Performing an Interactive Simulation
Interactive Simulations are the quickest and easiest way to perform a test of your model. See Interactive Simulation Palette and Container.
Running an Interactive Simulation
You use either the Simulation container on the Main Toolbox or the Simulation Controls dialog box to access the tools to run an interactive simulation. If you use the Simulation Controls dialog box, you have the additional options to set your simulation so that it runs until you stop and selecting to not display graphic.
Be sure to read Tips on Running an Interactive Simulation, before you run the simulation.
By default, the results of a simulation are only saved to the Modeling database, not to external Adams Solver analysis files. To save the results to external Adams Solver analysis files, set the simulation output before you run the simulation, as explained in Setting Simulation Controls. To export the results to analysis files, see Export - Adams Solver Analysis Files.
To run an interactive simulation:
. 2. If you want to display the complete set of tools on the Simulation Control palette, select the More 
button.
button.The Simulation Controls palette appears.
3. Set Simulation Type to the type of simulation you want Adams View to perform. Select Default to have Adams View determine the simulation type: Kinematic if your model contains zero degrees of freedom (DOF), and dynamic if your model has one or more DOF. For information checking the number of DOF in your model, see Verifying Your Model. Learn more about Types of Simulations.
4. Enter the time interval over which the simulation takes place and set how you want it defined. You can select:
♦End Time - Specify the absolute point in time at which you want the simulation to stop.
♦Duration - Specify the amount of time over which you want the simulation to run.
♦Forever - Adams View continues simulating until you stop the simulation or until it can no longer solve the equations of motion to within your specified tolerance. This option is only available on the Simulation Control dialog box.
5. Set the frequency with which Adams View outputs data during your simulation. You can specify:
♦Step Size, which represents the amount of time, in current model units, between output steps. The output frequency remains constant even if you change your simulation end time or duration. For example, enter a step size of 0.01 seconds to specify an output period of 0.01 seconds per step, which yields an output frequency of 100 steps/second.
♦Steps, which represents the total number of times you want Adams View to provide output information over your entire simulation. For example, specify 50 steps over a 1-second simulation interval to define an output period of 0.02 seconds per step, which yields an output frequency of 50 steps/second.
6. If you selected the More button to display the Simulation Controls palette, you can clear the selection of Update graphics display if you do not want the model updated. This saves simulation time, but you should only select it if you are sure that your simulation will run to completion without difficulty. See Solver Settings - Display.
7. Select the Simulation Start tool 
.
.Stopping an Interactive Simulation
To stop a Simulation:
■Select the Simulation Stop tool 
.
. Adams Solver stops any further processing, and the modeling objects appear in the positions that Adams Solver last successfully calculated.
Tips on Running an Interactive Simulation
The following are tips for running an Interactive Simulation.
■If you simulate your model once, then stop the simulation and select the Simulation Start tool again without selecting the Reset tool, the simulation picks up from where it left off and continues on.
If you want to pick up from where you left off, it is more convenient to set a simulation’s time interval using the Duration option instead of the End Time option. You can use Duration with any value because it adds an incremental time on to whatever was the end time of the last simulation. Using the End option, however, you must be careful to set the end time to a number greater than the end time of the earlier simulation.
■The model configuration that Adams View calculates at time 0.0 may be different from your initial design configuration. If Adams View finds any conflicts or inconsistencies in the way you built your model at your design configuration, it tries to reposition the problematic modeling objects at time 0.0 to remove the inconsistencies before the actual simulation begins.
For more information on how to detect conflicts or inconsistencies in your model, see Verifying Your Model.
■Give careful consideration to the output step size you specify. If you specify an output step size that is too large, you may not be able to visualize higher frequencies of response. If you specify an output step size that is too small, you could end up putting an artificial governor on Adams Solver, forcing it to use an internal solution step that is smaller than it really has to be. This, in turn, would increase the time it would take Adams View to perform the simulation.
The size of the output time step governs the highest frequency of response that you will be able to visualize for your simulation. A rough rule-of-thumb is to use at least 5 to 10 output steps per cycle of the response that you expect. To get a better estimate of the expected response, you might want to investigate the use of the optional Adams Linear product, which can calculate the natural frequencies and mode shapes for your model. For additional information, see the LINEAR command in the Adams Solver online help.