Chapter 2. Anticipate
Airports as full-scale experimental platformsAIRPORTS AS FULL-SCALE EXPERIMENTAL PLATFORMS
What will tomorrow’s airports look like? Innovation is the central focus of all the experiments now underway to promote Smart Airports and empower the airport ecosystem to meet the challenges of health and new mobility preferences.
◆Safe Travel Challenge winner and startup company Detekt’in has developed a system for the total disinfection of passenger property security trays.
THE SAFE TRAVEL CHALLENGE: INNOVATION FOR HEALTH
In spring 2020, Groupe ADP launched its Safe Travel Challenge with support from Choose Paris Region, the government agency that promotes the region’s appeal for inward investment. The competition is designed to facilitate the emergence of innovative solutions and new technologies that successfully meet today’s health challenges. More than 300 startups and SMEs from 31 countries took up the challenge, with the winners invited to test their solutions in the unique full-scale experimental platforms provided by the Paris airports.
Among the winners, CASPR was selected for its natural air and surface disinfection solution, which generates hydrogen peroxide (H2O2) using
UV lamps to eliminate 99.97% of pathogens in public buildings. Another winner, RUBIX S&I, has developed multi-sensory air monitoring solutions capable of recognising micro-particulates, allergens and odours as part of contributing to high levels of disinfection. Detekt’in has developed a system that uses an ultraviolet radiation tunnel to disinfect the security trays into which passengers put their personal property for scanning as they pass through security checkpoints. Outsight, another startup business, received a special mention for its entry.
◆LiDAR: real-time 3D flow control
The baggage reclaim area of Paris-Charles de Gaulle Terminal 2E hosted an experiment designed to test the flow monitoring solution developed by French startup Outsight under real-life conditions. Based on the laser technology known as LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), this solution uses a standard tablet to visualise all movements and positions of people and objects, such as individual pieces of baggage and baggage trolleys, in 3D and in real time. This promising technology could potentially be used to improve enforcement of social distancing at a future time.