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Continuous system modeling. (English) Zbl 0725.93006

New York etc.: Springer-Verlag. xxviii, 755 p. DM 128.00/hbk (1991).
This book, together with its companion volume Continuous System Simulation, constitutes an ambitious attempt to introduce the student to an analysis of continuous physical systems. The author deals with a broad class of systems that can be described through a set of ordinary or partial differential equations, or through a set of difference equations. The author focuses in this book on modeling: the transition from the physical system itself to an abstract definition of that system in the form of a set of differential or difference equations. The book has a strong engineering flavor; it is written by an engineer for engineers. The author notes in his preface that “Engineering intuition is often preferred over mathematical rigor in the derivation of formulae and algorithms.” The subject matter is strongly oriented forward the Newtonian physical sciences, and includes several applications to mechanical, electrical, and chemical engineering, as well as to thermodynamics. Electric circuit modeling is treated extensively. There are also chapters on population dynamics modeling, artificial neural networks, and genetic algorithms. The author tries to set up a broad methodological framework for modeling. He introduces the concepts of modular and hierarchical modeling. He shows how hierarchical modeling can be implemented by current simulation languages, and he demonstrates the short comings of this approach. He then introduces the modular modeling language DYMOLA, and shows how it provides an appealing alternative, in the context of electric circuit modeling, to the most commonly used circuit simulator SPICE. In a later chapter the author introduces the concept of bond graph modeling, and applies this methodological tool to convection, conduction, and radiation phenomena in thermodynamics. This book has a wealth of examples, applications, and exercises, as well as several suggestions for more extended projects. There is also a list of useful references at the end of each chapter.

MSC:

93A30 Mathematical modelling of systems (MSC2010)
00A71 General theory of mathematical modeling
93-01 Introductory exposition (textbooks, tutorial papers, etc.) pertaining to systems and control theory
93C15 Control/observation systems governed by ordinary differential equations

Software:

SPICE; BondLib
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