Optimum design of steel telecommunication poles using genetic algorithms

This study implements the genetic algorithm (GA) method in the optimization of steel telecommunication poles subjected to normal operating loads. In formulating the optimization problem, the objective function is defined as the pole weight. The imposed constraints on the design are: interaction ratios, sway angle limitations, minimum and maximum pole bottom diameters, and segment heights. The formulated problem is a mixed continuous-discrete problem where the main dimensions of the pole, top and bottom diameters, and segment heights are continuous variables whereas other variables are discrete. A Microsoft (R) Visual Basic (R) computer program is written implementing the requirements of TIA/EIA-222-G standards and using genetic algorithms (GAs). A verification problem and a generic telecommunication pole example are presented that show the effectiveness of the proposed approach. This program can be extended to cover other design standards of telecommunication poles as well as different types of poles, such as lighting and transmission poles.