Structural optimization is an important tool for structural designers that helps them to find innovative design solutions and structural forms with a better exploitation of materials as well as decreased self-weight and minimum material costs. In this article, a design procedure coupling the influence matrix method and genetic algorithms to optimize stay cables in cable-stayed bridges is presented. Following that, the design procedure is utilized in the preliminary design of a twin towers double-cable planes cable-stayed bridge to be located in Ferrara, Italy. The cable cross-sectional areas and corresponding pre-tension forces are optimized simultaneously. The results demonstrate that the proposed procedure is a powerful tool for designing stay cables and predicting the optimum cross-sectional areas of stay cables under certain stress and displacement constraints.

结构优化是结构设计师的重要工具，可帮助他们找到创新的设计解决方案和结构形式，更好地利用材料并降低自重和最低材料成本。在本文中，提出了一种结合影响矩阵法和遗传算法来优化斜拉桥斜拉索的设计程序。随后，该设计程序用于位于意大利费拉拉的双塔双索平面斜拉桥的初步设计。同时优化电缆横截面积和相应的预紧力。