Introduction
The Covid-19 pandemic has led to the urge for technologies that allow people to avoid coming into contact with touch devices. Before Covid-19, the world had no idea about the benefits of touchless technology. The touchless technologies that have been embraced in findings have thus not been common to ordinary people. Covid-19, nevertheless, has altered that view; in the present day, ordinary people can now interact freely with touchless technology.
Technology is rapidly changing, and new ideas are put into operation every day, demanding airports to adopt as soon as possible and ideally to challenge the global pandemic Covid-19 and competition. Touchless technologies in the airport include biometric scanners, facial recognition, artificial intelligence, and automation (Serrano and Kazda, 2020). These technologies assure a healthy, quick, and safe way to travel. Also, these technologies have been used in airports to inspect individuals as well as their luggage. This ensures the travelers do not contact any personnel or even any touch screen at the airport.
Touchless technology has emerged to be satisfying both the travelers’ and the airline industry’s needs. As the airports continue to grow and the urge for touchless technology changes, airports have snatched the technology and can provide travelers with the technology they have yearned to use (Halpern et al., 2021). Airports are now granting travelers’ power to carry out several duties that service employees could execute. Touchless technology has many advantages over service employee service, such as waiting in lines that minimize contacting Covid-19.
Moreover, convenience is another advantage of touchless technology that affects both travelers and airports. Touchless technology allows airports to deliver information within 24 hours through a pre-flight mobile application. When service employee is at minimum, like at night, airports rely on the touchless technology to play the role of their service employee to pass the needed information.
Convenience is crucial to travelers since they can gain information in a fraction of a second even if the service employees are present or not opposed to queuing. When travelers can get into the airport, scan a bar, use gesture sign or face recognition, and recognize the traveler in seconds, increasing the desire for customers and travelers to become familiar (Halpern et al., 2021). With touchless technology, airports can eliminate the long queues formed during peak hours, making long lines a thing of the past.
Also, this technology will reduce the spread of the Covid-19 since there is reduced interaction. A million travelers are willing to use touchless technology since registering process does not waste much time on travelers who are in a hurry (Halpern et al., 2021). Walking in a kiosk, running face recognition or gesture signs, and finishing the vital check-in operation have impacted long queues.
Touchless technology has minimized the risk for service employees handling or touching contaminated places in restrooms. Sensors on toilets and hand dryers are activated automatically; hence employees and travelers do not need to touch handles or surfaces, reducing the chances of spreading (Serrano and Kazda, 2020). Besides, touchless technology has improved health by minimizing the chances of touching infected surfaces, which has enhanced the health of both service employees and travelers.
Touchless technology has led to energy conservation since it cuts off automatically instead of personnel intervention. Also, touchless technology has reduced costs because the technology does not have expensive electronic gadgets (Halpern et al., 2021). A good example is a sanitary lever that protects the user from coming into contact with a contaminated surface. Nevertheless, any cost accrued from establishing this technology has been balanced with minimized risk of health. Touchless technology has led to aesthetic appeal since it comes in different stylish and designs, hence enhancing the airports’ visual appeal. Lastly, touchless technology has improved productivity and profits by minimizing the possibility of employees’ downtime and sickness. Touchless technology has ensured that profit is generated and productivity is constant.
Methodology
Different secondary research methods have been used in the research. Data available on the internet is applicable in the whole of this paper, but majorly on the introduction to explain the concepts of touchless technologies. Besides, this method is also used to highlight the phasing, structure, and functionality of touchless technology. The government and non-governmental agencies method has been used in this paper’s research to highlight who will benefit from touchless technology. Commercial, informational sources have been used in the definition analysis of passengers’ experience. The educational institution method was applied in the paper to research how touchless technology has been used in airports. Public libraries have been used in this paper’s research to point out areas within the airport where touchless technology has been used. The store data method has been used in this paper to indicate the importance of researching touchless technology.
