AIMMS Excel Add-In Users Guide - Using the AIMMS Excel Add-In

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Aimms 3.12

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Chapter 4 Using the Aimms Excel Add-In

This chapter explains in more detail how the Aimms Excel add-in can be used. You will nd the details about the default sequences and the storage of the interface setup data, as well as the methods available to run one or more execution sequences.

This chapter

4.1 Interface setup defaults and storage

When you start using the Aimms Excel add-in with a new spreadsheet, you will be supplied with two default execution sequences, called Initialization, and Main. The AIMMS Interface Setup dialog box will never allow you to delete these two sequences. The Initialization sequence is automatically called by the Aimms Excel add-in directly after the Aimms project has started. You can use this sequence, for instance, to initialize data in the Aimms model that does not change throughout the session. The Main sequence is not called automatically by Aimms, but can serve as a main execution entry in the Execute menu of the AIMMS menu or toolbar. To indicate this status, the Main sequence will always have an associated icon in the Execute menu, as illustrated in Figure 4.1. The Initialization sequence Default sequences

The Main sequence

Figure 4.1: The AIMMS-Execute toolbar

Chapter 4. Using the Aimms Excel Add-In

35

Although you cannot delete the default sequences, you have the freedom to ignore them and remove them from the Execute menu, by unchecking the Include in Execute Menu checkbox on the Execution Sequences tab of the AIMMS Interface Setup dialog box. The Aimms Excel add-in will store all interface data that you entered in the AIMMS Interface Setup dialog box in a hidden sheet in your workbook, called AIMMS SETUP . In order to prevent the user from entering erroneous data on this sheet, which could cause the interface to stop functioning properly, the sheet cannot be made visible.

Not mandatory

Setup data storage

4.2 Running execution sequences

When you have dened some execution sequences using the AIMMS Interface Setup dialog and have checked the Include in Execute Menu checkbox for them, those execution sequences appear in the add-in provided Execute menu. Selecting an execution sequence from this menu will run it. Another way to run an execution sequence is through the subroutine
ExecuteAimmsSequence(ByVal SequenceName As String)

The execute menu

From Visual Basic

which is exported by the Aimms Excel add-in. You can call it from any Excel Macro that youve written. You only have to pass the name of the sequence dened in the AIMMS Interface Setup dialog box as an argument to this subroutine, as can be seen from the declaration. This way of running sequences oers an even more exible way to integrate Aimms projects into your Excel spreadsheets. To call the ExecuteAimmsSequence subroutine directly from within your Visual Basic code, you must include a reference to the Aimms Excel add-in Aimms.xla to your spreadsheet through the Tools-References menu in the Visual Basic Editor. However, this is not strictly necessary, as you can also use the Run method to call ExecuteAimmsSequence directly from Aimms.xla, as illustrated below.
Run "Aimms.xla!ExecuteAimmsSequence", "Main"

Include reference