If there is one word that aptly describes the future right now it is change. Strangely, the Coronavirus has been on of the biggest drivers we, as change receivers, have seen in recent decades. However, the shift in lifestyle as a result of this pandemic will both facilitate and accelerate some major changes for all of humanity. Frequently, unexpected disruptions result in dynamic shifts that drive both economic and political change, which lead to dramatic lifestyle changes. More importantly, if humanity does not or cannot adjust to a global crisis does it represent an evolutionary step backwards? Over the past 100 – 200 years, we as a species have learned how to quickly address potential changes that threaten our existence, which has resulted in an increased life expectancy, rapid rates of population growth and population density. For example compare the duration of the Bubonic Plague (peaked in Europe between 1347 – 1351 killing an estimated 25 million and still exists today) to the duration of the Spanish Flu pandemic (1918 – 1919 estimated to have infected 500 million or 1/3 of the world’s population and to have killed roughly 50 million). At the time of the Spanish Flu there were no influenza vaccinations. If you read articles that describe the circumstances, conditions and preventative measures taken during the Spanish Flu they could be describing today’s newspaper articles about measures to battle COVID-19: no vaccine to protect against influenza, no antibiotics to battle or treat secondary infections, isolation, quarantine, good personal hygiene, use of disinfectants, limitations on public gatherings, citizens were ordered to wear masks, schools, theaters and businesses were shuttered and bodies piled up in makeshift morgues. Does this all sound eerily familiar?

The first flu vaccine was developed in the 1940s and soldiers fighting in WW11 were the first to receive vaccinations. Today an annual flu shot is widely available. Society no longer panics or is driven into isolation during the annual flu outbreak – even though it kills thousands every year. And COVID-19 will most likely follow the same route. But the real question is how much time will this take and what path do we take in the interim?

In recent days and weeks are are beginning to see what the path forward may look like:

TRAVEL – An increase in LOCALISM is not only obvious during these times, but the question is: What impact on lifestyle and travel will be brought about by the future of medical demands and safety needs? While the value of not being influenced by a neighbor’s health are important where people spend most of their time (home & work), the changes that improve the safety and security of future lifestyle will be part of the future changes. This means your future work and travel may have new baselines and tools. For example, your next job visit just may be designed to give you less time near workers, but improve tools to facilitate better connectivity and communication. Similarly, airplane travel will have to change equivalently. If the demand for “6 foot spacing between humans to prevent contagion” is a passenger demand, the price of travel and the design of the aircraft interiors will probably have to change. The other change will be the printed materials in the seatback pocket: the safety brochures and the magazines are touch points that are impossible to clean and harbor germs and bacteria – in other words: high cross contamination points. These items will need to be quickly migrated to electronic formats. Additionally, it wouldn’t be a surprise to see seat fabrics that are antibacterial and easier to clean than the cloth fabrics of many aircraft seats in today’s jetliners. Passengers may well demand and/or expect many of these safety measures to be put into place in the near term.

IFE – And while we are on aircraft travel, IFE and entertainment solutions will probably have to change as well. For example, embedded IFE systems with touch screens or control PCUs will need to be better sanitized between each flight segment – this will take time. Moving forward to next generation systems, the industry may look toward voice or motion control options instead of touch screens or PCUs, making for quicker plane sanitization and less contact points between airline customers. No doubt, inflight entertainment itself will need to be refocused to deliver subject matter to meet new requirements of passenger desire and need, content that matches on-ground entertainment competition, increase subject matter that focuses on health related communication, travel focus on new/safe travel destinations, and on and on. Finally, as travelers carry better audio/video quality delivery devices on products like personal computers and entertainment hardware, aircraft entertainment and communication hardware and content will probably eventually need to be improved to compete – but our industry has been talking about this for years. In the near and long term, this will also increase the demand for wireless inflight entertainment systems transmitted to passengers’ own electronic devices (streaming content, safety briefings, etc.).

