AA tech revolution in the aviation industry was already in motion before the pandemic. But the medical and material demands of COVID-19 have brought urgency and velocity to the race to make passenger air travel safer. On the ground and in the air, robot cleaners, new PPE uniforms for flight attendants, and mandatory medical screenings could become standard aspects of future air travel.
Disinfecting has taken on new importance during the pandemic, with ultraviolet C (UV-C) on the frontline. UV-C is a wavelength that damages a virus’s DNA and RNA, causing it to stop replicating and die. It’s bit of science that’s been understood since the mid-20th century and used in places like hospitals to sterilize rooms and tools. Now, the travel industry is looking to harness the light to fight the spread of coronavirus.
Pittsburgh International Airport was already working with local startup Carnegie Robotics to test out autonomous cleaning robots that use water pressure and chemical disinfectant before the pandemic. After the virus hit, the company offered to install a UV-C component. The four robots look like miniature Zambonis and are named for flying heroes—Amelia, Orville, Wilbur, and Rose, for Rose Collins, the first woman granted an aviator’s license in Pennsylvania in 1929. “The traveling public loves them,” says Pittsburgh International Airport CEO Christina Cassotis. “The cleaning staff loves them because it lets them focus on other areas.” The bots roam for eight to 10 hours a day before needing to recharge. The light, which is bright enough to damage eyes, is carefully encased to only hit the floor. The trial has gone so well that Cassotis says they are looking into more robots to clean the air train that moves between terminals and handrails.
Since UV light exposure carries cancer risks, any tools developed will have to keep both efficacy and safety in mind, according to Praveen Arany, a professor at the University of Buffalo and an expert on therapeutic uses of lasers and light.
Cleaning bots that use more traditional, Roomba-like techniques are on the job at the Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport. The Neo—a 1,000-pound, $50,000 floor-scrubber that looks like the love child of a rolling suitcase and an outboard motor—is made by Canada’s AvidBots and uses 3D technology and lasers to map its routes and divert around kiosks, food carts, or stray children. (NatGeo)
