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Add Libraries to the Library Browser

This example shows how to create a block library and add it to the Simulink® Library Browser. This example also shows how to add a sublibrary.

To specify information about your library, you create a function named slblocks.

Add Library to the Library Browser

  1. From the Simulink start page, select Blank Library and click Create Library.

    Note

    The Library Browser only supports libraries. You cannot display the contents of a model in the Library Browser.

  2. Add a Gain block to the library.

  3. In the MATLAB® Command Window, enter this command to set the EnableLBRepository library property to 'on'. Your library will appear in the Library Browser only if this property is on when you save your library.

    set_param(gcs,'EnableLBRepository','on');

  4. Save the library in a folder on the MATLAB path. For this example, name the library mylib.

  5. In the MATLAB Current Folder Browser, open the folder that contains mylib, then click New Script in the MATLAB Toolstrip.

  6. In the MATLAB Editor that opens, add this function, which specifies that the library mylib should appear in the Library Browser with the name My Library.

    function blkStruct = slblocks
% This function specifies that the library 'mylib'
% should appear in the Library Browser with the 
% name 'My Library'

    Browser.Library = 'mylib';
    % 'mylib' is the name of the library

    Browser.Name = 'My Library';
    % 'My Library' is the library name that appears
    % in the Library Browser

    blkStruct.Browser = Browser;

  7. Save the function as slblocks.m.

    Note

    You can save the function as an .m or .mlx file. You cannot save it as a P-code file.

  8. Open the Library Browser by clicking Library Browser in the Simulink Toolstrip.

  9. To see the new library in the Library Browser, right-click the library list and select Refresh Library Browser.

    The figure shows the example library mylib with the Library Browser name My Library.

Note

If you saved your library without setting 'EnableLBRepository' to 'on', a message appears at the top of the Library Browser.

Click Fix and respond to the prompt as appropriate.

Add Sublibrary to the Library Browser

Follow these steps to add a sublibrary named mylib2 to your mylib library.

  1. Create a library named mylib2. Add some blocks to it.

  2. In the MATLAB Command Window, set the EnableLBRepository library property to 'on' for the new library. 

    set_param(gcs,'EnableLBRepository','on');

  3. Save mylib2 to the folder that contains mylib.

  4. Add a Subsystem block to the mylib library.

  5. Remove the input and output ports from the subsystem by deleting the Inport and Outport blocks inside the subsystem.

  6. Name the Subsystem block My Sublibrary.

  7. To link the Subsystem block to the sublibrary, set the OpenFcn callback to mylib2 by using the Property Inspector.

    The Property Inspector lets you set the OpenFcn callback on the Properties tab.

  8. Save mylib.

  9. To see the new sublibrary in the Library Browser, right-click the library list and select Refresh Library Browser.

    The figure shows the example sublibrary mylib2 with the Library Browser name My Sublibrary.

    Because of the callback you created, clicking My Sublibrary displays the contents of the mylib2 library.

Specify Library Order in the Library List

You can specify the order of your library relative to the other libraries in the list by adding a sl_customization.m file to the MATLAB path and setting the sort priority of your library. For example, to see your library at the top of the list, you can set the sort priority to -2. By default, the sort priority of the Simulink library is -1. The other libraries have a sort priority of 0 by default, and these libraries appear below the Simulink library. Libraries with the same sort priority appear in alphabetical order.

This sample content of the sl_customization.m file places the new library at the top of the list of libraries. 

function sl_customization(cm)
% Change the order of libraries in the Simulink Library Browser. 
cm.LibraryBrowserCustomizer.applyOrder({'My Library',-2});
end

To make the customization take effect immediately, in the MATLAB Command Window, enter:

sl_refresh_customizations

My Library appears at the top of the list of libraries.

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