Strength-based topology optimization for anisotropic parts

Additive manufacturing (AM) is emerging as a promising technology to fabricate cost-effective, customized functional parts. Designing such functional, i.e., load bearing, parts can be challenging and time consuming where the goal is to balance performance and material usage. Topology optimization (TO) is a powerful design method which can complement AM by automating the design process. However, for TO to be a useful methodology, the underlying mathematical model must be carefully constructed. Specifically, it is well established that parts fabricated through some AM technologies, such as fused deposition modeling (FDM), exhibit behavioral anisotropicity. This induced anisotropy can have a negative impact on functionality of the part, and must be considered. To the best of our knowledge, a robust TO method to handle anisotropy has not been proposed. In the present work, a strength-based topology optimization method for structures with anisotropic materials is presented. More specifically, we propose a new topological sensitivity formulation based on strength ratio of non-homogeneous failure criteria, such as Tsai-Wu. Implementation details are discussed throughout the paper, and the effectiveness of the proposed method is demonstrated through numerical and experimental tests.