Digital Twinning made… easy!
How StellarX can support a digital twin throughout its entire life cycle
Digital twins are digitized representations of real-life objects, systems, or processes. They are typically used to monitor equipment throughout their whole lifecycle, from production to maintenance, and can provide valuable insight on how something can be implemented into the real world. Using artificial intelligence and real-world data, they can create scenarios, test possibilities, and predict possible outcomes, giving engineers and manufacturers valuable insight into current state operation as well as possible future iterations. Where a simulation typically replicates a single scenario or process, a twin can run multiple simulations simultaneously, studying various processes at scale. (1) Thus, it is a more thorough and sophisticated method for documenting knowledge and insight, as all resulting information can be tracked, traced, and referenced at later times.
Digital twins can manifest themselves in two distinct ways. First, they can simply consist of performance data, funneled from a real-world environment, product, or system; said data can be shown on a dashboard, for example, and then analyzed to draw conclusions about how a particular part, or the entirety of the system, is functioning. But, they can also consist of a literal digital replica of said real-world environment, product, or system. This 3D asset can be used for testing, prototyping, integration, and simulation, without impacting its real-world counterpart. Whatever the shape, digital twins usually make the life of engineers, maintenance workers, and general staff a lot easier. 🙌
While digital twins can offer profitable advantages, there are challenges to getting the technology off the ground and managing it through its lifecycle phases.
One of the biggest definitely has to do with digital infrastructure. If an organization is not already operating in a digital environment, they will need to create one; which, let’s be honest, is not an easy task, as interoperable assets are complex. Data must be easily transferable throughout the entirety of the system, so all software must be fully integrated and work in sync. Yet, most companies operate using a patchwork of tools that were not designed to be fully compatible with each other. Bit of a problem, no?
Then, once a digital twin is created, it must of course be maintained. Over the course of its lifecycle, it must be consistently upkept to keep up with the changes that occur within the physical version; that includes any deliberate modifications, but also factors such as age, normal wear and tear, etc. Without maintenance, it would no longer be an accurate representation, and its purpose would be defeated. The thing is — while it may sound easy, it is actually difficult to maintain a digital asset. Either it ends up restricted by its own design, and must eventually be redone from scratch when it inevitably becomes obsolete; or, every small change must be sent to a third party, which consumes a lot of time, resources, and efforts that could be invested elsewhere.
Right now, the cons to digital twinning make the technology tough to implement at full capacity. So… what’s the deal?
The solution lies in the software
Well, let us tell you: the deal lies within StellarX. ✨
StellarX, by OVA, is an intuitive and user-friendly 3D content creation software. It allows anyone to bring their ideas to life with XR and build entire digital worlds, without even knowing how to write a single line of code. It can be used as a foundation for all kinds of business needs… including digital twinning.
StellarX can enable an evolving digital twin throughout its entire life cycle. For major capital projects, it can support big platforms throughout the design iterations before building, the training of operators leading up to the full-build, the maintenance and training once built, through to decommissioning. Thanks to its key features and versatility, StellarX can make the pesky process of digital twinning smooth as butter; not only by providing a single ecosystem to gather all assets and data, but also because stakeholders can modify and iterate themselves, and contribute to that evolving digital twin rather than farming it out to a single third party group for every change.
So… let’s go through said life cycle together, shall we? 👇
Design iterations
As we’ve previously established, creating a digital twin is a complex process. It requires expertise and knowhow of the tools to build a working ecosystem.
Well, StellarX can be your ecosystem. It allows you to place any 3D model into any virtual environment. ⛺️ Import any pre-existing or expressly conceived assets to the platform in a single click. Change of assets? Re-import! Being a sandbox tool, it even allows you to make changes right in-app (again, without knowing how to code at all).
It supports plenty of formats, such as GLB, GLTF, ZIP, OBJ, and FBX. And, even if your source file isn’t in the right format from the get go, it’s no big deal. We can help you convert it or make it compatible, easy! Plus, if you don’t know how or where to start — our team can generate personalized models to jumpstart your creation, or even sit with you to create a roadmap that suits your future needs. We’ll gladly teach you the way! Rapid digital twinning will be made even easier with the upcoming MR features, leveraging bounding boxes, that are due to be released very soon.
Operation & full build
Unlike competitor solutions, StellarX makes it possible for all stakeholders to modify and iterate on the digital twin themselves. They can contribute to that evolving digital twin, rather than leaning on a single third party group for every minor change. The subject matter experts are no longer pushed into the background; rather, they can take on an active role in the system’s evolution!
