Anders Logg: Modelling and Simulating Cities with Digital Twins

Abstract: Digital twins, virtual models mirroring real-world physical systems in real-time, are transforming how we design, simulate, and optimize complex environments before real-world deployment. Originally successful in industries such as automotive and aerospace, digital twins are now being used to model systems as complex as whole cities. City-scale digital twins enable detailed simulations of multifaceted urban phenomena—including traffic and transportation flow, pedestrian movement and crowd dynamics, air quality and pollution dispersion, wind comfort and wind loading, urban microclimate and heat island effects, flooding and stormwater management, noise propagation and acoustic comfort, electromagnetic fields and wireless communication coverage, and many more. By leveraging advanced numerical methods and integrating multi-modal geospatial data, machine learning, and mixed reality simulations, these digital twins significantly enhance decision-making capabilities.

In this talk, I will present our latest research at the Digital Twin Cities Centre, a Vinnova Competence Centre at Chalmers University of Technology in Gothenburg. Highlighted projects include automatic urban geometry and mesh generation, digital control rooms for construction site management, numerical simulations of wind flow, pollution, and noise, and the development of a robust data platform enabling AI-driven digital twins. These innovations demonstrate how numerical mathematics, simulation, and visualization methods converge to redefine the management and sustainability of urban environments.