Topology Optimization of Multi-Materials Compliant Mechanisms

In this article, a design method of multi-material compliant mechanism is studied. Material distribution with different elastic modulus is used to meet the rigid and flexible requirements of compliant mechanism at the same time. The solid isotropic material with penalization (SIMP) model is used to parameterize the design domain. The expressions for the stiffness matrix and equivalent elastic modulus under multi-material conditions are proposed. The least square error (LSE) between the deformed and target displacement of the control points is defined as the objective function, and the topology optimization design model of multi-material compliant mechanism is established. The oversaturation problem in the volume constraint is solved by pre-setting the priority of each material, and the globally convergent method of moving asymptotes (GCMMA) is used to solve the problem. Widely studied numerical examples are conducted, which demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Automated summary

This study presents a design method for multi-material compliant mechanisms, utilizing material distribution with different elastic moduli to meet rigid and flexible requirements. The Solid Isotropic Material with Penalization (SIMP) model is used for parameterization, and the topology optimization design model is established with a solution for oversaturation in volume constraints. The proposed method demonstrates effectiveness through widely studied numerical examples.