Resources / What is a functional digital mock-up?
What is a functional digital mock-up?
A functional digital mock-up is a shared, interactive representation of intended system behavior driven by executable models. Unlike a purely geometric mock-up, it lets stakeholders run scenarios, observe dynamics, and check requirements before costly physical development and late integration.
Geometry vs function
Digital mock-ups in industry often mean 3D geometry: fit, packaging, manufacturing. A functional digital mock-up answers a different question: does the system behave as stakeholders expect under operational scenarios? That includes logic, modes, interfaces, and timing—not only shape.
For software-intensive systems, functional visibility early is where schedule and rework risks concentrate. Waiting for a full integration bench to discover behavioral mismatch is expensive.
What you can do inside the mock-up
With Sim4Sys Virtual Bench, teams run software images inside a functional digital mock-up playground. Scenarios can be built from reusable libraries; parameters of graphical objects connect to model attributes; a controlled simulation clock supports real-time or accelerated runs.
- Trigger events live through the scenario HMI
- Schedule events on a timeline or along a trajectory
- Trigger events from functional sensors
- Define test criteria evaluated while scenarios run
- Organize scenarios into test plans and batch execution with reports
Link to Customer In the Loop
The mock-up is the shared stage of Customer In the Loop: stakeholders do not only review documents—they experience behavior. Feedback arrives while models are still easy to change. Agreed behavior then anchors generated requirements and specifications from Sim4Sys Designer.
Before physical integration
Using a functional digital mock-up does not remove the need for HIL benches or physical tests. It shifts discovery left: catch requirement and design issues when the cost of change is lower, then carry validated intent into later verification layers—including model-generated code used as virtual components on HIL benches where applicable.
Next steps
See Virtual Bench on the solutions page, read the Sim4Sys Designer and Customer In the Loop guides, or contact CIL4Sys for a demonstration on your domain scenarios.