General Description

"Component Model Specification" provides intrinsic dynamic behaviour of the system and its components.

Simulation models are abstractions of the real world. They are used by computers to predict the results of some phenomenon, basically substituting physical experimentation. In most cases, simulation models are composed of component models, which represent specific parts of the overall investigated system.

The construction of simulation models and component models is itself more an engineering discipline than a science. As such, modellers can make different assumption and chose from a large variety of different approaches to create a certain model. A modelling paradigm comprises the sum of all these assumptions and choices, explaining the details of how a model abstracts a part of the real world. Components models with contrasting underlying modelling paradigms can typically not be used in the same simulation model. For instance, an electrical power line can be abstracted as a conductor for electrical currents. Alternatively, it can be abstracted as a conduit for power flows, ignoring the underlying details of electron transport. Both abstractions are valid and have their value, but they focus on different aspects (and even require different models of computation).