DESA: Optimization of variable structure modelica models using custom annotations

Optimizing system models in order to support the design process of equipment components or whole architectures is part of daily engineering work. Due to the variety of models, the requirements for the functionalities of such libraries are enormous. Finding the optimal structural design (i.e. of a cold plate) through automated optimization exceeds normal needs. Here the model must provide structural variability. In case of the Modelica language this reaches the limit of its functionality of handling such models for optimization. The use of meta-information such as custom annotations can increase the functionality of the Modelica Language. A tool, called DESA, was developed to overcome these limitations and handle variable structure models. This library uses custom annotations to implement the optimization task to the model. Further the model is exported including these meta-information. The DESA optimization tool then allows to set up the optimization task in a Matlab environment and operates the optimization run. In this way the optimization of variable structure models is achieved.