Airport Experience® News - Customer Service Issue 2024

INDUSTRY INNOVATORS

Left: Miami International Airport’s (MIA) Public Innovation Challenge awarded three companies - Mapsted, Signapse and RouteMe – a $100,000 investment and an opportunity to test their technology at the airport.

Above: RouteMe, one of three winners of the MIA contest, is testing its artificial intelligence-powered wayfinding to help people navigate the airport. Left: MIA Director and CEO Ralph Cutié says the contest focused on accessibility because a truly exceptional customer experience should encompass the needs of all passengers, regardless of their abilities.

Enhancing The Experience Throughout the three-month pilot, which opened to travelers on Aug. 25, each company has a different slice of the airport experience. During testing, airport officials will gather data such as clickthrough rates and usage time to determine efficiency. If needed, the pilots may be extended for another 12 months to collect more data, according to Cutié. RouteMe is testing its artificial intelligence-powered wayfinding to help people navigate between TSA checkpoints, international arrivals, information counters and the car rental center. Travelers can aim their phone camera at a QR code sign to be given an augmented reality view through a phone app that displays direction arrows and notes when looking through the camera. Travelers like the hand-holding element and each route can be customized to better serve airport needs, according to the company’s CEO, Dimas Lipiz. UK-based Signapse is helping to keep deaf passengers in the know with displays at every MIA check-in desk interpreting announcements in real-time. The service is especially important to keep deaf or hard of hearing people on the same page during emergencies and last-minute announcements, notes the company’s CEO Sally Chalk. The photo-realistic on-screen avatars can interpret thousands of messages every day, she says. Toronto-based Mapsted assists passengers arriving at MIA’s two cruise passenger drop

offs. The indoor mapping service’s mobile app helps aid navigation without the need to install hardware like Bluetooth relays, says Daniela Masri, the company’s director of business development. The mobile app can help people navigate and stay on time with an itinerary based on their needs and destinations, Masri says, so if travelers need to avoid stairs or stop off at a restroom, they can easily find their way. Airports can also use the service to better understand traveler behavior and send notifications, Masri says. At the heart of the challenge is a desire to improve the traveler experience and a belief that improving accessibility benefits everyone, Buchanan says. “This work is also about embedding a lens of inclusivity around the role innovation plays in solving challenges,” Buchanan adds. “We’re really trying to highlight

technology that has an impact on people’s lives. I think we see a lot of widgets and apps that do really interesting things, but in the grand scheme of things, don’t improve the quality of life. What MDIA is attempting to do with these public innovation challenges is to focus on more inclusive approaches to innovation which, from my perspective, is about improving the human experience.” In the future, Buchanan says MDIA may collaborate with MIA again. Cutié says there are several other possible areas to explore including sustainability and environmental initiatives. “Additionally, we’d like to continue exploring solutions to enhance customer experience and accessibility,” Cutié says. “We firmly believe that a truly exceptional customer experience should encompass the needs of all passengers, regardless of their abilities.”

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AX NEWS OCTOBER/NOVEMBER 2024