Food quality and preference feedback
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Solution Overview
Problem
Airlines face challenges in accurately capturing passenger feedback on in-flight food, which hinders their ability to understand passenger preferences and improve their food service offerings.
Innovation Solution
A system comprising a detection device and a controller that captures images of food plates, classifies the food, determines consumption levels, and prompts passengers for feedback via an entertainment system, transmitting this information to other computers for menu and food quality modifications.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If manual feedback collection methods are used, then implementation simplicity is maintained, but feedback reliability and completeness deteriorate
Solution Approach 1:
The system enables automatic self-monitoring of food consumption through detection devices and image analysis, eliminating the need for manual feedback collection by passengers or crew members. The automated system independently captures, analyzes, and processes consumption data, achieving high reliability without requiring human intervention.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual mechanical feedback processes with automated electronic systems including detection devices, image capture systems, and computer vision algorithms. This substitution transforms the feedback collection from a manual process to an automated electronic process, improving reliability while managing complexity through technology.
2Loss of information
If automated detection systems are deployed, then feedback completeness improves, but implementation complexity increases
Solution Approach 1:
The detection device serves multiple functions: capturing images of food plates, identifying food items through image analysis, tracking consumption levels, and transmitting data. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate systems for each task, improving feedback completeness while managing overall system complexity through consolidation.
Solution Approach 2:
The system introduces an intermediary processing layer that includes image capture devices, analysis software, and data transmission components. This intermediary layer automatically processes food consumption information between the food plate and the final feedback record, ensuring complete data capture without requiring direct manual intervention at each step.
3Measurement precision
If detailed food classification is performed, then preference analysis accuracy improves, but processing time increases
Solution Approach 1:
The system performs preliminary classification of food items by capturing images of the complete food plate before consumption begins. This preliminary action establishes a baseline classification that can be compared against subsequent images, enabling accurate tracking of consumption by food type without requiring real-time re-classification of each item.
Solution Approach 2:
The system focuses on classifying and tracking only the most relevant food items and consumption patterns that are most indicative of passenger preferences. By applying partial classification to the most important food categories rather than attempting to classify every single item in detail, the system achieves sufficient accuracy while reducing processing time.
Data Source
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AI summary
A system for obtaining feedback regarding food served to passengers is disclosed. The system includes a detection device (304, 404) and a controller (406). The controller (406) is configured to capture a plurality of images of food of a food plate from the detection device (304, 404), classify the food on the food plate, responsive to the food plate being removed from view of the detection device (304, 404), determine, using a prior received image, whether the food is mostly consumed, partially consumed, or mostly unconsumed, responsive to determining that the food was either mostly consumed, partially consumed, or mostly unconsumed, store, in a memory, information pertaining to the food along with a record of the food being either mostly consumed, partially consumed, or mostly unconsumed as per the determination, and transmit the information to at least one other computer in order for modifications to be made to menus and food quality as per the information.