Patent Description:
The technical field of the invention is the airport and transportation sector. The system, object of the invention, can be used in several areas of the transportation sector, not being limited exclusively to the field of handling packages/baggage at airports. It can also be used in train stations, bus stations, ports, etc..

The invention is aimed to be used in airports or other transport terminals including train stations, bus stations, ports, etc., but it is possible to use it in other places where it is convenient or necessary to establish the relationship package/passenger luggage automatically.

The initial objective of the invention is to improve the delivery of packages/baggage at airports, due to the lack of technology and deficiencies in the current system. Once the invention is developed, it has been studied that the implementation in other transport systems such as train stations, bus stations, ports, etc. is viable.

Below there is a generalized description of the purpose of this invention within the airport environment::.

Regarding specific purposes, the following can be mentioned:.

Since June <NUM>, all airlines belonging to the International Air Transport Association (IATA) must apply IATA Resolution <NUM>, related to the tracking and traceability of luggage.

This requires airlines to keep track of the condition and situation of the suitcases from the moment the passenger checks in his luggage at the airport counter until the suitcase is returned to the passenger. To ensure traceability, airlines will have to control them at four main points: during check-in, during the loading on the plane, during the transfer to the baggage distribution area once they have landed and during the return to the passenger.

With this regulation, the aim is to prevent and reduce the loss of luggage, delivery times and fundamentally the individualized delivery of luggage to each passenger. This system does not exist in any airport in the world to date.

With current systems, congestion in the baggage claim area is a common phenomena, while a passenger waits for his suitcase to be removed, it can be stolen, without any supervision at most airports. According to SITA, <NUM> pieces of luggage were lost for every <NUM>,<NUM> passengers in <NUM>. Badly managed suitcases -which include those lost, damaged and lost indefinitely- costed the industry <NUM> billion dollars (<NUM> €) in that year. In addition to this problem related to safety and the over-cost that it produces for the sector, there is a considerable amount of time wasted and situations of confusion among passengers, in the baggage claim area, due to the homogeneous or equal design of many of the suitcases.

An Automatic Baggage Handling System or SATE is a baggage management system used at airports. It is a network of conveyor belts which, through an automated system, move luggage within the airport system. The baggage arrival system at the final destination consists of the following subsystems; Input subsystem (optional if direct carriage is used on carts), Sorting subsystem (optional if direct carriage on carriages is used), Transportation subsystem (fast belts, carriage trains), and Output subsystem (baggage claim area for collecting luggage).

The subsystem where the invention fits is the output subsystem. Currently, in regards to the delivery of luggage to passengers, the current system follows a simple scheme where technology has not yet been introduced: the suitcases arrive at a conveyor belt, which consists of a belt that rotates, where passengers collect the luggage manually by visually identifying them. With this type of output system, any person can access any suitcase, producing congestion and confusion issues which can result in taking the wrong suitcase.

Our device will replace the current conveyor belt allowing only the collection of the package/luggage to the right owner. The B2P will help solve the current problems, both from the point of view of passengers and airlines because their goal is to receive the packages/luggage and deliver them to each passenger.

Patent <CIT>, discloses a computer-implemented method, system and computer program product for distributing luggage among a plurality of outlet ports of a luggage distribution unit. The method includes associating a passenger key and luggage identification (ID) service of a luggage unit, and assigning, using a processor system, the luggage ID device to a dispensing unit based at least in part on a determination of a desired distribution of luggage units among a plurality of outlet ports. Therefore, it is the passenger who decides at which port of delivery he/she wants to pick up his/her luggage. According to the disclosure, this outlet port selection is made at the airport of origin. Upon arrival at the baggage claim hall at the airport of arrival, the passenger searches and proceeds to the baggage claim port he/she selected at the airport of origin, and collects his/her baggage.

In the method proposed by <CIT>, the passenger is supposed to configure where he/she wants to pick up the luggage on arrival at the destination according to his/her will. In the claimed method, the system automatically assigns a luggage to an individual box, and the passenger accesses this box after having correctly identified himself. Besides, the system itself indicates to the passenger via the interactive screen the box to which they have to go, thus reducing the time of arrival at the box and making the system more efficient.

Another important disadvantage of <CIT> is that at the time of pick-up there may be long queues that force passengers to change the previously chosen drop-off point. It may well happen that several passengers have selected the same delivery port. In the present application, the system automatically assigns a suitcase to a box, and in this way, unlike in the US patent where passengers decide where to pick up their luggage, the distribution of the suitcases is carried out automatically, occupying the delivery points that are emptied first, increasing the efficiency of the system and avoiding queues in the luggage collection area.

