This book contains the edited version of lectures and selected papers presented at the NATO ADVANCED STUDY INSTITUTE ON COMPUTER AIDED OPTIMAL DESIGN: Structural and Mechanical Systems, held in Tr6ia, Portugal, 29th June to 11th July 1986, and organized by CEMUL -Center of Mechanics and Materials of the Technical University of Lisbon. The Institute was attended by 120 participants from 21 countries, including leading scientists and engineers from universities, research institutions and industry, and Ph.D. students. Some participants presented invited and contributed papers during the Institute and almost all participated actively in discussions on scientific aspects during the Institute. The Advanced Study Institute provided a forum for interaction among eminent scientists and engineers from different schools of thought and young reseachers. The Institute addressed the foundations and current state of the art of essential techniques related to computer aided optimal design of structural and mechanical systems, namely: Vari ational and Finite Element Methods in Optimal Design, Numerical Optimization Techniques, Design Sensitivity Analysis, Shape Optimal Design, Adaptive Finite Element Methods in Shape Optimization, CAD Technology, Software Development Techniques, Integrated Computer Aided Design and Knowledge Based Systems. Special topics of growing importance were also pre sented.

This book summarizes advances in a number of fundamental areas of optimization with application in engineering design. The selection of the 'best' or 'optimum' design has long been a major concern of designers and in recent years interest has grown in applying mathematical optimization techniques to design of large engineering and industrial systems, and in using the computer-aided design packages with optimization capabilities which are now available.

This is an exposition of the theory, techniques, and the basic formulation of structural optimization problems. The author considers applications of design optimization criteria involving strength, rigidity, stability and weight. Analytic and numerical techniques are introduced for research in optimal shapes and internal configurations of deformable bodies and structures. Problems of the optimal design of beams, systems of rods, plates and shells, are studied in detail. With regard to applications, this work is oriented towards solutions of real problems, such as reduction of the volume or weight of the material, and improvement of mechanical properties of structures. This book is written for readers specializing in applied mechanics, applied mathematics, and numerical analysis."

In recent years, the Finite Element Methods FEM were more and more employed in development and design departments as very fast working tools in order to determine stresses, deformations, eigenfrequencies etc. for all kinds of constructions under complex loading conditions. Meanwhile. very effective software systems have been developed by various research teams although some mathematical problems (e. g. convergence) have not been solved satisfac torily yet. In order to make further advances and to find a common language between mathe maticians and mechanicians the "Society for Applied Mathematics and Mechanics" (GAMM) agreed on the foundation of a special Committee: "Discretization Methods in Solid Mechanics" focussing on the following problems: - Structuring of various methods (displacement functions, hybrid and mixed approaches, etc. >, - Survey of approach functions (Lagrange-/Hermite-polynominals, Spline-functions), - Description of singularities, - Convergence and stability, - Practical and theoretical optimality to all mentioned issues (single and interacting). One of the basic aims of the GAMM-Committee is the interdisciplinary cooperation between mechanicians, mathematicians, and users which shall be intensified. Thus, on September 22, 1985 the committee decided to hold a seminar on "Structural Optimization" in order to allow an exchange of experiences and thoughts between the experts of finite element methods and those of structural optimization. A GAMM-seminar entitled "Discretization Methods and Structural Optimization - Procedures and Applications" was hold on October 5-7, 1988 at the Unversity of Siegen.

Advances in Structural Optimization presents the techniques for a wide set of applications, ranging from the problems of size and shape optimization (historically the first to be studied) to topology and material optimization. Structural models are considered that use both discrete and finite elements. Structural materials can be classical or new. Emerging methods are also addressed, such as automatic differentiation, intelligent structures optimization, integration of structural optimization in concurrent engineering environments, and multidisciplinary optimization. For researchers and designers in industries such as aerospace, automotive, mechanical, civil, nuclear, naval and offshore. A reference book for advanced undergraduate or graduate courses on structural optimization and optimum design.

This book investigates the various aspects of shape optimization of two dimensional continuum structures, including shape design sensitivity analysis, structural analysis using the boundary element method (BEM), and shape optimization implementation. The book begins by reviewing the developments of shape optimization, followed by the presentation of the mathematical programming methods for solving optimization problems. The basic theory of the BEM is presented which will be employed later on as the numerical tool to provide the structural responses and the shape design sensitivities. The key issue of shape optimization, the shape design sensitivity analy sis, is fully investigated. A general formulation of stress sensitivity using the continuum approach is presented. The difficulty of the modelling of the ad joint problem is studied, and two approaches are presented for the modelling of the adjoint problem. The first approach uses distributed loads to smooth the concentrated adjoint loads, and the second approach employs the singu larity subtraction method to remove the singular boundary displacements and tractions from the BEM equation. A novel finite difference based approach to shape design sensitivity is pre sented, which overcomes the two drawbacks of the conventional finite difference method. This approach has the advantage of being simple in concept, and eas ier implementation. A shape optimization program for two-dimensional continuum structures is developed, including structural analysis using the BEM, shape design sensitiv ity analysis, mathematical programming, and the design boundary modelling.

These proceedings contain lectures presented at the NATO Advanced Study Institute on Concurrent Engineering Tools and Technologies for Mechanical System Design held in Iowa City, Iowa, 25 May -5 June, 1992. Lectures were presented by leaders from Europe and North America in disciplines contributing to the emerging international focus on Concurrent Engineering of mechanical systems. Participants in the Institute were specialists from throughout NATO in disciplines constituting Concurrent Engineering, many of whom presented contributed papers during the Institute and all of whom participated actively in discussions on technical aspects of the subject. The proceedings are organized into the following five parts: Part 1 Basic Concepts and Methods Part 2 Application Sectors Part 3 Manufacturing Part 4 Design Sensitivity Analysis and Optimization Part 5 Virtual Prototyping and Human Factors Each of the parts is comprised of papers that present state-of-the-art concepts and methods in fields contributing to Concurrent Engineering of mechanical systems. The lead-off papers in each part are based on invited lectures, followed by papers based on contributed presentations made by participants in the Institute.

Detailing a number of structural analysis problems such as residual welding stresses and distortions and behaviour of thin-walled rods loaded in bending, this text also explores mathematical function minimization methods, expert systems and optimum design of welded box beams.

G.I.N. Rozvany ASI Director, Professor of Structural Design, FB 10, Essen University, Essen, Germany Structural optimization deals with the optimal design of all systems that consist, at least partially, of solids and are subject to stresses and deformations. This inte grated discipline plays an increasingly important role in all branches of technology, including aerospace, structural, mechanical, civil and chemical engineering as well as energy generation and building technology. In fact, the design of most man made objects, ranging from space-ships and long-span bridges to tennis rackets and artificial organs, can be improved considerably if human intuition is enhanced by means of computer-aided, systematic decisions. In analysing highly complex structural systems in practice, discretization is un avoidable because closed-form analytical solutions are only available for relatively simple, idealized problems. To keep discretization errors to a minimum, it is de sirable to use a relatively large number of elements. Modern computer technology enables us to analyse systems with many thousand degrees of freedom. In the optimization of structural systems, however, most currently available methods are restricted to at most a few hundred variables or a few hundred active constraints.