Combining design responses for a general topology optimization

For a general topology optimization you can create a design response calculated as the difference or the absolute difference between two design responses of the same type or a weighted combination of several (up to 10) displacement design responses. A typical example uses the absolute difference in the displacement between two design responses to constrain the displacement of two vertices relative to each other. The following table shows which design responses can be combined:

See Also
Creating and editing a design response
Selecting the data source of a design response
Design responses Absolute difference Weighted sum Subtract
Displacements and rotation √ √ √
Absolute displacements and rotations    
Reaction forces √ √ √
Absolute reaction forces    
Internal forces √ √ √
Absolute internal forces    
Modal eigenfrequencies √   √

Although a design response is a single scalar value, you can use the appropriate weighting to combine design responses that are defined in different directions or in different coordinate systems.