Using advanced technology to create a smarter cabin experience
The digital layer comes on board to enhance comfort and service levels with greater efficiency
Understanding how new technologies can support the onboard experience has become more dynamic with more recent advancements in artificial intelligence and machine learning.
Buzz aside, the practical application of these new technologies is already showing promise in numerous ways. And if adopted inside the aircraft cabin, it could create a paradigm shift in how superior experiences can be provided.
Machine learning is at the heart of the InteliSence™ system, a concept that Collins demonstrated in June 2023 at Aircraft Interiors Expo. This integrated intelligent system provides a glimpse into how this technology can deliver new levels of comfort, service and efficiency that currently aren’t available.
An intelligent, digital layer
At AIX, the InteliSence system was demonstrated in a business class seat environment. On the surface, there are no visible distinctions from a typical seat, yet it is seamlessly outfitted with hidden sensors controlled by the InteliSence system. This sensor array forms a digital layer that enables functionalities to provide enhanced comfort and service to passengers.
Through this digital layer, passenger actions generate data that the system processes to trigger responses in real time. These triggers range from alerting the cabin crew of a service opportunity to automatically operating a seat feature.
An otherwise standard-looking business class seat is outfitted with a sensor array that forms an intelligent digital layer
Automating seat features
The InteliSence system delivers a new level of comfort by anticipating passenger needs and seamlessly changing the seating environment in response to the passenger behavior it observes.
For example, the system can automatically adjust lighting levels within the suite when it observes specific passenger behavior like opening a book or closing their eyes.
Not only does this provide a thoughtful touch that boosts the passenger experience, it also reduces power usage by understanding when lighting is needed - and when it’s not.
The InteliSence system can automate seat functions based on detected passenger behaviors
Enhancing personalized service levels
The InteliSence system could also serve as a digital assistant to the cabin crew and help them provide enhanced service levels. By detecting passenger interactions with objects in the seat environment during service, like plates and glasses, it can provide crew with the status of a passenger’s dining experience and allow them to respond proactively.
For instance, the system can detect if a passenger has finished a beverage, or if a dining plate is empty. It can then alert the cabin crew to provide them the opportunity to more promptly clear the plate or provide a refill.
The InteliSence system can provide service opportunity alerts based on detecting the status of dining objects within a seating environment
More efficient cabin readiness procedures
The InteliSence system’s monitoring capabilities could also support cabin crews during standard procedures, like readying the cabin prior to takeoff and landing. The system can monitor a seat’s status, such as if the tray table is deployed. With a quick glance, cabin crews can monitor the entire cabin’s readiness status after manual checks have been completed. This creates greater efficiency during standard procedures.
The InteliSence system’s monitoring capabilities could support the crew during standard cabin readiness procedures.
The InteliSence concept comes at an exciting time, as the advent of artificial intelligence and machine learning are reframing existing notions of how technology can influence aspects of people’s lives - including their travel experience. How this technology is ultimately adopted within the aircraft remains to be seen, but the magnitude of its effect on the onboard experience might be limited only to the imagination.
