Per WSJ, the U.S. Air Force recently announced its latest effort to leverage digital twins (DT). This effort, called Model One, integrates 50 military simulations into a unified system to adapt to changes in digital warfare.
As the war in Ukraine shows, the speed of software/data, not industrial hardware, now drives the battlefield. The U.S. military can’t now simulate such inter-connected aspects, though the need to do so is rising. In addition to improving military decision making, integrating digital environments is the means to train battlefield AI. It will also have civilian applications.
The rise of virtual technology, including DT, is reshaping how industries conceive physical technology. As simulations replace physical testing, innovation is becoming faster/cheaper. According to a recent Allied Market Research report, the global DT industry is projected to grow sharply from $6.5 Billion in 2021 to $125.7 Billion in 2030.
Formula 1 is an industry leader. When cost caps were introduced in 2021, teams began designing >1,000 DT’s per race, each iteration reducing time on the race track. By season end, cars evolve 85% from their initial designs based on DT results. Developing an accurate virtual racing environment to improve performance is not easy, and one error can prevent victory, but success is key to winning races. Other industries are in pursuit of the innovation velocity achieved by Formula 1.
Integrating multiple data sources is challenging. It is difficult to capture/mimic desired complexity in a single simulation, so that complexity can be sliced into thousands of models that capture intricate details. Putting them together accurately into a “digital thread” is slow and expensive. Nobody wants a final product that doesn’t work as planned.
Model One is an attempt to revolutionize digital threading, automating it in a way that all industries can use. It follows another Air Force project to create the world’s first digitally certified airplane. The key to both is connecting different data sources securely and accurately.
Picture future technologies being digitally designed, tested and certified each year, similar to Formula 1 race cars, but faster, cheaper and safer than current physical innovations. Then picture AI learning to improve the designs, operate them and train humans. This could open the world to personalized medicine, abundant agriculture and space colonization.
Implementing big ideas requires ingenuity, dedication, planning, hard work and more. MOSIMTEC simulation modeling can help. Whatever your big idea is, you can test options virtually using digital twin simulations to see what works best and what doesn’t before implementing in real life. Assess options virtually in a sandbox environment to change strategy or timing, increase capacity/production, cut cost, reduce risk or meet other goals. MOSIMTEC can help you futureproof your business.
Keywords: digital twins, digital warfare, Model One, decision making, digital environments, virtual technology, Formula 1, innovation velocity, digital thread, digital design, testing and certification, artificial intelligence