TUTSIM was the first commercial
simulation software ever to run on an IBM-PC. The package was used for the modeling and simulation of multi-domain systems using differential equations and
bond graphs.
History
TUTSIM (Twente University of Technology SIMulator) was developed at the Control Laboratory of the
University of Twente in the early-1970s. The program was initially created for the
PDP-11
The PDP-11 is a series of 16-bit minicomputers sold by Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC) from 1970 into the 1990s, one of a set of products in the Programmed Data Processor (PDP) series. In total, around 600,000 PDP-11s of all models were sold, ...
and
LSI-11 series of
DEC. At the end of the 1970s it was ported to run on microprocessors like the
MOS Technology 6502 of the
Apple II
The Apple II (stylized as ) is an 8-bit home computer and one of the world's first highly successful mass-produced microcomputer products. It was designed primarily by Steve Wozniak; Jerry Manock developed the design of Apple II's foam-m ...
and the
Intel 8086
The 8086 (also called iAPX 86) is a 16-bit microprocessor chip designed by Intel between early 1976 and June 8, 1978, when it was released. The Intel 8088, released July 1, 1979, is a slightly modified chip with an external 8-bit data bus (allowi ...
of the
IBM Personal Computer.
The company Meerman Automation took over the development of the package in the early-1980s. The rise of the IBM PC gave TUTSIM its world fame, making scientific simulation software available for researchers all over the world. Failing to meet the demands of a graphical user interface with the rise of
Microsoft Windows
Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...
in the late-1980s the popularity of TUTSIM slowly faded away. Multiple requests from bond graph researchers caused the University of Twente to begin development of a successor to TUTSIM.
This resulted in the software
20-sim, released by
Controllab, which contained many of the features that made TUTSIM popular.
Use
TUTSIM was an interactive simulation language for continuous dynamical systems. Input had to be given in block diagram form or in bond graph form. The lack of a graphical UI required inputs in textual form by entering commands and arguments. For simulation, fixed step integration methods were provided. Simulation results were displayed in a graphical form or numerically in tables.
See also
*
Bond graph
*
University of Twente
*
Controllab
*
20-sim
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tutsim
Simulation software
1970s in computing