Patent ID: 8689236

Claim:
A computer-implemented method comprising: receiving an executable block diagram having a plurality of interconnected message-based blocks, and a plurality of interconnected time-based blocks, where: the message-based blocks send and receive messages that include fixed payloads, and persist for a determined time interval during execution of the block diagram, and the time-based blocks generate and receive signals representing quantities that change over time, and have values at substantially all points in time during execution of the block diagram; determining, by a processing element, a sorted order of the interconnected time-based blocks; executing, by the processing element, the interconnected time-based blocks according to the sorted order; interrupting the execution of the interconnected time-based blocks in response to a source message-based block generating a message; sending the message generated by the source message-based block to at least one destination message-based block; and resuming the execution of the interconnected time-based blocks according to the sorted order, after the message is sent to the at least one destination message-based block.