Aeroelastic Topology Optimization of Wing Structure Based on Moving Boundary Meshfree Method

Abstract

The increasing structural flexibility of large aircraft leads to significant aeroelastic effects. More efficient topology optimization techniques are required for the design to further take advantage of aeroelasticity and obtain lightweight structures. This paper proposes a moving boundary meshfree topology optimization that combines the Galerkin method of weighted residuals and non-uniform rational B-splines (NURBS). The solution domain is described by the control points of NURBS and its property is calculated adaptively with an integration subtraction technique. The minimal compliance is searched for using the globally convergent method of moving asymptotes (GCMMA) by designing the locations of control points as subject to volume and flux constraints. The method is first applied to a typical two-dimensional design example with symmetric boundary conditions. The results show that the shape constraints can be conveniently applied, and smoother boundaries are obtained with fewer parameters. Then, a three-dimensional wing structure with asymmetric boundary conditions is optimized. A three-dimensional flight load that combines the high-order-panel and meshfree methods is employed to calculate the elastic loads and update asymmetric external loads during the optimization process. The designed wing satisfies engineering requirements and the presented method can solve the practical topology optimization problems of three-dimensional structures.

Multiscale Aeroelastic Optimization Method for Wing Structure and Material

“…where ∆y k i = u k+ i − u k− i denotes the length between corresponding points on the symmetric boundary of the microstructure. According to (5), the boundary constraint equations of the microstructure can be added directly. In addition, Equation (5) makes it possible to reduce the linear elastic equilibrium equations and speed up the computational efficiency of finite elements [24].…”

“…With the advancement of computational techniques, topology optimization methods have been widely used in aeroelastic optimization. This more efficient method has become a design tool which aims to improve aircraft performance and reduce weight [5].…”

Multi-Objective Reliability-Based Partial Topology Optimization of a Composite Aircraft Wing

“…The DTO techniques have been used to reveal a true structure of aircraft wing structure against violent phenomena, which may be totally different from the common structure. The common aircraft components that have been synthesized using DTO-based material density are the ribs [1][2][3]14,15], spars [15,16], stiffened panels [17], and the whole of the aircraft wing [18][19][20][21][22][23]. The structural layout and sizing of the aircraft wing can be performed using the ground structure method in one optimization run, which is called an unconventional aircraft wing structure [12,13,18].…”