Topology Optimization of a Composites Frame Structure considering ply orientation for MALE UAV

Ilham Bagus Wiranto (Badan Riset dan Inovasi Nasional)
Sherly Octavia Saraswati (Badan Riset dan Inovasi Nasional)
Iqbal Reza Alfikri (Badan Riset dan Inovasi Nasional)
Chairunnisa Chairunnisa (Badan Riset dan Inovasi Nasional)
Agus Aribowo (Badan Riset dan Inovasi Nasional)

Jurnal Sains Materi Indonesia
Vol 24, No 1: OCTOBER 2022

This research employs the Finite element method to optimize the frame structure of a Medium Altitude Long Endurance (MALE) Unmanned Aerial Vehicle (UAV). The material used in this study is a unidirectional carbon fiber stacked in a specific sequence. The topology optimization process is conducted to achieve a lightweight structure whilst maintaining its integrity. The design constraint is set to reduce 50% weight and minimize the strain energy. The benchmark phase was performed while considering a previously done study to validate the proposed method. The results of this study have successfully reduced 34% (0.581 kg) weight of frame structure. First failure predicition study using Hashin criterion, shows the first failure occurred in the matrix of Ply-2 at 9000 N.