Simultaneous shape and topology optimization of wings

Lukas C. Høghøj*, Cian Conlan-Smith, Ole Sigmund, Casper Schousboe Andreasen

*Corresponding author for this work

Research output: Contribution to journalJournal articleResearchpeer-review

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Abstract

This paper presents a method for simultaneous optimization of the outer shape and internal topology of aircraft wings, with the objective of minimizing drag subject to lift and compliance constraints for multiple load cases. The physics are evaluated by the means of a source-doublet panel method for the aerodynamic response and linear elastic finite elements for the structural response, which are one-way coupled. At each design iteration, a mapping procedure is applied to map the current wing shape and corresponding pressure loads to the unfitted finite element mesh covering the design domain. Wings of small fixed-wing airplanes both with and without a stiffening strut are optimized. The resulting wings show internal topologies with struts and wall-truss combinations, depending on the design freedom of the shape optimization. The lift distributions of the optimized wings show patterns like the ones obtained when performing optimization of wing shapes with constraints on the bending moment at the root.
Original languageEnglish
Article number116
JournalStructural and Multidisciplinary Optimization
Volume66
Issue number5
Number of pages20
ISSN1615-147X
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 2023

Keywords

  • Topology optimization
  • Shape optimization
  • Wings
  • Panel methods

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