COMMUNICATION – And while we are discussing IFEC, airlines will, no doubt, see a need for improved communication and relationship requirements with travelers. Why? As passenger interaction with their family and audio/video connectivity increases, the other world of interaction with airline ticketing, airport cost and experiences, crew interaction and aircraft interfaces will need some adjustments. Change to make the experience better, more helpful, and a better interface with lifestyle based on the impact of COVID-19 issues – and it certainly needs to be safer to use. Who knows, localism just may be the best and safe solution for travel needs in the short term? Also, there is much talk about the need for contact tracing and retaining that information for upwards of 30 days. From an airline perspective, this is where AI and Big Data need to come into play. For the past few years our industry has been addressing the concept of the seamless travel experience, where a passenger will be able to use whichever frequent flyer portal they prefer across alliance members. The resident IFEC systems would be able to recognize that traveler, know there preferences, etc. This type of connection with the passenger before, during and after the flight has the potential for greatly facilitating the requirements of contact tracing.

TRAVELER NEEDS -Presently, what the traveler needs most is confidence and assurance that the travel process is as safe as it possibly can be from a health safety standpoint. The airports, airlines and possibly the hotels need to work in tandem to increase their processes and communication to build back the travel industry. The need for clear requirements regarding the traveling public need to be established: temperature tests, immunity cards, airport procedures, etc. Communication regarding the sanitization efforts both on the ground and in the plane: what is being done to assure the health of those that are traveling. An increase in the number of self-check-in kiosks, as well as, self bag drops, are required. Also, baggage claim needs a procedure to allow for social distancing and a luggage sanitization process – we all know what a zoo this process currently can be! Boarding procedures, mask wearing, etc. all need to be communicated and it would be most helpful if there were some consistency across the airlines and airports on a global scale. The more consistent and familiar the process is for the passenger the quicker the build up of the industry will be.

TRAVELER RISK AVERSION: Some airlines, like Lufthansa, are promoting bookings through December 31, 2020 by offering the ability for travelers to change their ticket one time with no change fee regardless of class of service or ticket type. The rescheduled travel must be for the same route and be completed in 2021. This offer provides the traveler with some assurance that their money wont be wasted if there is a 2nd wave, etc. We expect other airlines to take this route as well.

Lastly, let me finish by saying that the path forward for the airline industry will only be successful through knowing your passenger demographic and better communication with that passenger. This also applies to the IFEC supplier and airline relationship as well. As always, communication is the key!

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SITA (this week’s image)

SITA has stepped up its commitment to developing a permanent digital identity for air travel by becoming a Premium Donor of the Sovrin Foundation, the international non-profit organization focused on the advancement of self-sovereign digital identity.

The Sovrin Foundation is a decentralized, global public utility for self-sovereign identity. Self-sovereign means a lifetime portable identity for any person, organization, or thing that allows the holder to present verifiable credentials in a privacy-protecting way. These credentials can represent things as diverse as a passport, an airline ticket or simply a library card.  SITA’s expanded role is key to speeding up the development of a permanent digital identity accepted by governments, airlines or airports globally for use during air travel yet ensuring privacy and protection of the user’s digital identity.

SITA has successfully deployed its Smart Path technology at airports to streamline the departure process through the use of a single biometric token, where a passenger’s face is their passport at each step of the journey across an individual airport – from check-in to boarding. However, the shift in focus in the next few years will see Smart Path integrated with self-sovereign identity, controlled by the individual and usable across governments, airports and airlines, streamlining the travel process even further.

Gustavo Pina, Director of the SITA Lab, said: “We expect in the coming years that the development of a universally accepted digital identity will replace the traditional passport. This will allow travel across borders with any airline or airport while ensuring that you, as the passenger, remain in full control of your identity while providing actionable, trusted data only to appropriate parties such as border agencies.”

“The benefits include a reduced arrivals infrastructure, providing new opportunities to increase existing airport throughput by design and not expansion. Our work with the Sovrin Foundation will play an important role in unlocking that potential.”

Having joined the Foundation as a Founding Steward in 2018, SITA will now take a more active role in supporting Sovrin in the global adoption of self-sovereign identity.

Phil Windley, Chairman of the Sovrin Foundation Board of Trustees, said: “SITA continues to lead the discussion around the adoption of self-sovereign identity in the travel industry. The Sovrin Foundation provides the ideal forum to drive this agenda forward both with the fellow Sovrin Foundation members across the wider economic spectrum but also with key stakeholders in the air transport industry such as IATA, ICAO and Airport Council International.

The Sovrin Foundation seeks to transform the current broken online identity system which is open to misuse and fraud. Using self-sovereign identities could lead to lower financial transaction costs, protect people’s personal information, limit opportunity for cybercrime, and simplify identity challenges in a variety of fields including travel, healthcare, banking, IoT and voter fraud.

