Although Cuckoo Search (CS) is a quite new nature-inspired metaheuristic optimization algorithm, it has been extensively used in engineering applications, since it has been proven very efficient in solving complex nonlinear problems. In this paper, efficient modifications have been made to the original CS algorithm to enhance its efficiency and robustness. More specifically, constant parameters of

An integrated geometric design sensitivity (DSA) method for weakly coupled thermoelastic problems is developed in this study using boundary integral equations with an isogeometric approach that directly utilizes a CAD system's NURBS basis functions in response analysis. Thermomechanical coupling frequently creates thermoelastic behaviors in plants and nuclear systems and requires a structural optimization

Tunnelling induced surface settlements can cause damage in buildings located in the vicinity of the tunnel. Currently, surface settlements and associated building damage risks usually are estimated based on empirical equations, e.g. by assuming Gaussian curves for the settlement trough and by applying the Limit Tensile Strain Method or the tilt-based method to evaluate and categorise the expected building

Moving Morphable Component (MMC) based topology optimization approach is an explicit algorithm since the boundary of the entity explicitly described by its functions. Compared with other pixel or node point-based algorithms, it is optimized through the parameter optimization of a Topological Description Function (TDF). However, the optimized results partly depend on the selection of related parameters

The article presents a full three-dimensional (3D) numerical analysis of curved laminated shell structures using only a two-dimensional (2D) planar finite element mesh. The applied numerical method is called FEM23, which stands for the 2D finite element method for a full 3D analysis. FEM23 makes it possible to perform a numerical analysis of a multi-layered shell, utilising a numerical model based

A systematic procedure of high-precision parameterization and multi-objective optimization for airfoils was proposed in this paper in order to improve the aerodynamic performance under full working conditions. The Bezier curve was applied in the airfoil parameterization with the coordinates of the 8 Bezier control points chosen to be the design variables. The control points were initialized by self-programming

A new semi-analytical approach is described for calculating the potential and electric field in a system of infinitely long parallel cylindrical conductors. The method is based on the dipole simulation technique and the method of successive dipole images. For a system of N conductors with predefined potential differences between them, this method leads to a linear system of n = N(N–1)/2 equations for

This literature survey concerns the application of optimization techniques to cable-stayed bridges. A search within the Web of Science and Scopus electronic databases was conducted, complemented by a hand search. From a total of 155 articles, 90 were chosen for a detailed review. The search results are summarized, highlighting the procedures, the main conclusions and contributions of each work. The

In this work, an edge-based smoothed finite element method (ES-FEM) is embedded into the commercial software ABAQUS by using user defined element subroutines (Implicit/UEL, Explicit/VUEL). Unstructured meshes (i.e. triangular and tetrahedral elements) are employed in the framework due to their good geometric adaptability and the advantages of being automatically generated in the software. In ES-FEM

This paper proposes a methodology for the topology optimization of continuum structures subject to dynamic stress response constraints under stochastic loads. The topology optimization model is built, where the objective function is the structural weight, and the dynamic stress constraints are applied. In order to greatly reduce the computational cost of dynamic stress responses and prevent stress

We present a Bernstein–Bézier finite element method with local mesh refinement to simulate the heat transfer problem in the welding process. A novel constraint method is formulated to handle the incompatible degrees of freedom associated with the transitional elements during the local quad-tree/oct-tree refinement. A dynamic refinement strategy is proposed with a local L2 projection approach to transfer

Development in large-scale geotechnical engineering simulation places tremendous demand for efficient visualization of such simulation data. This study presents a lightweight software tool, i.e. Geotechnical Interactive Visualization (GIV), as a solution to this challenge, which achieves efficient interactive visualization of large-scale simulations data in geotechnical engineering. Visualization data

In this paper, a parallel computing scheme for performing implicit finite element calculations on acoustic problems running on a graphics processing unit (GPU) is proposed. This scheme combines the element-by-element (EBE) strategy and the edge-based smoothed finite element method (ES-FEM). A mapping strategy based on the ES-FEM is developed to parallel calculate various formulas for smoothing domains

An open source software package to generate numerical model for finite element method (FEM) and discrete element method (DEM) based on digital image is proposed. Both 2D bitmap and 3D volumetric images are supported. This package includes geometrical and analytical routines for vectorizing bitmap image, computing geometric information statistics, and generating numerical models. The ability of handling

To accurately simulate the mechanical properties of rockfill materials under triaxial stress using the discrete element method (DEM), the microparameters of the rockfill material DEM model are calibrated based on the macroparameters of a constitutive model. For the calibration model, a refined 3-D numerical triaxial test is established to obtain the deformation curves of the rockfill under different

Compared with arithmetic operation, communication cost is often the bottleneck on modern computers, and thus should be paid increasing attention when choosing algorithms. Lagged gradient methods are known for their error tolerance and fast convergence. However, it appears that their parallel behavior is not well understood. In this paper, we explore the cyclic formulations of lagged gradient methods

Proper functioning and safety of anchor elements are decisive for the overall performance of a structural system. A possible failure mode for anchor loaded in shear is the concrete breakout failure. Concrete related failure mode poses a significant safety issue, since they may develop abruptly/brittle, without preceding signs of damage. Consequently, accurate prediction of the concrete breakout strength

This paper presents a novel method for the optimization of the dynamic behavior of a laminated cylinder through stacking sequence optimization. The number of layers reaches 48 and the optimized parameters are either the value of the fundamental natural frequency or the width of the frequency gaps around the excitation force frequencies. The proposed procedure involves automatic mode shape identification

