On the alleviation of imminent technical and business challenges of long-lasting functional digital twins

In this article, we discuss the technical and business risks associated with long-lasting functional digital twins, and describe different strategies for their alleviation. Functional digital twins are based on physics-based simulation models and are operated alongside the life cycle of their physical counterparts. These simulation-based digital twins are built using a simulation software. The problems with most of the commercial modeling and simulation tools are their black box nature and storing data in protective formats, leading to poor interoperability. Since the digital twins of certain assets need to be operated for a long period, even for several decades, there is a possibility that the computing infrastructure, i.e., the computing hardware and software, may not remain the same throughout the product or system life cycle. The computer hardware and operating systems are usually third-party components with limited choices for their users, whereas the selection of simulation tools is more flexible and the designer can choose from, for example, commercial, open-source, or in-house solutions. To avoid substantial costs or business disruption, the digital twin providers must be able to reproduce the underlying simulation models with up-to-date tools and adopt alternative solutions whenever needed. The findings of the study are presented in the form of propositions throughout the article.