Le ontologie a complemento del gemello digitale per il patrimonio storico-architettonico: mappatura della conoscenza e strategie di integrazione/Information ontologies as a way to shape digital twins in built heritage: knowledge mapping and integration strategies

In the built heritage domain, cyber-physics systems derived from the industry 4.0, such as the digital twin, are receiving increasing interest because of their capabilities of real-time “sensing” and digitally representing the building and its processes – such as investigation, conservation, use, maintenance – and to support management decisions and actions. While the technological configuration of the digital twin has already been quite clarified in liter ature, its application to the complex field of built heritage arises some open questions regarding the particular nature of managed information as well as its efficient and accurate representation and elaboration in the different digital twin layers. In this context, our research focuses on the use of information ontologies as a way to define and structure information processes in digital twins for built heritage, aiming at optimizing its implementation and the selection of the different com ponents (i.e. sensors, communication infrastructure, modelling environments, service interfaces) as well as guaranteeing the quality and adequate use of the information collected and elaborated. In particular, the present work proposes some adjustments to the general digital twin architecture by adding a knowledge layer conceived to support built heritage informative requirements and to include that information in the digital twin processes. An information ontologies mapping and a strategy for their integration, completion and reuse are then proposed and organized in order to support the implementation of effective digital twins in built heritage, matching actual necessities and objectives of this field and the technological configuration of the digital twin, and avoiding information inconsistencies.