A block diagram is a type of graphical representation.
A diagram is a graphic representation that shows the relationships between the various components of a set. Block , for its part, is a notion with multiple meanings: it can be a group of elements with common characteristics, a large-sized fragment of a compact material or a grouping of entities or organizations, to name a few meanings.
A graph that shows how a system works internally is called a block diagram . This demonstration is carried out through different blocks with their links, thus allowing the organization of the whole to be demonstrated.
Using a block diagram
Block diagrams are often used to graph production processes . Placing the raw material in the upper block, the successive stages of the process are then detailed until reaching the finished product (the last block).
Blocks are usually written in the infinitive. To the left of the blocks, the physical conditions needed for the development of each step of the process (pressure, temperature, etc.) are detailed. On the right, the substances that must be added during production are mentioned.
Thanks to a block diagram, it is possible to visualize how a system works internally.
Presentation of different processes
A process block diagram , also called a functional block diagram , is a block diagram that simultaneously shows the different processes of a system. Each process has its own block; These blocks, in turn, are linked by arrows that detail the flow of interacting signals.
The outputs and inputs of the blocks appear linked to each other through links or connection lines . These connection lines establish the relationship between the various logical points that are part of the diagram in question, and the combinations can be various.
If we start from the output of a block, for example, then we can connect it either with the input of another block or with an output variable, while if the first of the logical points is an input variable, it is possible to link it to an input .
This type of block diagram presents the relationships that exist between signal flow and processes in a more precise way than through a mathematical representation . In the same way, it has data related to dynamic behavior but not data related to the physical construction of the system itself.
Same block diagram, different systems
Broadly speaking, we can say that the same block diagram can be used to represent various systems, in the same way that a single system can be represented by many block diagrams, and it all depends on the point of view.
The use of these block diagrams is very important for several fields of science, although we can also describe some of the behaviors that they allow to describe in physical or real systems using a mathematical model.
The mathematical model
It is worth mentioning that a mathematical model is one of the types of scientific model that uses a mathematical formula of some type for the expression of relationships, variables, substantive propositions of facts, parameters and entities, as well as for the study of the way in which Complex systems behave in situations that are not easy to observe in reality.
For their part, scientific models are conceptual, abstract, visual or graphic representations of phenomena , processes or systems that seek their analysis, description, explanation and simulation.
Returning to the block diagram, it is important to note that its relationships have an absolutely regulated definition, thanks to which it is easy to analyze them, even if it is observed by a person outside the project, since in the first place it is enough to know these rules to proceed to read and understand it. .