Methodology for constructing digital twins in railway transport

Fourth industrial revolution covers all areas of human economic activity, including areas related to the design and operation of various products (nuclear power plant building, freight car, MEMS devices, etc.) throughout their entire life cycle. One of the main tools for digital transformation of industry to meet new competitive requirements is the Digital Twin, which is always built for a specific physical object. The introduction of digital twins technology into the life cycle of a freight car will increase economic efficiency throughout its life cycle.

Effective use of the digital twin technology is possible only when an adequate virtual model of the space surrounding this physical object is created. In this regard, predicting the behavior of a structure during motion on the basis of a high-precision model of a digital twin of a physical object requires the creation of a virtual space in which a virtual operation area will be implemented, which provides the possibility of mathematical modeling of motion. To do this, it is necessary to create virtual stands and operation areas, where it will be possible to carry out numerical tests. Creation of a high-quality virtual space will drastically reduce the number of field tests carried out, and study the effect of a larger number of parameters on the performance characteristics of a physical object.

Creation and use of digital twins is consistent with the goals, objectives and action plan of the Strategy for the development of transport engineering in the Russian Federation for the period up to 2030. The introduction of digital twins in railway transport, in particular in freight rolling stock, will make it possible to correctly assign the service life, overhaul times, and increase operational efficiency, collect information about the real load, etc. To maintain competitive advantages over other modes of transport, the transport industry needs to develop towards the introduction of elements of the fourth industrial revolution, including digital twins.

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