effects of local flow changes from a simulation or analysis model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model in order to produce flow state information, and means recorded on the recording medium for outputting flow state information from the means for evaluating to local component models, and for using the flow state information and local component models in simulations and analyses.

Claim 18

A computer program product for controlling a computer to model and analyze flow configurations, the program product comprising: a recording medium readable by the computer, means recorded on the recording medium for qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements for systems of connected components and their connections to an environment, means recorded on the recording medium for constructing flow transmission path structures from said path elements, means recorded on the recording medium for aggregating said flow transmission path structures into aggregate data structures that are circuits of sub-graphs, means recorded on the recording medium for inputting local flow state change data into said path structures from models in simulations or analyses, means recorded on the recording medium for evaluating effects of local flow changes from a simulation or analysis model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model in order to produce flow state information, and means recorded on the recording medium for outputting flow state information from the means for evaluating to local component models, and for using the flow state information and local component models in simulations and analyses.

Claim 19

The computer program product of claim 16 wherein the means for qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements includes means for providing a set of qualitative flow path elements for use in construction of flow transmission path structures, aggregation of said flow transmission path structures into circuits of sub-graphs, and evaluation of effects of local flow changes on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system.

Claim 20

The computer program product of claim 17 wherein the means for providing a set of qualitative flow path elements includes means for providing resistive types, effort-source types, and flow-source types for representing components and aggregates, and junctions for representing divergences and convergences of flow.

Claim 21

The computer program product of claim 17 wherein the means for providing a set of qualitative flow path elements includes means for providing an abstraction of flow transmission variables, including flow and effort variables, for elements of flow paths that includes combining flow and resistance into a qualitative-potential variable, and includes qualitative information on resistance indicating substantially finite and substantially infinite resistance, net flow indicating substantially zero and flow in first and second directions, permissible directions of flow, and effort-input.

Claim 22

The computer program product of claim 16 wherein the means for qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements includes means for providing flow-related variables and an internal flow map for each type of component model for simulations or analyses that inputs local flow state changes for said evaluation of global and local effects.

Claim 23

The computer program product of claim 20 wherein the means for providing flow-related variables and an internal flow map for each said type of component model includes means for providing "virtual" circuits that include a junction to the external model environment for storage device types.

Claim 24

The computer program product of claim 16 wherein the means for constructing flow transmission path structures is comprised of: means for manually establishing the connections between component models, and means for automatically establishing the internal connections of path elements contained within the device model by reference to said flow map for that type of component model.

Claim 25

The computer program product of claim 16 wherein the means for aggregating said flow transmission path structures into circuits of sub-graphs is comprised of: means for clustering the serial and parallel structures of the flow transmission path structure into sub-graphs, means for including said clusters in circuit structures for sub-graphs of said path structure that cannot be clustered by strict reduction of serial and parallel paths, and means for using said sub-graphs as individual nodes in a circuit.

Claim 26

The computer program product of claim 23 wherein the means for including said clusters in circuit structures uses circuits that are any collection of system components defining a cyclic path such that no path element nodes are repeated in the path sequence.

Claim 27

The computer program product of claim 23 wherein the means for using said sub-graphs as individual nodes in a circuit includes means for using the same types of qualitative information as path elements, and also directional path information and cluster-circuit interface information.

Claim 28

The computer program product of claim 16 wherein the means for inputting local flow state change data into said path structures from models in simulations or analyses is comprised of: means for providing for each internal node in a component model in a simulation or analysis, a corresponding map node for the component type, to establish internal connections for said component that mirror the connections of the corresponding flow map nodes, and means for providing that any change in a flow-related device variable in the simulation or analysis triggers flow-path determination.

Claim 29

The computer program product of claim 16 wherein the means for evaluating effects of local flow changes from a simulation or analysis model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model is comprised of: means for identifying components that may be affected, means for collecting for each affected node, flow-related attributes favoring flow in the two possible directions, and means for determining flow-related properties for each affected path element.

