Towards a human-centric Digital Twin architecture for Industry 5.0: Aiding skilled operators with composites production automation

Abstract

Industry 4.0 uses digitalization technologies to collect huge amounts of data during production processes. Digital twins can support processing, mastering, and exploiting the plethora of data to assist in optimizing production throughput [1]. But how can digital twins actually support skilled operators on the factory floor? In this paper, we present the design of an operator-centric digital twin for an automated composites production process from start to end, thereby exploring key elements of the architecture of the operator-tailored digital twin and exposing valuable lessons learned from the operator-centric design process. The development methodology applied, and the resultant digital twin architecture, show how operator-centric design guidelines are successfully translated into implementation. This approach helped transforming an otherwise straightforward Industry 4.0 implementation into a state-of-the-art Industry 5.0 implementation, wherein the digital twin plays a central role in supporting and assisting operator-based decision-making at the core of the production process [2].