Another technical differentiating feature is the delivery of the packages/luggage by granting access to the individual box to the passenger only after successful identification. In the solution proposed in <CIT> the passenger will choose an outlet port to pick up his luggage. But the drop-off ports are simply open unloading ramps. In other words, if several passengers had selected the same outlet port, they could all coincide at the same outlet port and cause the problems that the present invention aims to avoid (queues, mistakes, theft, etc.).

The device described in <CIT> has within it a conveyor through which the luggage is moved. Unlike this conventional solution, the claimed system has two levels, with a central lane on each, and linked in such a way that the suitcases run uninterruptedly through the system by means of ramps/lifts that connect two levels. This system allows the suitcases to recirculate inside the system until they are identified by the app developed and assigned a closed and individual box that only opens when the passenger is in front of the box to pick up their suitcase, so there are no traffic jams or stops in the system.

Furthermore, the system contains a waiting position before entering a box in which the bags are stored before moving to the pick-up box referred to as spaces or storage belts. The bags are kept in these waiting spaces until the adjacent Box is empty, and can then be moved to the empty Box. There is an increased capacity of the system due to the two rows of boxes and these designed spaces or storage belts from which, in a motorized and automated way, they can return to the central lane "central warehouse" and recirculate the suitcase to automatically reassign another box.

The invention consists of a new integrated modular design of a package/baggage collection system that will replace the current conveyor belts as well as the technology involved in the process of tracking and delivering packages/luggage individually to each passenger. The delivery will be made through a set of delivery points, which may be a box, being a system by which the passenger picks up their package/luggage through an application that identifies them and assigns them a place of delivery individually.

This new integrated design is divided into three modules:.

Includes the mechanical design of the new package/baggage delivery system; a set of mechanized mechanisms which may be conveyor belts, motorized transport balls or roller bearings, diverters, continuous traceable photoelectric cells, identification/monitoring system, hoppers , storage elements, etc. This system will complement the baggage arrival belts in the delivery hall, the place where passengers arrive to pick up their packages/luggage.

The system is initiated with a reading arc (<FIG>, Item <NUM>) which is comprised by conveyor belts/roller bearings/motorized transport balls through where luggage passes, at the same time it passes under a <NUM>° arc comprised by fixed barcode/RFID readers. This point of the system is critical mainly because reading and identification of each of the packages/luggage occur, which is necessary in order to know the location and reconcile the data with the passenger. This process has a high reading percentage. Despite the high reading percentage, the baggage drop-off point with a reading error must be anticipated. This point is called box <NUM> (<FIG>, Item <NUM>).

Subsequently, the packages/baggage go through an alignment system (<FIG> , Item <NUM>) for its proper placement in one of the main axes. It is used to facilitate its subsequent manipulation by the different elements of the B2P. This system is optional and it is not critical to the proper functioning of the invention.

From the alignment system, the luggage goes to the central warehouse. Said warehouse (<FIG>, Item <NUM>) is a space of various compartments enabled for the temporary storage of packages/luggage awaiting their allocation in the different box or final delivery point. The movement of the packages/luggage within the central store will be made by conveyor belts/roller bearings/motorized transport balls. These transport conveyors form individual stations, whereby a piece of luggage will occupy a motorized station. Each station will have a sensor in order to know the location of each of the packages/luggage and if said station is occupied or free.

The luggage is moved from the central warehouse to the box-box or final delivery point assigned for collection, thorugh a horizontal diverter (<FIG>, Items <NUM> and <NUM>). This is in charge of the horizontal transfer, whereby the packages/luggage from the central warehouse are deposited at each of the final delivery points or box. Another option to carry out this horizontal transfer is to use a mechanical stacker crane.

Delivery of packages/luggage is made in an individualized delivery point. A proposed option could be a box-box (<FIG> , Item <NUM>) being a system by which the passenger collects the package/luggage through their identification. The set of boxes consist of individual spaces where each of the packages/baggage are placed for their delivery to the corresponding passenger. The extraction consists of a surface with removable balls that allows the passenger to withdraw the luggage using extendable guides and rotate the suitcase to position the grip point in the most comfortable way for the passenger. The set of boxes are located in two levels for a greater capacity of the system, so that a column of boxes has two spaces. Before the final position of the packages/baggage, another space will exist where they will be diverted from the central warehouse. Therefore, in each column module there will be <NUM> suitcases (<NUM> accessible to the passenger and <NUM> other positions behind), which contributes to the expansion of the storage capacity of the system. Depending on the necessary capacity for each airport or other transport terminals including train stations, bus stations , ports , etc. and the available space, the number of modules of the set of boxes is modifiable as well as their placement. In <FIG> we see that there are placed a series of modules boxes each side of the central warehouse, making it the most functional distribution in most airports, but the system is flexible and modular and It allows to distribute the elements that comprise it in the most convenient way according to each case in each transport terminal.

