1. From need to prototype PV0 (Virtual Prototype 0)

The vast majority of devices referred to as electrical equipment convert or transmit electrical energy to electrical energy (cables, transformers, power electronic converters, etc.), or electrical energy to mechanical energy or vice versa (motors and generators), often with an intermediate electromagnetic conversion phase playing a key role. With the exception of a few specific features, the generic design process, illustrated synthetically by the flow chart shown in figure 1 , is broadly similar for all these devices. For the sake of clarity, we'll take as a guideline the example of electromechanical converters, which concentrate the maximum number of interactions between physical domains.