Integrated Travel Instrument Generation for Multi-Leg Check-In
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Solution Overview
Problem
The travel industry faces challenges with long lines at check-in desks due to inaccurate baggage routing and limited personnel, especially for passengers arriving from multiple travel sources, leading to potential loss of luggage and inefficiencies in ticketing processes.
Innovation Solution
An integrated end-to-end travel instrument generation system that includes a local check-in tool with a graphical user interface to generate a passenger journey document file, containing boarding pass identifiers and luggage tag identifiers, allowing for self-service check-in and luggage tracking across multiple travel legs using a single-sheet integrated medium.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Productivity
If traditional check-in desks are used to process passengers, then boarding passes and luggage tags can be issued, but long lines form and wait times increase due to high passenger volume
Solution Approach 1:
The patent implements self-service check-in kiosks that allow passengers to independently print their own boarding passes and luggage tags, eliminating the need for manual agent assistance and significantly reducing wait times during high-volume periods
Solution Approach 2:
The system generates and prints boarding passes and luggage tags in advance before passengers board, allowing for bulk processing of documents ahead of time rather than processing each passenger individually at the desk
2Reliability
If manual baggage routing is used, then luggage can be directed to destinations, but inaccurate routing occurs leading to lost luggage
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates real-time tracking and verification of baggage routing information, with automated feedback loops that confirm luggage has been correctly directed to its destination, allowing for immediate correction of any routing errors
Solution Approach 2:
The patent replaces manual, error-prone baggage routing with automated electronic systems that use digital tracking and confirmation mechanisms to ensure accurate luggage direction, eliminating human error in the routing process
3Ease of operation
If multiple separate documents are used for boarding passes and luggage tags, then each can be processed independently, but the process becomes more complex and time-consuming
Solution Approach 1:
The patent combines multiple separate travel documents (boarding pass, luggage tags, itinerary information) into a single integrated printed document, simplifying the passenger experience while maintaining all necessary functional elements
Solution Approach 2:
The integrated document serves multiple functions simultaneously - acting as a boarding pass, containing luggage tag information, and providing itinerary details - eliminating the need for multiple separate documents and reducing overall system complexity
Data Source
AI summary
The system includes a webserver (110) to generate a passenger journey document file (PJDF) (160) comprising a plurality of end-to-end passenger travel reservations (PTRs) for a set of passengers. The PJDF includes, for each travel leg of an end-to-end PTRs, a single-sheet integrated end-to-end travel instrument (TI) template (1000A) populated with an official boarding pass identifier (BPID) (1209) issued by one of a plurality of disparate travel host systems (JTHSs) (1501, 1502, . . . , 150Y) for a respective leg. Each TI template comprising an emulated boarding pass barcode (1211) associated with the BPID for the respective leg, and for N checked-in luggage items for the respective passenger, populated with X temporary luggage tag identifiers (LTIDs) (1231A, 1233A) linked to up to X official bag tag identifiers (BTIDs) (1209) from the JTHS of the leg, wherein X and N are integers. There is a one-to-one correspondence between the LTIDs and BTIDs.