Simultaneous topology and fiber alignment optimization for anisotropic materials

A method for refining a design of a fiber-reinforced component, wherein the design specifies a first shape of the component and a first orientation of a fiber of the component, the method comprising:

• providing a first set of one or more inputs to a Finite Element Analysis (FEA) simulation for a first execution of the FEA simulation, wherein the first set of one or more inputs is based on the first shape and the first orientation;
• determining, by a computer system, a second shape of the component and a second orientation of the fiber based on a set of one or more outputs from the first execution of the FEA simulation;
• providing a second set of one or more inputs to the FEA simulation for a second execution of the FEA simulation, wherein the second set of one or more inputs is based on the second shape and the second orientation;
• and
• determining, by a computer system, a third shape of the component and a third orientation of the fiber based on a set of one or more outputs from the second execution of the FEA simulation.

A method comprising:

• associating each of a plurality of finite elements of a physical design space with a respective index value that quantifies inclusion of the finite element in a fiber-reinforced component;
• associating, for each of the finite elements along a longitudinal axis of a fiber of the component, a respective vector specifying a direction of the fiber within the finite element;
• providing one or more inputs to a Finite Element Analysis (FEA) simulation for execution by the FEA simulation, the one or more inputs based on the index values and the vectors;
• and
• determining, by a computer system, a shape for the component and an orientation of the fiber based on one or more outputs of the FEA simulation.

A method comprising:

• determining respective directional stiffness values for each of a plurality of finite elements of a physical design space;
• providing the respective directional stiffness values to a Finite Element Analysis (FEA) simulation for execution by the FEA simulation;
• identifying, from one or more outputs of the executed FEA simulation, respective strain energy values for each of the finite elements;
• and
• determining, by a computer system, a shape for a fiber-reinforced component and an orientation of a fiber of the component based on the respective strain energy values.