A new three-dimensional topology optimization method based on moving morphable components (MMCs)

In the present paper, a new method for solving three-dimensional topology optimization problem is proposed. This method is constructed under the so-called moving morphable components based solution framework. The novel aspect of the proposed method is that a set of structural components is introduced to describe the topology of a three-dimensional structure and the optimal structural topology is found by optimizing the layout of the components explicitly. The standard finite element method with ersatz material is adopted for structural response analysis and the shape sensitivity analysis only need to be carried out along the structural boundary. Compared to the existing methods, the description of structural topology is totally independent of the finite element/finite difference resolution in the proposed solution framework and therefore the number of design variables can be reduced substantially. Somewidely investigated benchmark examples, in the three-dimensional topology optimization designs, are presented to demonstrate the effectiveness of the proposed approach.