Fully automated self bag drop system at Bengaluru airport
You don’t have to wait for long to check-in your baggage at the Kempegowda International Airport, Bengaluru, anymore. The whole process of baggage check-in will take only 45 seconds from now on as the airport has deployed fully-automated self bag drop machines at the airport.
The self bag drop machines will accelerate the baggage transaction and reduce check-in queues. Bengaluru Airport is the first in the country to introduce a large deployment of fully automated baggage drop-off units.
The system, called Air.Go, has been designed and installed by Materna IPS. To begin with, this self-drop baggage system will be available for Air Asia and Spice Jet passengers at the Kempegowda International Airport and will subsequently be expanded to include other airlines as well.
The self bag drop machines have a two-step approach. Passengers have to first print their boarding passes and baggage tags (eezee-tag) at the self check-in kiosks. Once tagged, the passengers have to then scan their boarding passes at the bag drop machine to initiate the process. The machine then measures, weighs, scans and automatically feeds the luggage into the baggage handling system. BIAL plans to install 32 check-in kiosks to print the baggage tags and boarding passes.
If your luggage exceeds the weight limit set by an airline, the passengers will be directed to a hybrid counter to complete the check-in process and make payments for the excess baggage. Eventually, BIAL plans to integrate multiple payment gateway options that can be used to pay for excess baggage as well into the machines.
The Airport is also planning to introduce facial recognition facility for passengers by 2019, with an aim to make the boarding process paperless.