Digital twin-based virtual commissioning for evaluation and validation of a reconfigurable process line

The benefits of advancements in information and communication technologies have proliferated in manufacturing applications as more industries are migrating towards industry 4.0 compliance. The industry 4.0 process lines should be dynamic and reconfigurable. Digital twin (DT), supported by real-time data, is getting wide acceptance as a tool for monitoring and control of complex processes. Virtual commissioning (VC) has played a vital role in the software-based validation of the control systems. A DT-based VC methodology is proposed to evaluate and validate a reconfigured process line. The proposed new asset is commissioned virtually in the DT environment maintaining other stations and parameters synchronised. The proposed methodology is validated in a modular production system assembly line. A storage and retrieval station is virtually commissioned by the hardware in loop technique in the assembly line DT with a station time error of 1.3% between the VC model and the actual assembly line data. The case study demonstrates the feasibility of the proposed methodology in assessing the impacts due to reconfiguration of a process line. The findings offer significant support to decision makers in taking informed decisions and to reduce unforeseen interruptions resulting from the integration of a new asset with the existing process line.