Global Visualization – “View All Connections”

1. The object of this tutorial is to display all the connections between a SysML model in MagicDraw and elements in outside repositories. We will use the MagicDraw model Visualization Tutorial, provided in the <MagicDraw installation>\Samples\Syndeia folder after Syndeia 3.0 installation, as the basis for the exercise. The intra-model connections inside the SysML model are shown in Figure 197.

   

   Figure 197 MagicDraw model Visualization Tutorial, showing intra-model connections

    

2. Create and connect the SysML elements to a set of external elements or files. For this exercise, we will create a set of 9 PDF files in a folder on our local file system named SampleDocs and create reference connections to them. The user will be able to do this, no matter what set of external tool interfaces they have purchased with the Syndeia base module, but the tutorial will also work with other types of connections and connected artifacts.

   1. On your local file system, create a folder named SampleDocs and create 9 PDF files within it. Names and contents of the file are not important.

   2. Open the model Visualization Tutorial in MagicDraw.

   3. Launch the Syndeia dashboard from the Visualization package.

   4. In the Repository tab, create a local file system repository link to the SampleDocs folder (see Section 2.1 for a refresher).

   5. In the Connection Manager tab, open the SampleDocs repository and view the 9 PDF files, as shown in Figure 198.

   6. Create nine reference connections, from the SysML blocks, activities and requirements to the corresponding PDF files, using standard drag-and-drop. There is no need to connect to the UAV block or the UAV _Specification requirement.

   7. If you want to see the resulting inter-model connection, go to the Connection Summary tab and refresh the display.

   8. Close the Syndeia dashboard (optional).

      

      Figure 198 Syndeia Dashboard, Connection Manager tab, showing external PDF documents
       

3. Launch the Syndeia visualization by right-clicking on the Visualization package in the MagicDraw browser and selecting Syndeia → Visualize → View all connections, as shown in Figure 199.

   

   Figure 199 Launching Syndeia global visualization

    

4. The "View all connections" should open in your default web browser and appear similar to Figure 200. Familiarize yourself with the features of the display.

   1. The SysML project name is displayed in the upper left corner.

   2. Hover your cursor over an artifact on the perimeter of the circle and it is identified in the upper left corner.

   3. Hover your cursor over a connection inside the circle and it is identified in the upper left corner.

   4. Enter a string in the Search box in the upper left corner and display all artifacts containing the search term. Select one and it will be highlighted with a red ring border in the display.

   5. Expand the Totals and Displayed tables on the right side by clicking on the blue bars. These will show the unfiltered and filtered statistics for artifacts and connections.

   6. Expand the Repositories, Connection Types and Artifact Types boxes on the right side. Check and uncheck boxes to show or hide specific repositories or elements.

   7. Refresh the display by reloading the web page in the usual way.

Figure 200 View all connections display

Local Visualization – “View Neighboring Connections”

1. The object of this tutorial is to display a specific set of connections, including those inside the SysML model and those between SysML and external elements. The process is initiated from a specific element and can be used to follow chains of connections leading toward or away from (or both) the starting element.

2. In the same model created in Section 2.19.1, right-click on the Payload block in the MagicDraw browser and selecting Syndeia → Visualize → View Neighboring Artifacts – Auto Layout.

3. The initial display should appear similar to Figure 201. Explore the features of this display.

4. The SysML project name is displayed in the upper left corner.

   1. Hover your cursor over an artifact on the perimeter of the circle and it is identified in the upper left corner.

   2. Hover your cursor over a connection inside the circle and it is identified in the upper left corner.

   3. Reposition individual nodes by clicking and dragging them

   4. Move the complete network by clicking and dragging anywhere else in the diagram.

   5. Click the starting node, shown with a red border (Visualization::Payload, in this case), to hide the nearest neighbors, Click it again to re-expand.

   6. Change the options in the Connection Direction to show or hide connections. Click the starting node twice to contract and expand the node to refresh with the new options.

      
      
      Figure 201 Local visualization, "View Neighboring Artifacts – Auto Layout", initial display

       

5. Expand the graph further by clicking on the artifacts with the green borders, which represents unexpanded nodes. The final expansion should appear similar to Figure 202, showing three SysML elements connected among themselves by intra-model dependencies and each connected to an external PDF file by an inter-model Reference connection.

6. Several limitations to this display should be noted:

   1. Certain intra-model relationships, specifically incoming compositional relationships, cannot be displayed. For example, the connection from the UAV block to the Payload block in Figure 197 is not shown.

   2. The Auto Layout feature may behave unpredictably when nodes are contracted, then re-expanded, causing the graph to fragment. It can always be re-initialized by reloading the webpage.
      
       
      
      

      Figure 202 Local visualization, "View Neighboring Artifacts – Auto Layout", final expansion

      These issues and other visualization challenges will be addressed in future releases of Syndeia, driven strongly by customer input. Please send us your comments and requests to be part of that process.