Asset Administration Shell Digital Twin of 5G Communication System

A fundamental element within Industry 4.0 is the digital twin, which allows the development of a virtual model of a facility, with the aim of monitoring, managing, and simulating its operation, thereby enhancing control in testing, analysis, prediction, and risk prevention for sensitive processes. The communication system is an important part of highly interconnected Industry 4.0 systems; in particular, that based on wireless transmission plays a very strategic role mainly due to the reduced complexity in installation and maintenance. If changes are necessary in the production system, the communication system should be adapted accordingly. Modelling a communication system by a digital twin has the advantage to quickly allow updating the communication parameters according to the changed needs of the production system. Among the available wireless communication systems, the use of 5G inside industrial production seems very promising. This paper proposes to represent 5G-based communication system elements using the Asset Administration Shell model, which is one of the existing standards for the digital representation of assets inside Industry 4.0