Optimal design for rubber concrete layered periodic foundations based on the analytical approximations of band gaps and mapping relations

The seismic performance of rubber concrete-layered periodic foundations are significantly influenced by their design,in which the band gaps play a paramount role.Aiming at providing better designs for these foundations,this study first proposes and validates the analytical formulas to approximate the bounds of the first few band gaps.In addition,the mapping relations linking the frequencies of different band gaps are presented.Furthermore,an optimal design method for these foundations is developed,which is validated through an engineering example.It is demonstrated that ensuring the superstructure’s resonance zones are completely covered by the corresponding periodic foundation’s band gaps can achieve satisfactory vibration attenuation effects,which is a good strategy for the design of rubber concrete layered periodic foundations.

Optimal Design of High-Speed Partial Flow Pumps using Orthogonal Tests and Numerical Simulations

To investigate the influence of structural parameters on the performances and internal flow characteristics of partial flow pumps at a low specific speed of 10000 rpm,special attention was paid to the first and second stage impeller guide vanes.Moreover,the impeller blade outlet width,impeller inlet diameter,blade inclination angle,and number of blades were considered for orthogonal tests.Accordingly,nine groups of design solutions were formed,and then used as a basis for the execution of numerical simulations(CFD)aimed at obtaining the efficiency values and heads for each design solution group.The influence of impeller geometric parameters on the efficiency and head was explored,and the“weight”of each factor was obtained via a range analysis.Optimal structural parameters were finally chosen on the basis of the numerical simulation results,and the performances of the optimized model were verified accordingly(yet by means of CFD).Evidence is provided that the increase in the efficiency and head of the optimized model was 12.11%and 23.5 m,respectively,compared with those of the original model.

Optimal design of sintered Ce_9Nd_(21)Fe_(bal)B_1 magnets with a low-melting-point (Ce,Nd)-rich phase

A systemic investigation was done on the chemistry and crystal structure of boundary phases in sintered Ce9Nd21FebalB1 （wt%） magnets. Ce2Fe14B is believed to be more soluble in the rare-earth （RE）-rich liquid phase during the sintering process. Thus, the grain size and oxygen content were controlled via low-temperature sintering, resulting in high coercivity and maximum energy products. In addition, Ce formed massive agglomerations at the triple-point junctions, as confirmed by elemental mapping results. Transmission electron micros- copy （TEM） images indicated the presence of （Ce,Nd）Ox phases at grain boundaries. By controlling the composition and optimizing the preparation process, we successfully obtained Ce9Nd21FebalBx sintered magnets; the prepared magnets exhibited a residual induction, coerciv- ity, and energy product of 1.353 T, 759 kA/m, and 342 kJ/m3, respectively.

Accurate energy model for WSN node and its optimal design

With the development of CMOS and MEMS technologies, the implementation of a large number of wireless distributed micro-sensors that can be easily and rapidly deployed to form highly redundant, self-configuring, and ad hoc sensor networks. To facilitate ease of deployment, these sensors operate on battery for extended periods of time. A particular challenge in maintaining extended battery lifetime lies in achieving communications with low power. For better understanding of the design tradeoffs of wireless sensor network （WSN）, a more accurate energy model for wireless sensor node is proposed, and an optimal design method of energy efficient wireless sensor node is described as well. Different from power models ever shown which assume the power cost of each component in WSN node is constant, the new one takes into account the energy dissipation of circuits in practical physical layer. It shows that there are some parameters, such as data rate, carrier frequency, bandwidth, Tsw, etc, which have a significant effect on the WSN node energy consumption per useful bit （EPUB）. For a given quality specification, how energy consumption can be reduced by adjusting one or more of these parameters is shown.

Optimal Design for an End Face Engagement Worm Gear with Multiple Worm-wheel Meshing

To solve the problem for lacking a special mechanical transmission that could provide multiple outputs with high transmission efficiency and good lubrication in the modem industrial, a novel worm gear, named end face engagement worm gear, with multiple worm-wheel meshing is proposed for the first time. The essential parameters for the worm gear are optimized to enhance lubrication and meshing properties. Moreover, analysis of variance（ANOVA） is applied to determine the optimum levels and to determine the influence of parameters. The ANOVA results show that the novel end face engagement worm gear with multiple worm wheels provides high lubrication（the lubrication angle is more than 89~） and meshing performance（the induce normal curvature is less than 0.0002 mm ＇）. The interaction between center distance and roller slant distance most strongly influences the lubrication angle（contributed 51.6%）, followed by the parameters of center distance（contributed 25.0%）, roller slant distance（contributed 16.4%）, tooth angle of gear, gear ratio, and roller radius. In addition, roller radius most strongly influences the induced normal curvature（contributed 39.4%）, followed by roller slant distance（contributed 15.2%）, tooth angle of the gear（contributed 9.0%）, center distance, and gear ratio. The proposed worm gear helps to enrich the no-backlash high precision worm drive and the optimal design method can provide a useful reference on performance improvement of other worm gear.

