Analytical and numerical case studies on tailoring stiffness for the design of structures with displacement control

This paper discusses the role that structural stiffness plays in the context of designing adaptive structures. The focus is on load-bearing structures with adaptive displacement control. A design methodology is implemented to minimize the control effort by making the structure as stiff as possible against external loads and as flexible as possible against the effect of actuation. This rationale is tested using simple analytical and numerical case studies.