The concept of digital twin used to investigate geometrical variations in the production of pipe spools

Abstract

The fourth industrial revolution comprises the digital transformation of manufacturing by means of an intensive integration of advanced information and communication technologies. The possibility of creating interactive virtual replicas of the physical entities to predict and detect physical issues and optimize processes is one of the key benefits of the manufacturing digitization. In the oil and gas industry, one of the essential activities that can take advantage of innovative digital technologies is the geometrical quality assurance of pipe spools. In this sense, this work focuses on the development of digital twins of pipe spools that embrace attributes of their physical counterparts to manage dimensional variation and to assist the geometrical quality assurance process. Based on data available in the design stage of the product realization loop, i.e., dimensional tolerance, it was possible to estimate the process capability and to predict, by sensitivity analysis, the behavior of the spool elements when assembling them to each other.