Optimal Design of Stewart Platform Safety Mechanism

A safety mechanism capable of moving at will within the range of its whole link lengths is designed based on the link space. Sixteen extreme poses are obtained in a Stewart platform. The singular points of the extreme poses are solved by using homotopy method as well as the judgment condition of singular points, and thereby the maximum link lengths are achieved. The rotation angles of joints and the distances between two neighboring links are analyzed in a calculation example in which that the mechanism moves among the extreme poses is assumed. Then an algorithm to test the safety mechanism is presented taking the constraint conditions into account. A safety mechanism having optimal properties of global movement is worked out by optimizing all structural parameters through minimizing the average condition number of extreme poses.

Optimal Design of Multiple Stress Constant Accelerated Life Test Plan on Non-rectangle Test Region

For optimal design of constant stress accelerated life test（CSALT） with two-stress, if the stresses could not reach the highest levels simultaneously, the test region becomes non-rectangular. For optimal CSALT design on non-rectangle test region, the present method is only focused on non-rectangle test region with simple boundary, and the optimization algorithm is based on experience which can not ensure to obtain the optimal plan. In this paper, considering the linear-extreme value model and the optimization goal to minimize the variance of lifetime estimate under normal stress, the optimal design method of two-stress type-I censored CSALT plan on general non-rectangular test region is proposed. First, two properties of optimal test plans are proved and the relationship of all the optimal test plans is determined analytically. Then, on the basis of the two properties, the optimal problem is simplified and the optimal design method of two-stress CSALT plan on general non-rectangular test region is proposed. Finally, a numerical example is used to illustrate the feasibility and effectiveness of the method, The result shows that the proposed method could obtain the optimal test plan on non-rectangular test regions with arbitrary boundaries. This research provides the theory and method for two-stress optimal CSALT planning on non-rectangular test regions.

Optimal design theories of tuned mass dampers with nonlinear viscous damping

Optimal design theory for linear tuned mass dampers （TMD） has been thoroughly investigated, but is still under development for nonlinear TMDs. In this paper, optimization procedures in the time domain are proposed for design of a TMD with nonlinear viscous damping. A dynamic analysis of a structure implemented with a nonlinear TMD is conducted first. Optimum design parameters for the nonlinear TMD are searched using an optimization method to minimize the performance index. The feasibility of the proposed optimization method is illustrated numerically by using the Taipei 101 structure implemented with TMD. The sensitivity analysis shows that the performance index is less sensitive to the damping coefficient than to the frequency ratio. Time history analysis is conducted using the Taipei 101 structure implemented with different TMDs under wind excitation. For both linear and nonlinear TMDs, the comfort requirements for building occupants are satisfied as long as the TMD is properly designed. It was found that as the damping exponent increases, the relative displacement of the TMD decreases but the damping force increases.

Optimal Design of TMD Under Long-Term Nonstationary Wave Loading

Traditionally, the use of a tuned mass damper (TMD) is to improve the surviability of the primary structure under extraordinary loading environment while the design loading condition is described by either a harmonic function or a stationary random process that can be fully characterized by a power spectral density (PSD) function. Aiming at prolonging the fatigue life of an offshore platform, this study considers an optimal design of TMD for the platform under long-term nonstationary loading due to long-term random sea waves characterized by a probabilistic power spectral density (PPSD) function In principle, a PPSD could be derived based on numerous ordinary PSD functions; and each of them is treated as realization of the corresponding PPSD. This study provides a theoretical development for the optimal TMD design by minimizing the cost function to be the mean square value of the expected long term response. A numerical example is presented to illustrate the developed design procedure.

Optimal design of a novel cylindrical sandwich panel with double arrow auxetic core under air blast loading

The increasing threat of explosions on the battle field and the terrorist action requires the development of more effective blast resistance materials and structures.Curved structure can support the external loads effectively by virtue of their spatial curvature.In review of the excellent energy absorption property of auxetic structure,employing auxetic structure as core material in curved sandwich shows the potential to improve the protection performance.In this study,a novel cylindrical sandwich panel with double arrow auxetic(DAA) core was designed and the numerical model was built by ABAQUS.Due to the complexity of the structure,systematic parameter study and optimal design are conducted.Two cases of optimal design were considered,case1 focuses on reducing the deflection and mass of the structure,while case2 focuses on reducing the deflection and increasing the energy absorption per unit mass.Parameter study and optimal design were conducted based on Latin Hypercube Sampling(LHD)method,artificial neural networks(ANN) metamodel and the nondominated sorting genetic algorithm(NSGA-Ⅱ).The Pareto front was obtained and the cylindrical DAA structure performed much better than its equal solid panel in both blast resistance and energy absorption capacity.Optimization results can be used as a reference for different applications.