In addition to its engagement with the Sovrin Foundation, SITA is working with governments, airlines and airports to develop and deliver the benefits of travel using a permanent digital identity.

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Panasonic

Panasonic Avionics Corporation (Panasonic) has been selected by Virgin Orbit to provide inflight connectivity for its airborne rocket launch platform. Panasonic’s latest generation high speed inflight connectivity system has been installed on Cosmic Girl, the modified Boeing 747-400 that serves as the carrier aircraft for Virgin Orbit’s LauncherOne system. Virgin Orbit is currently undergoing final rehearsals for an orbital launch demonstration expected soon.

The inflight connectivity service will enable Virgin Orbit to monitor the health of the launch system over land and sea. The high bandwidth capacity of Panasonic’s connectivity network will ensure Virgin Orbit’s mission control center can quickly and easily communicate with the rocket prior to launch.

Ken Sain, Chief Executive Officer of Panasonic Avionics Corporation, says, “Virgin Orbit is set to deliver an exciting step forward in satellite launching technology, and we are thrilled to support their vision with our inflight connectivity.”

“Panasonic Avionics’ proven inflight connectivity services are used by airlines around the world to provide operational connectivity for not just passengers, but aircraft and their systems, and we look forward to supporting Virgin Orbit by providing a critical live link between air and ground.”

Virgin Orbit builds and operates the most flexible and responsive satellite launcher ever invented: LauncherOne, a dedicated launch service for commercial and government-built small satellites.

LauncherOne rockets are designed and manufactured in Long Beach, California, and will be air-launched from Virgin Orbit’s modified Boeing 747-400 carrier aircraft – allowing it to operate from locations all over the world in order to best serve each customer’s needs.

“We designed LauncherOne to be more mobile and flexible than any other platform out there, and that’s required us to implement innovative, cutting-edge solutions throughout the system. We’re grateful to Panasonic Avionics for their support — helping us keep eyes on our flight crew, Cosmic Girl, and the rocket as we fly out to our launch point. We’re certainly looking forward to having this technology in action during our upcoming launch demo,” said Virgin Orbit CEO Dan Hart.

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Other News

• The now have plasma jets with the power of old fossil fueled ones, thus, you may see them on airplanes in the future – Plasma Jets May One Day Propel Aircraft – IEEE Spectrum
• We didn’t know dogs could smell virus? Airport dogs could sniff out coronavirus | CNN Travel Watch’em!
• If you are looking for IATA’s Economic recovery in air travel – Look here
• OK, I guess one can drive into the airport ticket booth? Parents airport arrival – Album on Imgur

The 2nd ZAL Innovation Days in Hamburg on 27 and 28 February are all about robotics and automation: how advanced technologies are revolutionizing work processes.

Hamburg, Germany | February 28, 2019– What does a factory of the future look like? What role will people play and what will be done by machines? The ZAL Innovation Days will address such questions on February 27th and 28th in Hamburg. Following the successful premiere in 2017, this high-level international innovation conference will take place for the second time in Hamburg’s ZAL Center of Applied Aeronautical Research. The patron for this event is the German Aerospace Coordinator Thomas Jarzombek. In addition to a series of high-profile lectures on the topic from the perspective of science and industry, the practical application of new technologies will be dealt with in workshops and in the exhibition space. Among other things, a table-top football robot, a new inkjet-based aircraft coating system and a robot butler for the manufacturing hangar will be on display.

One thing is for sure: nobody needs to fear a horror scenario in which robots cause unemployment in the long term. On the contrary, the ever stronger link between work performed by people, and that done by machines is creating true teamwork in production. Concrete examples can also be observed at our venue, the ZAL TechCenter, in which more than 30 partners from industry and science conduct research together.

A case in point, Airbus and Helmut Schmidt University are testing the use of so-called exoskeletons in aircraft production; assistance systems that aid production workers in the lifting of heavy loads, for example in cabin upgrades. The start-up Synergeticon has programmed a collaborative robot in the ZAL TechCentre that relieves workers of physically demanding work on the factory floor, such as the riveting of the roof fuselage segments. Thanks to finely calibrated sensors, the robots cannot get in anyone’s way.

Presenters at the ZAL Innovation Days 2019 include Peter Haas of the Brown University Humanity Centered Robotics Initiative, Prof. Dr. med. Wolfgang Wahlster from the German Research Centre for Artificial Intelligence (DFKI) and representatives of leading companies such as Bosch, NVIDIA and KUKA. A dozen professional workshops, several practical demonstrations in the exhibition area and an exclusive evening event on the Elbe will round off the event.

