Lightweight of bus seats using topology optimization

Reducing the weight of vehicles has a significant and multifaceted impact on vehicles. One of the weight reduction strategies is to lighten the materials used in vehicles. One of these materials is bus seats, which are widely used in public transportation. Lightening bus seats provides increases in vehicle performance, energy efficiency, carrying capacity and travel comfort. At the same time, it contributes to environmental impacts and sustainability by contributing to the reduction of carbon footprint. Therefore, the bus industry continues its lightweighting efforts by constantly seeking innovative solutions in seat design and material selection. One of these innovative methods is topology optimization, an advanced structural design method that can achieve high-performance, lightweight and multifunctional structure configuration through reasonable material distribution that meets specified load conditions, performance and constraints. In this study, it is aimed to lighten the metal carrier leg part of the bus seat by using topology optimization. Aluminum Silafont-36 (AlSi9Mg) and MGAZ91 materials were preferred instead of traditional metal materials. Design models were created using CATIA CAD and force analysis was performed according to topology server orientations. The data obtained was analyzed in detail using the HyperWorks 2022 program. Topology optimization has been continuously carried out to provide weight advantage by optimally arranging the material distribution. At the end of the study, the results obtained from aluminum Silafont-36 and MGAZ91 materials were examined comparatively and the lightest design was obtained with MGAZ91 material.