Claim 30

The computer program product of claim 27 wherein the means for evaluating effects of determining flow-related properties for each affected path element includes means for considering possibly conflicting flow tendencies and choosing the flow direction while resolving any ambiguities.

Claim 31

The computer program product of claim 28 wherein the means for resolving any ambiguities when comparing flow tendencies includes means for using information on permissible directions of flow, favoring flow sources over effort sources, distinguishing qualitative values of significant magnitude from those of relatively insignificant magnitude, or else asking the user.

Claim 32

The computer program product of claim 16 wherein the means for outputting flow state information to local component models in simulations or analyses includes means for linking to associated local flow states of components of the simulation or analysis that triggered the determination method.

Claim 33

A recording medium readable by a computer, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the computer to perform method steps of modeling and analysis of flow configurations in discrete event simulation, said method steps comprising: qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements for systems of connected components and their connections to an environment, constructing flow transmission path structures from said path elements, aggregating said flow transmission path structures into aggregate data structures that are circuits of sub-graphs, inputting local flow state change data into said path structures from models in discrete event simulations, evaluating effects of local flow changes from a simulation or analysis model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model in order to produce flow state information, and outputting the flow state information to local component models, and using the flow state information and the local component models in discrete event simulations.

Claim 34

A recording medium readable by a computer, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the computer to perform method steps of modeling and analysis of flow configurations in discrete event simulation, said method steps comprising: qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements for systems of connected components and their connections to an environment, constructing flow transmission path structures from said path elements, aggregating said flow transmission path structures into aggregate data structures that are circuits of sub-graphs, inputting local flow state change data into said path structures from models in discrete event simulations, evaluating effects of local flow changes from a simulation or analysis model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model in order to produce flow state information, and outputting the flow state information to local component models, and using the flow state information and the local component models in discrete event simulations.

Claim 35

The recording medium of claim 31 wherein the step of qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements includes providing a set of qualitative flow path elements for use in the steps of constructing flow transmission path structures, aggregating said flow transmission path structures into circuits of sub-graphs, and evaluating effects of local flow changes on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system.

Claim 36

The recording medium of claim 32 wherein the step of providing a set of qualitative flow path elements includes providing resistive types, effort-source types, and flow-source types for representing components and aggregates, and junctions for representing divergences and convergences of flow.

Claim 37

The recording medium of claim 32 wherein the step of providing a set of qualitative flow path elements includes providing an abstraction of flow transmission variables, including flow and effort variables, for elements of flow paths that includes combining flow and resistance into a qualitative-potential variable, and includes qualitative information on resistance indicating substantially finite and substantially infinite resistance, net flow indicating substantially zero and flow in first and second directions, permissible directions of flow, and effort-input.

Claim 38

The recording medium of claim 31 wherein the step of qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements includes providing flow-related variables and an internal flow map for each type of component model for discrete event simulations that inputs local flow state changes for said evaluation of global and local effects.

Claim 39

The recording medium of claim 35 wherein the step of providing flow-related variables and an internal flow map for each said type of component model includes providing "virtual" circuits that include a junction to the external model environment for storage device types.

Claim 40

The recording medium of claim 31 wherein the step of constructing flow transmission path structures includes the steps of: manually establishing the connections between component models, and automatically establishing the internal connections of path elements contained within the component model by reference to said flow map for that type of component model.

Claim 41

The recording medium of claim 31 wherein the step of aggregating said flow transmission path structures into circuits of sub-graphs includes the steps of: clustering the serial and parallel structures of the flow transmission path structure into sub-graphs, including said clusters in circuit structures for sub-graphs of said path structure that cannot be clustered by strict reduction of serial and parallel paths, and using said sub-graphs as individual nodes in a circuit.

Claim 42

The recording medium of claim 38 wherein the step of including said clusters in circuit structures uses circuits that are any collection of system components defining a cyclic path such that no path element nodes are repeated in the path sequence.

