“Jacobs expects that using Generative
Design will shorten design time by 20% and
produce parts which are incredibly
lightweight, resulting in significant fuel
savings.”
Jesse Craft
Senior Engineer
Jacobs Engineering
Jacobs Engineering is designing the
next-generation spacesuit for NASA using PTC’s
Generative Design solution
JACOBS ENGINEERING – PLSS
Background: Jacobs is looking to reduce weight on structural components in
JACOBS ENGINEERING – PLSS O2 TANK BRACKET
Part Description: Bracket to secure one end of O2 tank to PLSS subframe
Stated Customer Objective(s): Optimize for strength while minimizing mass, maintain a 1.5x safety factor to yield, 2.0x to ultimate
Primary Business Case Driver: Reduced weight, resulting in fuel savings during launch
Secondary Business Case Driver: Increased design productivity
amongst structural designers; frequent changes in PLSS mean rapid design iterations necessary
Load Case(s): Must withstand 18.5 g’s in all ordinate directions Preferred Material: Titanium (950 MPa ultimate, 860 MPa yield)
JACOBS ENGINEERING – PLSS O2 TANK BRACKET
Problem Setup: In Creo 7, created design space from available volume within
PLSS; applied loads and constraints in GTO, set target mass to 0.3 lbm; created
BREP from generative result
BREP
Reconstruction Generative
JACOBS ENGINEERING – PLSS O2 TANK BRACKET
Generative Design Original DesignWeight Reduction: 21%
Original
Generative
Weight
0.387 lb
0.306 lb
Safety Factor 6.8
3.1
JACOBS ENGINEERING – PLSS CO2 SENSOR BRACKET
Part Description: Bracket to secure two CO2 sensors to the PLSS subframe
Stated Customer Objective(s): Optimize for strength while minimizing mass, maintain a 1.5x safety factor to yield, 2.0x to ultimate
Primary Business Case Driver: Reduced weight, resulting in fuel savings during launch
Secondary Business Case Driver: Increased design productivity
amongst structural designers; frequent changes in PLSS mean rapid design iterations necessary
Load Case(s): Must withstand 18.5 g’s in all ordinate directions Preferred Material: Titanium (950 MPa ultimate, 860 MPa yield)
JACOBS ENGINEERING – PLSS CO2 SENSOR BRACKET
Problem Setup: In Creo 7, created design space from available volume within
PLSS; applied loads and constraints in GENERATE, set target mass to 1.10 lbm
Original Design Design Space Design Space + CO2 Sensors
JACOBS ENGINEERING – PLSS CO2 SENSOR BRACKET
Generative Design Original Design
Weight Reduction: 20%
Peak Stress Reduction: 73%
Original
Generative
Weight
1.22 lb
1.01 lb
Max Stress
66.1 MPa
18.3 Mpa
JACOBS ENGINEERING – PLSS CO2 SENSOR BRACKET
Additional Design Variants:
Mesostructure Surface Texturing
“Generative design has the potential
to absolutely transform the
transportation industry as it seeks to
improve fuel economy through
aggressive weight reduction.”
Kevin McClintock
Senior Consultant
Volvo Group N.A.
Volvo Group is working on making
long-haul freight haulers
hyper-efficient by utilizing PTC’s Generative
Design solution
VOLVO GROUP
Background: Volvo Group is engaged in the
SuperTruck project, a five-year challenge by
the U.S. Department of Energy to create a
truck that improves freight efficiency by 50% in
SuperTruck I, increasing to 120% for SuperTruck
II. For the latter, they needed to reduce
weight of the entire vehicle by an additional
2500 kg. Since weight savings forward of the
front axle are especially critical, several
structural components near the front of the
engine were considered.
This report was prepared as an account of work sponsored by an agency of the United States Government. Neither the United States Government nor any agency thereof, nor any of their employees, makes any warranty, express or
implied, or assumes any legal liability or responsibility for the accuracy, completeness, or usefulness of any information, apparatus, product, or process disclosed, or represents that its use would not infringe privately owned rights. Reference herein to any specific commercial product, process, or service by trade name, trademark, manufacturer, or otherwise does not necessarily constitute or imply its endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by the United States
VOLVO GROUP – SUPER TRUCK
Part Description: Forward engine mount
Stated Customer Objective(s): Since the part is forward of the front axle, weight savings is more valuable than in other parts of the vehicle; original cast iron part designed 17 years ago and still in production
Primary Business Case Driver: Decrease weight of original design, while achieving equal or better strength; also
wanted to improve upon a second version that was
designed by Penn State University during a year-long paid collaborative project
Secondary Business Case Driver: Increased design
productivity amongst structural designers; frequent changes in the engine mean rapid design iterations necessary
Load Case(s): Provided by Volvo Preferred Material: Cast aluminum
Problem Setup: In Creo 7, created design space from available volume within
the engine, including all mounting points and neighboring components, some of
which you need air gap to prevent heat transfer; applied loads and constraints
in GENERATE, set various mass targets, aiming for around 10-12 lbm
VOLVO GROUP – SUPER TRUCK
Example Design Variants:
Final Result: Varied element resolution to force fewer, larger beams and struts to
be created since part will be investment cast; combined result with several
parametric features (mounting locations, bosses for fan ring mount, etc)
Penn State Design Original Design
Variant Material Weight
(kg) Max Disp(mm) Max Stress (MPa) Comments
Original Design Iron (cast) 20.36 3.5 1393 Stress is 4.3x yield PSU Design Iron (cast) 11.86 2.6 1255 Stress is 3.9x yield Generative Design Al 356 (cast) 5.00 0.85 250 Stress is 1.5x yield
VOLVO GROUP – SUPER TRUCK
Final Generative Design
VOLVO GROUP – SUPER TRUCK
Part Description: Fan motor mount
Stated Customer Objective(s): Current belt-driven fan clutch was being replaced with new fully variable electric motor, requiring a new mount; preliminary design was a three-piece sub-assembly; goal was to simplify to a single part Primary Business Case Driver: Design brand new part, improving upon weight and stiffness of preliminary sub-assembly, with reduced complexity and fastener count Secondary Business Case Driver: Increased design
productivity amongst structural designers; frequent changes in the engine mean rapid design iterations necessary
Load Case(s): Provided by Volvo
Problem Setup: In Creo 7, created design space from available volume within
the engine, including all mounting points and neighboring components, as well
as the motor itself; applied loads and constraints in GENERATE, set various mass
targets, aiming for around 1 kg
VOLVO GROUP – SUPER TRUCK
Example Design Variants:
Final Result: Optimized for machining; exceeds target safety factor; lighter
weight than three-piece original design
Original Multi-Part Design
Variant Material Weight (kg) Max Stress (MPa) Comments
Original Design AL6061 2.45 153 MPa Stress is 0.55x yield Generative Design AL6061 1.06 101 MPa Stress is 0.38x yield
VOLVO GROUP – SUPER TRUCK
VOLVO GROUP – SUPER TRUCK
“Generative design of the forward engine mount, fan mount and bridge bracket (not
shown) resulted in a net weight savings of 34 kg, which accounts for 1.34% of the whole vehicle target mass reduction of 2500 kg. Imagine if
we’d had generative design when the platform was originally created...”
Kevin McClintock Design Consultant