Integrating Digital Twins with IoT-Based Blockchain: Concept, Architecture, Challenges, and Future Scope

Ezz El-Din Hemdan; Walid El-Shafai; Amged Sayed

doi:10.1007/s11277-023-10538-6

Integrating Digital Twins with IoT-Based Blockchain: Concept, Architecture, Challenges, and Future Scope

Wirel Pers Commun. 2023 Jun 8:1-24. doi: 10.1007/s11277-023-10538-6. Online ahead of print.

Authors

Ezz El-Din Hemdan¹, Walid El-Shafai^{2

3}, Amged Sayed^{4

5}

Affiliations

¹ Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Faculty of Electronic Engineering, Menoufia University, Menouf, 32952 Egypt.
² Security Engineering Lab, Computer Science Department, Prince Sultan University, Riyadh, 11586 Saudi Arabia.
³ Department of Electronics and Electrical Communications Engineering, Faculty of Electronic Engineering, Menoufia University, Menouf, 32952 Egypt.
⁴ Department of Industrial Electronics and Control Engineering, Faculty of Electronic Engineering, Menoufia University, Menouf, 32952 Egypt.
⁵ Department of Electrical Energy Engineering, College of Engineering and Technology, Arab Academy for Science Technology & Maritime Transport, Smart Village, Egypt.

Abstract

In recent years, there have been concentrations on the Digital Twin from researchers and companies due to its advancement in IT, communication systems, Cloud Computing, Internet-of-Things (IoT), and Blockchain. The main concept of the DT is to provide a comprehensive tangible, and operational explanation of any element, asset, or system. However, it is an extremely dynamic taxonomy developing in complication during the life cycle that produces an enormous quantity of the engendered data and information from them. Likewise, with the development of the Blockchain, the digital twins have the potential to redefine and could be a key strategy to support the IoT-based digital twin's applications for transferring data and value onto the Internet with full transparency besides promising accessibility, trusted traceability, and immutability of transactions. Therefore, the integration of digital twins with the IoT and blockchain technologies has the potential to revolutionize various industries by providing enhanced security, transparency, and data integrity. Thus, this work presents a survey on the innovative theme of digital twins with the integration of Blockchain for various applications. Also, provides challenges and future research directions on this subject. In addition, in this paper, we propose a concept and architecture for integrating digital twins with IoT-based blockchain archives, which allows for real-time monitoring and control of physical assets and processes in a secure and decentralized manner. We also discuss the challenges and limitations of this integration, including issues related to data privacy, scalability, and interoperability. Finally, we provide insights into the future scope of this technology and discuss potential research directions for further improving the integration of digital twins with IoT-based blockchain archives. Overall, this paper provides a comprehensive overview of the potential benefits and challenges of integrating digital twins with IoT-based blockchain and lays the foundation for future research in this area.

Keywords: And Blockchain; Artificial intelligence; Control system; Digital twins; Internet-of-Things.

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