Digitalisation has fundamentally transformed security technology over the past few decades. New sensor technologies and the increasing interconnection of previously isolated individual systems offer enormous benefits, but raise a key question: how can the growing volumes of data be meaningfully analysed and put to use in security practice? The digital twin offers a promising answer to this question.
A digital twin is a digital representation of a real-world object or system that captures its current state and can simultaneously visualise future developments. Originally, this technology was used primarily for technical testing in the aerospace industry and for complex simulations. However, it is now used across many sectors – and perimeter security is no exception. Virtual models help to monitor security areas more precisely, identify risks at an early stage and adapt protective measures flexibly to changing situations.
Virtual rather than complicated
In the context of perimeter security, a digital twin is a virtual, dynamic representation of a real-world security or perimeter infrastructure. “It combines geometry, technical components and operational data into a consistent model,” summarises Prof. Alexander Reiterer from the Fraunhofer Institute for Physical Measurement Techniques IPM. Sensors, cameras, fences and access systems are represented digitally in a realistic manner. These virtual representations open up new possibilities for planning, testing and operating security concepts more efficiently. “The digital twin provides security teams and operators with an improved basis for decision-making and enables the transparent analysis of coverage areas and security zones,” adds Andreas Flemming, Area Sales Director DACH at the technology company Genetec Germany.
A particular advantage of the digital twin is that it enables in-depth risk analyses to be carried out without having to interfere with ongoing operations. “Operators can identify vulnerabilities at an early stage and compare different protection strategies,” says Prof. Alexander Reiterer, adding: “Scenarios such as failures or sabotage can be assessed in advance. Decisions are made on the basis of data rather than purely on experience.” Operators thus benefit from greater operational reliability and lower costs. At the same time, documentation and traceability vis-à-vis authorities and auditors are improved.
Whether energy plants, airports or large-scale industrial sites – operators of critical infrastructure in particular are increasingly turning to digital twins. “Logistics centres and large-scale perimeter facilities are also already making extensive use of simulations,” says Prof. Alexander Reiterer. The added value is particularly high during the planning phase of complex security concepts, as well as when retrofitting existing facilities. This allows potentially costly misinvestments to be avoided at an early stage and measures to be optimised in a targeted manner.
The potential applications extend far beyond mere planning. According to Reiterer, the training of security personnel is one of the areas with particularly great potential. The realistic simulation of emergency and crisis scenarios is another argument in favour of using digital models. “As a general rule, the more complex a system is, the greater the benefits of the digital twin,” emphasises the expert from the Fraunhofer Institute.
Real-time data creates a situational overview
As long as the digital twin is used in planning or training, its benefits remain primarily conceptual in nature – it serves to aid preparation, optimisation and decision-making. However, a static model is not sufficient for assessing current situations. Only when the virtual replica is linked to live data does a dynamic system emerge that supports ongoing operations in real time. “This creates a transparent, traceable view of the entire security system,” explains Prof. Reiterer. It therefore provides “an operational situational overview rather than a mere 3D model”, as Andreas Flemming puts it.
“In perimeter security, response speed is key,” Flemming emphasises. After all, the sooner a threat is detected, the faster security personnel can respond appropriately. The real-time integration of video surveillance, access control and other sensors provides the foundation for accurately capturing current situations and assessing them reliably. Crucially, the digital twin enables the spatial mapping of events and their linking to current system information – a key prerequisite for reliable alarm verification. Cloud-based and hybrid platform architectures ensure the cross-system processing and display of this real-time data. “This cross-system integration speeds up response times in the event of security-critical incidents and leads to significantly more efficient coordination of measures when an incident occurs,” says Flemming.
The added value of a digital twin therefore stems less from additional technology and more from the standardisation of system landscapes. It is only by bringing together different security domains within a consistent, interoperable architecture that a comprehensive and actionable representation of the entire infrastructure can be created.
What is already possible today
Current technology already enables the analysis of camera fields of view and comprehensive perimeter coverage. “From a metrological perspective, geometries, fields of view, sensor ranges, environmental conditions and system statuses can be precisely recorded,” says Prof. Reiterer. Threat scenarios can therefore already be modelled very realistically in many respects using digital twins. Similarly, according to Flemming, operators can easily simulate defined security processes and response procedures. “Comprehensive, AI-based predictive simulations, on the other hand, are not yet standard in operational use,” says Flemming. The current focus of a digital twin is therefore more on real-time support than on predictive risk modelling.
However, the focus of digital twin applications is increasingly shifting from visualisation towards data-driven decision support. Prof. Reiterer confirms this: “The biggest challenge lies less in data collection than in modelling. Building consistent, coupled models is currently still very labour-intensive and often done manually. Real-time capability and scalability remain challenges.” Overall, the aim is to make digital twins more efficient, robust and practical. In research, the focus is therefore on automatically capturing as many relevant parameters as possible. These are then to be automatically transferred into multimodal models. Looking ahead, artificial intelligence is also likely to make this process significantly more efficient and scalable, according to Reiterer: “AI will play a central role in data fusion and model generation. This will significantly reduce costs and barriers to entry. In the long term, self-learning safety models will emerge that actively support decision-making.”
For many operators, there will be no getting around dual-technology in the future. This makes careful investment planning all the more important. “As perimeter infrastructures consist of technologies from different manufacturers, proprietary dependencies must be avoided at all costs,” warns Flemming, for example, and advises: “Open architectures enable the gradual further development of existing systems, ensure scalability and thus contribute to protecting the investment in the solutions.”
The technology is therefore likely to transform not only planning and simulation, but also increasingly shape operational perimeter protection. It will be crucial to integrate digital twins into existing security architectures in such a way that their practical benefits can actually be fully exploited in day-to-day operations.