Multi-Fidelity Digital Twins: a Means for Better Cyber-Physical Systems Testing?

Abstract

Context: Cyber-Physical Systems (CPSs) combine software and physical components. These systems are widely applied in society within many domains, including the automotive, aerospace, railway, etc. Testing these systems is extremely challenging, therefore, it has attracted significant attention from the research community. A driving CPS testing technique in industry is simulation-based testing. However, this poses significant challenges.Objectives: To propose a novel approach that deals with the CPS testing problems.Method: In this new-idea paper we present the concept of multi-fidelity digital twins to deal with CPSs testing problems.Results: An initial hypothesis and open research questions are presented. Conclusion: The paper presents the research foundation on the concept of multi-fidelity digital twins and provides a set of unexplored research areas.