Understanding the role of a Digital Twin in Integrated Vehicle Health Management (IVHM)

Integrated Vehicle Health Management (IVHM) aims to support Condition-Based Maintenance (CBM) by monitoring, diagnosing, and prognosing the health of the host system. One of the technologies required by IVHM to carry out its objectives is the means to emulate the functioning of the host system, and the concept of a Digital Twin (DT) was introduced in aerospace IVHM to represent the functioning of such a complex system. This paper aims to discuss the role played by DT in the field of IVHM. A DT is the virtual representation of any physical product, that is used to project the functioning of the product at a given instance. The DT is used across the lifecycle of any product, and its output can be customized depending upon the area of application. The DT is currently popular in industry because of the technologies like sensors, cloud computing, Internet of Things, machine learning, and advanced software, which enabled its development. This paper discusses what encompasses a DT, the technologies that support the DT, its applications across industries, and its development in academia. This paper also talks about how a DT can combine with IVHM technology to assess the health of complex systems like an aircraft. Lastly, this paper presents various challenges faced by industry during the implementation of a DT and some of the possible opportunities for future growth.