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Dynamic Macros 1

This document introduces dynamic macros for scientific modeling in Excel. It discusses using the OFFSET function and VBA macros to simulate movement over time by varying the row or column referenced in a table of values. It provides examples of different loop structures in VBA - FOR, DO, and DO WHILE loops - to increment an index variable and update a chart in real time. Buttons are created and linked to these macros to run the simulations. Finally, it proposes creating additional macros for START/PAUSE and RESET functionality to control simulations in a more flexible way.

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Santosa Edy Wibowo
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63 views16 pages

Dynamic Macros 1

This document introduces dynamic macros for scientific modeling in Excel. It discusses using the OFFSET function and VBA macros to simulate movement over time by varying the row or column referenced in a table of values. It provides examples of different loop structures in VBA - FOR, DO, and DO WHILE loops - to increment an index variable and update a chart in real time. Buttons are created and linked to these macros to run the simulations. Finally, it proposes creating additional macros for START/PAUSE and RESET functionality to control simulations in a more flexible way.

Uploaded by

Santosa Edy Wibowo
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 16

Dynamic Macros for

Scientific Modeling
part #1
by George Lungu

<excelunusual.com>

The static time dimension:

Excel is generally used as a static tool. As an Excel companion, Visual Basic for
Applications (VBA) is an event-driven programming language which allows
processes automation and the creation of user defined functions. My first
experience with VBA was in creation of simple control interfaces (e.g. buttons) or
running through simple calculation loops in order to achieve a certain result.
Beginners can use a static time dimension which means some parameters of a
model are calculated in cells situated along a horizontal line. The time however will
advance vertically. In this case we obtain a fixed size table of values in which time is
located on one of the columns. The information can be presented on a scatter plot. If
we can figure out a way to chart one subset of this table and vary the position of the
subset in real time we can animate our model which means we can give the illusion
of movement on a chart.
How can we do this?
By using the spreadsheet function Offset() and varying the argument controlling the
offset value through a VBA macro.

<excelunusual.com>

A basic oscillation model:


Lets try to create the model of a fixed frequency oscillation. Well generate a
2 x 1000 table containing an increasing time series on the first column and a
sinusoidal time function on the second column:
Insert a worksheet and name it DynamicMacros
Create the following labels:
- Cell B6: Frequency
- Cell B10: Time
- Cell C10: Output
Choose some number for the frequency:
- Cell C6: =0.1
Generate the sinusoidal function:
- Cell B11: =0
- Cell C11: =SIN(2*PI()*C$6*B11)
- Cell B12: =B11+0.1 (the time step is chosen 0.1 second)
- Cell C12: =SIN(2*PI()*C$6*B12)
- Copy {B12:C12} down to {B1010:C1010}

<excelunusual.com>

Plot a small part of the sinusoidal function:


Create a 2D scatter plot of the {B11:C200} range for visual verification:

<excelunusual.com>

A very important function, the OFFSET() function:

OFFSET( reference, rows, cols, height, width )


Reference is the reference from which you want to base the offset. Reference must
refer to a cell or range of adjacent cells; otherwise, OFFSET returns the #VALUE! error
value.
Rows is the number of rows, up or down, that you want the upper-left cell to refer to.
Using 5 as the rows argument specifies that the upper-left cell in the reference is five rows
below reference. Rows can be positive (which means below the starting reference) or
negative (which means above the starting reference).
Cols is the number of columns, to the left or right, that you want the upper-left cell of
the result to refer to. Using 5 as the cols argument specifies that the upper-left cell in the
reference is five columns to the right of reference. Cols can be positive (which means to
the right of the starting reference) or negative (which means to the left of the starting
reference).
Height is the height, in number of rows, that you want the returned reference to be.
Height must be a positive number.
Width is the width, in number of columns, that you want the returned reference to be.
Width must be a positive number.

<excelunusual.com>

Use the OFFSET() function to isolate a certain row in the output table:
Create the following labels:
- Cell B7: Index , Cell E10: Selection
Choose an arbitrary index number:
Cell C7: =5
Use the OFFSET() function:
- Cell E11: OFFSET(C11,C7,0)
(note here that by changing the index
(cell C7), we can select a different cell
from column C to be displayed in cell
E11
Create a Column Chart out of cell E11:
- Select cell E11 => Insert => Chart =>
Column => Finish
- Format the vertical axis between -1
and 1

<excelunusual.com>

Three simple dynamic VBA macros:


There are essentially two
different types of loops in VBA:
1. The For loop
2. The Do loop
Though there are different flavors
of these loops depending on the
way the loop is finished, we will
present only three versions in
this section.
- Go: Tools => Macro => Visual
Basic Editor
- Select Module1 and in the
editor type in the following three
macros:

<excelunusual.com>

The Loop1 macro


This is a plain vanilla For loop with the addition of a DoEvents statement:

Dim n As Integer

=> is the declaration of the integer variable n

Sub Loop1()
n=0
For n = 0 To 1000
DoEvents
Range("C7") = n
Next
End Sub

=> Indicates the beginning of the macro


=>
initializes the variable n
=>
beginning of the For loop
=>
DoEvents*
=>
instruction executed during each cycle
=>
end of the For loop
=> end of the macro

The DoEvents function surrenders execution of the macro so that the operating
system can process other events.
If the DoEvents statement were missing the macro would work fine but the chart
would not update properly or we wouldnt be able to run other macros such as
changing parameters on the spreadsheet during the time the loop is active.

