Enhancing airplane boarding procedure using vision based passenger classification

This paper presents the implementation of a new boarding strategy that exploits passenger and hand-luggage detection and classification to reduce the boarding time onto an airplane. A vision system has the main purpose of providing passengers data, in terms of agility coefficient and hand-luggage size to a seat assignment algorithm. The software is able to dynamically generate the passenger seat that reduces the overall boarding time while taking into account the current airplane boarding state. The motivation behind this work is to speed up of the passenger boarding using the proposed online procedure of seat assignment based on passenger and luggage classification. This method results in an enhancement of the boarding phase, in terms of both time and passenger experience. The main goal of this work is to demonstrate the usability of the proposed system in real conditions proving its performances in terms of reliability. Using a simple hardware and software setup, we performed several experiments recreating a gate entrance mock up and comparing the measurements with ground truth data to assess the reliability of the system

Disabled and reduced-mobility passengers´ satisfaction with facilities, services and staff of Faro airport, Portugal

Faro Airport in Portugal has seen a significant increase of Disabled and Reduce mobility air passengers in recent years. The main research problem along this dissertation is to identify and measure satisfaction levels of Disabled and Reduce-mobility air passengers during their journeys through this airport. The study is focus on seven factors: (i) Accessible facilities, (ii) Accessible services, (iii) Punctuality, (iv) Quality of Equipment-devices, (v) Inclusive marketing, (vi) Trained staff (professionalism, attitude and approach), and (vii) areas that have room for improvement. The main goal is the combination of a scientific and practical approach to contribute with valuable information and recommendations to Faro Airport Management; in order to explore wants and needs of this passengers´ segment and to develop quality facilities and services to have happy, satisfied and loyal air passengers in the terminal. The research methodology is conducted by quantitative method through the implementation of 343 survey questionnaires in Faro Airport. Moreover, unstructured interviews to staff and observation method are considered. The study is held in the course of October and November 2018, when the traffic flow of PRMs (Passenger with Reduce Mobility) is greatly representative. According to the results, 97% of Disabled and Reduce-mobility air passengers of Faro Airport are widely Satisfied + Very Satisfied with the overall performance of the terminal. However, out of the 27 attributes evaluated, there are seven attributes related to Accessible Services, Punctuality, Inclusive Marketing, and Staff, which require immediate attention and enhance.O Aeroporto de Faro, em Portugal, registou um aumento significativo de passageiros com deficiência e mobilidade reduzida nos últimos anos. O principal problema de pesquisa ao longo desta dissertação foi identificar e medir os níveis de satisfação dos passageiros aéreos com deficiência e mobilidade reduzida durante as suas viagens por este aeroporto. O principal objetivo é a combinação de uma abordagem científica e prática para contribuir com informações e recomendações valiosas para a Administração do Aeroporto de Faro; a fim de explorar desejos e necessidades deste segmento de passageiros, e desenvolver instalações e serviços de qualidade para ter passageiros felizes, satisfeitos e leais no terminal de Faro. Os objetivos específicos a serem alcançados são: Identificar a opinião dos passageiros com deficiência e mobilidade reduzida em relação às instalações e serviços acessíveis do Aeroporto de Faro; Avaliar o profissionalismo, a atitude e a abordagem do pessoal do aeroporto em relação este segmento de passageiros; e, Reconhecer áreas que têm espaço para melhorias, a fim de oferecer instalações e serviços de melhor qualidade aos passageiros com deficiência e mobilidade reduzida no Aeroporto de Faro. Ao longo da dissertação são abordados temas relevantes para ter uma melhor compreensão e enquadramento de quem é um passageiro deficiente ou de mobilidade reduzida, os diferentes tipos de deficiência, as instalações acessíveis, serviços e pessoal treinado, a legislação e os códigos de aviação que os protegem, e o serviço de assistência especial a que têm direito quando viajam de avião. Bem como uma abordagem de satisfação do cliente. Além disso, a área de estudo do Aeroporto de Faro é descrita com as suas características, nova restauração do terminal, instalações e serviços acessíveis, estatísticas oficiais e MyWay, o serviço de assistência especial no terminal. A pesquisa centra-se nos seguentes sete factores para medir os níveis de satisfação destes passageiros no Aeroporto de Faro: (i) Instalações acessíveis, (ii) Serviços acessíveis, (iii) Pontualidade, (iv) Qualidade dos equipamentos-dispositivos, (v) Marketing inclusivo, (vi) Funcionários (profissionalismo, atitude e abordagem), e (vii) áreas que têm espaço para melhorias. A metodologia de pesquisa é conduzida por método quantitativo através da implementação de 343 questionários no Aeroporto de Faro. O questionário é dividido em perfil sociodemográfico dos passageiros; perfil de passageiros com deficiência e redução de mobilidade; e níveis de satisfação com as instalações, os serviços e os funcionarios. Uma escala tipo Likert de 5 pontos é adotada para medir os níveis de satisfação Além disso, entrevistas não estruturadas para o pessoal e método de observação são consideradas. O estudo é realizado nos meses de Outubro e Novembro de 2018, quando o fluxo de tráfego de passageiros com mobilidade reduzida é muito representativo. O questionário da pesquisa é definido em inglês na ferramenta de pesquisa online LimeSurvey Pro, e a análise estatística dos resultados é computada e interpretada através da geração de tabelas e gráficos no Statistical Package for the Social Science, IBM SPSS Statistics. A análise estatística descritiva é aplicada para submeter e analisar medidas de localização central (média, moda e mediana) e medidas de dispersão (desvio padrão). Os resultados da pesquisa revelam que 64% da amostra são do sexo feminino, 63% têm entre 70 e 90 anos, a Inglaterra tem a maior representação com 71% da amostra, 68% são casados ou em união de facto, 68,8% têm Ensino Secundário ou superior, e 76% são reformados. Em relação ao Perfil do Passageiro com Deficiência e Mobilidade Reduzida, 78% têm um tipo permanente de redução de mobilidade, 96% têm deficiência de mobilidade, 43% têm doenças ocultas e 43% são Idosos/Boomers /Obesos. Além disso, 86% viajaram mais de uma vez pelo terminal de Faro, e 58% já solicitaram o serviço MyWay no passado. É determinado que o pedido de assistência mais frequente é o WCHS (o passageiro tem dificuldade ou não consegue subir ou descer escadas). Além disso, 83,5% da amostra que viajou antes da restauração do aeroporto de 2018 considera que houve algumas melhorias para os passageiros com Deficiência e mobilidade reduzida. De acordo com os resultados, 97% dos passageiros dos transportes aéreos com deficiência e com mobilidade reduzida do Aeroporto de Faro estão amplamente Satisfeitos + Muito Satisfeitos com o desempenho geral do terminal. No entanto, dos 27 atributos avaliados, existem sete atributos relacionados a Serviços Acessíveis, Pontualidade, Marketing Inclusivo e Funcionários, que exigem atenção e aprimoramento imediato. Para concluir, no final da dissertação são expostas as limitações do estudo, e uma série de recomendações e futuras pesquisas dirigidas à Administração do Aeroporto de Faro

