Digital Twins: A New Model for Urban Governance

A vivid three-dimensional rendering of a bridge appeared on the intelligent monitor and evaluation platform at Beijing Yunlu Technology Co., Ltd., pointing to key factors of bridge health. Real-time status, events, transportation navigation, and traffic conditions were all tracked on the screen.
 
Numerous sensors installed on bridge track every minor dynamic change on the bridge surface and perform digital analysis, according to Gao Fengyong, a regional chief with the tech firm. When a large vehicle approaches, the system checks its weight and produces an early warning if the vehicle and its load is heavier than the bridge was designed to support. The vehicle is then immediately intercepted from crossing the bridge as an emergency response. The screen of the monitor platform shows a digital twin replica of the bridge.
 
A key method to realize bidirectional mapping and dynamic interaction between virtual and reality, the digital twin (DT) technology provides another effective approach for observing, understanding, controlling, and transforming the physical world. It was originally designed to improve local public services, but has since been more widely used to develop tailored applications for different scenarios involving urban planning and management, demonstrating enormous potential for solving problems in urban governance.


Source: Korea Herald