Find Artifacts with Queries

This example uses:

CI/CD Automation for Simulink Check CI/CD Automation for Simulink Check

With the CI/CD Automation for Simulink Check support package, you can define a development and verification process for your team by adding tasks to your process model and using queries to find the relevant artifacts for your tasks and process. There are built-in queries for finding common artifacts like models, requirements, and test cases, but you can also create your own custom queries. Typically, you use queries to find artifacts for your tasks to iterate over, use as task inputs, or use to find additional artifacts that your task inputs depend on.

In Process Advisor, the Tasks column shows the artifacts that the task iterates over. When you point to task results in the I/O column, you can see the task inputs and input dependencies. You define the task iterations, inputs, and input dependencies by specifying the associated task properties using queries.

Diagram showing IterationQuery connected to task iterations, InputQueries connected to the task inputs, and InputDependencyQuery connected to the dependencies

Built-In Queries

The support package has built-in queries that can find specific sets of artifacts in your project. You can use the queries when you define your process, but note that you can only use certain queries as an input query (InputQueries) or iteration query (IterationQuery) for a task.

Query	Returns	Iteration Query	Input Query
`padv.builtin.query.FindArtifacts`	Artifacts that meet specified criteria	✔	Only when the query property `InProject` is `false`.
`padv.builtin.query.FindBuildfile`	Build file for MATLAB^® build tool		Only when the query property `InProject` is `false`.
`padv.builtin.query.FindCodeForModel`	Generated code files and `buildInfo.mat` for a model	✔	✔
`padv.builtin.query.FindDesignModels`	Units and components in project	✔
`padv.builtin.query.FindExternalCodeCache`	External code cache files in project		✔
`padv.builtin.query.FindFileWithAddress`	File at the specified address	Only when the query property `TrackArtifacts` is `true`.	✔
`padv.builtin.query.FindFilesWithLabel`	Files with specific project label	✔
`padv.builtin.query.FindMAJustificationFileForModel`	Find Model Advisor justification files	✔	✔
`padv.builtin.query.FindModels`	Models	✔	Only when the query property `InProject` is `false`.
`padv.builtin.query.FindModelsWithLabel`	Models with specific project label	✔
`padv.builtin.query.FindModelsWithTestCases`	Models associated with a test case	✔
`padv.builtin.query.FindProjectFile`	Project file	✔	✔
`padv.builtin.query.FindRefModels`	Referenced models	✔
`padv.builtin.query.FindRequirements`	Requirement sets	✔	Only when the query property `InProject` is `false`.
`padv.builtin.query.FindRequirementsForModel`	Requirements associated with model	✔	✔
`padv.builtin.query.FindTestCasesForModel`	Test cases associated with model	✔	✔
`padv.builtin.query.FindTopModels`	Top models	✔	✔
`padv.builtin.query.FindUnits`	Units in the project	✔	✔
`padv.builtin.query.GetDependentArtifacts`	Dependent artifacts for artifact		✔
`padv.builtin.query.GetInputsOfBuildToolTasks`	Inputs of MATLAB build tool tasks		Only when the query property `InProject` is `false`.
`padv.builtin.query.GetIterationArtifact`	Artifact that the task is iterating over		✔
`padv.builtin.query.GetOutputsOfDependentTask`	Outputs from immediate predecessor task		✔

Custom Queries

If you need to find artifacts that are not already covered by built-in queries, you can use custom queries in your process model. Depending on what you want your custom query to do, there are different approaches. For more information, see Create Custom Queries.

Valid Artifact Types

The support package creates a digital thread to monitor artifacts in your project and analyze their relationships. The digital thread is a set of metadata that allows Process Advisor and its build system to detect changes to the project and identify outdated task results. However, the digital thread only tracks changes to specific types of artifacts shown below. If you use custom queries that return unsupported artifact types, the digital thread cannot detect changes to those artifacts, which can limit the ability of Process Advisor to identify outdated tasks results. To see a list of the files the digital thread is tracking in your project, see Find Artifacts that Digital Thread Tracks.

