ApprenticeFoundryRulesAndUnits 8.1.0

Foundry Rules and Units

Overview

FoundryRulesAndUnits is a comprehensive, modernized unit system library providing type-safe unit conversions, measurement operations, and full backward compatibility. This library supports 6 complete unit systems (SI, MKS, CGS, FPS, IPS, mmNs) with 39+ unit families and advanced features for engineering and scientific applications.

🚀 Key Features

Modern Architecture

• Unified Unit System: Clean IUnitSystem interface handling all conversions (no singletons!)
• Type-Safe Conversions: Strongly-typed unit operations with compile-time safety
• 24+ Unit Types: Complete coverage from Length/Mass to specialized units like Frequency/Resistance
• Factory Methods: Intuitive construction with Length.FromMeters(5.0), Temperature.FromCelsius(25)
• Full Operator Support: Natural arithmetic with length1 + length2, force * scalar

Unit Systems Supported

• SI (International System of Units)
• MKS (Meter-Kilogram-Second)
• CGS (Centimeter-Gram-Second)
• FPS (Foot-Pound-Second)
• IPS (Inch-Pound-Second)
• mmNs (Millimeter-Newton-Second)

39+ Unit Families

• Mechanical: Length, Mass, Force, Speed, Power, Area, Volume
• Thermal: Temperature, Pressure
• Electrical: Voltage, Current, Resistance, Capacitance
• Digital: DataStorage, DataFlow
• Scientific: Frequency, Time, Duration, Angle
• Specialized: Quantity, QuantityFlow, Percent, Dimensionless

📦 Installation & Setup

NuGet Package

<PackageReference Include="ApprenticeFoundryRulesAndUnits" Version="8.0.0" />

Basic Setup

using FoundryRulesAndUnits.Units;

// Initialize the global unit system (do this once at app startup)
MeasuredValue.SetGlobalUnitSystem(UnitSystemType.SI); // or MKS, CGS, FPS, IPS, mmNs

// Alternatively, set it with a UnitSystem instance
var unitSystem = new UnitSystem(UnitSystemType.SI);
MeasuredValue.SetGlobalUnitSystem(unitSystem);

💡 Quick Start Examples

Creating Measurements

// Factory methods (recommended)
var length = Length.FromMeters(5.0);
var temp = Temperature.FromCelsius(25.0);
var force = Force.FromNewtons(100.0);

// Constructor approach
var mass = new Mass(50.0, "kg");
var speed = new Speed(60.0, "mph");

Unit Conversions

var length = Length.FromMeters(5.0);
double feet = length.As("ft");        // Convert to feet
double inches = length.As("in");      // Convert to inches
double pixels = length.AsPixels();    // Special conversion for UI

Arithmetic Operations

var length1 = Length.FromMeters(10);
var length2 = Length.FromFeet(5);

var total = length1 + length2;         // Addition
var difference = length1 - length2;    // Subtraction
var scaled = length1 * 2.0;           // Scalar multiplication
var ratio = length1 / length2;        // Ratio (returns double)

Advanced Operations

// Create flow rates from quantities and time
var quantity = Quantity.FromEach(1000);
var time = Time.FromSeconds(60);
var flow = quantity / time;            // QuantityFlow in "ea/s"

// Compare measurements
if (length1 > length2) {
    Console.WriteLine("Length1 is longer");
}

🏗️ Architecture Overview

Modern Unit Classes (24/24 FULLY MODERNIZED) 🎉

ALL unit classes now follow the clean, modern pattern:

✅ Physical & Mechanical Units:

• Length, Mass, Temperature, Volume, Force
• Speed, Power, Area, Time, Duration
• Distance, Frequency

✅ Electrical Units:

• Voltage, Resistance, Current, Capacitance

✅ Digital & Computing Units:

• DataStorage, DataFlow

✅ Specialized Units:

• Quantity, QuantityFlow, Percent, Heading, Dimensionless

🚀 ALL CLASSES FEATURE:

• Factory methods (FromMeters(), FromVolts(), etc.)
• Enhanced operators (+, -, *, /, >, <, etc.)
• JSON serialization support
• Full backward compatibility

Unit System Management

// Global unit system manages all conversions (clean, no singletons!)
var globalSystem = MeasuredValue.GlobalSystem;

// Switch unit systems at runtime
globalSystem.Apply(UnitSystemType.FPS);  // Switch to Imperial
var converted = globalSystem.Convert(100, "m", "ft"); // 328.084 feet

// Or change globally for all measurements
MeasuredValue.SetGlobalUnitSystem(UnitSystemType.FPS);

// Validation
bool isValid = globalSystem.IsValidUnit("mph");  // true
var units = globalSystem.GetUnitsForFamily(UnitFamilyName.Length); // ["m", "cm", "km", ...]

