AnyLogic

AnyLogic  is the software for simulation modeling of complex systems and processes developed by the Russian company "Ex-Jay Teknolodzhis". The program has a graphical environment of the user and allows to use the Java language for development^[1].

AnyLogic is the instrument of simulation modeling with which more than 15000 users in 60 countries of the world work. The software product is intended for design and business process optimization or any complex systems, such as production workshop, airport, hospital, etc. The tool supports all methods of business simulation – a systems dynamics, discrete and event (process) and agentny modeling. The main emphasis in product development is put on its flexibility and ease of use for inexperienced models of users in creation. Among users there are large international companies, government institutions, the international alliances: NATO, NASA, Boeing, HP, IBM, General Motors, HSBS, PWC, Accenture, Jonson&Jonson.

2014: AnyLogic 7

On March 4, 2014 the AnyLogic company announced a release of the new version of the instrument of simulation modeling of AnyLogic 7.

AnyLogic 7 is the most considerable updating of the program within 6 years. According to developers, this release - a big step forward in development of a product. The result was expressed in considerable simplification and acceleration of a program runtime, expansion of its functionality.

Description

In the new version of the program developers improved support of multiapproach modeling – the main competitive advantage of a product. Process of creation of multiapproach models is simplified due to consolidation of concepts from different methods of modeling. Creation of agentny models – instead of writing of Java code in many cases enough use of specially created assistants is simplified now.

One of the most important improvements of AnyLogic 7 - new library for discrete and event modeling which expands possibilities of simulation of transactions on production (support of pull-model of work with a flow of requests together with push-model). By means of use of new library it is much simpler to describe the business processes requiring complex resource management (for example, personnel management in hospitals).

The pedestrian library intended for modeling of pedestrian flows in public places and on objects of transport underwent upgrade - the possibility of creation of models with a large number of pedestrians without performance penalty appeared. It is more convenient to make work with transport networks and pedestrian zones the new palette of elements of a marking of space helps with the program. All objects interact in uniform 3D - space.

Especially for convenience of users the program interface is processed. Controls are located according to typical logic of behavior of the person and now, for accomplishment of often repeating actions it is necessary to do less manipulations with "mouse".

The compatibility is saved: all models created in AnyLogic 6 are supported in AnyLogic 7.

Trial version of AnyLogic 7 is available to loading on a developer's site.

2009-2010

AnyLogic 6.6

In the version of AnyLogic 6.6 one of basic approaches in modeling – a systems dynamics is in a new way implemented. Among other innovations of the version developers select export of models for the Runthemodel.com portal, new library for traffic simulation, integration into the ExpertFit program for automatic selection of distributions of probabilities of initial data.

Developers consider a perspective innovation start of service for the publication of the Runthemodel.com models. 15,000 users of AnyLogic can use a resource for demonstration of the works to clients, partners and fans of simulation modeling. The model posted on the website can be made available to all or to hide, provide limited access. For search of the most successful works the system of estimates and tags works. "In future Runthemodel should become the platform for exchange of experience and search of competent developers of models", consider in "Ex-Jay Teknolodzhis". Now service works in the test mode.

The version of AnyLogic 6.6 offers full support of a "classical" method of creation of models of a systems dynamics. Users of AnyLogic had an opportunity to literally draw fishbone diagrams between variables of the studied system, and then to enter the formulas which are in details describing behavior of elements of a system. The program automatically checks compliance of formulas to the set graphic structure. Such method of modeling is usual to admirers of a systems dynamics who make considerable community among simulation modeling specialists. Meanwhile, developers saved a possibility of creation of system dynamic models by method of automatic building of dependences, traditional for AnyLogic, at determination of properties of variables.

Besides, the library for modeling of motor transportation flows on roads and trunks of big cities is added to the new version. Users of the educational license AnyLogic got access to railway library for modeling of stations and train service. In addition to already existing 2 language versions (English, Russian) the interface of the program is translated into the Chinese and German languages. AnyLogic 6.6 is integrated with the program for selection of distributions of ExpertFit developed by Averill M. Lowe (Averill M. Law), author of the classical work "Simulation modeling" ("Simulation Modeling and Analysis").

