Software Overview - SatGen 4

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This page covers an overview of the software UI and provides links that covers the elements in more depth.

SatGen 4 will load the default view upon start-up:

SatGen 4.1.13_start-up.png

There are two main stages of scenario creation in SatGen 4. The first stage is to define the route of the test, and the second is to convert this route into a scenario file that can be replayed on a LabSat product or into a simulation.

Note: You must have an internet connection so that map and almanac details can be downloaded automatically.

The UI Sections in SatGen 4

The Toolbar

File
You can use the File menu to start a new scenario, open and save existing scenario files, export a scenario file, manage the software updates, find software information and exit the software.
Import
You can import 4 different types of files into SatGen 4: Google Earth KML files, NMEA files, VBOX files and CSV files.
Map Mode
The Map Mode lets you see the map of a selected area. You can search or zoom and pan to find your required area, select a Routing Mode and click on the map to set waypoints for your scenario's route.
Script Mode
You can build a simple list of commands to create a route. Click the Preview button in the top left corner in the script mode view to display the output of the script.
Advanced
Configure the atmospheric model and leap seconds for your scenario.
Help
The Help button will take you to the user documentation that is relevant to the section/mode you are in.

The Route View

This is where you can preview your route as you create it. This area will look differently depending on if you are using Map Mode or Script Mode.

The Graphs Area

The graphs area will display relevant data based on the selected graph type and the route in your scenario.

The graph will be updated with each new waypoint that is added to the route.

You can change the graph type by clicking on the graph name and select one of the following options:

Speed (km/h) over Timer (s) w/ Active Satellites
Altitude (m) over Time (s) w/ Active Satellites
Speed (km/h) over Time (s)
Altitude (m) over Time (s)
No. of Active Satellites over Time (s)

The yellow line on the graph indicates active satellites. You can see the satellite count indicated on the right-hand side of the graph when your graph type includes active satellites.

Note: The graph is pinned to the default view, but you can change this if required by clicking on the pin icon in its top right corner. This will minimise the graphs. You can maximise the graphs again by clicking on the Graphs tab at the bottom left-hand corner of the SatGen 4 window.

The Settings Area

Route
This is where you will find options to further configure your route, such as the map provider, dynamics, altitude, height geoid, default target speed, Apex distance limit, delays, elevation mask and true horizon. It will also display a summary of the configured route or examples of route options if you are using Script Mode.

The route options will change based on your configuration.
Almanacs
This area will display the used almanacs, and provide options for you to manually set almanacs for the different constellations.
Satellites
This view will show you a list of the available satellites in the different constellations based on your first waypoint marker on the map. All points will show the same values based on this first marker. You can see the satellites that are visible above the set elevation mask, the satellites' PRN number, azimuth in degrees and elevation in degrees as well as an ascension/descension indicator for each satellite.
Create
This area includes the output settings for your scenario file. Select the file format, directory and name for your output file and choose the signals you wish to include along with quantisation and scenario attenuation. You can create the file directly or add it to a queue of files to be generated.

World Map

This area contains a world map that will indicate the location of your current route.

The Queue The Queue is where your simulations are created from your scenarios. When you click on the Create File button at the bottom of the Create tab, the queue will automatically open and you will see the progress bar for the creation of the file. When you click on the Add to Queue button at the bottom of the Create tab, the queue will automatically open with the current scenario configuration in it, but the scenario file will not be created until you manually tell the application to start the creation process. You can find more information about the controls for the queue and the simulations in the queue below.
The number in parenthesis in the header on the Queue displays the number of scenario configurations that are currently in the queue. You can click on the Pin button in the top right of the Queue to make it stay open and pin it to the left side of the SatGen 4 window.
Click on the large Play button in the top toolbar of the queue to start the process of creating all the simulations in the queue. Click on the Stop button to cancel the creation of the file currently in progress. Click on the red cross with the green tick mark to remove all completed or cancelled simulations. Click on the red cross to clear the simulation queue.
Each scenario in the queue will have its name, progress bar and control buttons. Click on the grey cross in the top right corner to remove the simulation from the queue. Click on the Play/Pause button to start/stop the file creation process. Click on the Stop button to cancel the file creation process. Click on the Folder button to open the output folder in Explorer.

The UI Sections in SatGen 4

The Toolbar

The Route View

The Graphs Area

The Settings Area

The Queue