Digital Twins for Safe and Efficient Port Infrastructure Management

The ability to collect and use large amounts of data is transforming our world. Using drone hardware and processing software to capture and digitally replicate assets gives owners the unprecedented ability to visualize and manage their infrastructure. With advancements in technologies such as unmanned aerial systems (UAS), reality modeling, mixed reality, artificial intelligence, and machine learning, there is a significant opportunity for port owners to improve the maintenance and operations of their infrastructure by using digital twins. A digital twin is a digital representation of a physical asset, process, or system, which allows us to better understand and communicate its performance. This paper highlights the process of acquiring a digital twin, connecting the model with its condition and maintenance data to augment the digital twin, and then using mixed reality technology to conduct remote condition assessment. This process can greatly increase the quality of inspection and information gathering while minimizing safety risks and reducing overall costs. Furthermore, the increase in the quality of data collected can greatly improve asset management, leading to cost savings for port owners and the public.