Application of Topology Optimization to Production-Ready Passenger Seat Components Design

Lightweighting of components has become a key challenge in the development of modern transportation systems. In the automotive and aerospace industries, the overall mass of a vehicle has a significant impact on its fuel efficiency and manufacturing cost. Therefore, the lightweight design of vehicle components is crucial in the industrial field. Topology optimization (TO) is a computational design approach aimed at achieving lightweight designs. However, most existing studies focus on simplified academic models, with limited demonstration in real-world applications. This paper presents a revised TO workflow to obtain production-ready design and a practical implementation of TO in the design of three structural components in the aerospace industry: seatback frame, seat fuselage mount, and seat spreader. The revised TO workflow incorporates the practical demands of industry, including enhanced manufacturability and cost efficiency through TO design. The resulting designs are evaluated to ensure all regulatory requirements are satisfied. Comparative results show that the designs produced by the presented TO-based design method achieve a significant weight reduction of 50% for the seatback frame. For the seat fuselage mount and seat spreader, the proposed method produced designs with a weight comparable to the baseline while satisfying stricter crashworthiness requirements. These components also ensure manufacturability, efficient fabrication cost, and compatibility with family parts. These findings demonstrate that TO can deliver production-ready solutions without compromising structural performance. The study highlights the potential of integrating TO into a revised design workflow to support performance-driven development of complex, production-ready industrial components.