STRUCTURAL DESIGN UNDER BOUNDED UNCERTAINTY - OPTIMIZATION WITH ANTI-OPTIMIZATION

In many cases precise probabilistic data are not available on uncertai nty in loads, but the magnitude of the uncertainty can be bound. This paper proposes a design approach for structural optimization with unce rtain but bounded loads. The problem of identifying critical loads is formulated mathematically as an optimization problem in itself (called anti-optimization), so that the design problem is formulated as a two -level optimization. For linear structural analysis it is shown that t he anti-optimization part is limited to consideration of the vertices of the load-uncertainty domain. An example of a ten-bar truss is used to demonstrate that we cannot replace the anti-optimization process by considering the largest possible loads.