Literature Review
The automation process started in the eighteenth century as manufacturing industries adopted technology to improve production and efficiency. It later moved to the retail sector before being utilized in service industries years later (Fukui and Nagata, 2020). Towards the end of the century, radios, telegraphs, and telephones were being used to communicate. In the 1960s, the financial sector first adopted Self Service Technology (SST) by inventing the Automatic Teller Machine (ATM). With progressive changes in customer demands and technology, SST started to play a significant role in the service industry. It became prevalent in gas stations, movie ticket kiosks, and airport check-in kiosks. During this period, travel agents and airlines relied heavily on Global Distribution Systems(GDS) like Worldspan, Amadeus, Apollo and Amadeus. By 1997, 91% of all the flights in the united states were booked using GDS (Fukui and Nagata, 2020). Later, internet usage compromised travel and airline agent’s GDS usage since customers started to book their flights directly from their computers, thus eliminating the middle channel. Though GDP is still in usage today, it is not commonly used in the travel sector.
In the past three decades, the airline sector has massively increased SST usage among its employees and customers. Various kiosks performing various functions in the airport facilities have implemented this technology. Travelers are also able to complete check-ins and internet booking using smartphones and personal computers. Technology advancements have played an essential role in SST usage by influencing different types of SST options that satisfy customers and airlines at large.
In the 1990s, airlines adopted standalone computer terminals known as information kiosks to provide services and information to airport operators and customers. The kiosks allow people to retrieve essential information about airport facilities such as lounges, restaurants, stores, and flight information. They can also provide outside information like rental cars, tours, hotels, and other relevant information to employees and customers.
Ticketing kiosks were later introduced and allowed customers to check baggage, purchase tickets and monitor departing and arriving flight status at the airports. The booths are Interactive Transaction Machines (ITMs) and allow airline clients to directly access/retrieve customer service databases (Fukui and Nagata, 2020). However, they are not standalone machines but are placed adjacent to the service counter, allowing the kiosk to be directly connected to airline information. When unable to identify or assist a client, the machine directs them to the service counter with an employee who can help them.
The COVID-19 pandemics, which are being experienced worldwide, have rendered some of the SSTs useless since they can contribute to the spread of the disease (NEXTT, 2021). There is a need to advance the available technology to ensure a healthy passenger experience and airport staff’s safety—however, not all the SST that need abandoning but only those that require human contact to operate. To understand how and where touchless technology can be used to ensure a healthy customer experience, we will look at some of the underlying innovations and technologies.
Biometrics
Biometrics can address the health concerns airline customers encounter due to COVID-19 pandemic and transform the whole passenger experience. By use of biometrics, the need for physical contact with equipment and staff can be eliminated. With the consent of a customer, a token ID that uses biometric technology can be issued. The ID can allow a traveler to pass through different airport touchpoints using biometric features such as iris and facial recognition (JTB Business Travel, 2021). Using privacy by design principle, a platform can be developed to store customer’s digital records. The information can only be accessed by stakeholders with the mandate of handling passengers, be it the government agency, the airport, or the air carrier. Therefore, clients can be recognized and receive the required services with their privacy being respected.
The touchless biometric technology can be utilized at various touchpoints at the airport, thus eliminating physical contact with airport equipment and staff. Since a single biometric token can be created before arrival at the airport, physical booking can be destroyed. Check-in kiosks and desks can also be upgraded using cameras with facial and iris recognition features (National Research Council, 2021). A bag drop, bags can be printed, and a bag tag, which uses biometrics, is attached before they are linked to the customer’s ID. E-gates can also be used in security control, thus allowing access without using the boarding pass. Border control can use digital identity stored in biometric data containing traveler’s personal information to expedite the process. At boarding, this technology can be utilized using e-gates instead of a boarding pass. Other touchpoints where biometric technology can be used include lounges to identify customers who are authorized, parking, restaurants, and shops to make payments.