In this study, an efficient method is proposed for the safety evaluation of steel trusses using the gradient tree boosting (GTB) algorithm, one of the most powerful techniques in machine learning (ML). Datasets are first generated using the advanced analysis to consider both geometric and material nonlinearities of the structure. Four GTB models are then proposed to predict the ultimate load-carrying

This paper proposes an effective and efficient method for topology optimization with a time-variant reliability constraint. A decoupling strategy is used to decompose the time-variant reliability topology optimization into a time-variant analysis and time-invariant deterministic topology optimization, thus improving the efficiency of the optimization calculation. The reliability analysis will use the

The capacity of the rotor excavator depends largely on the operation of the subsystem for digging. There is a great contribution to the correct and sharp teeth when the capacity is the highest. In the function of time, the teeth become clogged due to abrasive wear, or changes in their geometric shape. To analyze the bucket wheel drive in depend on wear of the cutting elements in this study adaptive

In this paper, we tackled the convergence detection problem arisen from the absence of synchronization during asynchronous iterative computation. We showed that, when one arbitrarily takes the local components of a global solution vector, an upper bound can be established on the difference between a residual error evaluated from this global vector and the inconsistent residual error evaluated without

In this article, a new metaheuristic optimization algorithm (named as, student psychology based optimization (SPBO)) is proposed. The proposed SPBO algorithm is based on the psychology of the students who are trying to give more effort to improve their performance in the examination up to the level for becoming the best student in the class. Performance of the proposed SPBO is analyzed while applying

For the trajectory tracking purpose of cable-driven robots, a novel robust control method is proposed and investigated in this paper. The proposed method consists of three elements, i.e. a time-delay estimation (TDE) element and a nonsingular fast terminal sliding mode (NFTSM) control element and a feedforward compensation. The TDE technique is utilized to estimate the lumped system dynamics in a simple

Topology optimization is becoming a popular choice in designing components as it can reduce a component's weight while mostly maintaining its performance. In the designs from a discrete topology optimization, the boundaries are usually jagged and post-processing is required to smooth such boundaries. A post-processing method is presented in the paper to smooth the jagged boundaries. The post-processing

Modelling the mechanical behaviour of granular materials using the insight of physics, such as discrete element method (DEM), usually costs a lot of computing resources as a result of the storing and transferring of a large amount of particle and contact information. Unlike DEM, the micro-mechanical (MM) model, based on statistics of directional inter-particle contacts of a representative volume of

The AMORE scheme of “automatic meshing with overlapping and regular elements” has been recently proposed, in which the concept of overlapping finite elements plays a central role. In earlier work we focused on the overlapping of individual elements. In this paper, we present a technique to overlap finite element meshes so that elements from different meshes can overlap in any geometric form. Meshes

Post-earthquake fires occur frequently, and the seismic damage to non-structural components results in dangerous fire and evacuation environments. Both firefighters and trapped people will face serious threats to life during the rescue. Consequently, a simulation framework of an indoor post-earthquake fire rescue scenario based on building information model (BIM) and virtual reality (VR) is proposed

The aim of this study is to replace the stress-strain constitutive relation within a finite element method (FEM) implementation with an adaptive neuro-fuzzy inference system (ANFIS). The computation is supported by the Compute Unified Device Architecture (CUDA) technology available on modern Nvidia graphics processing units (GPUs). The multi-threaded multiple input / multiple output (MIMO) CUDA-ANFIS

Topology optimisation is an increasingly important process used in a variety of industries to improve the designs of manufacturable products. The higher reliance of optimisation software, used for instance in the automotive industry, highlights its importance for designing more efficient and refined mass-produced components. Post-processing of topology optimisation results (e.g. from variable density

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In contrast with conventional structural optimization benchmark problems real size structures mostly contain a large number of members and their optimal design provide a serious challenging area for optimization methods. In this regard, current study deals with assessing the search performance of the recently developed fuzzy reinforced metaheuristic technique so called Interactive Fuzzy Search Algorithm

In this article, an efficient methodology is developed to optimize nonlinear steel frames under several load combinations. For that purpose, inelastic advanced analyses of steel frames are performed using plastic hinge beam–column elements to reduce computational efforts. An improved differential evolution (DE) algorithm is utilized as a global optimizer to refine the solution accuracy and enhance

The objective of this work is to develop and test a new data structure, which takes advantage of the latest programming technology to build interactive structural engineering modeling software that is robust, efficient, portable, modular, expandable, and easy to use. The data structure proposed is composed of a collection of matrices that describe both the geometrical properties and the topological

Double-skin façades (DSFs), usually designed for aesthetic reasons or energy saving purposes, have been recently proposed as an alternative mean of passive control, able to reduce the effects of dynamic actions on building structures. This paper presents a novel approach to optimise their design as distributed vibration absorbers (VAs). Four key design parameters have been chosen to represent the façade

It is shown that the determinant of the tangent stiffness matrix has a maximum in the prebuckling regime if and only if the determinant of a specific linear combination of the first and the third derivative of this matrix with respect to a dimensionless load factor vanishes. The mathematical tool for this proof is the so-called consistently linearized eigenproblem in the frame of the Finite Element

Current methods for developing manipulator Jacobian matrices are based on traditional kinematic descriptions such as Denavit and Hartenberg parameters. The resulting symbolic equations for these matrices become cumbersome and computationally inefficient when dealing with more complex spatial manipulators, such as those seen in the field of biomechanics. This paper develops a modified method for Jacobian