Enhancing Digital Twins With Deep Reinforcement Learning: A Use Case in Maintenance Prioritization

This paper introduces an innovative framework that enhances digital twins with deep reinforcement learning (DRL) to support maintenance in manufacturing systems. Utilizing a sophisticated artificial intelligence (AI) layer, this framework integrates real-time and historical production data from a physical manufacturing system to a digital twin, enabling dynamic simulation and analysis. Maintenance decisions are informed by DRL algorithms that analyze this data, facilitating smart maintenance strategies that adaptively prioritize tasks based on predictive analytics. The effectiveness of this approach is demonstrated through a case study in a lab-scale drone factory, where maintenance tasks are prioritized using a proximal policy optimization. This integration not only refines maintenance decisions but also aligns with the broader goals of operational efficiency and sustainability in Industry 4.0. Our results highlight the potential of combining DRL with digital twins to significantly enhance decision-making in industrial maintenance, offering a novel approach to predictive and prescriptive maintenance practices.