The coronavirus pandemic is forcing airlines to introduce new technologies aiming to increase passenger safety. One of these ideas could be self-service kiosks that can identify passengers with symptoms of Covid-19 and other illnesses.
According to a statement on their website, Etihad Airways will start testing new kiosks that will help identify sick travellers, including those infected with Covid-19 at early stages.
This new technology will be deployed in late April – May 2020 at the Abu Dhabi airport. Initially the testing will be done with the participation of volunteers.
The kiosk will be able to determine temperature, heart rate and respiratory rate of any person. It can be installed in different places such as a check-in desk, information booth, luggage drop points, security at the immigration area. If there are more than one person in the same reservation, each will be checked.
Australia’s Elenium Automation device can automatically suspend self-check-in if symptoms of a passenger illness are detected. The machine will then start a teleconference with appropriate specialists or alert on-site staff for further actions.
In addition, in partnership with Amazon Web Services, Elenium has also developed a hands-free technology. It will allow you to use self-service devices through voice recognition. This will minimize possibility of virus transmission.
Etihad Airways noted that the technology was designed to be a warning indicator rather than a system aimed to diagnose diseases. It will help identify people with common symptoms that can be evaluated by medical experts afterwards.
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