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Glossary

This glossary defines key terms used in Sim4Sys-Virtual Bench documentation.

C​

Context
A visual perspective or view within a scenario. Virtual Bench supports four main context types:

  • Scene2D: A top-down 2D view of the ground/environment
  • Scene3D: A three-dimensional perspective based on Scene2D
  • HMI (Human-Machine Interface): Displays HMI components and controls
  • Timeline: Shows a chronological sequence of actions

Contributor
A user role in a Virtual Bench project. Contributors can create new scenarios and edit existing ones, but cannot change member roles or delete projects.

E​

Element
A visual component or object that can be added to contexts in Virtual Bench. Elements include vehicles, sensors, HMI controls, timeline actions, and other visualization objects.

Executable
A compiled program (typically a .exe file on Windows) generated from Sim4Sys-Designer models. Executables are uploaded to Virtual Bench projects and connected via WebSocket to control visualization behavior.

G​

Guest
A user role in a Virtual Bench project. Guests can only view and play scenarios but cannot edit them or create new scenarios.

M​

Mapping
A connection between model elements (flows, types) and Virtual Bench elements. There are several mapping types:

  • Model-to-Simu: Maps data from the model to visualization elements
  • Simu-to-Model: Maps data from visualization elements back to the model
  • Simu-to-Simu: Maps data between visualization elements
  • Model-to-Model: Maps data between different parts of the model

Model Part
An instance of a model component (service, function) used in a Virtual Bench scenario. Model parts represent the executable's behavior in the visualization.

O​

Owner
A user role in a Virtual Bench project. Owners have full control: they can change member roles, edit and delete scenarios, and manage all project settings.

P​

Project
A container in Virtual Bench that organizes scenarios, executables, and related resources. Projects have access control (Owner, Contributor, Guest) and can be public or private.

Q​

Queued Effect
A mapping behavior that creates a queue of flows and applies their effects one by one with time delays between each. Useful when many flows arrive quickly and you need to see the order of effects.

S​

Scenario
A specific test case or visualization setup within a Virtual Bench project. Scenarios contain contexts, elements, mappings, and configuration settings. Scenarios can be played to visualize system behavior.

Sampling Time
The interval between consecutive visualization updates, typically 0.04 seconds (40ms) by default. This determines how frequently the visualization refreshes.

Speed Factor
A parameter that controls the visualization speed. A value of 1 means real-time speed, less than 1 is slower, and greater than 1 is faster.

T​

Test Criteria
Conditions and constraints defined to validate that visualization results meet expected outcomes. Test criteria are evaluated during scenario execution.

V​

Visualization
The process of observing and interacting with system behavior in Virtual Bench. Visualizations show how models behave under various conditions and scenarios.

W​

WebSocket
A communication protocol used to connect executables (running locally or remotely) to Virtual Bench. WebSocket connections enable real-time bidirectional communication between the executable and the visualization.