Topology optimized metal forming tools: Using Mixed-Integer Programming to design truss-like structures

The accelerating megatrends of individualization, neo-ecology, and increased connectivity are fundamentally reshaping the demands placed on modern manufacturing. To sustain economic viability amidst these shifts, industry requires highly flexible production systems capable of rapid adaptation to evolving market and ecological constraints. In this context, the development of adjustable or transformable manufacturing tools emerges as a pivotal strategy, offering significant reductions in resource consumption associated with tooling while simultaneously enabling process reconfigurability and supporting variable, demand-driven production. Historically, the fabrication of highly optimized and articulated structures for such adaptive tools was constrained by the limitations of conventional manufacturing techniques. However, the advent of additive manufacturing has removed many of these barriers, making it feasible to realize complex, resource-efficient designs that were previously unattainable. In this work, we introduce an advanced methodology for truss topology optimization (TTO) based on Mixed Integer Programming (MIP), which systematically generates lightweight, structurally efficient truss-like geometries tailored for application in metal forming tools. We present a comprehensive workflow for integrating TTO with additive manufacturing, culminating in the design and realization of a novel tube bending tool. In a future prospect, the tool demonstrates inherent transformability, allowing for reconfiguration to accommodate different bending radii without necessitating the fabrication of entirely new tooling components. The results underscore a significant mitigation of resource consumption at the level of production equipment and indicate meaningful progress towards more agile, sustainable manufacturing enabled by transformable, additively manufactured tools.