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Entities

An entity is a unit of work that flows through your model: a customer, an order, a part, a patient, whatever your process handles. You create one by dropping an Entity shape on the canvas. It becomes the start of the flow, and an arrival connection from it sets how and when entities enter (see Arrivals).

Name and appearance

Section titled “Name and appearance”

On the entity’s General tab you set:

  • Name: the display name for this entity type. You can also rename it by double-clicking the shape.
  • Appearance: an Icon from the built-in set, a Color, or your own image, so each entity type is easy to tell apart on the canvas and in the animation.

An entity's properties

Entity cost

Section titled “Entity cost”

The entity’s Cost tab sets how it accrues cost during a run:

  • Initial Cost: a cost added to the entity the moment it is created.
  • Waiting Cost: a cost per hour that accrues while the entity is waiting: in a queue, waiting for a resource, batching, or in transit.

As the entity moves, ProcessModel adds these to the activity, route, queue, and resource costs it picks up along the way to build its running total. In action logic you read that running total with Entity.TotalCost.

LegacyHow this worked in the previous version

Entities

Section titled “Entities”

Entities are the items or people processed during the simulation-e.g., products, documents, customers, etc. Selecting an entity shape from the shape palette, then placing it on the layout defines an entity. Next, change the name by selecting the graphic and typing.

Entities show as moving graphics during the process simulation and move on routings from activity to activity. In addition, ProcessModel provides hundreds of predefined entity icons from all major industries. Import additional icons as needed. Using meaningful graphics to represent entities in your model will allow others to visualize the process accurately.

Use any ProcessModel graphic as an entity (activity, resource, storage, link, label). To use a non-entity graphic as an entity, double-click on the graphic and change the object type to Entity.

General

Section titled “General”

**Name **The name of the entity (e.g. Customer, Product_A, etc.). The entity name is used primarily for decision making and reporting purposes. It is simply a descriptive attribute that may be changed during the simulation and tested for making process decisions. Entity statistics are reported based on the final name of the entity.

What are Entities?

Statistics: Yes / No This selection determines whether statistical information will be collected, displayed in the scoreboard, and reported in the Output Module for this entity.

**Object Type **Allows the type of object to be changed from Entity to something else.

The entity element

Section titled “The entity element”

Entities are the items or people being processed-e.g., products, documents, customers, etc. An entity is defined by selecting an entity shape from the shape palette, placing it on the layout, and entering any applicable information for that object in the properties dialog.

Entities are represented by graphics you choose from the palette. They will be shown as moving graphics during the process simulation. Using meaningful graphics in the model to represent entities in your real system will allow others to accurately visualize the flow through the process. They are processed at activities and are moved on routings from activity to activity. Entities can have an initial cost and collect additional costs from processing at activities, movement on routings and from the use of resources. There are hundreds of predefined entities in ProcessModel from all major industries.

Any ProcessModel graphic can be used as an entity (activity, resource, storage, link, label). To use a non entity graphic as an entity, double-click on the graphic and change the object type to Entity.

Each pre-defined entity graphic is assigned a number by ProcessModel. These numbers are used only for the NewGraphic statement (see NEWGRAPHIC).

ProcessModel contains several predefined entity shapes. Each predefined entity shape has the word ‘entity’ placed in parentheses in the shape name. However, you may also define custom entity shapes.

General

Section titled “General”

What is an Entity?

Name: The name of the entity (e.g. Customer, Product_A, etc.). The entity name is used primarily for decision making and reporting purposes. It is simply a descriptive attribute that may be changed during the simulation and tested for making process decisions. Entity statistics are reported based on the final name of the entity.

When you add an additional text label to an entity, place the label on the center of the entity. Otherwise, the entity will appear smaller during simulation.

Statistics: Yes / No This selection determines whether statistical information will be collected, displayed in the scoreboard, and reported in the Output Module for this entity.

The maximum number of entities that can be displayed in the simulation scoreboard is 12. That number cannot be modified.

Object Type: Allows the type of object to be changed from Entity to something else.

Section titled “Related to Entity”

Entity cost

Section titled “Entity cost”

The identification of cost is optional and has no effect on the behavior of the model.

What is Entity Cost?

Initial cost The initial value assigned as the cost of each newly created entity (negative 1,000,000 to 1,000,000). Once assigned, the entity cost may be increased automatically during the simulation based on waiting time, activity time, and resource usage. This cost is added to the pre-defined Cost attribute of the entity.

Waiting cost The cost that is added to the entity per hour of waiting time. Cost may range from negative 1,000,000 to 1,000,000. This cost is added to the pre-defined Cost attribute of the entity.

Section titled “Related to Entity”