🌐 The Immersive Digital Twin Lab leverages cutting-edge XR (Extended Reality) technologies, AI, and cloud-based platforms to create fully interactive digital representations of water and environmental systems within the DIWA project. By integrating immersive visualization, real-time data streams, and AI-assisted analytics, stakeholders can explore, analyze, and interact with complex infrastructures in ways that were previously impossible. XR-enabled digital twins facilitate collaborative decision-making, scenario testing, and predictive modeling, allowing project partners, researchers, and policymakers to better understand environmental processes, optimize resource management, and co-create innovative solutions. This approach not only enhances transparency and engagement but also accelerates the translation of data into actionable insights for sustainable water and environmental management.
The Immersive Digital Twin Lab is established at the University of Oulu, within the Department of Technology and WE3 Unit, as part of the Digital Waters Flagship program. The lab focuses on virtualising digital twins and making them accessible through immersive XR-based experiences, supporting stakeholder collaboration and co-creation of services.
Our mission is to enable scalable, interoperable, and collaborative digital twin experiences through open-source technologies, cloud platforms, XR interfaces, and data-driven workflows.
- Transform digital twins from technical models into interactive, human-centered platforms
- Integrate XR (AR/VR/MR) for real-time visualization and interaction
- Support collaborative decision-making and stakeholder engagement
- Build cloud-based, modular architectures
- Integrate IoT and sensor networks with real-time simulation pipelines
- Promote FAIR (Findable, Accessible, Interoperable, Reusable) principles
- Foster collaboration across disciplines — from architecture, engineering, and construction to urban planning
The lab operates primarily under RT4: Digital Services, Platforms, and Business Applications, in collaboration with other research themes (RT4: Digital services, platforms, and business applications | Interoperable digital solutions for sharing and exploring data, and co-creation of services)
Table: XR Services
| XR Service | Description |
|---|---|
| DT Integration | Connect VR app to DIWA Digital Twin backend for synchronized model & sensor data. |
| GIS Interop | Seamless integration with ArcGIS Pro, Enterprise, and Online; 2D dashboards ↔ 3D immersive exploration. |
| 3D Sim & Design | Immersive VR environments in Unity, Cesium, and ArcGIS SDKs for city-scale hydrological & spatial simulations. |
| Collaborative VR | Multi-user VR sessions for co-exploration, participatory planning, and stakeholder engagement. |
| AI Assistant | Generative AI assistants for natural-language queries, scenario explanations, and interactive model exploration. |
The Immersive Digital Twin Lab leverages these XR services to demonstrate and explore supersites and real-world use cases. XR demonstrations will initially be conducted in VR environments (3DoF, 6DoF, tabletop, 1:1 scale) to provide fully immersive, interactive experiences. Subsequently, these experiences will be extended to Mixed Reality (MR) and Augmented Reality (AR) devices, enabling multi-scale visualization, collaborative exploration, and stakeholder engagement across diverse digital twin scenarios.
We build upon open, scalable, and interoperable architectures, including:
- Game & XR Engines: Unity3D, Unreal Engine
- GIS & Digital Twin Platforms: ArcGIS Pro, ArcGIS Enterprise, ArcGIS Online, QGIS
- Cloud Platforms: AWS, Azure for XR visualization and real-time data streaming
- XR Devices & Interfaces: HoloLens 2, Meta Quest 3, Magic Leap 2, WebXR
Learn about our Immersive Digital Twin Lab architectures and XR workflows:
- Explore XR-enabled digital twin environments
- Access modular data and model pipelines
- Follow standards for reproducible repository and project management
- IDT Lab: Email siamak.bazzaz@oulu.fi to request access
- Share and publish data: Upload models, scans, and XR assets for collaborative use (coming soon)
Visit our public repositories to discover ongoing XR and digital twin projects.
Participate in our GitHub Discussions to collaborate on immersive digital twin topics. Current discussion threads include:
-
Stakeholder Collaboration in Immersive Digital Twins
Share ideas and feedback on how stakeholders can engage with experts, co-design XR environments, and contribute to the development of immersive digital twin solutions. -
XR Commercialization and Funding Opportunities
Discuss strategies for XR commercialization, potential funding sources at Finnish or EU levels, and ways to support the DIWA program through innovative applications and partnerships.
Contribute your insights, ask questions, and help shape the future of the Immersive Digital Twin Lab!
- Review our Contributing Guidelines
- Read the Code of Conduct 👉 here
- Open issues, propose features, or submit pull requests
- Collaborate on digital twin and XR use cases
-
Data requirements for immersive demonstrations
For information on the types of data to be shared with the Immersive Digital Twin Lab for XR-based demonstrations, please refer to:
👉 data-requirements -
Proposed XR roadmap and future planning
For the planned/proposed XR development roadmap and long-term objectives for XR integration, please see:
👉 xr-roadmap -
XR Activities and Implementation
For concrete activities supporting the XR roadmap—including workshops, newsletters, demo days, online courses, and infrastructure development—please see:
👉 xr-activities -
Digital Waters GitHub organization
To explore repositories, tools, and digital twin initiatives developed within the Digital Waters Flagship, visit:
👉 DigitalWaters-fi Page
If you use our frameworks, models, or XR platforms in your research, please cite the repository via Zenodo. For publications and methodology details, see our publications page.
Questions, suggestions, or collaboration inquiries are welcome: siamak.bazzaz@oulu.fi