Airport master plan for Flagstaff Pulliam Airport, Flagstaff, Arizona

abstract: Evaluates Pulliam Airport's capabilities and role, forecasts future aviation demand and plans for the timely development of new or expanded facilities to meet deman

Study of airport capacity vs efficiency sesar challenges

The objectives of this study are to present a real case study for evaluating the impact of SESAR enhancements on the capacity and efficiency of the Barcelona – El Prat Airport by analyzing the impact of the future SESAR enablers on the capacity and efficiency indicators and by evaluating the effectiveness and the applicability of the SESAR concept on increasing its capacity and efficiency. The first half of the study is dedicated to analyze the following aspects of T1: - Capacity: current capacity of T1 was assessed, which in this case turns to be the capacity of the global Airport. Capacity is always given by the most restrictive subsystem, which in this case is the runway component. - Efficiency: a good indicator for evaluating the airport’s efficiency is an estimation of the delays. Given that runway component is the subsystem which limits the capacity of the airport, the delay introduced is a good KPI for efficiency. The results obtained from selected methodologies used in the capacity and efficiency assessments, (mainly FAA methods for airside and IATA for landside) show that, on 19th July 2009, Barcelona’s Airport capacity is 62 operations per hour and its efficiency 18.4 minutes of delay per hour on the runway component. Such conditions will be not enough to absorb the future traffic, even if operating at best performance, and it is here were SESAR will play a key role for the survival of Barcelona’s airport. The second half of the study is devoted to evaluate the SESAR scenario. The objective is to assess by how much SESAR will improve the capacity and efficiency of the airport and how this improvement will evolve over time. To this effect, the list of SESAR KPIs that will help in the determination of such parameters is obtained. The study concludes that both capacity and efficiency of Barcelona’s Airport are going to increase in the incoming years thanks to the new systems and procedures of the SESAR Program. - Thanks to new approach procedures (CDA), Barcelona’s landing capacity will be incremented, but because of current airspace limitations this improvement could not be reached by means of runway capacity since the airport is “closed” in terms of noise in the takeoff phase. - Thanks to SESAR CDM, delays will be reduced by a 3%, in means of improving Barcelona’s efficiency, which in values means 17.8 min delay per hour. Both factors will experience their biggest evolution rate from 2012 on until their entire completion on 2020 (63% for capacity and 67% for efficiency). This theoretical increase would mean, for example, that a capacity of 80 operations per hour could be reached by 2020. In terms of environment, SESAR will increase the capacity and efficiency of the Airport of Barcelona while minimizing the environmental impact of aviation on the surroundings of the airport by implementing its new environmental tools and procedures, such as CDA operating techniques which will reduce aircraft’s emissions and noise. The implementation of SESAR will represent an investment for the airport, and to this effect, a business case is presented, containing the analysis of the costs derived from implementing the SESAR requirements in the airport and the balance with the benefits obtained. CBA results show that Airport CDM is a solid investment given its technical applicability and economic viability, since benefits are 4 times bigger than implementation costs and the payback period is within only 2 years; all this at a nearly non-existent financial loss risk. To sum up, SESAR is an extremely positive option for the Airport of Barcelona, since it brings the necessary increases in capacity and efficiency in order to cope with future scenarios, and gives substantial economic benefits

