Every day at Geo Week News, we publish the most important press releases from the industry to keep those within the industry up-to-date with all of the news they need to know. Of course, we know it can be difficult to keep up with everything coming in, so we’re going to look back at the week that was in the news every Friday to recap the biggest happenings of the last five days. Today, we have news about the growing presence of digital twins for industrial use cases, the completion of a previously announced acquisition, and more.
Industrial Digital Twins in the News
The biggest trend we’re tracking in this week’s news is around digital twins and 3D visualizations for industrial use cases. While this isn’t exactly a new use case, it’s something that is starting to be rapidly adopted as more successful use cases showcase the potential value for other users. This week, as an example of this taking the next step, we had an announcement about a specific digital twin that relates to the biggest buzzword in tech right now: AI.
This week, Schneider Electric and ETAP made a joint announcement unveiling a new digital twin that can design and simulate the power needs of “AI factories.” The digital twin leverages NVIDIA’s Omniverse platform, allowing for multiple dynamics to interact seamlessly.
We also got an announcement from the Alliance for OpenUSD this week which covered a number of different elements, including new working and interest groups as well as five new general members. What’s most notable from our perspective was the inclusion of a new interest group focused on industrial and engineering digital twins. According to the release, “The group will develop recommendations around digital twin definitions, terminology, and requirements to drive USD adoption in this ecosystem.”
Expect to see more from this space through the rest of this year. Facilities and projects are becoming more complex as they fit the needs for increasingly complex operations, and the ability to accurately visualize and simulate withing a virtual environment is going to be crucial for successful projects. That’s where digital twins excel, and we’re seeing more proofs of concept about the feasibility of the use cases.
Other News
- Early in the year, Hexagon announced their eventual acquisition of GNSS technology manufacturer Septentrio NV. This week, they announced the official closing of the acquisition, a move they say will strengthen their position in the positioning market.
- Sticking with Hexagon news, the company also announced this week an expansion of their portfolio of physical security solutions. Among the enhancements to the rebranded HxGN dC3 portfolio is a new lidar-based security solution called LidarVision.
- Shifting companies but staying in the security/public safety realm, FARO Technologies, Inc. unveiled “significant” enhancements to its FARO Zone software suite. The announcement largely focuses on how the 3D software can be used by public safety professionals.
- On Thursday, East View made an announcement relaying that they will be launching a new digital platform called Global Geography Library. The platform will provide users with “seamless” access to maps, charts, atlases, geospatial data, and other supporting materials.
- Aerial imagery provider Nearmap this week announced the launch of their new Portfolio Intelligence solution. This new offering will leverage AI with their imagery to assist insurance carriers in property assessments and move “beyond individual property assessments and act on portfolio-level insights.”
- At ProMat this week, Orbbec announced two new 3D camera solutions. One, the Gemini 330 Series, will now be the first in the industry to support all three mainstream interfaces – USB3, GMSL2, and Ethernet. The other, the Pulsar SL450, uses lidar and can be used for robotics, logistics, and more.
- Finally, constellr announced this week the release of its “first light” image from their SkyBee-1 satellite, providing a high-resolution thermal map of Tokyo at night.
