Towards Plant Level Virtual Acceptance Testing: Development of a Digital Twin through MES & Simulation model Integration
Author
Ej Efternavn, Goutam Muralidhar
Term
4. term
Education
Publication year
2026
Pages
67
Abstract
Industry 4.0 is bringing more digital tools into factories. Two key tools are the Digital Twin (a virtual copy of a physical system that stays in sync with it) and Virtual Commissioning (testing machines and control software in a virtual environment). While these tools are well established at the machine and control levels described by the ISA-95 model, applying virtual validation to the entire plant has been less explored. This thesis develops a plant-level Digital Twin by integrating a simulation model with the factory's Manufacturing Execution System (MES) to initiate Virtual Acceptance Testing (VAT) of the whole production line. The work uses the AAU 5G Smart Production Lab's FESTO assembly line as the reference system. We propose and implement a two-phase method that connects FESTO's MES interface "MES4" with a simulation model built in Plant Simulation, using MQTT as the messaging interface. The result is a working Digital Twin prototype that keeps the virtual model aligned with real MES order data and processing. During implementation, we observed practical challenges when retrofitting a Digital Twin to legacy systems. Overall, the study shows that initiating plant-level VAT through DT-MES integration is feasible, offering a path toward broader virtual validation in Industry 4.0 manufacturing systems.
Industri 4.0 bringer flere digitale værktøjer ind i produktionen. To centrale værktøjer er den digitale tvilling (en virtuel kopi af et fysisk system, der holdes synkron med virkeligheden) og virtuel idriftsættelse (test af maskiner og styringer i et virtuelt miljø). Disse er velafprøvede på maskin- og styreniveau i ISA-95-modellen, men virtuel validering på anlægs- eller fabriksniveau er mindre udforsket. Dette speciale udvikler en digital tvilling på anlægsniveau ved at integrere en simulationsmodel med fabrikkens Manufacturing Execution System (MES) for at starte virtuel accepttest (VAT) af hele produktionslinjen. Arbejdet tager udgangspunkt i AAU 5G Smart Production Labs FESTO-montagelinje som referencesystem. Vi foreslår og implementerer en to-faset metode, der forbinder FESTOs MES-grænseflade "MES4" med en simulationsmodel i Plant Simulation ved hjælp af MQTT som kommunikationsgrænseflade. Resultatet er en fungerende prototype på en digital tvilling, som synkroniserer virtuelle processer med virkelige MES-ordredata og -behandling. Under implementeringen observerede vi praktiske udfordringer ved at eftermontere en digital tvilling på ældre systemer. Samlet set viser studiet, at det er muligt at igangsætte VAT på anlægsniveau via integration mellem DT og MES og dermed baner vej for bredere virtuel validering i Industry 4.0.
[This apstract has been rewritten with the help of AI based on the project's original abstract]