The Role of Digital Twin in Accelerating the Digital Transformation of Smart Cities

Abstract

Cities are crucial carriers of economic prosperity and social development. With the approaching Society 5.0, the digital twin city has become the mainstream model for the construction of new smart cities. Digital twins, along with the internet of things, fifth-generation wireless systems, and artificial intelligence technologies, offer great potential in the transformation of the current urban governance paradigm toward smart cities. This chapter will explore the imperative role of digital twin in accelerating digital transformation of smart cities. From the perspective of the overall policy, the industry, and application of the said technology, this chapter gives insight into the development trend of digital twin cities. Additionally, through case studies of the two most outstanding digital pilot regions in China, the chapter investigates the role of digital twin in accelerating digital transformation of smart cities such as the technical approaches on city information modeling (CIM) and building information modeling (BIM).