# A Comparative Study of the Application of Different Commercial Software for Topology Optimization
###### Abstract
On the one hand, there is a plethora of open source software/scripts based on the 99-line script and SIMP, such as the top88 [15] and the top3D125 [16]. In addition, there are some scripts that implement different optimization methods, such as the CalculiX [17], which uses the bi-directional evolutionary structural optimization (BESO) [18], or the Allaire_Scilab [19], which applies the level set method [20]. Furthermore, there are a few open source platforms that offer a toolbox of TO scripts, such as the FreeFem [21] and the Firedrake [22]. On the other hand, the commercial CAD/FEM platforms have integrated TO over the last years due to the lack of computational power. The majority of them use the traditional compliance TO with SIMP, such as SolidWorks [23], ABAQUS [24], Siemens NX [25], and Altair Optistruct [26], while some others use different algorithms, such as AMEBA [27], which is BESO-based, or ANSYS Mechanical [28], which includes the level set method in addition to SIMP. TO in commercial software is in its development since new design values that can be chosen both as objective functions and constraints, such as frequency and buckling, are gradually included in their TO modules. However, the authors could find only a few relevant TO studies in the literature. Zhou et al. [29] presented the casting and extrusion manufacturing constraints in TO software, newly introduced in 2002. In 2006, Schramm and Zhou [30] discussed the developments in the implementation of TO in commercial software. Reddy K et al. [31] compared and categorized twenty different commercial and educational (open source) TO software platforms for AM, based on their capabilities in 2016. It seems that literature is missing a recent library of the available TO software platforms, including their capabilities and limitations. Furthermore, a common CAD designer's problem is the time spent, before optimization, looking for the ideal CAD/FEM platform that can support his/her optimization problem. Hence, this research paper closes this scientific gap by the development of an online library of the most implemented TO software platforms (70 software platforms) in the form of a table. The library encompasses the name, company, availability (commercial/open source), and optimization types and methods that the software uses together with the available objective functions and constraints. In addition, when it was possible to identify, references and representative literature using the presented software were included. This TO library constitutes a useful tool for CAD designers interested in TO. In addition, it is accessible online for reading, editing, and updating its content. In Sections 4-6 of this paper, the authors present an in-depth comparison among a few of the TO software platforms found previously in the created library. This comparative study was limited to the commercial software. The choice of the software was made based on the authors' accessibility to the software's TO modules via the student licenses provided by their affiliated university. Thus, three commercial software platforms were picked--SolidWorks, ANSYS Mechanical, and ABAQUS. The utilized software platforms were compared with respect to their optimization time, optimized designs, pre- and post-processing of the results, as well as their features and optimization capabilities. For this reason, three common geometries found in the literature, including a bell crank lever, a pillow bracket,and a small bridge, were used as optimization case studies. Each of these models represents a separate example category. The bell crank lever has limited design space, the pillow bracket can lead to design solutions with an increased number of components, and the small bridge has significantly increased design space. The optimization of these structures was focused on simplicity, and thus, it was limited to the traditional compliance TO based on the SIMP method.