🔄 Backward Compatibility

Legacy Support Classes

For existing codebases, we provide full compatibility:

// Legacy UnitSystem class (now contains all functionality directly)
var unitSystem = new UnitSystem(UnitSystemType.MKS);
unitSystem.Apply(UnitSystemType.SI);
var categories = unitSystem.Categories();

// Legacy extension methods
var family = UnitCategoryExtensions.GetUnitFamily("kg");  // UnitFamilyName.Mass
bool known = UnitCategoryExtensions.IsKnownUnit("mph");   // true

// Legacy Length methods
var length = new Length(100, "m");
var category = Length.Category();        // UnitCategory (marked obsolete)
double pixels = length.AsPixels();       // UI conversion

🚀 Migration Guide

From Legacy to Modern

Old Pattern:

// Legacy approach
var length = new Length(5.0, "m");
var convertedValue = length.As("ft");

New Pattern:

// Modern approach
var length = Length.FromMeters(5.0);    // Factory method
var convertedValue = length.As("ft");   // Same conversion API

Key Benefits of Modern Classes

1. Factory Methods: Length.FromMeters() vs new Length(value, "m")
2. Enhanced Operators: Full arithmetic support including scalar operations
3. Better Performance: Direct integration with global unit system
4. JSON Serialization: Built-in JSON converter support
5. Cleaner Code: No singleton dependencies, clean architecture!

🧪 Testing & Validation

Build Status

• ✅ FoundryRulesAndUnits: Builds successfully (3 warnings)
• ✅ FoundryMentorModeler: Builds successfully (3 warnings)
• ✅ All Tests Passing: Legacy compatibility maintained

Validation Examples

// Unit system validation
var globalSystem = MeasuredValue.GlobalSystem;
Debug.Assert(globalSystem.IsValidUnit("kg"));
Debug.Assert(globalSystem.Convert(1000, "g", "kg") == 1.0);

// Measurement validation  
var length = Length.FromKilometers(1.0);
Debug.Assert(Math.Abs(length.As("m") - 1000.0) < 0.001);

📁 Project Structure

FoundryRulesAndUnits/
├── UnitSystem/
│   ├── MeasuredValue.cs              # Base class with global unit system
│   ├── UnitSystem.cs                 # Complete IUnitSystem implementation  
│   ├── UnitCategory.cs               # Legacy compatibility (+ enum)
│   ├── Specifications/               # Unit system definitions
│   │   ├── IUnitSystemSpecification.cs
│   │   ├── SISpecification.cs        # SI unit definitions
│   │   ├── MKSSpecification.cs       # MKS unit definitions
│   │   └── [Other system specs...]
│   └── UnitTypes/                    # Individual unit classes
│       ├── Length.cs                 # ✅ Modernized
│       ├── Mass.cs                   # ✅ Modernized  
│       ├── Temperature.cs            # ✅ Modernized
│       ├── Force.cs                  # ✅ Modernized
│       └── [24+ other unit types...]
├── Extensions/
│   ├── UnitCategoryExtensions.cs     # Legacy compatibility helpers
│   └── [Other utility extensions...]
└── DataModels/                       # Supporting data structures

🤝 Contributing

Adding New Unit Types

Follow the modernized pattern:

[System.Serializable]
[JsonConverter(typeof(MyUnitJsonConverter))]
public class MyUnit : MeasuredValue
{
    public MyUnit() : base(UnitFamilyName.MyFamily) { }
    
    public MyUnit(double value, string? units = null) : base(UnitFamilyName.MyFamily)
    {
        Init(value, units);
    }
    
    // Factory methods
    public static MyUnit FromBaseUnit(double value) => new(value, "base");
    
    // Operators
    public static MyUnit operator +(MyUnit left, MyUnit right) => 
        new(left.Value() + right.Value(), left.Internal());
}

Extending Unit Systems

Add new specifications implementing IUnitSystemSpecification:

public class MyCustomSpecification : IUnitSystemSpecification
{
    public string SystemName => "MySystem";
    // Implement interface methods...
}

📄 License

MIT License - See LICENSE file for details.

🏢 Authors

• Stephen Strong - Apprentice Foundry
• Company: Stephen Strong
• Project URL: https://apprenticefoundry.github.io/

🔗 Related Projects

• FoundryMentorModeler: Advanced modeling toolkit using this unit system
• TRISoC Dashboard: Digital twin dashboard with unit system integration

Version: 8.0.0 | Target: .NET 9.0 | Updated: September 2025