ISO/IEC 20924:2024

Internet of Things (IoT) and digital twin - Vocabulary

This document provides a definition of Internet of Things and digital twin along with a set of terms and definitions. This document is a terminology foundation for the Internet of Things and digital twin. This third edition cancels and replaces the second edition published in 2021. This edition constitutes a technical revision. This edition includes the following technical changes with respect to the previous edition: a) addition of new terms which are used in other ISO/IEC IoT related standards; b) update of some definitions to align with current usage in IoT standards; c) extension of digital twin related vocabularies with title and scope changes

Titre manque

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 21-Feb-2024
• ICS: 01.040.35 - Information technology (Vocabularies)
• ICS: 35.020 - Information technology (IT) in general
• Technical Committee: ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 41 - Internet of things and digital twin
• Drafting Committee: ISO/IEC JTC 1/SC 41 - Internet of things and digital twin
• Current Stage: 9092 - International Standard to be revised
• Start Date: 01-Jul-2025
• Completion Date: 30-Oct-2025

Relations

• Revises: ISO/IEC 20924:2021 - Information technology - Internet of Things (IoT) - Vocabulary
• Effective Date: 13-Jan-2024

Overview

ISO/IEC 20924:2024 - Internet of Things (IoT) and digital twin - Vocabulary (Edition 3.0) is the updated international terminology foundation for IoT and digital twin technologies. This third edition cancels and replaces the 2021 edition and constitutes a technical revision that adds new terms, updates existing definitions to align with current IoT usage, and extends digital twin vocabularies. As a vocabulary standard, ISO/IEC 20924 provides consistent definitions for critical concepts such as Internet of Things, digital entity, virtual entity, physical entity, service, interface, and trustworthiness.

Key Topics

• Core terminology for IoT and digital twin ecosystems, including:
  • General terms: application, architecture, asset, data, information, identifier, interoperability, network, service, component, safety.
  • IoT-specific terms: actuator, actuating, data acquisition functional system, digital user, electronic label (EL), electronic label system (ELS), wearable device, endpoint, discovery service.
  • Digital twin terms: virtual entity and extensions to digital twin vocabularies that clarify how digital replicas relate to physical entities.
• Alignment with related ISO/IEC standards (definitions sourced from ISO/IEC 27000, ISO/IEC 22123-1, ISO/IEC 30169, ISO/IEC 30144, ISO/IEC/IEEE 42010, etc.).
• Emphasis on terminology that supports interoperability, clear architecture descriptions, and consistent use of vocabulary across standards and implementations.
• Normative status: no normative references within the document-its primary role is to unify language used across IoT and digital twin standardization.

Applications

ISO/IEC 20924 is practical for anyone who needs a common, authoritative vocabulary when designing, specifying, or regulating IoT and digital twin systems:

• System architects and engineers - ensure consistent use of terms in reference architectures, interface specifications, and system documentation.
• Standards developers and regulators - harmonize definitions across technical standards and policy documents to avoid ambiguity.
• Product managers and procurement teams - use standardized terminology in requirements, tender documents, and interoperability testing criteria.
• Developers and integrators - map concepts like digital entity, data store, and endpoint to implementation artifacts (cloud services, edge gateways, sensors, actuators).
• Academics and trainers - teach IoT and digital twin fundamentals with authoritative definitions.

Related standards

Examples of referenced standards and sources used for definitions:

• ISO/IEC 27000 series (security concepts)
• ISO/IEC 22123-1 (cloud service terminology)
• ISO/IEC 30169 (electronic labels)
• ISO/IEC 30144 (data acquisition)
• ISO/IEC/IEEE 42010 (architecture descriptions)

Using ISO/IEC 20924:2024 supports clearer communication, better interoperability, and more robust specification of IoT and digital twin projects across industries.

Standards Content (Sample)

ISO/IEC 20924
Edition 3.0 2024-02
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
Internet of things (IoT) and digital twin – Vocabulary

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ISO/IEC 20924
Edition 3.0 2024-02
INTERNATIONAL
STANDARD
Internet of things (IoT) and digital twin – Vocabulary

INTERNATIONAL
ELECTROTECHNICAL
COMMISSION
ICS 35.020 ISBN 978-2-8322-8184-0

– 2 – ISO/IEC 20924:2024 © ISO/IEC 2024
CONTENTS
FOREWORD . 3
1 Scope . 5
2 Normative references . 5
3 Terms and definitions . 5
3.1 General terms . 5
3.2 Internet of Things specific terms . 9
3.3 Digital twin specific terms . 11
Bibliography . 14

INTERNET OF THINGS (IoT) AND DIGITAL TWIN –
VOCABULARY
FOREWORD
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form the specialized system for worldwide standardization. National bodies that are members of ISO or IEC
participate in the development of International Standards through technical committees established by the
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ISO/IEC 20924 has been prepared by subcommittee 41: Internet of Things and Digital Twin, of
ISO/IEC joint technical committee 1: Information technology. It is an International Standard.
This third edition cancels and replaces the second edition published in 2021. This edition
constitutes a technical revision.
This edition includes the following technical changes with respect to the previous edition:
a) addition of new terms which are used in other ISO/IEC IoT related standards;
b) update of some definitions to align with current usage in IoT standards;
c) extension of digital twin related vocabularies with title and scope changes.
The text of this International Standard is based on the following documents:
Draft Report on voting
JTC1-SC41/386/FDIS JTC1-SC41/404/RVD

Full information on the voting for its approval can be found in the report on voting indicated in
the above table.
– 4 – ISO/IEC 20924:2024 © ISO/IEC 2024
The language used for the development of this International Standard is English.
This document was drafted in accordance with ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2, and developed in
accordance with ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1, and the ISO/IEC Directives, JTC 1 Supplement
available at www.iec.ch/members_experts/refdocs and www.iso.org/directives.

