MathWorks has introduced major updates to Matlab and Simulink with Release 2012b.
The new Simulink Editor features tabbed windows, smart signal routing, and simulation rewind; while the Matlab Desktop now includes a tool-strip that offers quick access to frequently used features, and a Matlab apps gallery. In addition, Release 2012b includes a redesigned help system with improved browsing, searching, filtering, and content organisation.
The new user interface and features for Simulink enables faster, more cost-effective development of dynamic and embedded systems. The Simulink Editor simplifies modelling through capabilities such as: tabbed model windows for improved window management; an Explorer bar for navigating model hierarchy; smart signal routing to determine optimal signal line path; debugging capabilities that rewind simulations and set conditional breakpoints on signals. R2012b also introduces Simulink Pojects for managing project files and connecting to source control software, and support for running models on target hardware such as Arduino, Lego Mindstorms NXT, BeagleBoard, and PandaBoard.
New capabilities in Stateflow also simplify modelling. The Stateflow Editor is now unified with the Simulink Editor, and includes smart guides and transition indicator lines. Other features include state transition tables to model hierarchical state machines in a structured tabular form, and support for Matlab as the action language for states and transitions.
To help both new and experienced users navigate its capabilities, MathWorks has updated the Matlab Desktop, so that: the tool-strip displays icons for the most frequently used features, such as selecting the best plot type for data; and the apps gallery presents apps from the Matlab product family to allow users to perform common tasks without writing code.
