Few billion years from now, the Milky Way Galaxy and its neighboring galaxy Andromeda will collide. What would happen then?
While colliding them in real life to know the outcomes is quite impossible, we can still create their digital replicas and study the series of events in the virtual world.
For those that are unsure of what I’m talking about , do peek into here.
Returning to the topic of colliding galaxies, this can happen…
Surprisingly, the linked video does not show a team of engineers and scientists executing the simulation, but rather a hobbyist-gamer making amusing stuff on YouTube.
Digital Twin technology is not as out of reach as it appears. This technology is still in its early stages of development, and we have just begun to scratch the surface.
Let’s delve deeper.
Adoption:
The adoption of Digital Twins can be traced onto the adoption of the Internet.
During the 1960s, the Internet was defined as a network of a few connected devices. As a result, it was seen as a technology for a few.
And this limited-use concept was not on purpose. Even if it was made public, the public would be unable to access it due to a lack of supporting infrastructure.
Until the smartphone boom, which made the internet available to everyone. Not only it made it accessible, but also opened opportunities for further innovation. What about Google and Instagram? Someone had considered it at that time.
Similarly, digital twins have begun to have an influence, but only for those with access to the appropriate infrastructure.
The technology’s acceptance is gradually taking shape, from NASA using it for missions since 1970 ( It is also used to predict air conditioner malfunctions — mundane, isn’t it ?)
There is a lot to come.
Future of Adoption:
Tracing digital twins onto the lines of Internet adoption, we know the Internet today has gained mass acceptance, as the internet infrastructure is now capable of hosting a large variety of internet services and the end user has a variety of sources to access to them (Smartphones, laptops, etc.)
Similarly, Digital Twins as a mass-adoption technology needs the support of these three pillars;
- Data recording and annotation: Every data point that is not documented is an asset that is lost. To produce a virtual replica model of a real-world object that performs exactly the same, it requires a large amount of real-world recorded data to be fed into the model.
- Computing:The data used to create digital twins is sophisticated and comprehensive, with millions of multidimensional data points. Thus, computing it with ordinary equipment is difficult; computers with that ability are required.
Do we then need supercomputers to access this technology?
We required supercomputers before the arrival of cloud computing (complex computation on a remote supercomputer via shared data through the internet).
Cloud computing can be used to enable computations for digital twins, the results of which can be displayed on our cellphones. As the aforementioned youtuber did.
- Visualization: There’s one more catch.
The image above is not a work of art; it is the result of simulations performed with digital twins. And interpreting this is tough given our current evaluating abilities.
As a result, visualization is required to bridge the comprehension gap between the computed model and ourselves.
Someday, through the data recorded by millions of pet owners of their pets (Data recording & annotation), we could create virtual replica of our pet to be used to simulate their behavior towards various actions of ours (Computing Capabilities), to finally be able to understand how to keep them happy, always! (Visualization for Interpretation) — Seems far-fetched today ???
Mass adoption of virtual replicas can be viewed as a favorable combination of the three elements mentioned above, among others.
Application:
Any tangible or intangible thing from the actual world can be modeled in the digital world. As a result, rather than being categorized according to the target item, digital twins are instead categorized according to the use case of the digital worlds model.
This can be scaled across industries and applications:
While at one end it can predict the success of an open-heart operation in the Healthcare industry, on the other hand it can help predict the possibility of someone becoming a non-performing asset in the Financials Industry.
Digital twins can not only aid in predicting outcomes, but also help in planning, design, construction, maintenance and operating processes.
Before making heavy capital expenditure, one can create a digital replica of the target asset to understand operational efficiency and thus estimate ROI before spending for the project.
If Ford aims to set up a new car assembly line in India, it can foresee the operational efficiency based on the digital replica of the assembly line used to forecast breakdowns, strikes and other aspects that might affect it.
For now the application of the digital twinning technology is seen in Industries where there is abundant data to test the digital twin models. And is seen picking up in the industries
Future:
Initially, insights were derived solely by studying the behavior of real-world objects. It took the Wright Brothers more than four years of trial and error to get their first modeled plane to fly for 12 seconds. Several more years passed before a successful flight.
Then, 2D digital/physical models were introduced to aid in visualization and the planning of a few procedures. Not much time was saved….
Until recently, when we were capable of making virtual replicas of any real-world object with identical behaviors. This has the potential to cut deployment time from years to a few seconds.
NASA had only a few minutes to provide a solution for the Apollo 13 spacecraft’s burst oxygen tanks in order to save its occupants. Virtual replicas of the spacecraft came out to be useful for testing various courses of action and predicting their potential outcomes. Consider doing it with a pen and paper.
What awaits us?
Virtual models can coexist with real-world models in a harmonious manner. Holograms in place of salespeople . In the IPL of 2023 too, we had the virtual replica of Steve Smith .
Big Tech and Startups Look to 3D Hologram for Travel-Free Communication — Bloomberg
The above is doable, and then next? Real-world objects get totally replaced?…. Metaverse……
The potential of technology is limited to our imagination.
Approach:
Virtual replicas of anything can be made if there is an abundance of data to examine them. The replicated objects can then be placed through an infinite number of simulations to comprehend various scenarios.
What if we drove a Honda Civic over the Moon?
Our imagination is the only limit.
Digital Twins highlight the presence of something Next Generation. All this enabled via capabilities and adoption of Technology. Aimed to transform the lives of its Consumers.
In this blog we discussed:
- Adoption
- Infrastructure for Mass Adoption
- Applications
- Future
- Approach
It’s a wrap unless something new comes along!
Author:
Kanuj Jadwani
