Journal
STRUCTURAL AND MULTIDISCIPLINARY OPTIMIZATION
Volume 64, Issue 1, Pages 39-52Publisher
SPRINGER
DOI: 10.1007/s00158-021-02933-z
Keywords
Topology optimization; Cut elements; Homogenization approach; Variable thickness sheet problem; De-homogenization
Categories
Funding
- Villum Investigator Project InnoTop - Villum Foundation
- nTopology Inc
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This study explores the issue of non-unique or very flat minima solutions in variable thickness sheet and homogenization-based topology optimization. By adding a measure of non-void space to the objective function, clearer and better-defined solutions can be obtained without significantly increasing structural compliance. Various alternatives for cleaning up solutions are discussed, and two efficient approaches involving introducing an auxiliary field to control non-void space are proposed, leading to significant qualitative and quantitative improvements in designs.
Variable thickness sheet and homogenization-based topology optimization often result in spread-out, non-well-defined solutions that are difficult to interpret or de-homogenize to sensible final designs. By extensive numerical investigations, we demonstrate that such solutions are due to non-uniqueness of solutions or at least very flat minima. Much clearer and better-defined solutions may be obtained by adding a measure of non-void space to the objective function with little if any increase in structural compliance. We discuss various alternatives for cleaning up solutions and propose two efficient approaches which both introduce an auxiliary field to control non-void space: one approach based on a cut element based auxiliary field (hybrid approach) and another approach based on an auxiliary element based field (density approach). At the end, we demonstrate significant qualitative and quantitative improvements in variable thickness sheet and de-homogenization designs resulting from the proposed cleaning schemes.
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