Passengers at Cincinnati/Northern Kentucky International Airport (CVG) can now get food and retail delivered to them at the airport by a robot.
The airport has introduced a fleet of fully autonomous robots that can deliver items to wherever the passenger is at Concourse B.
The robots can deliver food, drink and other items that passengers order from select retail stores operated by Paradies Lagardere.
The entire delivery experience is contactless and fully autonomous.
CVG started a trial of the delivery robots in late 2020. The partners involved gathered feedback from participating passengers including details on the experience, cost and desire to have autonomous delivery in airports.
These live robot deliveries will gather additional research to further develop the program and user experience.
Candace McGraw, chief executive officer, CVG Airport:
“At CVG, we are redefining the travel experience by combining talent and tech to deliver innovative solutions.
“We’ve built a culture of innovation at the airport and are excited to partner with Ottonomy to test and advance this technology in a live, airport environment.”
How it works
Passengers order their good at orderatcvg.com on mobile devices.
They receive status updates on their phone and a unique QR code.
When the robot arrives, the passenger scans the QR code at the robot’s top camera to open the secure compartment and retrieve their items.
Supplier
The robots, called Ottobots, are from Ottonomy, a Santa Monica-based company.
Ottobots navigate autonomously through crowds and unpredictable environments using Ottonomy’s proprietary Contextual Mobility navigation tech.
The overall system is highly scalable and flexible utilizing a comprehensive suite of cloud tools that manages a fleet of robots deployed throughout different areas of an airport.
Ritukar Vijay, Co-Founder and CEO of Ottonomy Inc:
“This launch is a testament to CVG’s commitment to innovation and customer experience. We are able to provide a safe and secure experience through our Ottobots, executing automated contactless deliveries of food and beverage and retail products.
“COVID-19 has changed the way we all interact and relate to travel, making contactless delivery even more relevant and essential.”
N.B. Image credit: Ottonomy
