New AI “copilot” helps engineers design better structures

The use of algorithms to design structures has led to new parts optimized for ultralight aircraft, high-bandwidth antennas, and F1 racing cars.

But the best algorithmic design techniques still require lots of computation and time: Users only see the final design after it’s complete, after which they often must start the design process all over again to make changes. That process also makes it harder to trust that the final designs are structurally sound.

MIT researchers are making algorithmic designs more collaborative with a system that acts like an AI copilot. As the algorithm is generating the structure, it presents regions to the human designer for feedback.

In an open-access Communications Engineering paper describing the system, the researchers showed it led to more easily manufacturable structures with higher buckling loads while adding only 15 seconds to the total design time compared to all-algorithmic approaches.

The researchers believe the approach, which...

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