Appendix A. AnyLogic Concepts and Terminology
An AnyLogic model consists of
- one or more models called "top-level agents",
- one or more experiments bound to a model and being of one of the following types: "Simulation", "Optimization", "Parameter Variation", ...
By default, processing objects (called 'entities') and resource
objects (called 'resource units') are of type Agent in
AnyLogic.
How to implement processing nodes
There are three options for implementing a processing node:
- With a combination of a Queue and a Delay element if the processing activity requires at most one resource and a count pool for this resource is sufficient.
- With a Service element, if no count pool has to be used and it is okay that all required resources are first allocated and then released.
- Otherwise, if not all required resources need to be allocated (when they already have been allocated before) or not all of them are to be released, a combination of a Seize, a Queue, a Delay and a Release element has to be used.
Functionality Issues
There is no support for simulation scenarios
AnyLogic does not distinguish between the concepts of simulation model and simulation scenario. In [], model variants are called "scenarios".
Terminological and User Interface Issues
| OEM&S/DPMN | Arena | AnyLogic |
|---|---|---|
Processing Object |
Entity |
Agent |
Entry Node |
Create |
Source |
Processing Node |
Process |
Queue+Delay or Service |
Exit Node |
Dispose |
Sink |
| Resource Object | (Resource) Unit | |
| Object Attribute updated during a simulation run | Variable | |
| Object Attribute not updated during a simulation run | Parameter |
A simulation model is created and stored as a "top-level agent" that is, by default, called "Main".
Using the term "block" for "building block" is a strange terminology choice. Better use "element" for "modeling element".
In the settings of a Service element, the distinction between "(alternative) resource sets" and "units of the same pool" is confusing. The setting "(alternative) resource sets" allows defining (1) more than one type of resource (from different pools), and (2) alternative resource pools.