DTC unveils updated definitions for digital twin and digital thread

Digital Twin Consortium (DTC) announced revised definitions for digital twin and digital thread, aligning these concepts more closely with core digital engineering principles. 

These refined definitions underscore the central role of digital twins and digital threads in advanced digital engineering disciplines and methodologies, highlighting their importance in creating comprehensive, data-driven ecosystems across various industries.

“Our updated definitions reflect the evolving landscape of digital engineering. By aligning our terminology with established digital engineering principles, we’re fostering a common understanding that bridges multiple sectors and applications over the digital twin lifecycle,” said Dan Isaacs, GM and CTO, DTC. 

“These revisions underscore DTC’s commitment to creating an aligned and more unified understanding of real-world application digital twins that bridge theoretical concepts with practical applications. DTC members are working together to foster greater understanding, more transparent communication for more effective collaboration, and accelerated innovation and adoption throughout the digital twin ecosystem.”

“The revised digital twin definition emphasizes synchronization and data, with a model-based approach tied to engineering technology. Grounded in physics, it supports the full life cycle from simulation to decommissioning digital twins. By refining this definition, we enable more accurate, real-time representations, leading to better decisions, improved efficiencies, and deeper insights across industries,” said Dr. David McKee, Co-chair of the DTC Capabilities and Technology Working Group and Lead Author of the DTC Definition Team. 

“Intrinsically linked to the digital twin, the refined digital thread definition highlights critical elements, including seamless, secure data flow across the product lifecycle and all organizations, silos, and stakeholders. Focusing on trust, security, and reliability provides digital twins’ assured foundation and lifeblood for confident decision-making and continuous improvement.”

The DTC’s definitions have been updated to more closely reflect the language from the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, including the emphasis on the mirroring of systems’ structure, context, and behavior, dynamic updates, bidirectional interaction, predictive capabilities, and value-driven decision-making, as published in the 2024 Foundational Research Gaps and Future Directions for Digital Twins report.