IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jlands/v15y2026i2p254-d1855016.html

Development of Urban Digital Twins Using GIS and Game Engine Systems

Author

Listed:
  • Anca Ene

    (Faculty of Geodesy, Technical University of Civil Engineering Bucharest, 020396 Bucharest, Romania)

  • Ana Cornelia Badea

    (Faculty of Geodesy, Technical University of Civil Engineering Bucharest, 020396 Bucharest, Romania)

  • Gheorghe Badea

    (Faculty of Geodesy, Technical University of Civil Engineering Bucharest, 020396 Bucharest, Romania)

  • Anca-Patricia Grădinaru

    (Faculty of Geodesy, Technical University of Civil Engineering Bucharest, 020396 Bucharest, Romania)

Abstract

Urban Digital Twins (UDTs) represent a recent application of Digital Twins (DTs), with the objective of replicating cities and providing a framework for urban planning. The utilization of UDTs provides a structured approach for the modeling and analysis of urban environments, incorporating a range of geospatial data presented in both two-dimensional (2D) and three-dimensional (3D) formats. This article details the process of processing, modeling, and integrating urban geospatial data into a Digital Twin. Two integrations for end-user platforms were demonstrated using a Geographic Information System (GIS) and an Unreal Engine (UE5) game platform. GIS-based dashboard systems provide professionals with the tools necessary to monitor, analyze, and create scenarios, thereby promoting collaboration between authorities and citizens. Game engines have the potential to play a pivotal role in the development of future UDTs by facilitating the creation of immersive experiences that aid users in comprehending their environment and promoting citizen engagement.

Suggested Citation

  • Anca Ene & Ana Cornelia Badea & Gheorghe Badea & Anca-Patricia Grădinaru, 2026. "Development of Urban Digital Twins Using GIS and Game Engine Systems," Land, MDPI, vol. 15(2), pages 1-25, February.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:15:y:2026:i:2:p:254-:d:1855016
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/15/2/254/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2073-445X/15/2/254/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jlands:v:15:y:2026:i:2:p:254-:d:1855016. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    We have no bibliographic references for this item. You can help adding them by using this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager The email address of this maintainer does not seem to be valid anymore. Please ask MDPI Indexing Manager to update the entry or send us the correct address (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.