Claim 43

The recording medium of claim 38 wherein the step of using said sub-graphs as individual nodes in a circuit includes using qualitative information on resistance indicating substantially finite and substantially infinite resistance, net flow indicating substantially zero and flow in first and second directions, permissible directions of flow, and effort-input, and also directional path information and cluster-circuit interface information.

Claim 44

The recording medium of claim 31 wherein the step of inputting local flow state change data into said path structures from models in discrete event simulations includes providing for each internal node in a component model in a discrete event simulation, a corresponding map node for the component type, to establish internal connections for said component that mirror the connections of the corresponding flow map nodes, and providing that any change in a flow-related device variable in the discrete event simulation triggers flow-path determination.

Claim 45

The recording medium of claim 31 wherein the step of evaluating effects of local flow changes from a discrete event simulation model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model includes the steps of: identifying components that may be affected, collecting for each affected node, flow-related attributes favoring flow in the two possible directions, and determining flow-related properties for each affected path element.

Claim 46

The recording medium of claim 40 wherein the step of evaluating effects of determining flow-related properties for each affected path element includes considering possibly conflicting flow tendencies and choosing the flow direction while resolving any ambiguities.

Claim 47

The recording medium of claim 43 wherein the step of resolving any ambiguities when comparing flow tendencies includes using information on permissible directions of flow, favoring flow sources over effort sources, distinguishing qualitative values of significant magnitude from those of relatively insignificant magnitude, or else asking the user.

Claim 48

The recording medium of claim 31 wherein the step of outputting flow state information to local component models in discrete event simulations includes linking to associated local flow states of components of the simulation that triggered the determination method.

Claim 49

A computer program product for controlling a computer to model and analyze flow configurations in discrete event simulation, the program product comprising: a recording medium readable by the computer, means recorded on the recording medium for qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements for systems of connected components and their connections to an environment, means recorded on the recording medium for constructing flow transmission path structures from said path elements, means recorded on the recording medium for aggregating said flow transmission path structures into aggregate data structures that are circuits of sub-graphs, means recorded on the recording medium for inputting local flow state change data into said path structures from models in discrete event simulations, means recorded on the recording medium for evaluating effects of local flow changes from a discrete event simulation model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model in order to produce flow state information, and means recorded on the recording medium for outputting the flow state information to local component models, and for using the flow state information and the local component models in discrete event simulations.

Claim 50

A computer program product for controlling a computer to model and analyze flow configurations in discrete event simulation, the program product comprising: a recording medium readable by the computer, means recorded on the recording medium for qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements for systems of connected components and their connections to an environment, means recorded on the recording medium for constructing flow transmission path structures from said path elements, means recorded on the recording medium for aggregating said flow transmission path structures into aggregate data structures that are circuits of sub-graphs, means recorded on the recording medium for inputting local flow state change data into said path structures from models in discrete event simulations, means recorded on the recording medium for evaluating effects of local flow changes from a discrete event simulation model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model in order to produce flow state information, and means recorded on the recording medium for outputting the flow state information to local component models, and for using the flow state information and the local component models in discrete event simulations.

Claim 51

The computer program product of claim 46 wherein the means for qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements includes means for providing a set of qualitative flow path elements for use in construction of flow transmission path structures, aggregation of said flow transmission path structures into circuits of sub-graphs, and evaluation of effects of local flow changes on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system.

Claim 52

The computer program product of claim 47 wherein the means for providing a set of qualitative flow path elements includes means for providing resistive types, effort-source types, and flow-source types for representing components and aggregates, and junctions for representing divergences and convergences of flow.

Claim 53

The computer program product of claim 47 wherein the means for providing a set of qualitative flow path elements includes means for providing an abstraction of flow transmission variables, including flow and effort variables, for elements of flow paths that includes combining flow and resistance into a qualitative-potential variable, and includes qualitative information on resistance indicating substantially finite and substantially infinite resistance, net flow indicating substantially zero and flow in first and second directions, permissible directions of flow, and effort-input.

