Analysis and Application of Laminated Object Manufacturing for Fabrication of Topologically Optimal Components

Increased interest in the optimal deployment of materials for components in industries such as aerospace, automobiles, and architecture has encouraged a focus on structures with lower weight and higher stiffness. Bionic designs can guarantee such characteristics, as the designs consist of lattice structures which distribute material density along load paths. However, because of their complicated patterns, designing and manufacturing bionic designs optimally is nearly impossible with conventional tools. Thus, a new method for designing these lattice structures is introduced in this thesis, and the technology based on additive manufacturing methods that enables their fabrication is discussed.