Innovative Technologies Transforming Airport Travel

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Take a look around the airport during your travels this summer, and you might spot a range of new technologies at every touchpoint: from pre-arrival, bag drop, and security to the moment you board the plane.

In this new world, your face serves as your boarding pass, your electronic luggage tag adapts for each new flight, and gate scanners detect line cutters attempting to board the plane early.

This is not the future—it is the present. Each of the technologies discussed here is currently in use at airports around the globe, transforming your journey-before-the-journey.

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Virtual Queuing Speeds Up Airport Security

As you prepare for your trip the night before, you may ponder the age-old travel question: What time should I arrive at the airport? The correct answer hinges on predicting the length of the security line. However, at some airports, you no longer need to guess; in fact, you don’t have to wait in line at all.

Instead, you can book ahead and select a specific time for your security screening—allowing you to arrive just before your reserved slot, confident that you’ll be expedited to the front of the line, thanks to Copenhagen Optimization’s Virtual Queuing system.

Copenhagen Optimization’s machine learning models utilize linear regression, heuristic models, and other techniques to forecast passenger arrival volumes based on historical data. The system integrates with airport programs to access flight schedules and passenger-flow data from boarding-pass scans, while also incorporating data from lidar sensors, cameras at security checkpoints, X-ray luggage scanners, and other areas.

If the actual passenger volume on a given day deviates from historical projections, the platform can leverage real-time data from these inputs to adjust the Virtual Queuing time slots and recommend changes to security staffing and the number of open lanes. The Virtual Queuing system continuously adapts to flatten the passenger arrival curve, strategically redistributing demand across time slots to optimize resources and minimize congestion.

While this system is highly efficient, you as a passenger can do very little. Simply book a time slot on your airport’s website or app, and enjoy some extra sleep knowing you’ll breeze through security the next morning.

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Electronic Bag Tags

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Checking a bag? Here’s another step you can complete before you arrive: skip the traditional paper tags and generate your own electronic Bagtag. This e-ink device (costing approximately US $80, or €70) resembles a conventional luggage-tag holder but can produce a new, paperless tag for each of your flights.

You provide your booking details through your airline’s app or the Bagtag app, and the Bagtag system retrieves the necessary information from the airline’s system—such as your name, flight details, baggage allowance, and the unique barcode identifying your bag—using application programming interfaces and secure data protocols. The app then generates a digital tag. By holding your phone near your Bagtag, it transmits the encrypted tag data via Bluetooth or NFC, while your phone’s NFC antenna powers the battery-free Bagtag device.

On the Bagtag itself, a low-power microcontroller decrypts the tag data and displays the digital tag on the e-ink screen. Once you arrive at the airport, the tag can be scanned at the airline’s self-service bag drop or desk, just like a traditional paper tag. The device also includes an RFID chip compatible with luggage-tracking systems used by some airlines, allowing your bag to be identified and tracked—even if it takes a different route than you do. When you reach the airport, simply drop off your checked bag and proceed to the security area.

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Biometric Boarding Passes

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At security, you’ll need your boarding pass and ID. Compared to the old days of printing a physical slip from a kiosk, digital QR code boarding passes are quite convenient—but what if you didn’t need anything besides your face? This is the premise of Idemia Public Security’s biometric boarding-pass technology.

Instead of waiting in line for a security agent, you’ll approach a self-service kiosk or check-in point and insert your government-issued identification document, such as a driver’s license or passport. The system employs visible light, infrared, and ultraviolet imaging to analyze the document’s embedded security features and verify its authenticity. Subsequently, computer-vision algorithms locate and extract the image of your face from the ID for identity verification.

Next, it’s time for your close-up. High-resolution cameras within the system capture a live image of your face using 3D and infrared imaging. The system’s antispoofing technology prevents attempts to deceive it with items like photos, videos, or masks. The technology compares your live image to the one extracted from your ID using facial-recognition algorithms. Each image is converted into a compact biometric template—a mathematical representation of your facial features—and a similarity score is generated to confirm a match.

Finally, the system checks your travel information against secure flight databases to ensure the ticket is valid and that you are authorized to fly that day. Assuming all checks are satisfactory, you are cleared to proceed to the body scanners—with no biometric data retained by Idemia Public Security’s system.

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X-Rays That Can Tell Ecstasy from Eczema Meds

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While you pass through your security screening, the luggage you checked is undergoing its own screening—with a significant new upgrade that can accurately identify its contents.

Traditional scanners utilize one or a few X-ray sources and operate by transmission, measuring the attenuation of the beam as it passes through the bag. These systems create a 2D “shadow” image based on differences in the amount and type of materials inside. More recently, these systems have begun using computed tomography to scan the bag from all directions and reconstruct 3D images of the objects inside. However, even with CT technology, harmless objects may resemble dangerous materials—leading to false positives and necessitating visual inspections of the X-ray images or even opening your luggage.

In contrast, Smiths Detection’s new X-ray diffraction machines measure the molecular structure of the items inside your bag to identify the exact materials—eliminating the need for human review.

The machine employs a multifocus X-ray tube to quickly scan a bag from various angles, measuring the way radiation diffracts while switching the position of the focal spots every few microseconds. It then analyzes the diffraction patterns to determine the crystal structure and molecular composition of the objects inside the bag—creating a “fingerprint” of each material that can more precisely differentiate threats, such as explosives and drugs, from benign items.

The system’s algorithms process this diffraction data and construct a 3D spatial image, enabling real-time automated screening without the need for manual visual inspection by a human. After your bag passes through the X-ray diffraction machine without incident, it is loaded into the cargo hold. Meanwhile, you have successfully passed through your own scan at security and are ready to head toward your gate.

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Airport Shops with No Cashiers or Checkout Lanes

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