Optimization of material distribution for forged automotive components using hybrid optimization techniques

The paper deals with the problem of optimal material distribution inside the provided design area. Optimization based on deterministic and stochastic algorithms is used to obtain the best result on the basis of the proposed objective function and constraints. The optimization of the shock absorber is used as an example of the described methods. One of the main difficulties addressed is the manufacturability of the optimized part intended for the forging process. Additionally, nonlinear buckling simulation with the use of the finite element method is used to solve the misuse case of shock absorber compression, where the shape of the optimized part has a key role in the total strength of the automotive damper. All of that, together with the required design precision, creates the nontrivial constrained optimization problem solved using the parametric, implicit geometry representation and a combination of stochastic and deterministic algorithms used with parallel design processing. Two methods of optimization are examined and compared in terms of the total amount of function calls, final design mass, and feasibility of the resultant design. Also, the amount of parameters used for the implicit geometry representation is greatly reduced compared to existing schemes presented in the literature. The problem addressed in this article is strongly inspired by the actual industrial example of the mass minimization process, but it is more focused on the actual manufacturability of the resultant component and admissible solving time. Commercially accessible software combined with authors’ procedures is used to resolve the material distribution task, which makes the proposed method universal and easily adapted to other fields of the optimization of mechanical elements.