Feature-based spline optimization in CAD

In this paper, an advanced method for CAD-based spline structure optimization is investigated. The method is based on the combination of the commonly known parameter-based spline shape optimization and a recently presented feature-based structure variation concept for commercial CAD tools. The aim is to extend common parameter-based spline shape variation by the additional possibility to automatically add and remove control points or entire splines directly in CAD space. Such advanced spline modification provides a new level of flexibility in general geometry-based structural optimization. Using these splines to build CAD models, entirely new structures may be automatically generated during an optimization run through this newly gained flexibility in spline manipulation. The idea is to roughly define a continuous design space by basic splines and to gradually increase their shape complexity by control point number variation during optimization. Thus, operating on a knowledge-lean initialization—a design space bounded by basic splines and filled with material—this combination further extends the search and solution spaces of CAD-based structural optimization. The paper provides an outlook towards automated geometry-based structure creation combining nowadays commercial CAD software and a dedicated variation and optimization framework for geometry-based structural optimization.