A Study on Topology Optimization of Landing Gear Parts

In the aviation industry, one of the most complex industries in the world, the importance of low-weight design of aircraft is increasing day by day. While the requirements and related regulations regarding the efficient use of energy and minimizing environmental impacts are increasingly included in the legal framework, the importance of designing aircraft with low weight and therefore advantageous in terms of fuel consumption in the aviation sector, where competition is quite intense, is also increasing rapidly day by day. As a result of this situation, structural and parametric optimization, especially topology optimization studies, for the design of aircraft components with low weight, emerge as an indispensable element of design processes in the aviation industry. In this study, a Torque link and Trunnion landing gear parts were used. Firstly, the topology optimization study is performed as one conditional with separated two load cases. Afterward, the multi-conditional topology optimization is done with the aforementioned load cases. A weighted compliance parameter is generated to use in multi-conditional optimizations as a constraint or objective. While generating weighted compliance value, proportional weighted compliance (PWC) method is compared to the equal-effect weighted compliance (EEWC) method. With the EEWC method, on the torque link parts, 43% volume fraction is achieved and 34% volume fraction is obtained with the PWC method. Similar study has been done once again with landing gear Trunnion part and there were seen that the PWC method is a more effective approach in multi-conditional topology optimizations.