In his political keynote, the Federal Government’s aerospace coordinator, Thomas Jarzombek, emphasized the importance of digital innovation for aviation:

“New digital technologies open up completely new possibilities for optimizing production processes, thus increasing efficiency. Keywords such as intelligent and automated production, robotics and artificial intelligence are becoming tangible and understandable for the aviation industry – particularly here in the ZAL.”Jarzombek also reported on the latest independent evaluation of the BMWi aviation research program LuFo: “With LuFo, we created approx. 23,500 additional jobs with compulsory social insurance contributions between 2012 and 2017. A € 100 research grant led directly to additional production of € 200.”

“The smart integration of robotics and automation into production process is one of the central issues in the aviation industry worldwide and is also one of the core topics of our research activities here in the ZAL. That’s why we deliberately chose this theme for the ZAL Innovation Days 2019 here in Hamburg – to discuss nation and industry-wide strategies,” says Roland Gerhards, CEO ZAL Center for Applied Aerospace Research.

Almost 500 airline experts are meeting this week at one of the largest international airline IT user conferences. Lufthansa Systems will showcase the latest innovations in the digital world of aviation.

Raunheim | May 2, 2018– How do airlines plan their networks in the age of digitalization? What opportunities do artificial intelligence and machine learning offer for managing flight operations? And how will crews communicate with each other in the future? Lufthansa Systems will discuss these and other questions relating to the digital transformation of the aviation industry with its airline customers this week. The Airline Forum starts today at the Lufthansa Training & Conference Center in Seeheim under the slogan of “Transformation & YOU.” Almost 500 participants, among them representatives of around 80 airlines worldwide, will learn about the latest developments in the portfolio of the airline IT specialist. Lufthansa Systems advises and supports airlines in their digital transformation. The aviation IT experts show what sustainable airline processes can look like and provide hands-on support to customers in implementing their projects.

“The fourth industrial revolution – also known as Industry 4.0 – started long ago. An era of data communication, constant connectivity and a digital workforce. These new technologies massively influence an airline’s processes,” said Olivier Krueger, CEO of Lufthansa Systems.

The keynote on the topic of “Transforming business through data-driven personalization” will be held by Dr. Andreas Ribbrock, Principal Data Scientist at the Lufthansa Systems subsidiary zeroG, and Marcel Kling, head of the SMILE personalization program in the Lufthansa Group. Other customers will also have the opportunity to speak and report on successful projects, including Avianca Holdings and Pegasus Airlines. The next two and a half days will be devoted to some 80 lectures and workshops as well as personal conversations with product experts and other airlines. Attendees can put together their own individual program from a comprehensive range of topics.

The focus is on new product developments and innovations in the NetLine product family, which will be presented by experts from Lufthansa Systems and its industry partners. These include current research findings from the field of robust flight planning and the new Lufthansa Systems Analytical Platform. Consulting services relating to the new GDPR, among other things, are also on the agenda.

“At the Airline Forum, we want to show our customers how we are transforming our products and solutions using new technologies. And we want to talk about the challenges facing airlines in their digital transformation. We look forward to a lively conversation,” said Stefan Auerbach, CEO of Lufthansa Systems.

There will be ample opportunity for discussion particularly in the Garden of Transformation. This is where Airline Forum participants can try out the product innovations for themselves with live demos and talk to experts right after the sessions. Their feedback is critical to the further optimization of products.

Lake Forest, California | April 26, 2018– Panasonic Avionics Corporation (Panasonic) is to establish new Innovation Studios at key centers across the globe.

With a renewed focus on broader consultative engagements with its customers, Panasonic’s new Innovation Studios will serve as hubs for innovation, ideation, and solution-building.

They will provide a socially collaborative environment where the company and its customers can leverage its skilled workforce and regionally relevant partners to ideate, prototype, showcase and evaluate product concepts, digital solutions and user experience paradigms.

Panasonic plans to set up five Innovation Studios across the globe, each in close proximity to major destinations, leading universities and centers with an established innovation and start-up culture.

The first Panasonic innovation studio will open in the Silicon Valley by the end of 2018.

The Studios will also serve as primary locations for airline workshops conducted by Panasonic’s digital design consultancy, Tactel.  Acquired by Panasonic in 2015, Tactel has played an instrumental role in helping Panasonic customers get the maximum value from their inflight entertainment and connectivity (IFEC) investments.