At the end of the first level of the central warehouse, there is an automatic elevator (<FIG>, Item <NUM>) used for transfering the packages/luggage to the upper levels of the central warehouse. It is also possible to use a motorized curve that communicates the different levels.

On the upper level, the packages/luggage are moved in the opposite direction to facilitate the feedback of the system with another elevator/curve through the use of gravity/motorized curve (<FIG>, Item <NUM>) in order to lower the packages/luggage back to the lower level and start again the classification in the box.

All the elements of the system must be equipped with a set of PLC 's which will be responsible for management of all the movements so that the process is carried out successfully.

The type of communication of the reading arc will be carried out with the server through Arduino or a similar device, where each time a package/luggage with the tag passes , the arc reader's controller will communicate with the server and will make the server save the code of the label of the package/luggage in the server database together with the date and time of its reading. In this way, when passing through a photodetector connected to the PLC, we will know the code of the package/baggage through a database query from the PLC. The barcode/RFID reader will not be able to identify more than one tag at a time, which will allow us to control the baggage each time it passes through the photosensors that will be connected to the PLC.

Any unread package/baggage or unallowed dimensions by the system, will be separated and forwarded to a final delivery points which we call box <NUM> (<FIG> , Item <NUM>), said delivery points are located before the beginning of the central warehouse, on one or both sides of the central warehouse.

The system also includes a station for disinfecting the package/luggage before its delivered to the passenger. This system is optional and does not interfere with its normal operation.

Module <NUM> manages the software and database of the packages/baggage and passengers, which send signals to the PLC's so that the new baggage system functions (module <NUM>). This software will be activated when the system reads the barcode/RFID of the packages/luggage when passing through the detector arc, collecting the data of the package/baggage. When the passenger arrives at the baggage claim hall, the passenger will need to identify themselves with their package/baggage code through a interactive screen stand or application, which indicates the passenger the exact place in the set boxes where their luggage is located.

The system includes an electronic management system of the invention, interactive screen stand, information screen and other mechanisms and systems that allow monitoring and autonomous operation of the device.

The information screen indicates to the passenger that their package/luggage has arrived and that they must proceed to identify themselves.

The interactive screen stand consists of a touch screen and a code reader. The screen is the method of connection with the passenger, which indicates the steps to follow in order to access their luggage. Optionally, the passenger will be allowed to download an application for their mobile phone from which they will be able to do the same process and stay updated at all times of the status of the delivery of their package/luggage.

The interface end user is developed under any environment with WebService connectivity with the database where all the records of the PLC are stored. In this way we will have a direct connection and know the state of the packages/luggage.

All packages/luggage that are not claimed by any passenger will be communicated to the ground handling company to deliver them as lost packages/luggage. The ground handling company will assign a special code to collect all these luggage.

Module <NUM> is in charge of using the information collected through a control software tool for the visualization and treatment of all the real time and "historical" data that are processed in the new B2P suitcase system and that must be perfectly recorded in a database.

Real time and historical data will be used by the airport operator and the company that request it. With this software it will be possible to visualize and treat all data that has been processed by the system: date/arrival time of packages/luggage to B2P, date/arrival time of the passenger to B2P, date/identification time of passenger - packages/luggage, number of box where the bag is delivered, date/delivery time of packages/luggage and unidentified, undelivered and stored packages/luggage. In addition, real time and historical information of the perfomance of each of the mechanisms of the system will be provided, in order to facilitate its maintenance.

Claim 1:
A delivery method to the corresponding passenger of packages/luggage in an individualized and modular way at an airport or other transport terminals, the method comprising:
• Reading and identification of each of the packages/luggage;
• Identifying the passenger through an interactive screen stand or mobile application;
• Reconciling the packages/luggage data with the passenger data;
• Positioning the package/luggage on an individual box (<NUM>) for delivery, whereby the individual boxes (<NUM>) are arranged in a modular way in a plurality of columns each with two levels;
• Indication to the passenger of the steps to follow in order to access their luggage; and
• Delivery of the packages/luggage by opening the individual box (<NUM>) to the passenger after successful identification;
wherein the positioning of the package/luggage on each individual box (<NUM>) is achieved by
• continuous circulation of the packages/luggage by means of a central warehouse (<NUM>) configured in the same two levels as the individual boxes (<NUM>) wherein the two levels are connected by motorised curves or automatic elevators that allow the luggage to be raised and lowered from one level to the other;
• Temporary storage and perpendicular and horizontal diversion of the packages/luggage from the central warehouse (<NUM>) towards the final delivery boxes (<NUM>);
• Temporary storage of the diverted packages/luggage in spaces or storage belts (<NUM>) before their final positioning in the final delivery individual boxes (<NUM>)