Optimization of trusses using the simulated annealing method

Abstract

Until very recent times, traditional methods were being used for optimization in structural design. Actually, powered by the advances in computer technology, as to software and hardware, new algorithms have been developed based on heuristic techniques. In these techniques, a large number of solutions are found for the given problem, and choosing the bests among them, a global optimum is searched. Simulated annealing is one of the promising ways to perform this search. In this study the fundamentals of this method are discussed through applications on plane trusses through a special 10-bar truss.