Ergonomics in Airport Baggage Reclaim

Objectives: The carousel management system helps to combat the problem of carousel crowding and baggage theft through the automated-queuing and baggage-announcing system. Method: The perimeter of the carousel is divided into sections. An LED display at each section will show a set of consecutive seat numbers, requiring the corresponding passengers to stand in line under it. The Radio Frequency identification tags and barcodes strapped to the bags during check-in help in baggage identification. When a bag belonging to a particular passenger is about to reach his section, the LED board signals the baggage arrival. Findings: One of the most problematic parts of air-travel involves baggage logistics. Often, conveyers are not long enough to ensure that all commuters are uniformly distributed along its perimeter to have proper access to the bags. This leads to jostling, anxiety and a collective loss of time for everyone. There are a significant number of similar bags on carousels, leading to confusion among the passengers. Cases of switched bags are on the rise. Applications/Improvements: Faster passenger movement out of Baggage Reclaims and reduced baggage mix-up and crowding is ensured. The carousel is emptied faster and can be shut off sooner, resulting in power savings.