Structural Optimisation using a Hybrid Cellular Automata (HCA) Algorithm

The Hybrid Cellular Automata (HCA) algorithm has been used by several researchers to optimise structures during the last decade. Close observation of their work shows that the proposed optimisation algorithms are sensitive to the controller (local rule), the design variable and the field variable used. The aim of this work is to identify and understand the important parameters when using the HCA algorithm to optimise structures. For static loading, it is shown that the most important parameters are the design variable, the constraints on the design variable, the local rule, and the mesh density of the structure. The choice of the design variable affects the selection of the target value and the homogeneity of the resulting optimum structure. With constraints on the design variable, it is shown that the algorithm cannot always drive the structure to an optimum solution, as stresses in the resulting structure can be significantly higher than expected. Besides, the choice of the local rule and the mesh density of the structure can affect the convergence rate and may cause the algorithm to arrive at a local optimum rather than the global optimum solution.