The variant run functionality allows multiple scenarios based on a baseline network to be run when an event occurs causing an alert trigger. For example, if a flooding event occurs in the network that raises an alert, multiple simulations using different RTC can be triggered in order to assess the most effective scenario.
A default run is selected in the Manifest in InfoWorks ICM. The default run may contain multiple simulations. One of the simulations is selected as the baseline simulation to be used for all full runs and observed runs in the Operator Client. The other simulations associated with the default run will be run as variant simulations according to the run schedule in the manifest.
To set up the frequency of variant runs, select a setting from the Run variants field in the Setup page in the Manifest. The options are:
- Never - do not run variant simulations.
- Always - run variant simulation every time a run is initiated.
- Variant trigger - only run variant simulations when an alert of category specified as the Variant run trigger occurs. When variant runs are triggered, full runs including variants will be scheduled at the Triggered full run frequencyspecified in the manifest.
Note that Externally triggered runs will only generate variant simulations when manifest run schedule run variants set to always.
Variant run initial states
Variant runs are used to model different responses to the occurrence of an event in the baseline model, therefore each variant run should start from the saved state of the baseline run.
For automatic runs there is always a saved state: the variant run will use the saved state of the baseline run as its initial state and will start at the save state time of the baseline run.
For manual runs a number of situations can occur:
- The baseline run has a state saving run specified:
- The variant run uses the saved state of the baseline run as its initial state.
- The variant run starts at the save state time of the baseline run.
- The baseline run has no state saving run and uses no initial state:
- The variant run will not use an initial state.
- The variant run starts at the same time as the baseline run.
- The baseline run has no state saving run and uses an initial state:
- The variant run uses the same initial state as the baseline run.
- The variant run starts at the save state time of the initial state.
Export of variant run results
Results of variant runs may be exported in a similar way to results of baseline simulation runs.
Enable the Export variants option in the Result CSV export, Database export, Graph export and Map export pages in the manifest to automatically export the corresponding results for variant runs when automatic runs are performed in ICMLive Operator Client.
Note that the Test Export functionality available in the export pages does not apply to variant run results.
Variant run results (CSV export and export of maps and graphs) are exported to the specified target directory, inside subfolders (one subfolder per variant run) within the export folder of the parent run.