Intelligent optimisation system for airport operation: Hajj Terminal in Saudi Arabia

This thesis was submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy and awarded by Brunel University London.Airport operation level of service (LOS) and performance management are among the major concerns by any airport authority. Two aspects considered in that kind of measurement: passengers prospective and operators prospective. This thesis tries to combine both in its produced optimisation system. This study was carried out in the Hajj terminal of the King Abdul-Aziz international airport and classified the processing time among the most important measures affecting the users’ observation of the level of service. Produced survey has helped to generate performance measure upon passengers prospective. On the other hand a simulation model of the process flow is utilised to formulate driven data model of the terminal process flow operations. The model built on Arena software and correlation study is made from the multiple “what if” scenarios of the model. Then a linear regression is used to generate a model for each variable. Levenberg–Marquardt (LM) algorithm is used after to carry out better regression model then Neuro-Fuzzy (NF) model found to be more efficient as it is picked and used to generate a best observed prediction. The system is optimised through the generated Neuro-Fuzzy (NF) logic model using both Particle Swarm Optimization (PSO) and Genetic Algorithm (GA). A validation in addition to the testing made in the optimisation system. Analysis shows a great deal of improvement in predictions using fuzzy logic instead of linear regression for all dependent variables. PSO and GA optimisations are carried out and compared to the actual results gathered from the Arena simulation report

PROFESSIONAL ENGLISH AVIATION ACTIVITIES

Навчальний посібник з англійської мови професійного спрямування. Складається з тематичних розділів, що містять базову термінологію, автентичні тексти, комплекс комунікативних лексико-граматичних вправ, передтекстовий термінологічний англо-український вокабуляр та додаткові тексти для самостійного опрацювання. Призначений для студентів вищих авіаційних навчальних закладів

Low-Fare Flights Across the Atlantic: Impact of Low-Cost, Long-Haul, Trans-Atlantic Flights on Passenger Choice of Carrier

Full-service carriers (FSCs) have long ruled the trans-Atlantic market, due to the absence of low fare competition, which has kept airfares high. However, renewed interest in lowcost, long-haul (LCLH) flights was prompted by efficient aircraft, low fuel prices, liberalization of air markets, and low-cost carriers’ growth opportunities. Since 2013, multiple LCLH carriers have commenced trans-Atlantic operations, and their market share has grown to 8%. In response, FSCs are establishing their own LCLH subsidiaries and/or introducing basic economy airfares to more effectively compete in the trans-Atlantic market. The purpose of this dissertation was to further the understanding of LCLH and FSC passengers in the trans-Atlantic market by determining what demographics and airline service attributes affected their choice of carrier type, and also what impacted their willingness to switch carrier type and the amount they were willing to pay to do so. A total of 1,412 trans-Atlantic economy and premium economy passengers were surveyed at Los Angeles (LAX) and Seattle–Tacoma (SEA) Airports, which included those who had flown an LCLH (n = 787) or an FSC (n = 625). Exploratory and confirmatory factor analyses were performed to develop a factor structure for passenger travel experience attributes, which were identified as: Operations, Comfort, Onboarding, Service, and Flight Schedule, along with a variable, Airfare. Binary logistic regression was used to determine the variables/factors that affected passenger choice of LCLH or FSC. Younger passengers preferred LCLH carriers, whereas older passengers preferred FSCs. Airfare was the most important predictor of choice of carrier type, followed by Comfort, Service, and Flight Schedule. Satisfaction with Airfare and Comfort were associated with choice of an LCLH carrier, whereas satisfaction with Service and Flight Schedule were associated with choice of an FSC. Willingness to switch from an LCLH to an FSC was evaluated, with 55% of respondents indicating they would remain loyal, and 45% of them being willing to switch to an FSC. Decision tree analyses were utilized to show the relationships between variables/factors that were relevant for passenger switching decisions. The variables/factors that affected an LCLH passenger’s willingness to switch to an FSC were: Airfare, Income, Education, Age, Gender, Comfort, and Operations. Binary logistic regression was utilized to determine that Age, Education, and Cabin Class affected willingness to pay more to switch to an FSC. Willingness to switch from an FSC to an LCLH was evaluated, with 76% of respondents indicating they would remain loyal, and 24% being willing to switch to an LCLH carrier; with a decision tree showing that Gender, Service, Airfare, and Onboarding affected this decision. Binary logistic regression was utilized to determine that Airfare, Nonstop Flights, and Courtesy and Responsiveness affected willingness to pay less to switch to an LCLH carrier. This research has demonstrated that often overlooked aspects of air travel, such as comfort and service, are vitally important to long-haul passengers. Furthermore, both LCLH and FSCs have a place in the trans-Atlantic market, as some passengers prefer a no frills LCLH offering; whereas other passengers prefer an all-inclusive FSC offering

