Topology design using a two-level displacement-based approach

A displacement-based optimization method is used to solve structural topology design problems. The method is a two-level scheme that avoids the use of repeated finite element analysis often required in traditional structural optimization. The approach is based on an outer level that searches for the optimal displacements and an inner level which finds the optimal design for a given displacement field. For truss structures, the inner optimization problem is a linear programming problem and hence is efficiently solved. The method is applied to the topology design of trusses with linear and nonlinear behavior. The validity and efficiency of the approach for this class of problems is demonstrated through several test examples.