David Bartlett, Chief Technology Officer of Panasonic Avionics Corporation, says: “Innovation has always been at the heart of Panasonic Avionics and our customers have rightly come to expect it as standard.”

“Our new Innovation Studios will leverage our cloud-based infrastructure to foster an ethos of collaboration, strengthening our partner eco-system and with it, the range of value-added services we can offer our airline customers.”

“The Studios will ensure we can deliver greater customer-facing innovation by rapidly developing new concepts that will enhance the business and pleasure of flying.”

Each Panasonic Innovation Studio will have a Collaboration Area for ideation, design and strategy workshops, training sessions, customer and partner meetings, and other interactive innovation-related sessions, and a Demonstration Area for displaying emerging products and technologies, functional prototypes as well as work in progress concepts.

Schaffhausen, Switzerland | November 24, 2015– TE Connectivity Ltd. (NYSE: TEL) (TE) was named a Thomson Reuters 2015 Top 100 Global Innovator for the fifth consecutive year, recognizing its achievements as one of the world leaders in innovation. The program, an initiative of the IP & Science business of Thomson Reuters, honors the 100 corporations and institutions around the world that are at the heart of innovation as measured by a series of proprietary patent-related metrics. The full report is available at www.stateofinnovation.com.

The Thomson Reuters 2015 Top 100 Global Innovator methodology is based on four principle criteria: overall patent volume, patent application-to-grant success rate, global reach of the portfolio, and patent influence as evidenced by citations. This objective formula identifies the companies around the world that are discovering new inventions, protecting them from infringers and commercializing them.

“Our 7,000 engineers around the world have a passion for innovation and creating solutions with our customers that enable a safer, greener and smarter world,” said Tom Lynch, TE Connectivity Chairman and CEO. “We are creating exciting and groundbreaking connectivity and sensor solutions that impact all industries, creating essential technologies that will continue to transform our connected society for generations to come. We are proud to receive this recognition for the fifth consecutive year, as it recognizes the collective commitment of our 72,000 employees to deliver value for our customers, and help companies in transportation, communications, and industrial sectors bring new ideas to life.”

TE Connectivity’s connectors and sensors are a crucial part of an increasingly connected world. Our products can sense and connect data, power or signal moving through just about any type of material. We deliver power and data efficiently and allow technology to accurately react to the environment around it – no matter how challenging. Furthermore, we are expanding the possibilities and promise of the Internet of Things (IoT), advancing the connectivity of devices, systems and services.

The Thomson Reuters 2015 Top 100 Global Innovator peer-reviewed methodology was executed using Thomson Reuters Derwent World Patents Index® (DWPI), Derwent Patents Citations Index™, Quadrilateral Patent Index™, and Thomson Innovation®, its IP and intelligence collaboration platform.

“In today’s hypercompetitive global marketplace, innovation is much more than just having great ideas. True innovation occurs when individuals and companies harness the power and insight to bring ideas to life,” said David Brown, senior vice president, Thomson Reuters Intellectual Property and Science. “This is the potent formula we measure with our Top 100 Global Innovators program. The institutions on this year’s list represent the current vanguard in innovation by pioneering new breakthroughs and organizing their businesses to make these discoveries a reality.”

Thomson Reuters 2015 Top100 Global Innovators:

• Now in its fifth year, the program has annually outperformed leading financial indices, serving as a trustworthy investment resource and a testament to increased R&D funding, global patent filing and new market development, resulting in greater revenue and enhanced regional economic activity.

• The 2015 Thomson Reuters Top 100 Global Innovators outperformed the MSCI World Index in revenue by 6.01 percentage points, employment by 4.09 percentage points, and market-cap-weighted R&D spending by 1.86 percentage points.

• Together, the 2015 Thomson Reuters Top 100 Global Innovators generated more than $429 trillion in revenue and invested more than $20 trillion in R&D (local currency) in 2014.

• The 2015 Top 100 Thomson Reuters Global Innovators hail from three continents and comprise eleven countries. Just two countries comprise 75 percent of the list: Japan and the US, making them the true innovation hubs of the world.

• The semiconductor and electronic components industry continued to lead in 2015, with 12 representative companies.

To view the full list and report on the Thomson Reuters 2015 Top 100 Global Innovator program, go to www.stateofinnovation.com.