Developments of sizing sensitivity analysis with the ABAQUS code

A practical tool is developed to deal with sizing sensitivity analysis of linear and geometrically nonlinear problems. Design variables are selected as cross-sectional areas of bar elements or the thickness of the membrane, beam, plate and shell elements. This tool is considered as a general open interface implemented outside the finite element package. It can extend existing finite element systems from pure structural analysis to engineering design capabilities. The formulation is based on the direct differentiation method. Numerical results are typically provided with the application of the ABAQUS code.