The Ministry of Science and ICT and the National Research Foundation of Korea announced that Professor Lee Jong-han of Inha University’s Department of Civil Infrastructure Engineering has been selected as the recipient of the August 'Korea Science and Technology Award.' This award recognizes outstanding researchers who have contributed to the advancement of science and technology, with one recipient chosen each month to receive the Vice Minister of Science and ICT Award and a cash prize of 10 million won. Starting this year, the award has been rebranded from 'Science and Technology Person of the Month' to 'Korea Science and Technology Award.'
Professor Lee was honored for his development of digital twin technology that quantitatively predicts the aging and damage of social infrastructure, contributing to the safety of national infrastructure.
As climate change and the deterioration of facilities accelerate, the costs of maintaining social infrastructure and the risks of safety incidents have significantly increased. However, existing systems have been limited to single deterioration analysis and post-inspection responses, making it difficult to predict actual environmental impacts and future performance degradation. Professor Lee explained, "Existing safety inspections relied on manual visual inspections or fragmented sensors, which not only consumed a lot of time and resources but also made it challenging to identify complex damages due to variations in inspectors' personal capabilities."
To overcome these limitations, Professor Lee developed 'LIVE Digital Twin Technology.' This technology integrates the analysis of material degradation, physical and functional damage to components, and the physical responses of structures.
The research team quantitatively identified the nonlinear degradation behavior of concrete under complex deterioration conditions and introduced various variable correlation analysis techniques, such as the loads imposed on structures by heavy vehicles. This groundwork allows for precise predictions of damage locations and diffusion paths.
Additionally, they established a BIM-to-FEM automation framework to create a bidirectional linkage system that feeds analysis results back into a virtual environment. This technology presents a new approach to managing infrastructure from the past through the present and into the future.
Professor Lee stated, "LIVE Digital Twin Technology is significant in that it transforms traditional maintenance, which relied on post-inspections, into a predictive and proactive system. I will strive to expand this technology to various infrastructures such as tunnels and ports to ensure safe infrastructure development."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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