Towards hierarchical design optimization for simultaneous composite material characterization and adjustment of the corresponding physical experiments

Abstract

This article presents a hierarchical scheme based on a staggered design optimization approach that can simultaneously achieve both real-time design of the optimum physical experiments needed for the characterization of the material under consideration and the material characterization itself. The approach assumes that mechatronically driven systems are available for exposing specimens to multidimensional loading paths and for acquiring the stimulus and response behaviour data. Material characterization is achieved by minimizing the difference between the experimentally acquired and the analytically predicted response of the system. At the same time, performance metrics of the material characterization process are used to construct the objective functions for the design of experiments problem at a higher level. An example is presented for the case of characterization of the linear elastic constitutive response of anisotropic materials while the best loading path for achieving this goal with a two degree of freedom loading machine is also determined in real time.

Keywords:

• design optimization
• composite materials
• material characterization
• control of experiments

Acknowledgements

The authors acknowledge the support by the Office of Naval Research and the National Science Foundation under grant 0540419. Partial support from NRL's 6.1 core-funding is also acknowledged.