Simulation Profiles (New Feature Summary)

Along with other enhancements for Mixed Simulation, Altium Designer 17 allows users to easily create and manage multiple simulation profiles. Separate profiles allow designers to easily use different simulation profiles for different types of analyses and different simulation engines (Mixed Sim, SIMetrix, SIMPLIS). You can also have multiple runs of the same simulation type (e.g., AC Analysis) with different parameters and options (e.g., different frequency ranges). Select an active profile to easily add, remove, edit, run, and/or generate netlists. Use the Profile Manager to organize profiles and easily use probes or active nets to select waveforms to display. Simulation profiles can also be added to Output Jobs.  

Accessing the Simulation Profiles and other Mixed Simulation features requires having the Mixed Simulation software extension installed. The extension is included with your Altium Designer purchase; to install the it, select DXP » Extensions and Updates from the toolbar. From the Purchased tab, scroll down to Software Extensions and search for "Mixed Simulation." Click the button in the top right corner of the extension to install. Altium Designer must be restarted before the extension is available.

Creating and Managing New Simulation Profiles

The top portion of the Simulate menu can be used to create and edit simulation profiles.

New simulation profiles are created using the Simulate » New Simulation Profile command or by clicking the  button in the Simulation toolbar. Select Mixed Sim, SIMetrix, or SIMPLIS to create the appropriate profile. Use the Simulation Profile Properties dialog to set a name and location for the new profile.

The Simulation Profile Properties dialog can also be accessed from the Profile Manager (Simulate » Profile Manager, Add button).

After clicking OK, the Analyses Setup dialog is launched. Use this dialog to establish options for the simulation profile.

When multiple simulation profiles exists, use the Simulate » Active Simulation Profile command to select the active profile or select the active profile from the Simulation toolbar dropdown menu.

Run Simulation and Generate Netlist commands then apply to the currently selected Active Profile. You can also use commands available in the Simulate menu to Rename, Edit, or Remove the active profile. 

Using the Simulation Profile Manager

The Profile Manager can be accessed by running the Simulate » Profile Manager command. The Profile Manager displays each profile's Name, Location, and Description (whether Mixed Sim, SIMetrix, or SIMPLIS). Click once on a profile name to rename it. Double-click on a profile (or click the Edit button) to open the Analyses Setup dialog and adjust settings for the profile. Quickly Add or Remove profiles with the bottom row of buttons. As well, simulation profiles can be imported or exported using the SIMPRF filetype.

Using Simulation Profiles with Output Jobs

Outjob files can be leveraged to store simulation profiles, allowing designers to run batch simulations. Simulation results can be run from the Outjob file or the simulation profiles in Outjobs are available for selection as the active profile.

To use simulation profiles with an Outjob file, follow these steps:

1. Add an Outjob file to the project.
2. Under Simulator Outputs, click [Add New Simulator Output] and select the desired output. The simulator output can be renamed as desired by clicking on the name in the list and editing in place.

3. Right-click on the output and select Configure to open the Analyses Setup dialog and set the simulation options.
4. Select a Folder Structure output container to direct the output to. To change folder structure settings, if needed, click Change next to the Folder Structure container.

5. Within the Outjob file, clicking Generate content batch generates the output SDF files for all the outputs in the output container.
6. Any simulator outputs defined in the Outjob file are now also selectable in the Mixed Sim toolbar dropdown and in the Simulate » Active Simulation Profile options.

7. The jobs are also visible in the Simulation Profile Manager dialog, with Location showing the name of the Outjob file.