LAUSR

Digital Twin Descriptions (DTDs), such as Asset Administration Shell (AAS) documents, can enable collaboration between machines by presenting their properties in a standardised format. However, the existing DTD formats present information in an incompatible way, hindering interoperability between different Digital Twins (DTs). This paper focuses on enhancing the interoperability between DTs described with different DTDs to enable collaboration between DTs and the autonomous operation of smart factories. First, the paper identifies the necessary data fields for collaboration. Thereafter, the presence of these fields is examined in the current DTD formats. If a format lacks necessary data fields, the paper proposes how these data fields should be incorporated into the format. Finally, the paper presents how the fields in different DTDs could be mapped to enable interoperability between them. The collaboration of DTs is demonstrated by controlling an industrial machine. In the use case, the machine in the factory is represented using AAS and Web of Things Thing Description documents. These DTDs were hosted in a local area network. After the client retrieves the document from the hosting service, the necessary information is extracted from the DTD to enable further collaboration with the DTs. The use case demonstrates that the proposed approach is well-suited for facilitating collaboration in smart factories. Furthermore, it is demonstrated that with minor adjustments, the current DTDs can be made more interoperable. Future research should consider creating DTD templates for various types of DTs and making them publicly available. This would enable a consistent DTD structure for DTs that share the same type data field.