Glossary

The words of SIM, in the sense the software uses them. Timing words (race, passing, loop, finish line…) are those of FINISH.

ChronoFEED-SIM (SIM): The suite's simulator. It follows a FINISH, emulates its timing device and runs the athletes of its races (Race mode), or sends the passings you choose (Manual mode). It has no database, no athlete list and no track: everything comes from FINISH.
Data link: SIM's connection to the FINISH broadcast (like TABLEAU and VOICE), on the “Simulation” channel: FINISH publishes its device, its track, its transponders and its races there, once per second. It is used to make the simulation realistic; no passing travels over it.
Timing link: The connection of FINISH to the simulated device, set in FINISH exactly as for the real device (same transport, same protocol). Passings and starts go through it: FINISH does not know it is talking to a simulator.
Simulated equipment: The fake device SIM starts: the same as the one set in FINISH (RACE RESULT, Ubidium, MyLaps, Chronelec, USB Timing Box, FDS TBox, Microgate REI2), speaking its real protocol. See The emulated equipment.
Lights: The three dots of the link card: FINISH (found and agreeing), Simulated equipment (running), FINISH connection (FINISH says it is connected to it). Orange: not yet; green: done. See The three lights.
Connection guide: The dark orange line below the lights: what to set in FINISH so that it connects to the simulated device (address and port, or serial port), and what FINISH is currently targeting.
Accept ChronoFEED-SIM: The box in the FINISH Broadcast module that allows a SIM to link up, whatever the timing mode. Unchecked by default, to be unchecked during a competition. See the scenario.
SIM connected: The orange banner in the FINISH status bar as long as a SIM is linked and accepted, with the name of its computer. A click opens the Broadcast module.
Announcement: The message FINISH sends on the network every 2 s so that SIM, TABLEAU and VOICE can find it without entering an address.
Race mode: SIM follows the FINISH races: it gives the starts and runs the athletes.
Manual mode: You send the transponder passings yourself: one by one, by selection or in automatic laps. Not to be confused with the manual starts of Race mode, nor with the FINISH “Manual” timing mode (numeric keypad).
Manual, automatic starts: In Race mode, who triggers the start signal: you (the race's Start button) or SIM, on its own, at the pace of a real track.
Start signal: What the device sends when the gun connected to it fires: a pulse code for RACE RESULT, a marker for the Ubidium, transponder 255 for MyLaps, the manual input 000000 on the “Gun” line for Chronelec, a pulse on the start channel for a timer. SIM always gives a start through it.
Group: For the pace of automatic starts: the races loaded together in FINISH at the moment of the group's first start. A race loaded while a group is racing waits for the track to be free and for the pause.
Heat: One start within a group. The heats of a group follow each other at the “Delay between two waves” (15 s by default).
Free track: All the races that have started have sent their last passing (or are no longer in FINISH). The next group starts after the “Pause between starts” (60 s by default).
Lap prediction: The acceleration and top speed of a race in FINISH (its expected times). SIM runs the athletes with the same model: standing start, acceleration up to top speed, then constant speed, with a little randomness for each one.
Realistic race: The level of intended errors in Race mode: none, few, many. See the table of probabilities.
Intended error (simulated error): A fault SIM introduces on purpose and writes to the log when it happens (“⚠ SIMULATED ERROR — …”): missed line (nothing is sent for an intermediate line), missed finish (never the last one), delay (passing sent 1 to 5 s later with its true time), duplicate (the same passing twice), ghost signal (a line far ahead reads the athlete), bounce (photocells: a second signal 20 to 120 ms later), weak transponder (an athlete with many missing passings).
Automatic laps: In Manual mode, transponders checked “Laps” cross the finish line on their own, endlessly, at their lap time plus or minus the variation.
Lap time, variation: The average time of an automatic lap (the common one, or the row's own) and the random deviation drawn on each lap (± %).
Spacing: In Manual mode, the time between two transponders sent together with “Send the selection”; 0: all at the same instant.
Assignment by start position: When FINISH assigns transponders by start position, SIM gives each athlete without a transponder the first FINISH transponder that has their position, of the device's type and not already on the track; FINISH assigns it to them at the first passing.
com0com, virtual serial port pair: A free Windows driver that creates two serial ports linked to each other (COM10 ↔ COM11): SIM opens one, FINISH the other. Essential for simulating a serial device, on the FINISH computer. See Virtual serial ports.
DTR: A control line of the serial port. In a com0com pair, the DTR output of one port arrives at the DSR input of the other: the fake USB Timing Box sets its clock on it, the fake TBox sends nothing while it is low, just like the real ones.
Radio transmitter (TBox): The box that passes the start or photocell pulse to the FDS TBox. It has a serial number; the TBox receives it through the radio input (Radio_A to Radio_F) that carries this number and gives it that input's channel. See TBox radio transmitters.