The concept of the geospatial digital twin of Slovenia for supporting complex spatial decisions of the state

Description:

Geospatial information infrastructure is a major integration platform for most digital data that are associated with a spatial dimension or location. This data and information derived from the data are crucial for spatial decision-making – whether strategic or operational. Since most decisions are directly or indirectly related to spatial location, supporting quality information plays a significant role in the functioning of a community and state. Advanced spatial information systems require high-quality spatial modelling in all three dimensions of the space, as only such models enable an appropriate replica of the complex natural and built environment. In addition to the informational role of spatial data, where real-time data are also increasingly important, there is also a growing need for spatial analytics for monitoring and simulating processes in our living space. All these requirements are addressed by the concept of a geospatial digital twin. Here, we consider geospatial digital twins (DT) as an enriched digital replica of a physical living environment, a dynamic/live model that represents the past, current and future state of the surveyed environment to support geospatial decision-making, location-based services, and simulations of various scenarios. The basic concept of a Digital Twin (DT) is a realistic digital representation of a physical thing with a two-way flow of information from the physical to the model and back: one way is a refinement of the digital representation, and the back is the triggering of real impacts on the depicted reality. Within the geospatial information community, DT concepts are not new; indeed, the location foundations of a DT may seem obvious. However, perhaps due to DT origins in manufacturing, there is yet a lack of common understanding at the international level as to how the developers and users can best support, engage with and benefit from the increasing number of city-level and national DT initiatives. The project aims to prepare a concept for the development of a geospatial digital twin at the national level for national spatial decision-making.

Main Goals:

The 18-month development and application project is organised in three work packages and includes (i) a review of technological solutions and an analysis of existing national geospatial digital twin systems at the international level, (ii) an analysis of data sources and methods and standards for 3D and 4D modelling of the built and natural environment, (iii) the development of the design of a national geospatial digital twin of Slovenia, including the concept of real-time integration of data sources, (iv) the demonstration of the operation of the digital twin on a smaller scale for selected use cases related to decision support for government institutions. The main objective of the project is therefore to develop a concept for a national geospatial digital twin tailored to the needs of Slovenia, based on state-of-the-art technologies and best practices from abroad, and to provide recommendations or guidelines for actual implementation.

Work Packages:

Work Package 1 (WP1): Project coordination and dissemination [M01-M18] Work Package 2 (WP2): The analyses of the state-of-the art in the field of geospatial digital twins [M01-M06] Work Package 3 (WP3): The concept of a geospatial digital twin of Slovenia [M07-M18]