Public and private blockchain for decentralized digital building twins and building automation system

TL;DR

This paper proposes a blockchain-based decentralized protocol to improve cyber resilience, security, and privacy in IoT data transfer for digital twins and building automation, validated through real-world prototypes.

Contribution

It introduces a novel blockchain framework for decentralized building automation, demonstrating enhanced resilience and security over traditional centralized systems.

Findings

Hyperledger Fabric system shows superior scalability and cost-effectiveness.

Decentralized protocols improve cyber resilience and data security.

Prototypes validated in real-world building environments.

Abstract

The communication protocols and data transfer mechanisms employed by IoT devices in smart buildings and corresponding digital twin systems predominantly rely on centralized architectures. Such centralized systems are vulnerable to single points of failure, where a malfunction can disrupt operational processes. This study introduces a blockchain-based decentralized protocol to enhance the cyber resilience of IoT data transfer for digital twins and enable decentralized automation of building operations. The framework incorporates public and private blockchain technologies alongside two case studies showcasing prototypes of each system. These prototypes were validated within a real-world building environment using smart home appliances and two digital twin platforms, with their performance evaluated based on cost, scalability, data security, and privacy. The findings reveal that the Hyperledger Fabric-based system excels in terms of scalability, speed, and cost-effectiveness, while both frameworks offer advantages over traditional centralized protocols in system cyber resilience, data security, and privacy.