Connection Restrictions on Input and Output Connectors

1 General Description

The introduction of structured components with inside and outside connectors introduces some additional complexity in the rules for connecting connectors with input or output causality, i.e. connectors declared with the input or output type prefix. Examples are instances of the connector classes InPort and OutPort. Normally the following rules apply:
* Two acausal connectors can be connected to each other.
* An input connector can be connected to an output connector or vice versa.
* An input or output connector can be connected to an acausal connector, i.e. a connector without input/output prefixes.

Two essentially equivalent example circuits of four connected components with connectors of input or output causality. Within

the lower circuit two components have been embeded in the structured component M1.

2 Inside Connectors

There are certain rules for how to connect connectors with input or output causality. It is not possible to connect two inputs or two outputs, unless outside connectors are involved. The following example illustrates the upper circuit above.

class C SInPort inPort; // Input connector SOutPort outPort; // Output connector end C;
class CInst C C1, C2, C3, C4; // Instances of C equation connect(C1.outPort, C2.inPort); connect(C2.outPort, C3.inPort); connect(C3.outPort, C4.inPort); end CInst;
connector SInPort "Simplified InPort connector" input Real signal; end SInPort;
connector SOutPort "Simplified OutPort connector" output Real signal; end SOutPort;

3 Outside Connectors

The following example illustrates the lower circuit above.

class M "Structured class M" SInPort inport; // Outside input connector SOutPort outport; // Outside output connector C C2; C C3; end M;

The classes CInst and MInst is equivalent.

class MInst M M1; // Instance of M equation connect(C1.outPort, M1.inPort); // Normal connection of outPort to inPort connect(M1.inPort, C2.inPort); // Outside inPort connected to inside inPort connect(C2.outPort, C3.inPort); // Inside outPort connected to inside inPort connect(C3.outPort, M1.outPort); // Inside outPort connected to outside outPort connect(M1.outPort, C4.inPort); // Normal connection of outPort to inPort end MInst;