A hybrid artificial neural network method with uniform design for structural optimization

This paper presents a new hybrid artificial neural network (ANN) method for structural optimization. The method involves the selection of training datasets for establishing an ANN model by uniform design method, approximation of the objective or constraint functions by the trained ANN model and yields solutions of structural optimization problems using the sequential quadratic programming method (SQP). In the proposed method, the use of the uniform design method can improve the quality of the selected training datasets, leading to a better performance of the ANN model. As a result, the ANN dramatically reduces the number of required trained datasets, and shows a good ability to approximate the objective or constraint functions and then provides an accurate estimation of the optimum solution. It is shown through three numerical examples that the proposed method provides accurate and computationally efficient estimates of the solutions of structural optimization problems.