Claim 54

The computer program product of claim 46 wherein the means for qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements includes means for providing flow-related variables and an internal flow map for each type of component model for discrete event simulations that input local flow state changes for said evaluation of global and local effects.

Claim 55

The computer program product of claim 50 wherein the means for providing flow-related variables and an internal flow map for each said type of component model includes means for providing "virtual" circuits that include a junction to the external model environment for storage device types.

Claim 56

The computer program product of claim 46 wherein the means for constructing flow transmission path structures is comprised of: means for manually establishing the connections between component models, and means for automatically establishing the internal connections of path elements contained within the component model by reference to said flow map for that type of component model.

Claim 57

The computer program product of claim 46 wherein the means for aggregating said flow transmission path structures into circuits of sub-graphs is comprised of: means for clustering the serial and parallel structures of the flow transmission path structure into sub-graphs, means for including said clusters in circuit structures for sub-graphs of said path structure that cannot be clustered by strict reduction of serial and parallel paths, and means for using said sub-graphs as individual nodes in a circuit.

Claim 58

The computer program product of claim 53 wherein the means for including said clusters in circuit structures uses circuits that are any collection of system components defining a cyclic path such that no path element nodes are repeated in the path sequence.

Claim 59

The computer program product of claim 53 wherein the means for using said sub-graphs as individual nodes in a circuit includes means for using the same types of qualitative information as path elements, and also directional path information and cluster-circuit interface information.

Claim 60

The computer program product of claim 46 wherein the means for inputting local flow state change data into said path structures from models in discrete event simulations is comprised of: means for providing for each internal node in a component model in a discrete event simulation, a corresponding map node for the component type, to establish internal connections for said component that mirror the connections of the corresponding flow map nodes, and means for providing that any change in a flow-related device variable in said discrete event simulation triggers flow-path determination.

Claim 61

The computer program product of claim 46 wherein the means for evaluating effects of local flow changes from a discrete event simulation model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model is comprised of: means for identifying components that may be affected, means for collecting for each affected node, flow-related attributes favoring flow in the two possible directions, and means for determining flow-related properties for each affected path element.

Claim 62

The computer program product of claim 57 wherein the means for evaluating effects of determining flow-related properties for each affected path element includes means for considering possibly conflicting flow tendencies and choosing the flow direction while resolving any ambiguities.

Claim 63

The computer program product of claim 58 wherein the means for resolving any ambiguities when comparing flow tendencies includes means for using information on permissible directions of flow, favoring flow sources over effort sources, distinguishing qualitative values of significant magnitude from those of relatively insignificant magnitude, or else asking the user.

Claim 64

The computer program product of claim 46 wherein the means for outputting flow state information to local component models in discrete event simulations includes means for linking to associated local flow states of components of the simulation or analysis that triggered the determination method.

Claim 65

A recording medium readable by a computer, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the computer to perform method steps of modeling and analysis of flow configurations in a discrete event simulation, said method steps comprising: qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements for systems of connected components and their connections to an environment, constructing flow transmission path structures from said path elements, aggregating said flow transmission path structures into aggregate data structures that are circuits of sub-graphs, inputting local flow state change data into said path structures from models in discrete event simulations, evaluating effects of local flow changes from a simulation model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model in order to produce flow state information, and outputting the flow state information to local component models, and using the flow state information and the local component models in the discrete event simulation, wherein the step of evaluating effects of local flow changes from a discrete event simulation model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model includes the steps of: identifying components that my be affected, collecting for each affected node, flow-related attributes favoring flow in the two possible directions, and determining flow-related properties for each affected path component, and wherein the step of collecting for each affected node, flow-related attributes favoring flow in the two possible directions, is completed for all of the components identified by the step of identifying components that may be affected, prior to the step of determining flow-related properties for each affected path element, in order to delay the step of determining flow-related properties for each affected path element until the end of a discrete-event time quantum for said discrete event simulations.

