Abstract

In this paper, a connecting rod was modeled and analyzed by finite element method. By using genetic algorithm (GA) and modified cuckoo optimization algorithm (MCOA), the material properties and some geometrical specifications were optimized. Cost function was a combination of weight and stress. The connecting rod was under a load of 21.8 kN which obtained 360o crank angle at 5700 rev/min. The reduction percentages of weight in 2-D analysis were 45.47% and 50.34% based on GA and MCOA, respectively. The reduction percentages of stress were also 1.26% and 2.20% based on GA and MCOA, respectively. The values of reduction percentages in 3-D analysis showed the same trends.
The results showed that applying each of the algorithms was efficient. Meanwhile, the results of MCOA were better than GA, because of the smaller number of iterations and the initial population, which resulted in increasing the rate of convergence (i.e. decreasing computational time) and accuracy of answers. It can be mentioned that MCOA is an efficient and reliable algorithm and can be used as a benchmark for future works.