Reliability-based optimisation for robust design

A reliability-based optimal design process was developed and demonstrated for robust design of large, complex multidisciplinary systems such as automotive vehicles by integrating reliability and variability analyses with optimisation design processes. Using the integrated process, a robust design could be achieved by including a set of variability and reliability constraints instead of deterministic constraints in the search for the optimal design. Using the response surface approach, the process is suitable for large scale multidisciplinary optimisation and robust design. The process also ranks the significance of individual design variables to the robustness of any specified constraints and objective functions. This information allows design engineers to set up a tolerance strategy intelligently for improving the robustness and reducing the total cost of the product in the most effective way.