FEniTop vs Plato

FEniTop is free, open-source software for topology optimization based on FEniCSx. It handles two- and three-dimensional problems on structured or unstructured meshes, with varied element geometries, types, orders, and quadrature degrees. Users express partial differential equations in weak form, while automatic differentiation supports finite-element and sensitivity analysis. PETSc through petsc4py provides linear and nonlinear solvers and preconditioners. Parallel implementations of Optimality Criteria and Method of Moving Asymptotes update design variables. A Helmholtz-type PDE filter targets large-scale parallel problems, including large filter radii. FEniTop can run from laptops to distributed computing clusters. Optimized designs export as XDMF files for ParaView post-processing. Repository examples cover beams in 2D and 3D, a 2D disk, a 3D shell, and a 2D compliant mechanism. The software is licensed under GPL-3.0. Setup instructions specify FEniCSx 0.7.3, PyVista, and Xvfb; Windows 11 instructions use Ubuntu under WSL and Docker Desktop.

Plato is a Linux command-line platform for topology optimization, helping designers develop geometry that meets functional requirements. It solves topology and shape design problems with adjoint methods for gradient-based optimization. Documented objectives include increasing stiffness or heat flow and reducing stress. Plato coordinates workflows involving geometry, meshing, and physics simulation packages. It includes the open-source physics code Plato Analyze and can also be used with a growing set of internal Sandia physics codes. Research features described for the platform include structural optimization across multiple materials, uncertainty-aware structural optimization, level-set methods, and a massively parallel kernel filter. A graphical interface is in development for selected applications. The open-source version is listed at free, with a limited set of objectives and constraints. A license is required to obtain an installation package.