A modular approach for developping a modeling environment of thermal systems: the SYMBOL project

We present the SYMBOL project which is based on a modular approach of modeling. The main objectives of this project is to develop a coherent set of modeling tools which can be assembled in order to simply build particular and adapted modeling programs and to allow handling of "natural" concepts during the modeling process. The paper will deal mainly with the modularity of the SYMBOL'environment, and the needed formalism and abstraction effort made in the SYMBOL project.