Optimal design of truss-structures using particle swarm optimization

A two-stage particle swarm optimization was utilized in this study to solve truss-structure optimization problem achieving minimum weight objective under stress, deflection, and kinematic stability constraints. The topologies of the truss-structure were optimized first from a given ground structure employing the modified binary particle swarm optimization (BPSO), and subsequently the size and shape of members were optimized utilizing the attractive and repulsive particle swarm optimization (ARPSO). The effectiveness of the proposed methodology was evaluated through a two-tier, 39-member, 12-node ground structure problem. It was observed that the proposed methodology can find superior truss structures than those reported in the literatures.

► A two-stage PSO scheme is developed to solve truss-structure optimization problem.
► Modified genotype-phenotype BPSO is employed to optimize truss topology.
► Size and shape of truss members are optimized utilizing modified ARPSO.
► A two-tier, 39-member, 12-node ground structure is used to evaluate the performance.
► The results show that the proposed scheme is superior to those employing GAs and ACO.