PSIM is an

Electronic circuit simulation Electronic circuit simulation uses mathematical models to replicate the behavior of an actual electronic device or circuit. Simulation software allows for modeling of circuit operation and is an invaluable analysis tool. Due to its highly accurat ...

software package, designed specifically for use in

power electronics Power electronics is the application of electronics to the control and conversion of electric power. The first high-power electronic devices were made using mercury-arc valves. In modern systems, the conversion is performed with semiconducto ...

and motor drive simulations but can be used to simulate any

electronic circuit An electronic circuit is composed of individual electronic components, such as resistors, transistors, capacitors, inductors and diodes, connected by conductive wires or traces through which electric current can flow. It is a type of electri ...

. Developed by Powersim, PSIM uses

nodal analysis In electric circuits analysis, nodal analysis, node-voltage analysis, or the branch current method is a method of determining the voltage (potential difference) between " nodes" (points where elements or branches connect) in an electrical circuit i ...

and the

trapezoidal rule In calculus, the trapezoidal rule (also known as the trapezoid rule or trapezium rule; see Trapezoid for more information on terminology) is a technique for approximating the definite integral. \int_a^b f(x) \, dx. The trapezoidal rule works b ...

integration as the basis of its simulation algorithm. PSIM provides a schematic capture interface and a waveform viewer Simview. PSIM has several modules that extend its functionality into specific areas of circuit simulation and design including:

control theory Control theory is a field of mathematics that deals with the control of dynamical systems in engineered processes and machines. The objective is to develop a model or algorithm governing the application of system inputs to drive the system to a ...

electric motors An electric motor is an electrical machine that converts electrical energy into mechanical energy. Most electric motors operate through the interaction between the motor's magnetic field and electric current in a wire winding to generate force ...

photovoltaics Photovoltaics (PV) is the conversion of light into electricity using semiconducting materials that exhibit the photovoltaic effect, a phenomenon studied in physics, photochemistry, and electrochemistry. The photovoltaic effect is commercial ...

and

wind turbines A wind turbine is a device that converts the kinetic energy of wind into electrical energy. Hundreds of thousands of large turbines, in installations known as wind farms, now generate over 650 gigawatts of power, with 60 GW added each year. W ...

PSIM is used by industry for research and product development and it is used by educational institutions for research and teaching and was acquired by

Altair Engineering Altair Engineering Inc. is an American multinational information technology company headquartered in Troy, Michigan. It provides software and cloud solutions for simulation, IoT, high performance computing (HPC), data analytics, and artificial ...

in March 2022.

Modules

PSIM has various add on modules, the full list and their descriptions can be found on the Powersi
website
There are modules that enable motor drive simulation,

digital control Digital control is a branch of control theory that uses Digital data, digital computers to act as system controllers. Depending on the requirements, a digital control system can take the form of a microcontroller to an Application-specific integ ...

, and the calculation of thermal losses due to switching and conduction. There is a renewable energy module which allows for the simulation of photovoltaics (including temperature effects), batteries,

supercapacitor A supercapacitor (SC), also called an ultracapacitor, is a high-capacity capacitor, with a capacitance value much higher than other capacitors but with lower voltage limits. It bridges the gap between electrolytic capacitors and rechargeable ...

, and wind turbines. Additionally there are several modules which allow co-simulation with other platforms to verify

VHDL The VHSIC Hardware Description Language (VHDL) is a hardware description language (HDL) that can model the behavior and structure of digital systems at multiple levels of abstraction, ranging from the system level down to that of logic gat ...

Verilog Verilog, standardized as IEEE 1364, is a hardware description language (HDL) used to model electronic systems. It is most commonly used in the design and verification of digital circuits at the register-transfer level of abstraction. It is a ...

code or to co simulate with an FEA program. The programs that PSIM currently co-simulates with are:

Simulink Simulink is a MATLAB-based graphical programming environment for modeling, simulating and analyzing multidomain dynamical systems. Its primary interface is a graphical block diagramming tool and a customizable set of block libraries. It offers t ...

JMAG JMAG is a simulation software used for the development and design of electrical devices. JMAG was originally released in 1983 as a tool to support the design of devices such as motors, actuators, circuit components, and antennas. JMAG incorpo ...

, and

ModelSim ModelSim is a multi-language environment by Siemens (previously developed by Mentor Graphics,) for simulation of hardware description languages such as VHDL, Verilog and SystemC, and includes a built-in C debugger.

. PSIM currently supports automatic c-code generation with the SimCoder Module and will output c-code for use with

Texas Instruments Texas Instruments Incorporated (TI) is an American technology company headquartered in Dallas, Texas, that designs and manufactures semiconductors and various integrated circuits, which it sells to electronics designers and manufacturers globa ...

F2833x and F2803x floating and

fixed Fixed may refer to: * ''Fixed'' (EP), EP by Nine Inch Nails * ''Fixed'', an upcoming 2D adult animated film directed by Genndy Tartakovsky * Fixed (typeface), a collection of monospace bitmap fonts that is distributed with the X Window System * F ...

point

digital signal processors A digital signal processor (DSP) is a specialized microprocessor chip, with its architecture optimized for the operational needs of digital signal processing. DSPs are fabricated on MOS integrated circuit chips. They are widely used in audio sig ...

from the C2000 series. With PSIM version 10.0.4, PSIM has support for

Freescale Semiconductor Freescale Semiconductor, Inc. was an American semiconductor manufacturer. It was created by the divestiture of the Semiconductor Products Sector of Motorola in 2004. Freescale focused their integrated circuit products on the automotive, embe ...

Kinetis V series MCU. In addition, PSIM’s Processor-In-Loop simulation or PIL Module was to control a PSIM simulation with code that is executing on a TI DSP or MCU.

Comparison with SPICE

PSIM has a much faster simulation speed than

SPICE A spice is a seed, fruit, root, bark, or other plant substance primarily used for flavoring or coloring food. Spices are distinguished from herbs, which are the leaves, flowers, or stems of plants used for flavoring or as a garnish. Spices a ...

based simulators based on its usage of the ideal switch. With the additional Digital and SimCoupler Modules almost any kind of logic algorithm can be simulated. Since PSIM uses ideal switches the simulated waveforms will reflect this, making PSIM more suited for system level studies rather than switching transition studies. Additionally, PSIM has a simplified interface compared to other simulators and as a result has a more intuitive interface.

MOSFET The metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET, MOS-FET, or MOS FET) is a type of field-effect transistor (FET), most commonly fabricated by the controlled oxidation of silicon. It has an insulated gate, the voltage of which d ...

and Diode Level 2 models were added in the version 10 release. These models allow the simulation of the switch transition, reverse recovery effects, and gate drive circuitry. A comparison with a PSIM & SPICE model of the same device showed similar resulting waveforms with a comparable simulation speed given identical operating conditions. PowerSim recently partnered with CoolCAD Electronics to add CoolSPICE, a

based integrated circuit modeling and design tool, as a bundle option for the PSIM software package.Ferreira, B. (2016). Expanding Power Electronics Activities Across the Globe resident's Message ''IEEE Power Electronics Magazine'', ''3''(1), 6-8. The advantage being that PSIM would then have the flexibility to be able to run

based models and net-lists.

Licensing

There are various licensing options available for PSIM. There is
free demo version
which does not expire but is limited in component count and allowed circuit complexity. Th
standard/student
version allows for the simulation of less complex circuits for a reduced cost. PowerSim does have educationa
licensing options
some are free, for institutions to address simulation requirements for research and for teaching.

References

External links

* *{{YouTube, u=powersiminc, {{PAGENAMEBASE Electronic circuit simulators