Optimal design and effectiveness evaluation for inerter-based devices on mitigating seismic responses of base isolated structures

The optimal design and effectiveness of three control systems,tuned viscous mass damper(TVMD),tuned inerter damper(TID)and tuned mass damper(TMD),on mitigating the seismic responses of base isolated structures,were systematically studied.First,the seismic responses of the base isolated structure with each control system under white noise excitation were obtained.Then,the structural parameter optimizations of the TVMD,TID and TMD were conducted by using three different objectives.The results show that the three control systems were all effective in minimizing the root mean square value of seismic responses,including the base shear of the BIS,the absolute acceleration of structural SDOF,and the relative displacement between the base isolation floor and the foundation.Finally,considering the superstructure as a structural MDOF,a series of time history analyses were performed to investigate the effectiveness and activation sensitivity of the three control systems under far field and near fault seismic excitations.The results show that the effectiveness of TID and TMD with optimized parameters on mitigating the seismic responses of base isolated structures increased as the mass ratio increases,and the effectiveness of TID was always better than TMD with the same mass ratio.The TVMD with a lower mass ratio was more efficient in reducing the seismic response than the TID and TMD.Furthermore,the TVMD,when compared with TMD and TID,had better activation sensitivity and a smaller stroke.

Optimal Design of a 3-Leg 6-DOF Parallel Manipulator for a Specific Workspace

Researchers seldom study optimum design of a six-degree-of-freedom（DOF） parallel manipulator with three legs based upon the given workspace.An optimal design method of a novel three-leg six-DOF parallel manipulator（TLPM） is presented.The mechanical structure of this robot is introduced,with this structure the kinematic constrain equations is decoupled.Analytical solutions of the forward kinematics are worked out,one configuration of this robot,including position and orientation of the end-effector are graphically displayed.Then,on the basis of several extreme positions of the kinematic performances,the task workspace is given.An algorithm of optimal designing is introduced to find the smallest dimensional parameters of the proposed robot.Examples illustrate the design results,and a design stability index is introduced,which ensures that the robot remains a safe distance from the boundary of sits actual workspace.Finally,one prototype of the robot is developed based on this method.This method can easily find appropriate kinematic parameters that can size a robot having the smallest workspace enclosing a predefined task workspace.It improves the design efficiency,ensures that the robot has a small mechanical size possesses a large given workspace volume,and meets the lightweight design requirements.

Optimal Design and Dynamic Simulation of Mountain Bike with Rear Suspension

This paper investigates the dynamic design methodology of mountain bikes with rear suspension. Firstly, a multi-rigid body dynamic model of rider and mountain bike coupled system is constructed. The rider model includes 19 skeletons, 18 joints and 118 main muscles. Secondly, to validate the feasibility of the model, an experiment test is designed to reflect the real cycling status. Finally, aiming at enhancing the performance of the rider vibration comfort, the scale parameters of rear suspension are optimized with computer simulation and uniform design. The mathematical model in the vibration performance and the design variables is constructed with regression analysis. The result shows that when the length of side link is 90 mm, the length of connected rod is 336.115 1 mm and the included angle between absorber and side link is 60°, the mountain bike has better vibration comfort. This study and relevant conclusions are of practical importance to the design of the mountain bike＇s rear suspension system.

Bayesian optimal design of step stress accelerated degradation testing

This study presents a Bayesian methodology for de- signing step stress accelerated degradation testing （SSADT） and its application to batteries. First, the simulation-based Bayesian de- sign framework for SSADT is presented. Then, by considering his- torical data, specific optimal objectives oriented Kullback-Leibler （KL） divergence is established. A numerical example is discussed to illustrate the design approach. It is assumed that the degrada- tion model （or process） follows a drift Brownian motion; the accele- ration model follows Arrhenius equation; and the corresponding parameters follow normal and Gamma prior distributions. Using the Markov Chain Monte Carlo （MCMC） method and WinBUGS software, the comparison shows that KL divergence is better than quadratic loss for optimal criteria. Further, the effect of simulation outiiers on the optimization plan is analyzed and the preferred sur- face fitting algorithm is chosen. At the end of the paper, a NASA lithium-ion battery dataset is used as historical information and the KL divergence oriented Bayesian design is compared with maxi- mum likelihood theory oriented locally optimal design. The results show that the proposed method can provide a much better testing plan for this engineering application.

