Data and Data Management in the Context of Digital Twins

With the emergence of Industry 4.0, smart applications and systems are becoming the norm, transforming traditional industries and sectors towards an increasingly data-driven approach. Digital Twin technologies are one of the driving paradigms for the production, integration, sharing and reuse of data. In this context, understanding and mastering the description and formalisation of data as well as its proper, secure, compliant management are crucial for a large-scale adoption of the Digital Twin technology. We introduce the essential concepts for data, data structures and data management, and examine the importance of specific technologies, like ontologies, for the meaningful description of data and their relationships. We cover the essential modelling layers connected with data in this context, and present selected collaboration platforms for Digital Twin ecosystems in a context of interoperability as envisaged in the Digital Thread.