Trends in Digital Twin Framework Architectures for Smart Cities: A Case Study in Smart Mobility.

Area of Science:

• Urban Planning & Transportation
• Computer Science & Engineering
• Environmental Science

Background:

• Increasing complexity of urban transportation systems necessitates innovative solutions.
• Growing need for enhanced efficiency, safety, and sustainability in city mobility.
• METACITIES initiative aims to address these challenges across Southeastern Europe.

Purpose of the Study:

• To present an innovative approach using digital twins for smart mobility challenges.
• To leverage digital twin technology within the METACITIES framework.
• To demonstrate the potential of digital twins in optimizing urban transportation.

Main Methods:

• Development of intelligent replicas (digital twins) of urban mobility environments.
• Real-time monitoring, analysis, and decision-making capabilities enabled by digital twins.
• Application of digital twins through use cases: Smart Parking, Environmental Behavior Analysis on Traffic Incidents, and Emergency Management.

Main Results:

• Digital twins can optimize traffic flow and mitigate environmental impact.
• Enhanced emergency response capabilities through real-time data analysis.
• Successful small-scale testing of use cases prior to larger implementation.

Conclusions:

• The METACITIES Architecture for smart mobility offers a scalable solution.
• An Open Digital Twin Framework can facilitate the evolution of smart cities into metacities.
• Digital twin technology is a key enabler for future urban mobility solutions.