Abstract: In this paper, different optimisation methods have been compared concerning some test problems of optimal electromagnetic field design, when Finite Element Method has been applied for electromagnetic field determination. Optimal shape design has been modelled. The optimisation criterion used was the quadratic sum of the differences of the prescribed and the actual field at certain points of the region of interest. Numerical experiments indicate some preferences for choosing optimisation method by comparing their robustness, speed and convergence.
Key words: Optimal design, finite element method, response surface methodology, design of experiments.