Biosignal controlled recommendation in entertainment systems

With the explosive growth of the entertainment contents and the ubiquitous access of them via fixed or mobile computing devices, recommendation systems become essential tools to help the user to find the right entertainment at the right time and location. I envision that by integrating the bio signal input into the recommendation process, it will help the users not only to find interesting contents, but also to increase one’s comfort level by taking into account the biosginal feedback from the users. The goal of this project was to develop a biosignal controlled entertainment recommendation system that increases the user’s comfort level by reducing the level of stress. As the starting point, this project aims to contribute to the field of recommendation systems with two points. The first is the mechanism of embedding the biosignal non-intrusively into the recommendation process. The second is the strategy of the biosignal controlled recommendation to reduce stress. Heart rate controlled in-flight music recommendation is chosen as its application domain. The hypothesis of this application is that, the passenger's heart rate deviates from the normal due to unusual long haul flight cabin environment. By properly designing a music recommendation system to recommend heart rate controlled personalized music playlists to the passenger, the passengers' heart rate can be uplifted, down-lifted back to normal or kept within normal, thus their stress can be reduced. Four research questions have been formulated based on this hypothesis. After the literature study, the project went mainly through three phases: framework design, system implementation and user evaluation to answer these research questions. During the framework design phase, the heart rate was firstly modeled as the states of bradycardia, normal and tachycardia. The objective of the framework is that, if the user's heart rate is higher or lower than the normal heart rate, the system recommends a personalized music playlist accordingly to transfer the user’s heart rate back to normal, otherwise to keep it at normal. The adaptive framework integrates the concepts of context adaptive systems, user profiling, and the methods of using music to adjust the heart rate in a feedback control system. In the feedback loop, the playlists were composed using a Markov decision process. Yet, the framework allows the user to reject the recommendations and to manually select the favorite music items. During this process, the system logs the interactions between the user and the system for later learning the user’s latest music preferences. The designed framework was then implemented with platform independent software architecture. The architecture has five abstraction levels. The lowest resource level contains the music source, the heart rate sensors and the user profile information. The second layer is for resource management. In this layer are the manager components to manage the resources from the first layer and to modulate the access from upper layers to these resources. The third layer is the database, acting as a data repository. The fourth layer is for the adaptive control, which includes the user feedback log, the inference engine and the preference learning component. The top layer is the user interface. In this architecture, the layers and the components in the layers are loosely coupled, which ensures the flexibility. The implemented system was used in the user experiments to validate the hypothesis. The experiments simulated the long haul flights from Amsterdam to Shanghai with the same time schedule as the KLM flights. Twelve subjects were invited to participate in the experiments. Six were allocated to the controlled group and others were allocated to the treatment group. In addition to a normal entertainment system for the control group, the treatment group was also provided with the heart rate controlled music recommendation system. The experiments results validated the hypothesis and answered the research questions. The passenger's heart rate deviates from normal. In our user experiments, the passenger's heart rate was in the bradycardia state 24.6% of time and was in the tachycardia state 7.3% of time. The recommended uplifting music reduces the average bradycardia state duration from 14.78 seconds in the control group to 6.86 seconds in the treatment group. The recommended keeping music increases the average normal state duration from 24.66 seconds in the control group to 29.79 seconds in the treatment group. The recommended down-lifting music reduces the average tachycardia state duration from 13.89 seconds in the control group to 6.53 seconds in the treatment group. Compared to the control group, the stress of the treatment group has been reduced significantly

Updating of user requirements of elderly and disabled drivers and travellers

The user requirements have been reassessed in the light of the results from the collaborative evaluations with other Transport Telematics Projects, as well as data and expertise gathered from the literature and other experts in the field. The user requirements identified are also the fundamental base for the development of different parts of the TELSCAN project. User requirements cover, of course, a multitude of different aspects, and to demonstrate how they have been integrated into the project’s output, they have been grouped into the following categories: • System function requirements • Interface requirements • Information requirements • Protocol requirements