Claim 66

A recording medium readable by a computer, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the computer to perform method steps of modeling and analysis of flow configurations in a discrete event simulation, said method steps comprising: qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements for systems of connected components and their connections to an environment, constructing flow transmission path structures from said path elements, aggregating said flow transmission path structures into aggregate data structures that are circuits of sub-graphs, inputting local flow state change data into said path structures from models in discrete event simulations, evaluating effects of local flow changes from a simulation model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model in order to produce flow state information, and outputting the flow state information to local component models, and using the flow state information and the local component models in the discrete event simulation, wherein the step of evaluating effects of local flow changes from a discrete event simulation model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model includes the steps of: identifying components that my be affected, collecting for each affected node, flow-related attributes favoring flow in the two possible directions, and determining flow-related properties for each affected path component, and wherein the step of collecting for each affected node, flow-related attributes favoring flow in the two possible directions, is completed for all of the components identified by the step of identifying components that may be affected, prior to the step of determining flow-related properties for each affected path element, in order to delay the step of determining flow-related properties for each affected path element until the end of a discrete-event time quantum for said discrete event simulations.

Claim 67

The recording medium of claim 61, wherein the step of determining flow-related properties for each affected path element includes considering possibly conflicting flow tendencies and choosing the flow direction while resolving any ambiguities by using information on permissible directions of flow, favoring flow sources over effort sources, distinguishing qualitative values of significant magnitude from those of relatively insignificant magnitude, or else asking the user.

Claim 68

The recording medium of claim 61, wherein the step of qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements includes providing a set of qualitative flow path elements for use in the steps of constructing flow transmission path structures, aggregating said flow transmission path structures into circuits of sub-graphs, and evaluating effects of local flow changes on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system, and wherein the step of providing a set of qualitative flow path elements includes providing an abstraction of flow transmission variables, including flow and effort variables, for elements of flow paths that includes combining flow and resistance into a qualitative-potential variable, and includes qualitative information on resistance indicating substantially finite and substantially infinite resistance, net flow indicating substantially zero and flow in first and second directions, permissible directions of flow, and effort-input.

Claim 69

The recording medium of claim 61, wherein the step of qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements includes providing flow-related variables and an internal flow map for each type of component model for simulations or analyses that inputs local flow state changes for said evaluation of global and local effects, and wherein the providing of flow-related variables and an internal flow map for each said type of component model includes providing "virtual" circuits that include a junction to the external model environment for storage device types.

Claim 70

The recording medium of claim 61 wherein the step of aggregating said flow transmission path structures into circuits of sub-graphs includes the steps of: clustering the serial and parallel structures of the flow transmission path structure into sub-graphs, including said clusters in circuit structures for sub-graphs of said path structure that cannot be clustered by strict reduction of serial and parallel paths, and using said sub-graphs as individual nodes in a circuit.

Claim 71

The recording medium of claim 65 wherein the step of including said clusters in circuit structures uses circuits that are any collection of system components defining a cyclic path such that no path element nodes are repeated in the path sequence.

Claim 72

A recording medium readable by a computer, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the computer to perform method steps of modeling and analysis of flow configurations in discrete event simulation, said program of instructions comprising: a program executable by the computer for building models in the computer of physical components and a model of a physical system comprised of selected ones of the physical components; a program executable by the computer for performing a discrete event simulation of said physical system using said models of the physical system and the selected ones of the physical components in the physical system; and a flow path management program executable by the computer for: qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements for the physical system and connections to and environment of the physical system, constructing flow transmission path structures from said path elements, aggregating said flow transmission path structures into aggregate data structures that are circuits of sub-graphs, inputting local flow state change data into said path structures from said models during a discrete event simulation by execution of said simulation program, evaluating effects of local flow changes from said models on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model in order to produce flow state information, and outputting the flow state information to local component models, wherein the simulation program is executable by the computer for using the flow state information and the local component models in the discrete event simulation, wherein the flow management program is executable by the computer for evaluating effects of local flow changes from a discrete event simulation model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model by: identifying components that may be affected, collecting for each affected node, flow-related attributes favoring flow in the two possible directions, and determining flow-related properties for each affected path element, and wherein the collecting for each affected node, flow-related attributes favoring flow in the two possible directions, is completed for all of the components identified by the stop of identifying components that may be affected, prior to the determining of flow-related properties for each affected path element, in order to delay the determining of flow-related properties for each affected path element until the end of a discrete-event time quantum for said discrete event simulation.

