Phygital workspace as a Digital Twin for design & planning of smart factories 

We present a phygital workspace where the digital and the physical world combine or intersect with each other to form a digital twin in the design phase of a system. The method combines the usefulness of dynamic discrete event simulations seamlessly connected with physical objects placed on a table to enable collaborative design. Physical objects are used as a representation of machines and equipment in the simulation. The users can manipulate the tangible-objects placed on the table to evaluate different what-if scenarios. All the changes made on the table to the physical objects are communicated to the virtual simulation for layout optimization with the users’ perspective. The user gets an immersive experience by using a tangible object to move around in the simulated space. The whole experience makes the simulation more user-collaborative for group discussions and forming a physical intersection of the first-phase digital twin.