INTERNET OF THINGS (IoT) AND DIGITAL TWIN –
VOCABULARY
1 Scope
This document provides a definition of Internet of Things and digital twin along with a set of
terms and definitions. This document is a terminology foundation for the Internet of Things and
digital twin.
2 Normative references
There are no normative references in this document.
3 Terms and definitions
ISO and IEC maintain terminological databases for use in standardization at the following
addresses:
• IEC Electropedia: available at https://www.electropedia.org/
• ISO Online browsing platform: available at https://www.iso.org/obp
3.1 General terms
3.1.1
application
software designed to fulfil a particular purpose
[SOURCE: ISO/IEC 24713-2:2008, 4.1, modified – "program or piece of" has been deleted from
the beginning of the definition.]
3.1.2
architecture
set of fundamental concepts or properties of an entity in its environment
Note 1 to entry: Governing principles are covered in the architecture description and are not part of the architecture.
[SOURCE: ISO/IEC/IEEE 42010:2022, 3.2, modified – "set of" has been added to the beginning
of the definition, "and governing principles for the realization and evolution of this entity and its
related life cycle processes" has been deleted from the end of the definition, and Note 1 to entry
has been added.]
3.1.3
asset
entity (3.1.17) that has potential or actual value to an individual, an organization, a government,
or other groups
3.1.4
availability
property of being accessible and usable upon demand by an authorized entity (3.1.17)
Note 1 to entry: IoT systems (3.2.15) can include both human users (3.1.18) and service components as "authorized
entities".
[SOURCE: ISO/IEC 27000:2018, 3.7]

– 6 – ISO/IEC 20924:2024 © ISO/IEC 2024
3.1.5
cloud computing
paradigm for enabling network (3.1.24) access to a scalable and elastic pool of shareable
physical or virtual resources with self-service provisioning and administration on demand
[SOURCE: ISO/IEC 22123-1:2023, 3.1.1, modified – Notes 1 and 2 to entry have been deleted.]
3.1.6
cloud service
one or more capabilities offered via cloud computing (3.1.5) invoked using a defined interface
(3.1.22)
[SOURCE: ISO/IEC 22123-1:2023, 3.1.2]
3.1.7
cloud service provider
party that is acting in a cloud service provider role
[SOURCE: ISO/IEC 22123-1:2023, 3.3.3]
3.1.8
cloud service provider role
CSP role
set of activities that make cloud services available
[SOURCE: ISO/IEC 22123-1:2023, 3.3.15]
3.1.9
component
modular, deployable, and replaceable part of a system
[SOURCE: ISO 14813-5:2010, B.1.31, modified – "that encapsulates implementation and
exposes a set of interfaces" has been deleted from the end of the definition.]
3.1.10
confidentiality
property that information (3.1.21) is not made available or disclosed to unauthorized individuals,
entities, or processes
[SOURCE: ISO/IEC 27000:2018, 3.10]
3.1.11
data
symbol or symbols represented in a digital and formalized manner suitable for communication,
storage, interpretation or processing
3.1.12
data store
persistent repository for data (3.1.11)
Note 1 to entry: A data store can be accessed by a single entity (3.1.17) or shared by multiple entities via a network
(3.1.24) or other connection.
3.1.13
digital entity
entity (3.1.17) that exists in the digital realm

Note 1 to entry: A digital entity can exist in several forms, including a cloud service (3.1.6) or as a service (3.1.28)
in a data centre, or as a network (3.1.24) element or as an IoT gateway (3.2.14).
3.1.14
discovery service
service (3.1.28) to find resources, entities or services based on a specification, keywords,
search terms, or tags of the desired target
Note 1 to entry: A discovery service can be used by a human user (3.1.18) or a digital user (3.2.4).
3.1.15
endpoint
component (3.1.8) that exposes and uses one or more network (3.1.24) interfaces (3.1.22)
3.1.16
endpoint address
character or group of characters that can be used to identify an endpoint (3.1.15),
which can designate the originating source or destination of data (3.1.11) being transmitted
3.1.17
entity
anything (physical or non-physical) having a distinct existence
[SOURCE: ISO/IEC 15459-3:2014, 3.1]
3.1.18
human user
natural person who uses a system
3.1.19
identifier
information (3.1.21) that unambiguously distinguishes one entity (3.1.17) from other entities in
a given identity context (3.1.20)
3.1.20
identity context
environment where an entity (3.1.17) can be sufficiently identified by a certain set of its
attributes and values
3.1.21
information
data (3.1.11) that within a certain context has a particular meaning
...