The aim of the present research project is to extend the architecture of a digital twin for modular structures and to open it up for the field of renewable energies. This will bridge the gap between industrial practice and the technologies of tomorrow. A digital twin of a wind turbine will be created for this purpose, implementation experiences will be collected and central questions for the application of digital twins in energy sector will be resolved. One challenge with renewable energy systems is that they typically consist of distributed components. To account for this modularity, methods are needed to virtually interconnect components. The methods developed in this project are based on the use case of lifetime estimation of wind turbines. The lifetime data will in turn be used in the operation planning for the control strategies of the wind turbine. The operation planning is thus the link through where the (control) loop is closed and data from the virtual represenation can flow back to the real plant. Even if the real connection is not yet part of this project, the potential of bi-directional communication can be made visible to demonstrate the potential of digital twins for energy plants and to gather best practice approaches. In this way, the DigiWind project will help to support and drive the spread of digital twins in the energy sector.
