Mechanical engineering design optimisation using modified harmony elements algorithm
by R.V. Rao, D.P. Vakharia, V.J. Savsani
International Journal of Design Engineering (IJDE), Vol. 2, No. 2, 2009

Abstract: In this paper a new optimisation algorithm, harmony elements algorithm (HEA), for solving mechanical engineering design optimisation problems is presented. This algorithm is inspired by an ancient Chinese philosophy, called as theory of five elements. The basic harmony element algorithm proposed by Cui and Guo (2008) is modified in this paper to reduce the computational effort by dividing the population into equal parts and by incorporating the mutation operator. The efficiency and ease of application of the proposed optimisation algorithm is demonstrated by solving five different mechanical components design problems such as pressure vessel, tension/compression spring, Belleville spring, welded beam and gear train. The results of the proposed method are compared with the results given by other optimisation techniques such as genetic algorithm (GA), particle swarm optimisation (PSO), ant colony algorithm (ACA), Lagrangian multiplier approach and branch and bound approach. In all the cases, the solutions obtained using the proposed modified HEA are superior to those obtained by other optimisation techniques.

Online publication date: Mon, 21-Sep-2009

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