A collaborative simulation environment for multibody system analysis

This article describes a new collaborative simulation environment for multibody system analysis designed to streamline the development, testing and evaluation of new methods for multibody system simulation. The environment, called MbsLab, is made up of 3 components: (1) MbsML, a neutral and extensible XML-based language for describing multibody system models and related information, (2) MbsEngine, an open-source modular simulation tool that uses MbsML as native data format, and (3) MbsBenchmark, a benchmarking suite for multibody system analysis software. The three components can be used together to develop and compare the performance of new simulation methods in a short time. Currently, the environment only supports rigid bodies, but it is expected to grow to support flexible bodies, contact and impact.