Practical Optimum Shape design of Thin-Walled Open sections subjected to Bi-Axial Moments and Torsion using Soft Computing Techniques

Abstract

The optimum shape design algorithm presented formulates the shape optimization problem by treating the nodal coordinates of thin-walled sections. The displacement, normal, and shear stress limitations are considered design constraints, while the objective function minimizes weight. The effect of warping is considered in the computation of the bending and shear stresses under the external loads. The sectional and sectorial properties of a thin-walled section are computed by utilizing nodal coordinates. Two soft computing techniques, the enhanced artificial bee colony (eABC) and population-based beetle's antenna search (pbBAS) algorithms, are employed to determine the solution of the optimum shape design problem.