Stateflow, developed by MathWorks, is a control logic tool used to model reactive systems via state charts and flow diagrams within a Simulink

Simulink

Simulink, developed by MathWorks, is a commercial tool for modeling, simulating and analyzing multidomain dynamic systems. Its primary interface is a graphical block diagramming tool and a customizable set of block libraries. It offers tight integration with the rest of the MATLAB environment and...

 model. Stateflow uses a variant of the finite-state machine notation established by David Harel

David Harel

David Harel is a professor of computer science at the Weizmann Institute of Science in Israel. Born in London, England, he was Dean of the Faculty of Mathematics and Computer Science at the institute for seven years.-Biography:...

, enabling the representation of hierarchy, parallelism and history within a state chart.

Common Uses

Stateflow is generally used to specify the discrete controller in the model of a hybrid system where the continuous dynamics (i.e., the behavior of the plant and environment) are specified using Simulink.

Specific applications for Stateflow include:

• Mode logic, where each discrete mode of a system is represented by a state
• Fault management, where the Stateflow chart is used to control how the system responds to faults and failures within a system
• Task scheduling, where the Stateflow chart is used to schedule when specific tasks occur, either within the Stateflow chart or within the overall Simulink model

Extensions

Stateflow can be used with other products to extend its capabilities beyond modeling and simulation. For example, using add-on code generation products, a Stateflow user can automatically generate C, HDL, and PLC code from a Stateflow chart.