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Make more digital twins

Virtual models boost smart manufacturing by simulating decisions and optimization, from design to operations, explain Fei Tao and Qinglin Qi.
  1. Fei Tao

    1. Fei Tao is a professor in the School of Automation Science and Electrical Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing, China.

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  2. Qinglin Qi

    1. Qinglin Qi is a PhD candidate in the School of Automation Science and Electrical Engineering, Beihang University, Beijing, China.

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An illustration of a digital twin city

Some urban authorities are developing digital copies of cities, as portrayed in this artist’s impression. Credit: Integrated Environmental Solutions

Digital twins — precise, virtual copies of machines or systems — are revolutionizing industry. Driven by data collected from sensors in real time, these sophisticated computer models mirror almost every facet of a product, process or service. Many major companies already use digital twins to spot problems and increase efficiency1. Half of all corporations might be using them by 2021, one analyst predicts2.

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Nature 573, 490-491 (2019)

doi: https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-019-02849-1

References

  1. Tao, F., Zhang, M. & Nee, A. Y. C. Digital Twin Driven Smart Manufacturing (Academic Press, 2019).

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  2. Pettey, C. ‘Prepare for the impact of digital twins’ (2017). Gartner report available at https://go.nature.com/2krzbjd

  3. Kusiak, A. Nature 544, 23–25 (2017).

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