Light-Weight Design Method for Force-Performance-Structure of Complex Structural Part Based Co-operative Optimization

A light?weight design method of integrated structural topology and size co?optimization for the force?performance?structure of complex structural parts is presented in this paper. Firstly, the supporting function of a complex structural part is built to map the force transmission, where the force exerted areas and constraints are considered as connecting structure and the structural configuration, to determine the part performance as well as the force routines. Then the connecting structure design model, aiming to optimize the static and dynamic performances on connection configuration, is developed, and the optimum design of the characteristic parameters is carried out by means of the collaborative optimization method, namely, the integrated structural topology optimization and size optimization. In this design model, the objective is to maximize the connecting stiffness. Based on the relationship between the force and the structural configuration of a part, the optimal force transmission routine that can meet the performance requirements is obtained using the structural topology optimization technology. Accordingly, the light?weight design of conceptual configuration for complex parts under multi?objective and multi?condition can be realized. Finally, based on the proposed collaborative optimization design method, the optimal performance and optimal structure of the complex parts with light weight are realized, and the reasonable structural unit configuration and size charac?teristic parameters are obtained. A bed structure of gantry?type machining center is designed by using the proposed light?weight structure design method in this paper, as an illustrative example. The bed after the design optimization is lighter 8% than original one, and the rail deformation is reduced by 5%. Moreover, the lightweight design of the bed is achieved with enhanced performance to show the effectiveness of the proposed method.

Size effect of lattice material and minimum weight design

The size effects of microstructure of lattice materials on structural analysis and minimum weight design are studied with extented multiscale finite element method（EMsFEM） in the paper. With the same volume of base material and configuration, the structural displacement and maximum axial stress of micro-rod of lattice structures with different sizes of microstructure are analyzed and compared.It is pointed out that different from the traditional mathematical homogenization method, EMsFEM is suitable for analyzing the structures which is constituted with lattice materials and composed of quantities of finite-sized micro-rods.The minimum weight design of structures composed of lattice material is studied with downscaling calculation of EMsFEM under stress constraints of micro-rods. The optimal design results show that the weight of the structure increases with the decrease of the size of basic sub-unit cells. The paper presents a new approach for analysis and optimization of lattice materials in complex engineering constructions.

Time-varying clustering for local lighting and material design

This paper presents an interactive graphics processing unit （GPU）-based relighting system in which local lighting condition, surface materials and viewing direction can all be changed on the fly. To support these changes, we simulate the lighting transportation process at run time, which is normally impractical for interactive use due to its huge computational burden. We greatly alleviate this burden by a hierarchical structure named a transportation tree that clusters similar emitting samples together within a perceptually acceptable error bound. Furthermore, by exploiting the coherence in time as well as in space, we incrementally adjust the clusters rather than computing them from scratch in each frame. With a pre-computed visibility map, we are able to efficiently estimate the indirect illumination in parallel on graphics hardware, by simply summing up the radiance shoots from cluster representatives, plus a small number of operations of merging and splitting on clusters. With relighting based on the time-varying clusters, interactive update of global illumination effects with multi-bounced indirect lighting is demonstrated in applications to material animation and scene decoration.

Light weighting opportunities and material choice for commercial vehicle frame structures from a design point of view

This paper focuses on an estimation of light weighting opportunities for the frame structure of com- mercial road vehicles. This estimation is based on simpli- fied static load cases which play a predominant role for the dimensioning of a frame structure and therefore these simplifications are not putting the general validity of the conclusions into question. A comparison of different ma- terials under this scenario shows that light metals do not show any weight reduction advantage in comparison to steel while a material-independent topology optimization has more weight reduction potential for the frame structure than a simple change of materials. Considering the con- straints of part complexity which is directly linked with production and assembly cost, the ladder frame structure has become the current state of the art design. Thus the paper also puts a spotlight on basic rules of node design and vertical load induction in order to keep the weight of such a design as low as possible. Practical examples from manufacturers show that the weight of a commercial vehicle could be reduced by 10%, and main parts of the frame structure could be reduced by 30% using high strength steel in combination with innovative production methods like roll forming.

New Test Light Spectrum Design for L/U-Band Extended Optical Fiber Line Testing System

This paper describes a new design for the test light source of an L/U-band extended optical fiber line testing system and the side-band suppresser ratio of the test light should be more than 70 dB.

Visual interactive image clustering:a target-independent approach for configuration optimization in machine vision measurement

Machine vision measurement(MVM)is an essential approach that measures the area or length of a target efficiently and non-destructively for product quality control.The result of MVM is determined by its configuration,especially the lighting scheme design in image acquisition and the algorithmic parameter optimization in image processing.In a traditional workflow,engineers constantly adjust and verify the configuration for an acceptable result,which is time-consuming and significantly depends on expertise.To address these challenges,we propose a target-independent approach,visual interactive image clustering,which facilitates configuration optimization by grouping images into different clusters to suggest lighting schemes with common parameters.Our approach has four steps:data preparation,data sampling,data processing,and visual analysis with our visualization system.During preparation,engineers design several candidate lighting schemes to acquire images and develop an algorithm to process images.Our approach samples engineer-defined parameters for each image and obtains results by executing the algorithm.The core of data processing is the explainable measurement of the relationships among images using the algorithmic parameters.Based on the image relationships,we develop VMExplorer,a visual analytics system that assists engineers in grouping images into clusters and exploring parameters.Finally,engineers can determine an appropriate lighting scheme with robust parameter combinations.To demonstrate the effiectiveness and usability of our approach,we conduct a case study with engineers and obtain feedback from expert interviews.

Shanghai and New York:Mid-Century Urban Avant-Gardes

This article examines the cultural and architectural exchanges between Shanghai and New York in the mid-20^(th) century and their iconic roles as avant-garde global capitals.It considers the cultural and architectural free-thinkers and the groundbreaking movements they led,as well as their influence on the character and identity of both cities.Art Deco was the emblematic symbol of these modern forces.The article analyses the new technologies and theatrical perspective,the performative and spectacular qualities of Art Deco as the signature styles and cultural heritage of both cities.