Claim 73

A recording medium readable by a computer, tangibly embodying a program of instructions executable by the computer to perform method steps of modeling and analysis of flow configurations in discrete event simulation, said program of instructions comprising: a program executable by the computer for building models in the computer of physical components and a model of a physical system comprised of selected ones of the physical components; a program executable by the computer for performing a discrete event simulation of said physical system using said models of the physical system and the selected ones of the physical components in the physical system; and a flow path management program executable by the computer for: qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements for the physical system and connections to and environment of the physical system, constructing flow transmission path structures from said path elements, aggregating said flow transmission path structures into aggregate data structures that are circuits of sub-graphs, inputting local flow state change data into said path structures from said models during a discrete event simulation by execution of said simulation program, evaluating effects of local flow changes from said models on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model in order to produce flow state information, and outputting the flow state information to local component models, wherein the simulation program is executable by the computer for using the flow state information and the local component models in the discrete event simulation, wherein the flow management program is executable by the computer for evaluating effects of local flow changes from a discrete event simulation model on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system model by: identifying components that may be affected, collecting for each affected node, flow-related attributes favoring flow in the two possible directions, and determining flow-related properties for each affected path element, and wherein the collecting for each affected node, flow-related attributes favoring flow in the two possible directions, is completed for all of the components identified by the stop of identifying components that may be affected, prior to the determining of flow-related properties for each affected path element, in order to delay the determining of flow-related properties for each affected path element until the end of a discrete-event time quantum for said discrete event simulation.

Claim 74

The recording medium of claim 67, wherein the flow path management program is executable by the computer for evaluating effects of determining flow-related properties for each affected path element by considering possibly conflicting flow tendencies and choosing the flow direction while resolving any ambiguities, and resolving any ambiguities when comparing flow tendencies by using information on permissible directions of flow, favoring flow sources over effort sources, distinguishing qualitative values of significant magnitude from those of relatively insignificant magnitude, or else asking the user.

Claim 75

The recording medium as recited in claim 67, wherein the flow path management program is executable by the computer for qualitatively modeling flow transmission path elements by constructing flow transmission path structures, aggregating said flow transmission path structures into circuits of sub-graphs, and evaluating effects of local flow changes on the global flow transmission path configuration and the local flow states of components of the system, and wherein the qualitative modeling of flow transmission path elements includes using an abstraction of flow transmission variables, including flow and effort variables, for elements of flow paths that includes combining flow and resistance into a qualitative-potential variable, and includes qualitative information on resistance indicating substantially finite and substantially infinite resistance, net flow indicating substantially zero and flow in first and second directions, permissible directions of flow, and effort-input.

Claim 76

The recording medium of claim 67, wherein the flow path management program is executable by the computer for accessing models of flow transmission path elements including flow-related variables and an internal flow map for each type of component model for discrete event simulation that inputs local flow state changes for said evaluation of global and local effects, and wherein the flow-related variables and an internal flow map for each said type of component model includes flow-related variables and an internal flow map for "virtual" circuits that include a junction to the external model environment for storage device types.

Claim 77

The recording medium of claim 69 wherein the flow path management program is executable by the computer for aggregating said flow transmission path structures into circuits of sub-graphs by: clustering the serial and parallel structures of the flow transmission path structure into sub-graphs, including said clusters in circuit structures for sub-graphs of said path structure that cannot be clustered by strict reduction of serial and parallel paths, and using said sub-graphs as individual nodes in a circuit.

Claim 78

The recording medium of claim 71 wherein the clusters in circuit structures use circuits that are any collection of system components defining a cyclic path such that no path element nodes are repeated in the path sequence.