Experimental Investigations on Mechanics‐Based Additively Manufactured Stayed Lattice Structures

ABSTRACT Lattice structures have gained increasing popularity due to their remarkable strength‐to‐weight ratio. With advancements in material extrusion additive manufacturing (MEX), the complex designs of lattice structures have become more accessible and widely applicable. However, their slender components are highly susceptible to elastic buckling at low relative densities. A stayed lattice structure concept has been developed to further enhance the mechanical performance of lattice systems. A three‐step Make–Break–Simulate approach is employed, which proves to be highly effective and well‐suited for the design and improvement of stayed lattice unit cells (UCs). To broaden the design space, a new set of UCs was developed following two distinct design concepts: stay design and structural design. This work focuses on the additive manufacturing and experimental analysis of six new UC types. Digital image correlation (DIC) was employed to investigate the deformation behaviour throughout the buckling and post‐buckling paths. The results demonstrate that all new UC variants exhibit a significant improvement in load‐bearing capacity. Among them, Type I‐C stands out, achieving substantial load increases while using minimal additional material for the stays. Furthermore, the observed buckling mode in this design differs markedly from that of conventional UCs. The availability of various UC designs opens new possibilities for future 2D and 3D lattice structures, enabling local tuning of mechanical behaviour and targeted reinforcement of specific regions.