The objective of the Digital Twin for the Industry 4.0 product is the virtual representation of real devices and processes, which is linked to its physical counterparts not only through mechanic and geometric parameters, but also by their behaviour. To this end, this product comprises the two following modules:
- “Deploy and forget” system, involving all sensors needed to an appropriate monitoring of the physical plant The involved nodes follow the “plug and play” paradigm and provide a fair integration with existing networks, legacy systems and other sensors.
- “Big Data for Digital Twins” including all the data analytics tools needed to develop a virtual and digital replica of all sensors that define the physical entity, and to simulate them in a multi-dimensional way.
With this product, a manufacturing company will obtain an exact copy of the plant or product that, given the constant real-time feedback from data obtained by the installed sensors installed, and to Big Data analytics, will be in continuous process of learning. This copy will allow the simulation of different use cases, with several configurations and real-time measured data, and maintenance processes, with high accuracy, and without the need to stop the process and avoiding physical prototyping expenses.
The product is composed of the following blocks:
- “Deploy & Forget”: method and technology for a fast deployment and unattended working of industry wireless sensor networks.
- “Big Data for Digital Twins”: method and tools provided with machine learning for the building of multi-variant digital twins and configurable simulation engine
The Digital Twin collects information from the folloiwng sources:
- Sensors deployed in the plant collect real-time information related to the functioning of the different machines and devices
- Configuration parameters of machines and devices establish the operative mode, are usually configurable and offer the possibility of optimization for the improvement of the efficiency
- External factors coming from environment sensors and context, as well as other machines that could affect the process.
In general, Digital Twin for Industry 4.0 product is applicable to any organization in different domains interested in the industrial digitalization of its assets. More specifically, the solution is aimed at manufacturing companies that want to increase the efficiency of their productive system, to increase the quality of the manufactured products and to reduce waste and environmental impact.