OPTIMAL TOPOLOGIES OF FLEXURAL SYSTEMS

The main objects of this paper are:

a)To introduce some relationships between optimal topologies and the geometric parameters of flexural systems.b) To investigate the effect of compatibility conditions on the optimal topology.

Assuming the force method analysis, a linear programming formulation can be obtained under certain circumstances. In such cases where the active constraints can be determined a priori, a direct solution in the space of redundant forces might be possible.

It is shown that the optimal design might correspond to a singular point in the design space. Neglecting compatibility conditions, multiple optimal topologies might be obtained for certain geometries. In such cases some of the resulting solutions usually represent statically determinate structures, therefore compatibility conditions do not affect the optimum

Numerical examples illustrate these phenomena and how the optimal topology and its corresponding load path change with the geometric parameters.