System, Layout, and Topology Optimization for Automotive and Aerospace Design

我们目前正处于下一代交通运输的前沿，世界各地数百家初创企业和老牌公司正在开发氢燃料电池汽车、混合动力飞机和无人驾驶个人飞行器。为了实现激进和创新的设计，工程师和研究人员面临着高度耦合、非线性和多模式的系统设计挑战，涉及数百个具有非直观多物理相互作用的组件。然而，没有任何严格或有效的设计方法或计算工具可以解决这个复杂的问题。我的长期研究目标是通过开发创新和有效的多物理、多材料优化算法来对系统级设计产生深远影响，这些算法确定设计空间内的最佳结构拓扑、组件布局和连接。这一长期目标将通过实现三个短期目标(5年)来实现：目标1：创建用于综合系统布局优化、多物理和多材料拓扑优化的数学算法；目标2：发展用于具有多部件和多设计领域的系统的多材料、多物理拓扑优化的多关节方法；以及目标3：制定考虑非线性耐撞性响应的优化部件和设计域布局的数值方法。拟议的研究将在10个HQP(3个硕士、2个博士、1个PDF、4个UG)之前完成。我的HQP将有很大的机会为基本数值方法的发展做出贡献，并将他们的工作应用于具有挑战性的系统设计问题。在我的监督下，HQP将获得学术和技术知识，同时在包容的环境中提高他们解决问题、沟通和领导能力。这一研究计划最终将产生能够同时执行系统、布局和拓扑优化的严格的数学算法，以创建创新和非常规的设计。这种考虑多物理效应的综合方法将从根本上改变系统布局优化和机械设计过程的研究。这项拟议的研究如果成功，将使工程师能够大幅提高燃油效率、改善安全性、减少材料消耗，并将为下一代绿色汽车提供强大的平台。

We are currently on the frontier of the next generation of transportation, with hydrogen fuel cell cars, hybrid aircraft, and unmanned personal aerial vehicles being developed by hundreds of start-ups and established companies around the world. To achieve radical and innovative designs, engineers and researchers are faced with a highly coupled, nonlinear, and multi-modal system design challenge involving hundreds of components with unintuitive multi-physics interactions. However, no rigorous or effective design methodologies or computational tools can solve this complex problem. My long-term research goal is to make a profound impact on system-level design by developing innovative and effective multi-physics, multi-material optimization algorithms that determine the optimal structural topology, component layout, and joint connections within a design space. This long-term goal will be realized by accomplishing three short term (5 year) objectives: Objective 1: Creation of mathematical algorithms for integrated system layout optimization, multi-physics, and multi-material topology optimization; Objective 2: Development of a multi-joint methodology for multi-material, multi-physics topology optimization of systems with multiple components and multiple design domains; and Objective 3: Formulation of a numerical approach to optimize component and design domain layout considering nonlinear crashworthiness responses. The proposed research will be completed by 10 HQP (3 MSc, 2 PhD, 1 PDF, 4 UG). My HQP will have significant opportunities to contribute to the development of fundamental numerical methodologies and to apply their work to challenging system design problems. Under my supervision, HQP will gain academic and technical knowledge while improving their problem solving, communication, and leadership skills in an inclusive environment. This research program will ultimately produce rigorous mathematical algorithms capable of simultaneously performing system, layout, and topology optimization to create innovative and unconventional designs. This integrated methodology considering multi-physics effects will fundamentally change research in system layout optimization and the mechanical design process. The proposed research, if successful, will empower engineers to dramatically increase fuel efficiency, improve safety, reduce material use, and will provide a strong platform for the next generation of green vehicles.