Core Research Areas

The SIMSIS Laboratory advances the science and practice of Digital Twins (DTs) for physical infrastructure through the integration of experimental sensing, physics-based modeling, artificial intelligence, and immersive technologies. The Laboratory investigates how physical infrastructure can be observed, modeled, simulated, and digitally represented to develop practical and trustworthy DTs across different levels of detail and spatial scales.

The Laboratory currently focuses on three primary research thrusts:

1. Indirect Sensing for Structural Health Monitoring

This research develops and evaluates indirect sensing approaches for monitoring the dynamic behavior and condition of civil infrastructure.

2. Physics-Based Advanced 3D Modeling and Virtual Reality

This research develops advanced physics-based 3D models and immersive virtual environments for the representation, simulation, visualization, and interaction of civil infrastructure systems.

3. Physics-Encoded AI-Based Generative Modeling

This research investigates physics-informed artificial intelligence and generative modeling approaches for representing and understanding structural systems and their dynamic behavior.

Digital Twin Research Framework

These research thrusts are integrated within a broader DT development framework encompassing Digitization, Virtualization & Cognition, and Human–DT Interaction.

Across these areas, the Laboratory emphasizes Verification, Validation, and Uncertainty Quantification (VVUQ) and investigates multi-scale DT architectures that support different levels of modeling resolution and application needs.

Figure 1 below illustrates the conceptual operation of a physical infrastructure Digital Twin, highlighting the bidirectional synchronization between the physical and virtual environments and the supporting capabilities required for data exchange, modeling, interaction, management, intelligence, and trustworthiness

Figure 1. Conceptual representation of a physical infrastructure Digital Twin and its enabling capabilities.

Applications for Infrastructure Reliability and Resilience

The Laboratory applies these developments toward improving the monitoring, understanding, decision-making, reliability, and resilience of physical infrastructure systems.