Bridging the gap: SAMM and the emergence of Digital Twins at Bosch
Lack of standardization, reduced interoperability, data integration challenges and failure to understand data are quirks of software for industrial domains before the introduction of semantic tools. In today's digital transformation, understanding and making the most of data as well as smoothly integrating it into different systems is crucial. Although existing technology for semantic data integration, such as the Web Ontology Language (OWL) provided a good starting point, their complexity, especially for digital twins, can be challenging. To address this, Bosch has embraced the Semantic Aspect Meta Model (SAMM) as a powerful solution to overcome these obstacles.
Transcending borders
SAMM is a language to describe the semantic aspects of physical assets that can be represented by digital twins. It provides a structured approach to understanding and representing the meaning and interpretation of data and information. When developing Bosch Semantic Stack - the scalable stack for digital twin based solutions - we experienced the full power of combining digital twins with semantics based on SAMM. The fundamental principle behind making SAMM and these tools open source is the belief that generic solutions with the potential to improve the state of the art should be free to the public.
Becoming open source
First made Open Source in 2021, SAMM together with accompanying tools found a home within the Eclipse Semantic Modeling Framework (ESMF, a child project of the Eclipse top level project “Eclipse Digital Twin”) in 2023. At Bosch, a dedicated group of associates serves as the maintainers of SAMM, with Eclipse assuming the role of publisher. This collaboration has also extended to the Industrial Digital Twin Association (IDTA), reflecting Bosch’s commitment to driving the digital twin agenda based on the IDTAs Asset Administration Shell forward. What was once an internal focus for Bosch has now transcended borders, emerging as a global imperative for digitalization. As such it has become the standard for Aspect Models in the Catena-X initiative to describe the semantics for digital twins by defining their domain-specific aspects in a standardized way.
Leveraging the Bosch Semantic Stack
Also Bosch Rexroth has adopted Digital Product Twins, leveraging the Bosch Semantic Stack as the central repository for product-related information across the product lifecycle. This encompasses over 930,000 product types and more than 300,000,000 product instances, consolidating various data such as Digital Nameplate and Product Carbon Footprint, engineering data from CAD, virtual commissioning, and other relevant information.
Advancing the usage
In short, SAMM has filled a crucial gap for semantic understanding of digital twins. By adopting aspect models and acknowledging the complex nature of digital twins, SAMM has paved the way for a new depth of understanding and integration. We encourage everyone to look into and contribute to open source projects within Eclipse Digital Twin to further advance the usage of semantics and digital twins.