Generative design as a tool to analyze the uncertain loading regimes of intricate skeletal structures

The morphology of a skeletal structure is driven in part by the forces it
endures over evolutionary time. We demonstrate that generative design, an
iterative engineering tool, can yield insight into the loading regimes of
complex skeletal elements. With only a simple model of the spatial
constraints and potential forces seen by a skeletal element, we generated
analogous structures. We used this technique to provide insights into the
specialization of the radial elements of batoid pectoral fins, a case that
would be challenging to analyze by conventional means. Particular
configurations of generative designs resulted in structures with a
morphology remarkably similar to that of real radials. We suggest that
these cases reveal the loading configurations that the real radials have
evolved to withstand.