Multi-objective topology optimization for cutout design in deployable composite thin-walled structures

Deployable Composite Thin-Walled Structures (DCTWS) are widely used in space applications due to their ability to compactly fold and self-deploy in orbit, enabled by cutouts. Cutout design is crucial for balancing structural rigidity and flexibility, ensuring material integrity during large deformations, and providing adequate load-bearing capacity and stability once deployed. Most research has focused on optimizing cutout size and shape, while topology optimization offers a broader design space. However, the anisotropic properties of woven composite laminates, complex failure criteria, and multi-performance optimization needs have limited the exploration of topology optimization in this field. This work derives the sensitivities of bending stiffness, critical buckling load, and the failure index of woven composite materials with respect to element density, and formulates both single-objective and multi-objective topology optimization models using a linear weighted aggregation approach. The developed method was integrated with the commercial finite element software ABAQUS via a Python script, allowing efficient application to cutout design in various DCTWS configurations to maximize bending stiffness and critical buckling load under material failure constraints. Optimization of a classical tubular hinge resulted in improvements of 107.7% in bending stiffness and 420.5% in critical buckling load compared to level-set topology optimization results reported in the literature, validating the effectiveness of the approach. To facilitate future research and encourage the broader adoption of topology optimization techniques in DCTWS design, the source code for this work is made publicly available via a GitHub link: https://github.com/jinhao-ok1/Topo-for-DCTWS.git.