Improvement of a topological level-set approach to find optimal topology by considering body forces

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Meisam Takalloozadeh ◽  
Gil Ho Yoon

Purpose Body forces are always applied to structures in the form of the weight of materials. In some cases, they can be neglected in comparison with other applied forces. Nevertheless, there is a wide range of structures in civil and mechanical engineering in which weight or other types of body forces are the main portions of the applied loads. The optimal topology of these structures is investigated in this study. Design/methodology/approach Topology optimization plays an increasingly important role in structural design. In this study, the topological derivative under body forces is used in a level-set-based topology optimization method. Instability during the optimization process is addressed, and a heuristic solution is proposed to overcome the challenge. Moreover, body forces in combination with thermal loading are investigated in this study. Findings Body forces are design-dependent loads that usually add complexity to the optimization process. Some problems have already been addressed in density-based topology optimization methods. In the present study, the body forces in a topological level-set approach are investigated. This paper finds that the used topological derivative is a flat field that causes some instabilities in the optimization process. The main novelty of this study is a technique used to overcome this challenge by using a weighted combination. Originality/value There is a lack of studies on level-set approaches that account for design-dependent body forces and the proposed method helps to understand the challenges posed in such methods. A powerful level-set-based approach is used for this purpose. Several examples are provided to illustrate the efficiency of this method. Moreover, the results show the effect of body forces and thermal loading on the optimal layout of the structures.

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Rolando Yera ◽  
Luisina Forzani ◽  
Carlos Gustavo Méndez ◽  
Alfredo E. Huespe

PurposeThis work presents a topology optimization methodology for designing microarchitectures of phononic crystals. The objective is to get microstructures having, as a consequence of wave propagation phenomena in these media, bandgaps between two specified bands. An additional target is to enlarge the range of frequencies of these bandgaps.Design/methodology/approachThe resulting optimization problem is solved employing an augmented Lagrangian technique based on the proximal point methods. The main primal variable of the Lagrangian function is the characteristic function determining the spatial geometrical arrangement of different phases within the unit cell of the phononic crystal. This characteristic function is defined in terms of a level-set function. Descent directions of the Lagrangian function are evaluated by using the topological derivatives of the eigenvalues obtained through the dispersion relation of the phononic crystal.FindingsThe description of the optimization algorithm is emphasized, and its intrinsic properties to attain adequate phononic crystal topologies are discussed. Particular attention is addressed to validate the analytical expressions of the topological derivative. Application examples for several cases are presented, and the numerical performance of the optimization algorithm for attaining the corresponding solutions is discussed.Originality/valueThe original contribution results in the description and numerical assessment of a topology optimization algorithm using the joint concepts of the level-set function and topological derivative to design phononic crystals.


Author(s):  
Piotr Putek ◽  
Piotr Paplicki ◽  
Ryszard Pałka

Purpose – In this paper, a numerical approach to the topology optimization is proposed to design the permanent magnet excited machines with improved high-speed features. For this purpose the modified multi-level set method (MLSM) was proposed and applied to capture the shape of rotor poles on the fixed mesh using FE analysis. The paper aims to discuss these issues. Design/methodology/approach – This framework is based on theories of topological and shape derivative for the magnetostatic system. During the iterative optimization process, the shape of rotor poles and its evolution is represented by the level sets of a continuous level set function f. The shape optimization of the iron and the magnet rotor poles is provided by the combining continuum design sensitivity analysis with level set method. Findings – To obtain an innovative design of the rotor poles composed of different materials, the modified MLSM is proposed. An essential advantage of the proposed method is its ability to handle a topology change on a fixed mesh by the nucleating a small hole in design domain that leads to more efficient computational scheme then standard level set method. Research limitations/implications – The proposed numerical approach to the topology design of the 3D model of a PM machine is based on the simplified 2D model under assumption that the eddy currents in both the magnet and iron parts are neglected. Originality/value – The novel aspect of the proposed method is the incorporation of the Total Variation regularization in the MLSM, which distribution is additionally modified by the gradient derivative information, in order to stabilize the optimization process and penalize oscillations without smoothing edges.


2013 ◽  
Vol 49 (5) ◽  
pp. 2073-2076 ◽  
Author(s):  
Takayuki Yamada ◽  
Hayato Watanabe ◽  
Garuda Fujii ◽  
Toshiro Matsumoto

2021 ◽  
Vol ahead-of-print (ahead-of-print) ◽  
Author(s):  
Renatha Batista dos Santos ◽  
Cinthia Gomes Lopes

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to present an approach for structural weight minimization under von Mises stress constraints and self-weight loading based on the topological derivative method. Although self-weight loading topology has been the subject of intense research, mainly compliance minimization has been addressed.Design/methodology/approachThe resulting minimization problem is solved with the help of the topological derivative method, which allows the development of efficient and robust topology optimization algorithms. Then, the derived result is used together with a level-set domain representation method to devise a topology design algorithm.FindingsNumerical examples are presented, showing the effectiveness of the proposed approach in solving a structural topology optimization problem under self-weight loading and stress constraint. When the self-weight loading is dominant, the presence of the regularizing term in the formulation is crucial for the design process.Originality/valueThe novelty of this research work lies in the use of a regularized formulation to deal with the presence of the self-weight loading combined with a penalization function to treat the von Mises stress constraint.


Author(s):  
Yoshifumi Okamoto ◽  
Hiroshi Masuda ◽  
Yutaro Kanda ◽  
Reona Hoshino ◽  
Shinji Wakao

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is the improvement of topology optimization. The scope of the paper is focused on the speedup of optimization. Design/methodology/approachTo achieve the speedup, the method of moving asymptotes (MMA) with constrained condition of level set function is applied instead of solving the Hamilton–Jacobi equation. FindingsThe acceleration of convergence of objective function is drastically improved by the implementation of MMA. Originality/valueNormally, the level set method is solved through the Hamilton–Jacobi equation. However, the possibility of introducing mathematical programming is clear by the constrained condition. Furthermore, the proposed method is suitable for efficiently solving the topology optimization problem in the magnetic field system.


Author(s):  
Arnold Lumsdaine

The aim of this research is to determine the optimal shape of a constrained viscoelastic damping layer on an elastic beam by means of topology optimization. The optimization objective is to maximize the system loss factor for the first resonance frequency of the base beam. All previous optimal design studies on viscoelastic lamina have been size or shape optimization studies, assuming a certain topology for the damping treatment. In this study, this assumption is relaxed, allowing an optimal topology to emerge. The loss factor is computed using the Modal Strain Energy method in the optimization process. Loss factor results are validated by using the half-power bandwidth method, which requires obtaining the forced response of the structure. The ABAQUS finite element code is used to model the structure with two-dimensional continuum elements. The optimization code uses a Sequential Quadratic Programming algorithm. Results show that significant improvements in damping performance, on the order of 100% to 300%, are obtained by optimizing the constrained damping layer topology. A novel topology for the constraining layer emerges through the optimization process.


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