Robust lightweight design and digital twins considering manufacturing quality variation and sustainability requirements

Abstract

In this paper, robustness optimization of a fatigue-critical welded structure with measured misalignments and a generic robust design procedure are presented. The motivation for considering uncertainties, robustness and multi-criteria decision making in engineering design comes from the increasing sustainability requirements. Lightweight design of vehicles can reduce CO2 emissions and increase energy and material efficiency, but often the fatigue of welds limits the weight reduction. The manufacturing quality affects the fatigue strength of welds, and by quantifying the manufacturing quality and using robust design methodology the increasing sustainability requirements can be met, while also considering the technical and economical constraints. The surrogate model representing the relationship between the actual, measured geometry and the fatigue life can be used as the digital twin during operation.

Characterizing the Digital Twin in Structural Mechanics

“…The method to develop a Digital Twin was demonstrated on a table-sized demonstrator. Kokkonen et al [16] discuss the Digital Twin in the context of the robust and lightweight design of a fatigue-critical welded structure with measured misalignments. Zhu and Wang discuss another aspect of the Digital Twin in the context of design aspects [17] using the example of prestressed steel structures, employing Digital Twins and random forests using the string-supported beam structure as a test object.…”

Digital Twin Based Lightweighting of Robot Unmanned Ground Vehicles

“…The author considered all structural and thermal loads identified by sensor data and estimated the equivalent cyclic degree of utilization and a safety margin against the slip of a press-fitted shaft to rotor hub connection. Kokonen et all [9] used the digital twin for collecting information of manufacturing the quality deviation in the case of welded structures and for the prediction of the individual remaining fatigue lives. The authors considered that design goal was minimizing the mass of the structure as a process of optimization, while the required fatigue life is defined as a constraint.…”