AnyLogic 6.5.1

AnyLogic 6.5.1 suggests users to create 3D animation of models, contains the new Schedule element for convenient modeling of the repeating events, uses possibilities of multi-core processors.

Key innovations of the version concern presentation opportunities of the tool. In AnyLogic 6.5.1 support of 3D animation of models of "pedestrian", "railway" and basic library 'Enterprise Library' is implemented. 2D animation of the models developed in the previous versions can be converted into 3D for several clicks. The new version gives the chance of creation of reporting documentation on model and includes the new components simplifying export of data from Excel on Windows, MacOS, Linux. According to specialists of the company, these changes should help users with demonstration of results of work of model to the management or the final customer.

Following the concept of simplification of modeling, developers improved the module of railway library AnyLogic. Now the library offers the simple interface for a task of logic of work of the railway systems, and the 3D palette of graphics includes three-dimensional images of railway objects.

Besides the new functionality Schedule allowing to model conveniently intensity of the movement of objects, working shifts, operating hours was added. If the schedule is tied to the calendar, AnyLogic automatically performs transition to daylight/winter saving time and also considers exceptions, for example, holidays.

Among innovations the developer company selects capability of the tool to execute different runs of model on different cores of the processor. This solution allows to make experiments with model 3-4 times faster. Also version 6.5.1 is added with a set of the training models and examples of already ready models: "railway station", "restaurant business", "Call center".

AnyLogic 6.4.1

On August 14, 2009 the version of the AnyLogic 6.4.1 program was released. AnyLogic 6 is written in a programming language Java in the popular Eclipse development environment. Anylogic 6 is a cross-platform software, works both under management operating system Windows, and under Mac OS and Linux.

1990-1998

In the early nineties in computer science great interest to creation mathematically of the treated description of interaction of concurrent processes was observed. What affected approaches to the analysis of correctness of the parallel and distributed programs. The group of scientists of the St. Petersburg polytechnical university developed the software for the analysis of correctness of a system; the new tool was called by COVERS (Parallel Verification and Modelling) ^[2]. The analyzed system of processes was set graphically, using the description of its structure and behavior of separate parallel components which could interact with an environment  — with other processes and Wednesday. The tool was used in research projects of Hewlett-Packard company.

In 1998 success of this research inspired laboratory to organize business company with a mission of creation of the new software for simulation modeling. The accent when developing was put on applied methods: modeling of the stochastic systems, optimization and visualization of model. The new software released in  2000 was based on the last advantages of information technologies: object-oriented approach, elements of the UML standard, Java programming language, modern GUI  , etc.^[3]

The product received the name AnyLogic because it supported all three known methods ^[4]:

• systems dynamics;
• discrete and event modeling|discrete and event (process) modeling;
• agentny modeling.

And also any combination of these approaches within one model. Index 4  — Anylogic 4.0 as numbering continued the version history of the previous development  — COVERS 3.0 was appropriated to the first version.

The huge step forward was taken in 2003 when AnyLogic 5 focused on business simulation was released. Using AnyLogic became possible to develop models in the following ^[5]:

• production;
• logistics^[6] and chains postavokd^[7];
• market and competition;
• business processes and services industry;
• health care and pharmaceutics;
• asset management and projects;
• telecommunications and information systems;
• social and ecological systems;
• pedestrian dynamics;
• defense.

AnyLogic & Java

AnyLogic includes a graphics language of modeling and also allows the user to expand the created models using the Java language. Integration of the compiler Java into AnyLogic gives ampler opportunities during creation of models and also creation of Java of applets which can be opened by any browser. These applets allow to post the AnyLogic models on websites easily. In addition to Java to applets, AnyLogic Professional supports creation of Java of applications, in this case the user can start model without AnyLogic installation.

Methods of simulation modeling

AnyLogic can be founded on any of the main paradigms of simulation modeling: discrete and event modeling, systems dynamics, and agentny modeling.

The systems dynamics and discrete and event (process) modeling as which we understand any development of the ideas of GPSS  is the traditional settled approaches, agentny modeling  — rather new. The systems dynamics operates generally with continuous processes in time whereas discrete and event and agentny modeling  — with discrete.

