05-07-2010, 11:03 PM
Design and Analysis of Snap Hook.
Project Details
Finite element analysis and design optimization were performed in ANSYS to minimize the volume of a hook body of a safety snap assembly. The hook body was manufactured from forged 1541 heat treated steel and the stress in the hook body could not exceed the yield strength of 180 ksi (1241.1 MPa). The hook geometry was simplified and preliminary hand calculations were used to predict stress values in the critical cross section of the hook. The hook was modeled in ANSYS using the bottom-up approach and when the computer optimization was performed the volume of the hook body was reduced by 18.2%, while the stress increased by 16%. The maximum stress in the critical cross section was found to be 181.2 ksi (1249.3 MPa,), which exceeded the specified inequality constraint due to the default tolerance applied in ANSYS. Two additional design optimizations were performed where the initial design variables were changed before optimization to test for robustness. These changes had no significant effect on the optimization results