Being a spatial tool set that leverages Virtual and Mixed Reality technologies, StellarX also makes digital twins a lot easier to grasp. No more flat rubbish, or dashboards filled with a bunch of abstract and unintuitive numbers; now, your digital twin can be spatial and interactive. It leaps off of a simple 2D screen, and becomes tangible. You can visualize it, walk around it, manipulate it — basically, experience it! 💫
Now, let’s remember that while digital twins often consist of a virtual replica, they can also consist of a body of data. In an ideal world, an optimal system would offer both; but, this has rarely been seen in an efficient way. See where we’re going with this? StellarX can allow both these things to coexist in a single virtual environment. Key software features, such as the Web Panel, allow you to link virtual assets with external tools that you can easily access while in immersion. Input and tag data to digital objects, and visualize it via an external software; or rather, augment an existing ‘data’ digital twin with a lifelike 3D replica, and use the both of them side-by-side. You can even replay recorded data of operations that were done in the past through an API or connected external hardware, right in app. Easy, peasy!
Maintenance & training
Once the digital twin is created, and has evolved… What now? Well, there’s still lots that can be done. As we’ve previously mentioned, StellarX has the power to foster an entire ecosystem — and the possibilities it unlocks are endless.
When first building your digital twin, you probably had a use case in mind. After solving said use case, well… don’t trash your hard work! The same twin can be used for several other use cases, whether it be about design, engineering, training, maintenance, etc. StellarX has a variety of building tools that can help you further develop what you’ve already created, yourself. 🔨 The already existing assets and environments are a deep-rooted foundation to build onto, and the software’s sandbox capabilities can be leveraged for whatever you put your mind to.
For example, StellarX’s Virtual Reality and codeless scenario-building capabilities could be used to create training scenarios about system maintenance, best practices… or, any training program you can think of, really! Its remote collaboration features could also be used to perform remote inspections, which could reduce risk and increase profitability by tagging and documenting issues before they become too costly, while not even being on the job site. Finally, the Mixed Reality capabilities and Passthrough features (available for Meta Quest 2 & Pro users) could be used to layer useful information on top of the real-life system, object, or process, allowing for easier knowledge sharing, and even AI-driven predictive maintenance. See? Endless!
Decommissioning
As we’ve well established now, digital twin systems allow for a detailed and comprehensive understanding of all kinds of equipment. But, even after said equipment becomes obsolete and needs to be gotten rid of, these systems can still be of great use.
StellarX’s same building tools could be used for use cases related to the decommissioning process. For example, they could help plan wear and tear and understand the complexity of equipment structure, to then simulate different decommissioning strategies and choose the best one. They could also be used for a more accurate cost and risk estimation of the procedures, thus greatly assisting in planning and budgeting, and helping you pick the most cost-effective and least risky way to decommission. They could provide a base to train the decommissioning crew, to help evaluate the environmental impact of the decommissioning process, and more. 🌎
Then, learnings from this whole process could be used to update the current digital twin models, leading to continuous improvements in the design, manufacturing, and maintenance of future equipment. And the wheel goes round, and round, and round…
All in all, digital twins are a forward-thinking technology, which will definitely allow for high-speed change down the road. They could greatly benefit several industries, as they have the capacity to better future parts and systems, expedite time to market, store knowledge, better connect information, predict future scenarios, and iterate possibilities without a physical build. (2)
Our platform StellarX enables an evolving digital twin throughout the entire life cycle of major capital platforms. Why the headache of investing in an immutable or deficient system, when you can go for a versatile and well-rounded product that cuts out the middleman, and can evolve hand-in-hand with your specific needs? OVA is already head-first into Mixed Reality features with the recent release of the Meta Quest 2 and Meta Quest Pro; and, we are poised to be a big player on the upcoming Apple Vision Pro, which will answer a lot of current pain points with existing hardware such as low-resolution, eye fatigue, inability to read text in immersion, etc. 👓
Hardware is evolving quickly, and digital twinning will only be made better and better with these kinds of upgrades. Imagine what could be done down the line! Physical environments could be controlled virtually, and updated in real time after a remote manipulation. Oh, how risks could be managed and costs reduced! But, we’re rambling. We believe that, even in its current state, digital twinning through StellarX could greatly optimize operations, and bring significant added value in companies.
If all of that speaks to you, but you don’t know where to even start — drop us a line or book a meeting and we can whip up a plan that answers your specific needs, or simply address your interrogations. And, if you are a Canadian Government organization, guess what: OVA has been cleared to work directly with you through the Pathway to Commercialization program! Let us know.
Nous sommes une entreprise fièrement québécoise. Pour lire cet article en français, c’est par ici!
Sources:
- Arnautova, Y (2023). If You Build Products, You Should Be Using Digital Twins, Global Logic. URL: https://www.globallogic.com/insights/blogs/if-you-build-products-you-should-be-using-digital-twins/
- Pros and Cons of Digital Twin Technology, Belcan. URL: https://www.belcan.com/2023/01/16/pros-and-cons-of-digital-twin-technology/
Ajouz, O. K. The 7 biggest mistakes and challenges when starting with Digital Twinning in industry, Perspective. URL: https://prespective-software.com/the-7-biggest-mistakes-in-digital-twinning/
