Wednesday, March 4, 2015

Virgin Atlantic tests wearables for maintenance technicians

UK long-haul specialist Virgin Atlantic is launching a trial with Sony Mobile Communications to test how new wearable technology can help improve the airline’s maintenance and engineering processes.

Engineers working on Virgin aircraft at the airport and in the hangar will be testing Sony’s SmartEyeglass Developer Edition SED-E1, tablet, mobile phone and SmartWatch 3 in an eight-week trial at London Heathrow Airport. They will test how the technology can be used for real-time communication between the engineering team on the aircraft and in the engineering support areas.

SmartWear plus a smart phone or tablet will remove paper from some engineering processes and reduce journey times between an aircraft and technical control. Engineers will receive notifications on SmartWatch 3 devices about changes to job allocations or detail in tasks.

Managers will get instant feedback that the engineer has read the notification and that the task is in hand. Engineers will use SmartEyeglasses to take pictures or video of tasks they are working on. This will be linked to an app running on a smartphone that allows engineers to submit a form requesting further technical assistance. SmartEyeglasses will also be used for real-time video streaming so office engineers can see a problem from the engineers’ point of view.

(Henry Canaday - ATWOnline News)

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