Bridging Topological Results and Thin-Walled Frame Structures Considering Manufacturability

Topology optimization has been intensively studied and extensively applied in engineering design. However, the optimized results often take the form of a solid frame structure; hence, it is difficult to apply the topological results in the design of a thin-walled frame structure. Therefore, this paper proposes a novel bridging method to transform the topological results into a lightweight thin-walled frame structure while satisfying the stiffness and manufacturing requirements. First, the optimized topological results are obtained using the classical topology optimization method, which is smoothed to reduce structural complexity. Then, the initial thin-walled frame structure is created by referring to the smoothed topological results, in which the thin-walled cross section is designed according to the mechanical properties and manufacturing requirements. Furthermore, the size and shape of the thin-walled frame structure is optimized to minimize mass with the stiffness and manufacturing constraints. Finally, numerical examples demonstrate that the proposed method can reasonably design an optimized thin-walled frame structure from the topological results.