The Future of Digital Twin Research and Development

Abstract

While digital twin (DT) has made significant strides in recent years, much work remains to be done in the research community and in the industry to fully realize the benefits of DT. A group of 25 industry professionals, US federal government researchers, and academics came together from 11 different institutions and organizations to identify 14 key thrusts and 3 cross-cutting areas for further DT research and development (R&D). This article presents our vision for the future of DT R&D, provides historical context for DT’s birth and growth as a field, provides examples of DTs in use in industry and the lab, and discusses the current state of DT research. We hope that this article serves as a nucleation point for future R&D efforts and provides the community with shared vision and trajectory to collectively advance DT so that society can more rapidly see the benefits of DT.