Development

This page covers the practical operations around BobDyn/BobSim: cloning, app launch, environment setup, make targets, local Python, cleanup, quality checks, and common failure paths.

Clone

For simulation workflows, clone BobSim with submodules. BobLib is included as a submodule.

git clone --recurse-submodules https://github.com/BobDyn/BobSim.git
cd BobSim

If the repository is already cloned without submodules:

make init

The BobLib submodule lives at:

_0_Utils/external/BobLib/

Clone BobLib directly only when you want to work on the low-level Modelica model layer without the BobSim workflow wrapper.

App Launch

The app is the normal local entry point for setup, simulation launch, and result review. For users, prefer the released BobSim desktop executable. For development, run the same app from a source checkout.

From the BobSim root:

make app

Then open:

http://127.0.0.1:8765

The app runs in the Python environment that launched it. Install requirements.txt locally before using make app; install OpenModelica locally before building or running simulations from the app, or select a local OpenModelica install from the app's Simulation toolchain selector.

Released desktop builds store generated user data in the per-user runtime workspace:

Platform	Default runtime root
Windows	%LOCALAPPDATA%\BobDyn\BobSim
macOS	~/Library/Application Support/BobDyn/BobSim
Linux	${XDG_DATA_HOME:-~/.local/share}/BobDyn/BobSim

Set BOBSIM_HOME to override that location. BOBDYN_HOME remains supported for older local installs.

Desktop Release Builds

BobSim desktop artifacts are PyInstaller builds. They bundle the app frontend and Python backend, but intentionally do not bundle generated Modelica simulation executables, reports, app caches, or user workspaces.

Build the current platform's executable/app bundle:

make deploy

Clean, build, and package a release artifact:

make deploy-release DEPLOY_VERSION=2026.06.28

Release assets are platform-native. A Linux machine creates the Linux archive, a Windows machine creates the Windows zip, and macOS creates the macOS zip. The repository's Release Builds GitHub Actions workflow builds all three when a v* tag is pushed and uploads them to the GitHub Release with --clobber.

Deploy outputs are written under:

_0_Utils/deploy/dist/BobSim/
_0_Utils/deploy/dist/releases/

Docker Environment

BobSim ships with a Docker image based on:

openmodelica/openmodelica:v1.26.3-ompython

The Dockerfile installs:

• OpenModelica runtime
• Modelica Standard Library 4.1.0
• VehicleInterfaces 2.0.2
• Python virtual environment under /opt/venv
• BobSim Python requirements
• plotting, reporting, PyVista, and video dependencies

Build the image:

make docker-build

Rebuild from scratch:

make docker-rebuild

Open shells:

make shell
make shell-standard
make shell-envelope
make shell-opt

The compose services mount the repository into /workspace and set PYTHONPATH=/workspace.

Local Python

The container is the most repeatable path, but local development is possible if OpenModelica and Python dependencies are installed.

BobSim commonly uses the repository-local virtual environment:

source .venv/bin/activate
python -m pip install -r requirements.txt

To create it from scratch:

python -m venv .venv
source .venv/bin/activate
python -m pip install --upgrade pip
python -m pip install -r requirements.txt

Verify the basics:

python --version
omc --version
python -c "import yaml, scipy, pandas, matplotlib; print('ok')"

VisualSim also needs the PyVista/Qt/VTK stack and FFmpeg support through ImageIO.

Make Target Reference

Setup and shell targets:

Target	Action
make init	Initialize/update git submodules
make app	Launch the local BobSim browser app
make deploy	Build the native desktop artifact for the current OS
make deploy-package	Package the current deploy artifact for release
make deploy-release	Clean, build, and package a release artifact
make deploy-clean	Remove deploy outputs
make docker-build	Build the Docker image
make docker-rebuild	Rebuild the Docker image without cache
make shell	Open the main BobSim shell
make shell-standard	Open a StandardSim shell
make shell-envelope	Open an EnvelopeSim shell
make shell-opt	Open an OptSim shell

StandardSim targets:

Target	Action
make standard-build	Build the integrated VehicleSim entry point
make standard-build-four-post	Build the integrated FourPostSim entry point
make standard-eval-ramp-steer	Run RampSteerEval
make standard-eval-steady-state	Run SteadyStateEval
make standard-eval-transient	Run TransientEval
make standard-eval-four-post	Run FourPostEval
make standard-eval-all	Run all standard evaluations

Envelope and OptSim targets:

Target	Action
make envelope-ggv	Run GGV envelope generation
make envelope-ymd	Run YMD envelope generation
make envelope-all	Run all envelope outputs
make opt-standard	Run StandardSens pre-screen sensitivities
make opt-envelope	Run EnvelopeSens sensitivities
make opt-refined	Run StandardSens refined response surfaces

Quality and cleanup targets:

Target	Action
make lint	Run Ruff checks
make typecheck	Run MyPy checks
make test	Run pytest regression checks
make ci	Run lint, typecheck, and tests
make clean	Remove Python and tool caches
make clean-standard	Remove StandardSim build/result artifacts
make clean-envelope	Remove EnvelopeSim build/result artifacts
make clean-opt	Remove OptSim build/result artifacts
make clean-all	Run all cleanup targets

Quality Checks

Run the release gate:

make ci

That expands to:

make lint
make typecheck
make test

GitHub Actions runs the same targets with the BobLib submodule checked out recursively. The pytest suite includes release-polish checks that assert the public make target language stays coherent.

Recommended Loops

For normal browser-based work:

make app

Then use Setup, Simulation, and Archive.

For standard maneuver work:

make standard-build
make standard-eval-ramp-steer
make standard-eval-steady-state
make standard-eval-transient

For suspension/K&C work:

make standard-build-four-post
make standard-eval-four-post

For envelope work:

make standard-eval-four-post
make envelope-all

For sensitivity work:

make clean-opt
make opt-standard
make opt-envelope

For a public-release check:

make standard-eval-all
make ci

Add make envelope-all when you intentionally want the optional envelope artifacts as part of the release package.

Troubleshooting

Executable not found

The workflow build directory does not contain the compiled OpenModelica executable. Run make standard-build or make standard-build-four-post.

Init XML not found

The OpenModelica build did not complete cleanly. Clean the matching build directory and rebuild.

BobLib not found

The submodule is missing or the path in a config is wrong. Run:

make init

Modelica package cannot load

Use the Docker path first. For local installs, confirm OpenModelica can find Modelica Standard Library 4.1.0 and VehicleInterfaces 2.0.2.

yaml import fails

Install BobSim requirements in the Python environment that is running the app or workflow:

python -m pip install -r requirements.txt

omc is missing from the app run log

Open the app's OpenModelica toolchain selector and choose the omc executable plus the OpenModelica library directory. If auto-detection fails, common library defaults are %APPDATA%\.openmodelica\libraries on Windows and ~/.openmodelica/libraries on macOS/Linux. For source-checkout CLI work, use the Docker-backed workflow targets when local OpenModelica is not available.

Simulation fails but no run directory remains

Set execution.cleanup: false in the workflow config and rerun. Then inspect the retained run directory under the build tree.

OptSim population mismatch

Sample count or variable dimensions changed while old variants remained on disk. Run:

make clean-opt

then rerun the relevant make opt-* target.

Visual render fails on import

Install the visualization dependencies from requirements.txt, and prefer the Docker shell if local Qt/VTK/PyVista packages are difficult to align.