What is a digital twin? And what is it used for? A digital twin is a virtual representation of an object or process that is used when companies want to plan, simulate, analyse and optimise products or systems throughout their entire life cycle.
Dr Benedikt Latos, Professor of Production Management in the Department of Economics at TH OWL and co-host of the event, described how a digital twin, continuously enriched with information, enables the assessment of characteristics such as technical specifications and sustainability, right through to condition and behaviour in real time.
The actual added value of the digital twin is created by intelligently linking the digital master (which contains, among other things, 3D models of the object from development and design) and the digital shadow (which contains operating, status and process data from real-world operation).
A special highlight awaited the expert audience immediately afterwards with the keynote speech by Dr Felix Reinhart, head of the Machine Learning & Artificial Intelligence team in the Smart Home division at Miele. Driven by his enthusiasm for teaching machines to learn, he used practical developments to illustrate that the digital twin is a living system that changes over time.
‘The digital twin is alive!’ emphasised Reinhart. His goal in the smart home sector: ‘We want to improve the tangible quality of products and leverage new functions digitally through connectivity as the backbone of digital twins.’
Afterwards, participants immersed themselves in the diverse fields of application for digital twins in one of four themed sessions – in specialist lectures, real-world laboratories or directly on the test field.
In the session organised by Florian Pethig, Head of the Machine Intelligence Department at Fraunhofer IOSB-INA, at SmartFactoryOWL, specific applications of ‘digital twins in production’ were presented and demonstrated. Digital twins of machines, plants and entire factories enable optimisations, for example through material flow simulation and virtual commissioning, increase sustainability by avoiding paper documentation (keyword: digital product passport) and help to detect cyber attacks in good time.
‘The main challenge for the development of digital twins remains data integration. But now is precisely the time to implement interoperable digital twins! The necessary international standards are available, and we are happy to support you,’ said Pethig. This appeal is also supported by the other organisations and companies that contributed to the practical session: Industrial Digital Twin Association e.V., Centrum Industrial IT e.V., Digital Twin Factory, Miele, Hadi-Plast and inIT at TH OWL.
At the same time, the deep dive ‘Digital Twins in Food Production’ took place at the Future Food Factory and the Centrum Industrial IT, led by Nele Jantz, head of the Future Food Factory OWL office. The content showed how digital twins can help make production processes along the value chain from field to plate more sustainable and transparent, thereby contributing to food security for future generations.
Participants also had the opportunity to immerse themselves in an industrial ‘metaverse’ with the help of VR glasses in live demonstrations and to learn about the digital product passport as a business model in system catering using a coffee robot.
The session ‘Digital Twins in Transport’ took place in the MONOCAB assembly hall in Dörentrup. The joint journey there in one of the new e-buses from the KVG partner in the research project provided a fitting start. The session was led by Thorsten Försterling, the brains behind the MONOCAB system and responsible for public relations and marketing.
The focus was on the MONOCAB system and the 30-metre-long test track in the hall. There, participants were able to gain a direct impression of how digital twins can be used in the MONOCAB system. Martin Griese, transfer manager in the TRiNNOVATION project, clearly explained the possible uses in development and illustrated the connection between the digital model and real-world operation.
Phillip Matschoß from F7 Digital GmbH showed how a digital survey of the test fields in Extertal was created and how this data is used for planning and implementing track upgrades. Kim Marc Salscheider from KreativInstitut.OWL added how technical data and design can be combined with the help of virtual reality.
Finally, participants were able to experience the connection between theory and practice. During a ride in the Thusnelda test vehicle, the interaction between the digital twin and the real system became tangible. The trip resulted in new ideas and new contacts, and everyone was enthusiastic. ‘The digital twin not only makes the MONOCAB system plannable and controllable, but also tangible – we were able to experience this impressively today,’ Thorsten Försterling summed up in retrospect.
In the workshop ‘Digital Twins in the Energy Sector,’ led by Professor Dr Michael Blauth and Professor Dr Georg Klepp, current issues from practice and research were discussed in depth. The focus was on applications in the fields of renewable energies, energy forecasts, service life analyses of connection technology, predictive maintenance of pump systems, intelligent traffic management, environmental monitoring and energy management. Key topics included ensuring data quality, promoting standardisation and interoperability, and developing concrete business cases for the digital twin. The interdisciplinary exchange provided valuable impetus for future research and innovation projects.
In his concluding summary of the results, Professor Latos, who currently holds a focus professorship on data-based value creation models as part of PROFuture@TH-OWL, funded by the Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space, and also holds a group leader position at the Fraunhofer Institute in Lemgo, called for stronger networking between industry and research in order to shape the digital future together.
‘The objectives of today's event were to bring together ideas from research and practice on current developments in the field of digital twins, to discuss and identify practical needs, and to facilitate interdisciplinary exchange across various industries: from transport, production and the food industry to digital twins in the energy sector,’ explained Latos. He thus underscored the introductory remarks by Professor Dr Stefan Witte, Vice President for Research and Transfer at TH OWL: ‘The digital future can only emerge where exchange takes place, where ideas are spun, where innovation is lived.’
The event was supported by the TRiNNOVATION OWL project, funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research as part of the federal-state initiative ‘Innovative University’.