The systems dynamics and discrete and event modeling are historically taught absolutely different groups of students: management, industrial engineers and development engineers of management systems. Resulted three different almost not crossed communities which almost do not communicate with each other in any way.

Agentny modeling was strictly academic direction until recently. However, the growing demand for global optimization from business, forced the leading analysts to pay attention to agentny modeling and its consolidation with traditional approaches for the purpose of obtaining broader picture of interaction of difficult processes of the different nature. So demand for the software platforms allowing to integrate different approaches was born.

Now we will consider approaches of simulation modeling on an abstraction layer scale. A systems dynamics, replacing individual objects with their units, assumes the highest abstraction layer. Discrete and event modeling works in the low and average range. As for agentny modeling, it can be applied practically at any level and in any scales. Agents can represent pedestrians, cars or robots in physical space, the client or the seller at the average level, or the competing companies on high.

When developing models in AnyLogic it is possible to use concepts and means from several methods of modeling, for example, in agentny model to use methods of a systems dynamics for representation of state changes of the environment or in continuous model of a dynamic system to consider discrete events. For example, supply chain management by means of simulation modeling requires the description of participants of a supply chain agents: producers, sellers, consumers, network of warehouses. At the same time production is described within discrete and event (process) modeling where a product or its parts  are requests, and cars, trains, pilers  — resources. Deliveries are represented by discrete events, but at the same time the goods demand can be described by the continuous system and dynamic chart. An opportunity to mix approaches allows to describe processes of real life, but not to adjust process to an available mathematical apparatus.

Modeling environment

the environment of modeling AnyLogic includes the following^[8]:

• Stock & Flow Diagrams (the chart of flows and drives) is applied when developing models, using a method of a systems dynamics.
• Statecharts (card of statuses) is generally used in agentny models for determination of behavior of agents. But also it is often used in discrete and event modeling, for example for simulation of machine failures.
• Action charts (flowchart) it is used for creation of algorithms. It is applied in discrete and event modeling (routing of calls) and agentny modeling (to logic of solutions of the agent).
• Process flowcharts (process charts) the main construction used for determination of processes in discrete and event modeling.

The modeling environment also includes: low-level constructions of modeling (variables, equations, parameters, events and t.p), representation forms (lines, squares, ovals and t.p), analysis elements (databases, histograms, diagrams), standard pictures and forms of experiments.

The environment of modeling AnyLogic supports design, development, documentation of model, accomplishment of computer experiments with model, including different types of the analysis  — from sensitivity analysis before optimization of model parameters of rather some criterion.

AnyLogic libraries

AnyLogic includes a set of the following standard libraries:

• Enterprise Library is developed for support of discrete and event modeling in such areas as Production, Supply chains, Logistics and Health care. Using Enterprise Library, you can simulate the systems of the real world in terms of requests (engl. entity) (transactions, clients, products, vehicles  , etc.), processes (the sequence of transactions, queues, delays), and resources. Processes are defined in the form of the block chart.
• Pedestrian Library is created for modeling of pedestrian flows in the "physical" environment. It allows you to create models with a large number of pedestrian traffic (as metro stations, checks of security, the street  , etc.). Models support accounting of statistics of traffic density in different areas. It guarantees acceptable work of service points with restrictions on load, estimates idle standing length in certain areas, and detects potential problems with internal geometry  — such as effect of adding of too large number of obstacles  — and other phenomena. In the models created using Pedestrian Library, pedestrians move continuously, reacting to different types of obstacles (walls, different types of areas) as well as normal pedestrians. Pedestrians are modelled as the interacting agents with difficult behavior. For the fast description of flows of pedestrians of Pedestrian Library provides the high-level interface in the form of the block chart.
• Rail Yard Library supports modeling, simulation and visualization of transactions of switchyard of any complexity and scale. Models of switchyard can use the combined modeling methods (discrete and event and agentny modeling) connected with actions when transporting: loadings and unloadings, resource allocation, service, different business processes.

Notes

Literature

• Шаблон:Book

Links

• Official site of the developer
• Video with AnyLogic work demonstration