Weight Optimization Approach for Conceptual Design - Requirements, Functions, Working Principles

Lightweight design and weight optimization in general are seen as one promising of many approaches to create products and services in a sustainable and resource efficient way. However, most of the methods proposed for lightweight design are applied late in the development process (embodiment and detail design) and mostly locally for specific components and subsystems without regarding the system as a whole. For today’s sustainability challenges, the traditional weight improvements are not sufficient anymore. A transfer and an establishment of weight optimization methods to earlier design phases, especially the concept design stage, is needed because of the important influence on product properties in these phases. Moreover, a methodology of weight-optimization for innovative, interdisciplinary products, especially mechatronic products and systems, is missing. In this contribution, a method for the consideration of weight optimization during the creation of function structures, working principles and principle solution structure is presented.