Generative heatsink design for an automotive audio amplifier

A classical heatsink design approach entails an assumption of the heatsink area extending fin topology followed by a parametric optimisation to maximize thermal performance and potentially minimise mass. This paper presents an alternative approach whereby the fin topology is identified as part of the optimisation process. This involves a generative heatsink growth stage so as to minimise the overall heatsink thermal resistance followed by a heatsink mass reduction stage that seeks to remove mass without unduly affecting thermal performance. Application to an automotive audio amplifier is presented, resulting in an 18% reduction in heatsink mass with no detriment to thermal performance compared to an existing angled plate fin type topology.