Publication Date

2008

Document Type

Dissertation

Committee Members

Haibo Dong (Committee Member), Ramana V. Grandhi (Advisor), Jay H. Kim (Committee Member), Ravi C. Penmetsa (Committee Member), Gregory W. Reich (Committee Member)

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Abstract

The work performed investigates the system design and optimization of an undersea vehicle. The system design is driven by the available components, the missions the vehicle is required to perform, and the performance the system configuration yields. The system design consists of three design modules: path planning, component selection and sizing, and structural analysis. The path planning module uses a novel application of the Particle Swarm Optimization algorithm named Path Planning by Additive Freedom. Additionally, the unknown aspects of the mission space through which the path propagates are dealt with using an uncertainty quantification method known as Evidence Theory. Component selection and sizing are performed using the naval design tool SNARC. This program uses a branch and bound technique called the A* algorithm to choose the components that should be used in the system and what size they should be according to the mission profiles provided by the path. The structural analysis is performed using the ABAQUS finite element program to calculate the structural reliability of the system. This module uses the structure sizing data, as well as the hydrodynamic and hydrostatic forces from the mission profile, to calculate the system's reliability with respect to a buckling failure, the most common structural failure in undersea vehicles.

Page Count

165

Department or Program

Ph.D. in Engineering

Year Degree Awarded

2008


Included in

Engineering Commons

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