Defining the feature model

Overview

Next Design allows you to define the structure of your feature model in a tree diagram format and define constraints between features.

The steps below define the feature model in the following order:

• Start product line development in the project
• Define the structure of the feature model
• Add constraints between features
• Check feature model integrity

Start product line development

To apply product line development to your project:

Operating procedure

1. Select the root project in the Model Navigator.
2. From the project screen, click the Start link in the product line.
3. This enables you to use the functions for product line development.

Attention

• You cannot stop the product line development after starting the product line development and saving the project.

Define the structure of the feature model

Switch to Feature Editor

Follow the steps below to create/edit the feature model.

Operating procedure

1. Click [Feature Model] displayed in the product line of the project screen to switch to the feature editor.

You can also switch to the feature editor using the following procedure.

Other operating procedures

1. Switch the navigator to "Product line navigator".
2. Select [Feature Model] directly under the project.

Edit feature model

To add features using the Feature Editor, follow the same steps as for model editing in the tree diagram.

Operating procedure

1. Select a feature type from the toolbox and drag and drop it on the feature model.

Feature Type	Description
Mandatory Feature	Must be selected if parent feature is selected
Optional Feature	Optional features if the parent feature is selected
Alternative Feature	If the parent feature is selected, any one of the alternative features of siblings should be selected
Or Feature	If at least one of the sibling disjunction features should be selected if the parent feature is selected
Feature Group	Tree-structured node that represents the concept of grouping multiple features

You can also add features using the following steps.

Other operating procedures

1. Select the parent feature in the feature editor.
2. From the ribbon, click Product Line> Feature> Create and select the type of feature you want to add.

Change feature type

To change the type of an existing feature, do the following:

Operating procedure

1. Select the feature of interest.
2. Do one of the following to change the feature type.
   • Right-click the selected features and select the type from [Change Kind] in the context menu.
   • From the ribbon, click Product Line> Feature> Change Kind and select the feature type.

Set the initial selection state of features

To change the initial state of a feature for a product to the selected state during configuration, use the following procedure to change the property.

Operating procedure

1. Right-click the feature and click Property on the context menu.
2. Check the checkbox of [Property]> [Basic information]> [Whether to make initial selection] displayed in the inspector on the right side.

Note

• Mandatory features will be initially selected regardless of the check state of [Whether to make initial selection].

Describe details in feature tree format

To provide a detailed description for each feature:

Operating procedure

1. Switch the view in the Feature Editor to Feature Tree.
2. Edit the Description column in the tree grid.

Add constraints between features

Adding constraints between features is similar to adding relationships between models in an ER diagram:

Operating procedure

1. Associate features with each other by drag and drop operation.
2. Click the constraint type from the choices that pop up.

Constraint type	Description
Exclusion	Represents a relationship in which features with exclusion constraints cannot be selected simultaneously.
Equals	Mutually dependent features represent relationships that must be selected at the same time.
Requires	When selecting the dependent source feature, the dependent feature also represents the relationship that should be selected.

You can also add constraints between features using the following procedure.

Other operating procedures

1. Select the source and destination features in the Feature Editor.
2. From the ribbon, click Product Line> Feature> Add constraint and select the constraint type.

Verify feature model integrity

Check integrity

To check the integrity of the structure and constraints of your feature model:

Operating procedure

1. Click [Feature Model] displayed in the product line of the project screen to switch to the feature editor.
2. Click Display> Pane> Error List on the ribbon to display the error list.
3. Click Product Line> Feature> Check Consistency on the ribbon.
4. If there is an error, it will be displayed in the error list and will be displayed in the feature editor.

Jump to error location

Follow the procedure below to jump from the error displayed in the error list to the relevant part and correct it.

Operating procedure

1. Double-click the error displayed in the error list to jump to the error location in the feature editor.
2. Refer to the error message and correct the feature type or constraint between features.

Cancel error display

To cancel the error display, follow the procedure below.

Operating procedure

1. Do one of the following:
   • Click the [Clear error] button on the toolbar of the error list.
   • From the ribbon, click [▼] at the bottom of [Home]> [Model]> [Check Error], and click [Clear Error].