Sensitivity Analyses of FORM-Based and DRM-Based Performance Measure Approach for Reliability-Based Design Optimization

Author(s):  
Ikjin Lee ◽  
Kyung K. Choi ◽  
Liu Du ◽  
David Gorsich

In a gradient-based design optimization, it is necessary to know sensitivities of the constraint with respect to the design variables. In a reliability-based design optimization (RBDO), the constraint is evaluated at the most probable point (MPP) and called the probabilistic constraint, thus it requires the sensitivities of the probabilistic constraints at MPP. This paper presents the rigorous analytic derivation of the sensitivities of the probabilistic constraint at MPP for both First Order Reliability Method (FORM)-based Performance Measure Approach (PMA) and Dimension Reduction Method (DRM)-based PMA. Numerical examples are used to demonstrate that the analytic sensitivities agree very well with the sensitivities obtained from the finite difference method (FDM). However, since the sensitivity calculation at the true DRM-based MPP requires the second-order derivatives and additional MPP search, the sensitivity derivation at the approximated DRM-based MPP, which does not require the second-order derivatives and additional MPP search to find the DRM-based MPP, is proposed in this paper. A convergence study illustrates that the sensitivity at the approximated DRM-based MPP converges to the sensitivity at the true DRM-based MPP as the design approaches the optimum design. Hence, the sensitivity at the approximated DRM-based MPP is proposed to be used for the DRM-based RBDO to enhance the efficiency of the optimization.

1999 ◽  
Vol 121 (4) ◽  
pp. 557-564 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Tu ◽  
K. K. Choi ◽  
Y. H. Park

This paper presents a general approach for probabilistic constraint evaluation in the reliability-based design optimization (RBDO). Different perspectives of the general approach are consistent in prescribing the probabilistic constraint, where the conventional reliability index approach (RIA) and the proposed performance measure approach (PMA) are identified as two special cases. PMA is shown to be inherently robust and more efficient in evaluating inactive probabilistic constraints, while RIA is more efficient for violated probabilistic constraints. Moreover, RBDO often yields a higher rate of convergence by using PMA, while RIA yields singularity in some cases.


2003 ◽  
Vol 125 (2) ◽  
pp. 221-232 ◽  
Author(s):  
Byeng D. Youn ◽  
Kyung K. Choi ◽  
Young H. Park

Reliability-based design optimization (RBDO) involves evaluation of probabilistic constraints, which can be done in two different ways, the reliability index approach (RIA) and the performance measure approach (PMA). It has been reported in the literature that RIA yields instability for some problems but PMA is robust and efficient in identifying a probabilistic failure mode in the optimization process. However, several examples of numerical tests of PMA have also shown instability and inefficiency in the RBDO process if the advanced mean value (AMV) method, which is a numerical tool for probabilistic constraint evaluation in PMA, is used, since it behaves poorly for a concave performance function, even though it is effective for a convex performance function. To overcome difficulties of the AMV method, the conjugate mean value (CMV) method is proposed in this paper for the concave performance function in PMA. However, since the CMV method exhibits the slow rate of convergence for the convex function, it is selectively used for concave-type constraints. That is, once the type of the performance function is identified, either the AMV method or the CMV method can be adaptively used for PMA during the RBDO iteration to evaluate probabilistic constraints effectively. This is referred to as the hybrid mean value (HMV) method. The enhanced PMA with the HMV method is compared to RIA for effective evaluation of probabilistic constraints in the RBDO process. It is shown that PMA with a spherical equality constraint is easier to solve than RIA with a complicated equality constraint in estimating the probabilistic constraint in the RBDO process.


Author(s):  
Kyung K. Choi ◽  
Byeng D. Youn

Abstract Reliability-Based Design Optimization (RBDO) involves evaluation of probabilistic constraints, which can be done in two different ways, the Reliability Index Approach (RIA) and the Performance Measure Approach (PMA). It has been reported in the literature that RIA yields instability for some problems but PMA is robust and efficient in identifying a probabilistic failure mode in the RBDO process. However, several examples of numerical tests of PMA have also shown instability and inefficiency in the RBDO process if the Advanced Mean Value (AMV) method, which is a numerical tool for probabilistic constraint evaluation in PMA, is used, since it behaves poorly for a concave performance function, even though it is effective for a convex performance function. To overcome difficulties of the AMV method, the Conjugate Mean Value (CMV) method is proposed in this paper for the concave performance function in PMA. However, since the CMV method exhibits the slow rate of convergence for the convex function, it is selectively used for concave-type constraints. That is, once the type of the performance function is identified, either the AMV method or the CMV method can be adaptively used for PMA during the RBDO iteration to evaluate probabilistic constraints effectively. This is referred to as the Hybrid Mean Value (HMV) method. The enhanced PMA with the HMV method is compared to RIA for effective evaluation of probabilistic constraints in the RBDO process. It is shown that PMA with a spherical equality constraint is easier to solve than RIA with a complicated equality constraint in estimating the probabilistic constraint in the RBDO process.


2021 ◽  
Vol 11 (11) ◽  
pp. 5312
Author(s):  
Junho Chun

This paper proposes a reliability-based design optimization (RBDO) approach that adopts the second-order reliability method (SORM) and complex-step (CS) derivative approximation. The failure probabilities are estimated using the SORM, with Breitung’s formula and the technique established by Hohenbichler and Rackwitz, and their sensitivities are analytically derived. The CS derivative approximation is used to perform the sensitivity analysis based on derivations. Given that an imaginary number is used as a step size to compute the first derivative in the CS derivative method, the calculation stability and accuracy are enhanced with elimination of the subtractive cancellation error, which is commonly encountered when using the traditional finite difference method. The proposed approach unifies the CS approximation and SORM to enhance the estimation of the probability and its sensitivity. The sensitivity analysis facilitates the use of gradient-based optimization algorithms in the RBDO framework. The proposed RBDO/CS–SORM method is tested on structural optimization problems with a range of statistical variations. The results demonstrate that the performance can be enhanced while satisfying precisely probabilistic constraints, thereby increasing the efficiency and efficacy of the optimal design identification. The numerical optimization results obtained using different optimization approaches are compared to validate this enhancement.


2018 ◽  
Vol 10 (9) ◽  
pp. 168781401879333 ◽  
Author(s):  
Zhiliang Huang ◽  
Tongguang Yang ◽  
Fangyi Li

Conventional decoupling approaches usually employ first-order reliability method to deal with probabilistic constraints in a reliability-based design optimization problem. In first-order reliability method, constraint functions are transformed into a standard normal space. Extra non-linearity introduced by the non-normal-to-normal transformation may increase the error in reliability analysis and then result in the reliability-based design optimization analysis with insufficient accuracy. In this article, a decoupling approach is proposed to provide an alternative tool for the reliability-based design optimization problems. To improve accuracy, the reliability analysis is performed by first-order asymptotic integration method without any extra non-linearity transformation. To achieve high efficiency, an approximate technique of reliability analysis is given to avoid calculating time-consuming performance function. Two numerical examples and an application of practical laptop structural design are presented to validate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.


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