Algorithmic Generative Design vs Performance Driven Generative Design

Well thought-out design is an essential prerequisite for innovation. Thanks to algorithmic generative design, you can now leave most of this ‘thinking’ to smart algorithms.

What is algorithmic generative design?

Algorithmic generative design is a process in which software based on algorithms independently generates design proposals. Designers identify as many variables as possible, for example, the intended target, conditions, and available material, as well as matters like cost reductions. An algorithm then rapidly calculates thousands of designs and selects the models that best satisfy the predefined requirements. 

What are the benefits of algorithmic generative design? 

1. Breaking down creativity barriers: Using the algorithmic generative design, the designer’s creativity is no longer a limiting factor. The software can produce design proposals that engineers have not, or barely, the thought of, breaking down the restrictions of human creativity.
2. Saving costs: Retrospective extensive testing and simulating is no longer necessary, as this is already built into the process. The software tests the designs ‘on the fly’ via built-in simulation. The design is based on these results. Expensive changes afterwards are therefore no longer needed, preventing any unpleasant surprises later.
3. Accelerating design processes: Generative design enables the design of a vast number of designs. People of flesh and blood would need much more time to create this same number of designs.
4. Enabling innovations: Generative design generates designs that are optimised for predefined restraints and conditions, which can form the basis for other innovations.

What is performance-driven generative design?

Performance Driven Generative Design adds a powerful layer to this already staggering technology by offering a wide range of techniques and science domains to produce concepts, solutions, and efficient production models.

Performance driven generative design solutions are used for structural and fluid flow optimizations, and the results generated with one can be used with the other.

Structural Generative Design

Structural Generative Design allows users to perform rich weight reduction trade-off studies of generated design alternatives, with high-quality shapes respecting structural KPI targets. Creators can compare and assess different configurations against KPIs to select the best lightweight concept.

What are the benefits of structural generative design?

1. Explore new lightweight shape ideations that fit design functions
2. Perform trade-off based on manufacturing processes and material variants
3. Automatically reuse optimization setup to validate design proposal, at any stage of the design process

Flow-Driven Generative Design

Fluid Flow engineers face the challenge of finding feasible flow paths that can form complex networks throughout a product. While ensuring consistent maximum flow rates, minimizing pressure drops and recirculation. This traditionally leads to the need for multiple siloed software solutions to design, simulate, optimize and validate these complex products.

What are the benefits of flow generative design?

1. Find the optimal duct shape that will reduce pressure drop
2. Find and explore design proposals within a principal design space
3. Improve an existing design that still contains recirculation
4. Re-use optimization setup to validate design proposals

Why use Generative Design powered by the 3DEXPERIENCE Platform?

With the 3DEXPERIENCE platform, you can benefit from cutting-edge generative design capabilities directly within CATIA. CATIA’s generative design solutions enable users to automatically generate optimized conceptual parts from a functional specification at the push of a button. By varying inputs, designers can generate multiple variations to compare and analyse.

In order to be competitive in today’s market, designers and engineers are required to minimize part weight, maximize stiffness, reduce cost, and optimize material usage. Additionally, there is a need to provide high-level aesthetics customers are now demanding. Because of this, the design world has been rapidly changing and so is the process involved. In parallel, Technology produces new materials and new machines to make the once impossible – possible.

CATIA Generative Design allows designers to explore and validate through simulation, and make informed decisions on weight reduction and performance gain. Optimized shapes that could not have been imagined using conventional design methods are now at the designer’s fingertips.

Get in touch today to explore how Generative Design could help your business.