<excelunusual.com>

The Loop2 macro


A Do loop can be an infinite type of loop. In the case of the second loop, we will
use a finite flavor with an incorporated condition (n>1000) for ending it:

Sub Loop2()
n=0
Do
DoEvents
Range("C7") = n
n=n+1
Loop Until n > 1000
End Sub

=> Indicates the beginning of the macro


=> initializes the variable n
=>
beginning of the Do loop
=>
DoEvents*
=>
some instruction executed during each cycle
=>
index augmentation condition
=>
end condition of the Do loop
=> end of the macro

The DoEvents function surrenders execution of the macro so that the operating
system can process other events.
If the DoEvents statement were missing the macro would work all right but the
chart would not update properly or we wouldnt be able to run other macros such as
changing parameters on the spreadsheet

<excelunusual.com>

The Loop3 macro

In the case of the third loop, we will use a Do loop with an incorporated beginning
condition (n<1001) for running it (once this condition is violated the loop stops):

Sub Loop3()
n=0
Do While n < 1001
DoEvents
Range("C7") = n
n=n+1
Loop
End Sub

=> Indicates the beginning of the macro


=> initializes the variable n
=>
beginning of the Do loop with the running condition
=>
DoEvents*
=>
some instruction executed during each cycle
=>
index augmentation condition
=>
end of the Do loop
=> end of the macro

The DoEvents function surrenders execution of the macro so that the operating
system can process other events.
If the DoEvents statement were missing the macro would work all right but the
chart would not update properly or we wouldnt be able to run other macros such as
changing parameters on the spreadsheet

<excelunusual.com>

10

Lets associate buttons to these macros and try them out


- View => Toolbars => Drawing
- (from the drawing toolbar) AutoShapes => Basic Shapes => Rounded Rectangle
(you can use any other shape or a picture)
- Use basic editing to change the colors, transparency, size, etc to your taste and
label each of them (write text inside each button).
Assigning macros:
- Right click the Loop 1 button =>
select Assign Macro => Loop1

- Right click the Loop 2 button =>


select Assign Macro => Loop2
- Right click the Loop 3 button =>
select Assign Macro => Loop3

<excelunusual.com>

11

Observations:
1. A macro can be assigned to almost any object in the spreadsheet : a shape, a piece
of text, a graph or any type of picture.
2. In order to give a limited amount of protection to a chart we can assign the chart to
the following macro:
The way this macro operates is by selecting a
spreadsheet cell when the chart is highlighted.
Sub ChartProtect()
The macro will deflect any attempt to change the
Range("E15").Select
graphed data until the macro is de-assigned
End Sub
from the chart.
Right click the first chart in the work sheet and assign the macro ChartProtect(),
and then try to highlight the sinusoidal curve. What happens? It wont work. You
got some weak chart curve protection (against mistakes). You can still move the
chart or even resize it by dragging one of its corners.
You can always un-assign any macro from a shape, button, chart or picture
by right clicking it and deleting the macro in the assign window.

<excelunusual.com>

12

Observations (a fourth loop):

3. An alternative way to exit an


infinite Do loop is the following:

Sub Loop4()
n=0
Do
DoEvents
If n > 1000 Then
Exit Do
Else
Range("C7") = n
n=n+1
End If
Loop
End Sub

Create another button, assign to it the last macro and verify


its functionality. The functionality of the Loop4() macro
should be identical to the functionality of the previous ones.

<excelunusual.com>

Loop 4

13

The Start/Pause and Reset - extremely useful macros


Working in engineering for a long time now, Ive been always
aggravated by very expensive modeling packages which, once started, cannot
be paused.
Some can be stopped but none that I know can be restarted from the
same point. This sucks, especially when a simulation might take hours or
days to complete and the software costs between $2K to $200K/seat/year.
Lets introduce this nice pausing feature our models. We would like a
Run/Pause macro which can toggle between two states, the Run state and the
Pause state.
If the model is running, this macro should be able to pause it while the
spreadsheet keeps at least the previous state before the pause command or better
even more state points (say 10,000 time steps) of historical data before the pause
moment (well show how to do this in a future presentation).
If the model is stopped (paused) running the same macro would restart the
simulation from the same point the simulation was stopped a minute, an hour, a
month or a 10 years ago.
Of course we also need a Reset macro in case we need to start the
model from the beginning.

<excelunusual.com>

14

The Syntax:
Dim n As Integer
Dim RunSim As Boolean
--------------------------------------Sub StartStop()
RunSim = Not (RunSim)
Do While RunSim = True
DoEvents
Range("C7") = n
n=n+1
Loop
End Sub
--------------------------------------Sub reset()
RunSim = False
n=0
Range("C7") = 0
End Sub

We have to declare a Boolean (logic)


variable to monitor the state of the
simulation. When RunSim = True the
simulation is running, otherwise is paused.
Any time this macro is run it needs to
switch the RunSim variable from the
existing logic state to the opposite logic
state (toggle between True and False).
This is a conditional Do loop which would run
as long as RunSim = True. The loop is watching
every cycle and the moment this macro is
triggered again, RunSim becomes False and
the loop (hence the simulation) will stop.
And of course a Reset macro is needed in case
the simulation needs to be started from square
one. This macro turns the RunSim variable into
False and resets the index and its spreadsheet
correspondent (C7).

<excelunusual.com>

15

Implementation:
- Two buttons were created from rounded
rectangle drawing shapes, then the
Run/Pause and Reset macros were
assigned to them.
- The macros code is placed in the
Module2 section .
- The reader must check the functionality.

Conclusions:
- Dynamic macros were created using two different type of loops: For and Do.
- Two different but equivalent conditional Do loops were explored.
- It was shown that macros can be assigned to drawing shapes, pictures, graph, etc.
- A very valuable Run/Pause macro was described and implemented
The reader must pay close attention to this presentation. In order to create science
or engineering models one needs these techniques.

<excelunusual.com>

16

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