System and method for transforming graphical models

A mechanism for converting a graphical model of a system into an intermediate representation (IR) of a model is discussed. The mechanism alters the IR, and uses the altered IR to create a new or updated graphical model of the system that may be viewed and simulated by a user. Once the user is satisfied with the alterations to the IR, the IR or the graphical model may be used to generate code in a target language to enable the building of the physical system being designed. The use of the altered IR to generate a new or updated graphical model allows a more efficient and customizable design and simulation process than is typically found by simulating code that has been converted to target languages. The generation of the graphical model based on the altered IR allows a user to visually inspect the changes to the system, and the simulation of the graphical model based on the altered IR allows corrective action to be taken to account for any changes that occurred during the transformation of the model.