Anisotropy and Shape Optimal Design of Shells by the Polar–Isogeometric Approach

We focus in this paper on the simultaneous shape and material optimal design of shells by an isogeometric-like approach of a new kind, in which geometry and material properties of the structure are defined by spline functions and the design variables are the polar parameters at the control points. Different kinds of constraints on the regularity, the admissibility of the elastic moduli etc, are taken into account and some numerical examples, proving the effectiveness of the approach, are given.