Optimal design study of high order FIR digital filters based on neural network algorithm

An optimal design approach of high order FIR digital filter is developed based on the algorithm of neural networks with cosine basis function . The main idea is to minimize the sum of the square errors between the amplitude response of the desired FIR filter and that of the designed by training the weights of neural networks, then obtains the impulse response of FIR digital filter . The convergence theorem of the neural networks algorithm is presented and proved, and the optimal design method is introduced by designing four kinds of FIR digital filters , i.e., low-pass, high-pass, bandpass , and band-stop FIR digital filter. The results of the amplitude responses show that attenuation in stop-bands is more than 60 dB with no ripple and pulse existing in pass-bands, and cutoff frequency of passband and stop-band is easily controlled precisely .The presented optimal design approach of high order FIR digital filter is significantly effective.

OPTIMAL DESIGN PROCEDURE BASED ON VISCOPLASTIC MATERIAL BEHAVIOUR

The optimization problems belong to the family of the most important engineering problems. The objective of this paper is to proposed a very efficient numerical algo- rithm which is involved in an optimal design procedure in the field of viscoplasticity phenomena. Because of the complexity of design procedure, particularly in the field of viscoplas- ticity, the finite element method is used. This method provides a good structural discretization and very efficient mathematical describing of time-rate effects. Accord- ing to the design specifications, which will dictate a limiting design strain, using the proposed algorithm, the design life of the considered structure will be covered. For the justification of the proposed method an example is presented. On the basis of specifications data and environment conditions, an operating pressure of a pressure vessel is obtained.

MODELING, VALIDATION AND OPTIMAL DESIGN OF THE CLAMPING FORCE CONTROL VALVE USED IN CONTINUOUSLY VARIABLE TRANSMISSION

Associated dynamic performance of the clamping force control valve used in continuously variable transmission （CVT） is optimized. Firstly, the structure and working principle of the valve are analyzed, and then a dynamic model is set up by means of mechanism analysis. For the purpose of checking the validity of the modeling method, a prototype workpiece of the valve is manufactured for comparison test, and its simulation result follows the experimental result quite well. An associated performance index is founded considering the response time, overshoot and saving energy, and five structural parameters are selected to adjust for deriving the optimal associated performance index. The optimization problem is solved by the genetic algorithm （GA） with necessary constraints. Finally, the properties of the optimized valve are compared with those of the prototype workpiece, and the results prove that the dynamic performance indexes of the optimized valve are much better than those of the prototype workpiece.

Load optimal design for a primary test stand facility based on a zero-dimensional load model

In order to couple the numerical simulation of a primary test stand driver with an optimal load design, a zero- dimensional wire array load model is designed based on the Saturn load model using PSPICE, which is an upgraded version of the Simulation Program with Integrated Circuit Emphasis （SPICE） designed by the ORCAD Corporation to perform circuit simulations. This paper calculates different load parameters and discusses factors influencing the driving current curve. With appropriate driving current curves chosen, further magneto-hydrodynamic calculations are carried out and discussed to provide the best results for experiments. The suggested optimal load parameters play an important role in experimental load design.

Optimal Design of Street-side Green Spaces: A Case Study of Tiaoshan Cultural Park in Yuncheng City, Shanxi Province

Street-side green spaces are located by urban roads, serving neighboring residents and business population, they are public spaces for citizens working, relaxing and communicating with each other. Landscape design of street-side green spaces is the manifestation of city culture, history and development. Through investigating actual conditions, cultural and historical context, and neighboring traffic of Tiaoshan Cultural Park, this study summarizes deficiencies of the original plant and landscape setting designs, and proposes optimal designs of the park according to the design principles of street-side green spaces.

Improved Genetic Optimization Algorithm with Subdomain Model for Multi-objective Optimal Design of SPMSM

For an optimal design of a surface-mounted permanent magnet synchronous motor(SPMSM),many objective functions should be considered.The classical optimization methods,which have been habitually designed based on magnetic circuit law or finite element analysis(FEA),have inaccuracy or calculation time problems when solving the multi-objective problems.To address these problems,the multi-independent-population genetic algorithm(MGA)combined with subdomain(SD)model are proposed to improve the performance of SPMSM such as magnetic field distribution,cost and efficiency.In order to analyze the flux density harmonics accurately,the accurate SD model is first established.Then,the MGA with time-saving SD model are employed to search for solutions which belong to the Pareto optimal set.Finally,for the purpose of validation,the electromagnetic performance of the new design motor are investigated by FEA,comparing with the initial design and conventional GA optimal design to demonstrate the advantage of MGA optimization method.