Anton Persson
Market Analyst
@ Sensative
Formula One is arguably the most advanced, high-tech sport in the world. Clearly, it’s all about which car on the grid that crosses the checkered flag first. However, to manage and extract data from the cutting-edge technology in the cars is far more vital in the long run.
Digital twins have been used for some time, especially in the manufacturing industry. The same technology can create a winner on the Formula One circuit, as well as a winner among cities, a sustainable modern city that is attractive for its citizens and businesses.
Keep on reading and find out how a digital twin wins races in Formula One and why it’s going to have a significant impact in the smart city.
Winning with a digital twin
Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport has dominated the sport for the past years, and one of their key ingredients in their success story is their way of simulating the race before it actually takes place. The team at Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport has developed a digital twin for simulating how their race car performs concerning a variety of factors, analyzing everything from weather conditions to unique characteristics for each circuit on the F1 calendar.
”Whatever business you’re doing, you’re fed by data. Whether it’s data from simulation or something else, we all receive loads of data. The challenge is more about how quickly you can turn this data into easily digestible for a human being,” says Loic Serra, Performance Director at Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport.
The digital twin is pivotal
The digital twin is pivotal for Mercedes to consistently win races in Formula One. Sensative believes the digital twin will be equally important for smart cities to operate as efficient and resourceful as possible. Regarding Smart Cities, a digital twin provides a real-time model of what’s happening in the physical city. A digital twin makes it possible to simulate and analyze data from its real-world counterpart, offering the opportunity to increase efficiency and improve operations in the smart city.
To make this achievable, IoT will play a significant part in the process. The market for IoT is booming, and new, innovative solutions for cities, as well as its citizens, are created every day. By analyzing and simulating data, resources can be optimized to meet financial and sustainability goals in smart cities.
Work in progress
One example to be inspired by is Carson City in Nevada, where the Carson City Public Works Department uses a digital twin as part of their centralized platform system to manage the city’s water supply. Since embracing this approach, Carson City has not only been able to supply water to the 50,000 residents in the city more efficiently, but they’ve also been able to reduce operational hours by 15 percent. This way, Carson City not only saves time and money but also demonstrates a commitment to environmental sustainability. An excellent illustration of how smart use of data can contribute to the environment.
The digital landscape for smart cities will be built upon IoT, and it’s paramount that data from different technologies can be combined and shared between various organizations. Gwinnett County’s Department of Water Resources is looking to use data more intelligently to improve its water and resource planning. An essential part of their strategy is the ability to share operational information with external partners such as the county’s emergency control center. That way, the emergency control center can monitor and respond more effectively to a variety of scenarios, for instance, a natural disaster. Our goal was connected data systems, shared data, and new collaboration – and, above all, to be useful,” says Sam Paul, who looks after the organization’s ‘SCADA’ OT systems. Gwinnett County is a voice of reason regarding how organizations should collaborate, setting the bar for more productive and dynamic use of data.
Other organizations will follow their example in the future, and Sensative is committed to helping spread the word as we are working with clients who share this vision.
Interoperability is the foundation
Apart from examples like Carson and Gwinnett County, digital operations and management of cities have mostly been separated in several different silos, causing a non-efficient and stagnant situation. Sensative’s platform Yggio provides the opportunity for interoperability between diverse technologies. Thanks to Yggio, live data from different sensors, services, assets, and networks can be shared and combined in one platform. If you think of a lasagna, different systems, data, networks, and services can be described as the layers. Yggio provides you with the entire taste experience of the lasagna, bringing you all the different layers of information in one bite.
Sensative’s vision regarding the smart city is that Yggio will function as an operating system between the digital twin and the physical world. Since the digital twin isn’t a self-contained software package but more of a continuous development process, Yggio will contribute to this process by enabling new ways of adding systems, sensors, and data. These interconnected devices will enhance the ability of the digital twin, which will positively affect physical buildings and entire cities.
This is an ongoing process, and it has already started in many cities around the world. As an example, Sensative is providing the IoT capability to the central IT department in Malmö, Sweden. This is the foundation for the development of IoT services and, in the long run, the Digital Twin of Malmö. Malmö approaches this step-by-step, starting with small and straightforward use cases to learn from, to develop processes and organizations, and educate stakeholders.
Mercedes-AMG Petronas Motorsport created a digital twin that helps them achieve victory after victory. The team has put a lot of effort into details, making the drivers feel as they’re driving the race car for real. Attention to detail is crucial for developing the technologies which increase the digital twin’s capability, whether it’s a replica of a race car or an entire city. By implementing Yggio in the process, you’re off to a great start, and you’ll cross checkered flag in no time.
– Anton
