Generation of Conceptual Design for Structural Shapes and Functional Elements of Machine Systems Under the Conditions Having No Preconceptions Concerning the Design.

Abstract

This paper presents methodologies for generating conceptual designs of a structural system, in which structural shapes, inner structural organizations and a functional element are, as much as possible, created without any preconceived information from an element likened to a seed, that is, the initially given detailed information is kept to a minimum. First, a feasible design region initially containing nothing is defined. The entire feasible region which is uniformly filled up with finite elements having extremely low rigidity is here assumed to be a region containing nothing. Then, a seed element grows into an entire structural system in the feasible design region by both creating external shapes and growing inner structures. Next, the design method is advanced so that a functional element of a rotational joint is also simultaneously generated with the structural shapes. Finally, the proposed methods are demonstrated using conceptual designs of industrial robot-like structures having the functions of hanging and transporting an object.