Artificial Intelligence (AI)
Artificial intelligence can improve passenger experience by providing the correct information to airline customers at the right time, depending on preferences, location, profile, and time before a flight. It can analyze video data from various CCT images at the airport to control trolleys supply for customers at multiple locations. AI-based identification can also be used in cabin baggage X-ray machines to strengthen security and reduce human error. Robotics can also be utilized in passenger processing and airport operations (NEXTT, 2021). Robotics technology can also help in baggage carrying between baggage belt and bag drop machine.
Digital Twin
Digital twin refers to the virtual representation of a physical item. It can be used to give the virtual replica of an airport and the related infrastructure. Operational data can be displayed with predictive and historical views as a 3D interface in real-time (National Research Council, 2021). Digital twin technology can contribute to customers’ experience at the airport by actively monitoring all the essential areas in traveler’s journeys, such as restroom service quality and security (NEXTT, 2021). The digital twin can be applicable at airline stations in different ways. Inbound flights can be determined by creating a model that estimates the population of a customer arriving at the airport within a specific range of time and the possible impact on airports services and operations. It can also track the status of facilities such as restrooms, escalators, and elevators, whether in good condition or not, and simulate the impact and feedback on security checks and bathrooms. This technology can also track metrics and trigger audible and visible alerts if specific metrics are exceeded. For example, waiting time, stand allocation conflicts, customer satisfaction response, and flight delay.
Mobile/Web Applications
Mobile/web applications can play a significant part in ensuring travelers’ confidence over a safe and healthy journey. By identifying less condensed areas within the terminals, they can ensure social distancing is observed (ACI Europe, 2020). They can also be helpful to airport managing bodies by providing essential personalized information to travelers and enhance revenues from e-shopping, fast-tracking, parking, and lounges.
Wearable Devices
The need to keep physical distancing is a critical element at each airline terminal as it reduces the chances of transmission. Wearable devices like smartwatches can assist airline management in monitoring their employees during working hours to comply with safety distancing recommendations imposed by national registration (Tuchen, Arora and Blessing, 2021). Besides, they can help in tracing people who have been infected and have interacted with others. By emitting sound notification or vibration, they can alert passengers/staff of another nearby device, thus ensuring physical distancing. The devices transmit to each other using low-power Bluetooth and log other devices they contacted, thus providing tracing capabilities.
Contactless Touch Panels
Any device that requires physical touch in the airport, such as check-in keyboards, elevators, and kiosks, can adopt contactless touch panels that use a virtual touchpad. This can be achieved using holographic technology that uses Linfield construction to transform light into an actual image. (Serrano and Kazda, 2020) Other methods of achieving the same results can be hand motion, laser technology, smartphones via Bluetooth, and QR-code registration.
Passenger Flow Monitoring
The regulations imposed to curb the COVID-19 pandemic are proving a challenge to many airport managing bodies. Therefore, monitoring the passengers in real-time ensures seamless and safer customer experience’s optimal performance. Passenger flow monitoring technology can ensure airport managements obtain vital data like passenger data that can be utilized to manage to crowd in specific areas (Glenn, 2021). The technology can also limit a particular number of people in lounges, restrooms, and shops. In these areas, exits and entries occur through dedicated gates, corridors, and doors. Access can be denied if the maximum number of people has been reached in a specific space.
Conclusion
Touchless technology can be implemented in airline industries to improve the existing SST and ensure a seamless and safer passenger experience. This technology can reduce the spread of the COVID 19 pandemic that has terrorized the whole world. The airport provides interconnection to places all over the world. It is essential that they fully utilize touchless technology. The technology can be implemented through various technologies and at different locations within an airport terminal. These technologies include and are not limited to biometrics, artificial intelligence, digital twin, mobile/web applications, wearable devices, contactless touch panels, and passenger flow technology. Contactless technology is essential in maintaining customer experience and the safety of the passenger/staff at airport terminals and during the journey (Tuchen, Arora and Blessing, 2021). The technology can also be utilized by the airport board in making management decisions and allows the effectiveness and efficiency of airline firms in their operations.
References
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Serrano, F. and Kazda, A. (2020) ‘The future of airports post COVID-19’, Journal of Air Transport Management, 89, 101900.
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