Simulink Project File Structure

Project Organization

This Simulink project follows a structured organization pattern to maintain consistency and facilitate collaboration. The project uses a standardized folder structure for models and their associated artifacts.

Complete Project Folder Structure

Project Root/
├── cache/                 # Cached files and temporary data (automatically used by Simulink)
├── codegen/               # Generated code from models (automatically used by Simulink)
├── data/                  # Project-level data files
├── doc/                   # Project-level documentation
├── internal/              # Internal utilities and templates for the project itself
│   ├── createNewModel.m          # Model creation utility function
│   ├── newModelTemplate.slx      # Template for new models
│   └── newSubsystemTemplate.slx  # Template for new subsystems
├── models/                # Contains all Simulink models and subsystems
├── requirements/          # Project-level requirements
├── test/                  # Project-level test files
├── utilities/             # Utility functions and scripts
├── work/                  # Working directory for temporary files
├── resources/             # DO NOT EDIT - automatically managed by MATLAB
├── SimulinkProjectFileStructure.prj  # MATLAB Project file
└── README.md              # This file

Model Folder Structure (Created by createNewModel)

Each model or subsystem created using the createNewModel function follows a consistent folder structure within the models/ directory:

models/
└── <ModelName>/           # Root folder for the model
    ├── <ModelName>.slx    # Simulink model/subsystem file
    ├── <ModelName>_harnessInfo.xml  # DO NOT EDIT - Test harness information (if Simulink Test available), automatically maintained by Simulink Test 
    ├── data/              # Data and configuration files
    │   └── <ModelName>.sldd  # Simulink Data Dictionary, attached to <ModelName>.slx
    ├── doc/               # Documentation specific to this model
    ├── requirements/      # Requirements and specifications for this model
    └── test/              # Test-related artifacts
        ├── harnesses/     # Test harnesses
        │   └── <ModelName>_harness.slx  # Test harness (if Simulink Test available)
        ├── data/          # Test data files
        └── <ModelName>_Tests.mldatx  # Test Manager file (if Simulink Test available)

Using the createNewModel Function

The createNewModel function automates the creation of new models or subsystems with the proper folder structure and associated files.

Syntax

% Create a new model (default)
createNewModel("MyModelName")

% Explicitly create a model
createNewModel("MyModelName", "Type", "Model")

% Create a subsystem
createNewModel("MySubsystemName", "Type", "Subsystem")

Parameters

• mdlName (required): String specifying the name of the model or subsystem to create
• Type (optional): Either "Model" or "Subsystem" (default: "Model")

What the Function Creates

When you run createNewModel, it automatically:

1. Creates the complete folder structure under models/<ModelName>/:

   • models/<ModelName>/ - Root folder for the model
   • models/<ModelName>/data/ - For data dictionaries and configuration
   • models/<ModelName>/doc/ - For model-specific documentation
   • models/<ModelName>/requirements/ - For requirements documents
   • models/<ModelName>/test/ - For test artifacts
   • models/<ModelName>/test/harnesses/ - For test harnesses
   • models/<ModelName>/test/data/ - For test data

2. Creates the Simulink model/subsystem:

   • Uses templates from the internal/ folder (newModelTemplate.slx or newSubsystemTemplate.slx)
   • Saves as <ModelName>.slx in models/<ModelName>/

3. Creates and links a Simulink Data Dictionary:

   • Creates <ModelName>.sldd in models/<ModelName>/data/
   • Automatically attaches it to the model

4. Creates test artifacts (if Simulink Test is licensed):

   • Test harness: <ModelName>_harness.slx in models/<ModelName>/test/harnesses/
   • Harness info: <ModelName>_harnessInfo.xml in models/<ModelName>/
   • Test file: <ModelName>_Tests.mldatx in models/<ModelName>/test/

5. Adds all created files and folders to the project:

   • Automatically registers all files with the Simulink project
   • Adds all folders to the project path

Example Usage

% Create a new model called "ControlSystem"
createNewModel("ControlSystem")

% This creates the following structure:
% models/
% └── ControlSystem/
%     ├── ControlSystem.slx
%     ├── ControlSystem_harnessInfo.xml  # (if Simulink Test available)
%     ├── data/
%     │   └── ControlSystem.sldd
%     ├── doc/
%     ├── requirements/
%     └── test/
%         ├── harnesses/
%         │   └── ControlSystem_harness.slx  # (if Simulink Test available)
%         ├── data/
%         └── ControlSystem_Tests.mldatx  # (if Simulink Test available)

Prerequisites

• Must be run within an active Simulink Project
• Project must have a models/ folder at the root level
• Templates (newModelTemplate.sltx and newSubsystemTemplate.sltx) must exist in the internal/ folder
• Simulink Test license required for test artifact creation (optional - function will still work without it)

Benefits

• Consistency: All models follow the same organizational structure
• Automation: Reduces manual setup time and potential errors
• Best Practices: Enforces separation of concerns (data, docs, tests, requirements)
• Scalability: Makes it easy to manage multiple models in large projects
• Project Path Management: Automatically adds all folders to the project path for easy access

Notes

• The function will create all folders even if they remain empty initially
• All created artifacts are automatically added to the Simulink project
• Test artifacts are only created if Simulink Test toolbox is licensed
• The model templates in the internal/ folder can be customized to match your organization's standards
• Generated code from models will be stored in the project-level codegen/ folder