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