The digital thread tracks the following types of artifacts. If an artifact in your project is represented by a padv.Artifact object with any other artifact type, such as "other_file", changes to that artifact do not cause tasks to become outdated.

Category	Artifact Type	Description
MATLAB	`"m_class"`	MATLAB class
	`"m_file"`	MATLAB file
	`"m_func"`	MATLAB function
	`"m_method"`	MATLAB class method
	`"m_property"`	MATLAB class property
Model Advisor	`"ma_config_file"`	Model Advisor configuration file
Model Advisor	`"ma_justification_file"`	Model Advisor justification file
Process Advisor	`"padv_dep_artifacts"`	Related artifacts that current artifact depends on
Process Advisor	`"padv_output_file"`	Process Advisor output file
Project	`"project"`	Current project file
Requirements	`"mwreq_item"`	Requirement (since R2024b)
	`"sl_req"`	Requirement (for R2024a and earlier)
	`"sl_req_file"`	Requirement file
	`"sl_req_table"`	Requirements Table
Stateflow^®	`"sf_chart"`	Stateflow chart
	`"sf_graphical_fcn"`	Stateflow graphical function
	`"sf_group"`	Stateflow group
	`"sf_state"`	Stateflow state
	`"sf_state_transition_chart"`	Stateflow state transition chart
	`"sf_truth_table"`	Stateflow truth table
Simulink^®	`"sl_block_diagram"`	Block diagram
	`"sl_data_dictionary_file"`	Data dictionary file
	`"sl_embedded_matlab_fcn"`	MATLAB function
	`"sl_block_diagram"`	Block diagram
	`"sl_library_file"`	Library file
	`"sl_model_file"`	Simulink model file
	`"sl_protected_model_file"`	Protected Simulink model file
	`"sl_subsystem"`	Subsystem
	`"sl_subsystem_file"`	Subsystem file
System Composer™	`"zc_block_diagram"`	System Composer architecture
	`"zc_component"`	System Composer architecture component
	`"zc_file"`	System Composer architecture file
Tests	`"harness_info_file"`	Harness info file
	`"sl_harness_block_diagram"`	Harness block diagram
	`"sl_harness_file"`	Test harness file
	`"sl_test_case"`	Simulink Test™ case
	`"sl_test_case_result"`	Simulink Test case result
	`"sl_test_file"`	Simulink Test file
	`"sl_test_iteration"`	Simulink Test iteration
	`"sl_test_iteration_result"`	Simulink Test iteration result
	`"sl_test_report_file"`	Simulink Test result report
	`"sl_test_result_file"`	Simulink Test result file
	`"sl_test_resultset"`	Simulink Test result set
	`"sl_test_seq"`	Test Sequence
	`"sl_test_suite"`	Simulink Test suite
	`"sl_test_suite_result"`	Simulink Test suite result

Dynamically Resolve Paths with Tokens

To dynamically resolve paths for artifacts, directories, and other process information, you can use tokens as placeholders. The default process model and built-in task source code use the following tokens.

Token	Description
$INPUTARTIFACT$	Input artifact for task
$ITERATIONARTIFACT$	Current artifact that the task is acting on
$PWD$	Current working directory
$TIMESTAMP$	Current date and time in the format `'yyyy_mm_dd_HH_MM_ss'`
$PROJECTROOT$	Root folder of project
$TASKNAME$	Task name or title
$DEFAULTOUTPUTDIR$	Default output directory for the process model
$ROOTITERATIONARTIFACT$	Root-level artifact for the iteration artifact

You can use these tokens in your process model, but note that:

The output directory of a task cannot be $PROJECTROOT$ .
The pipeline generator, padv.pipeline.generatePipeline, does not support the tokens $PWD$ , $TIMESTAMP$ , and $INPUTARTIFACT$ .

Inside the run method and dryRun method for a task, you can resolve tokens to their absolute path by using the resolvePath method. For example:

reportPath = convertStringsToChars(obj.resolvePath(obj.ReportPath));