A Facility Scale Automated Mobility System

There is a large, unmet need for an energy-efficient, facility-scale mobility system that addresses the needs of underserved communities, particularly people with reduced mobility (PRM). Mobility services in airports and other large facilities, are failing to meet the needs of PRM due to rapidly scaling demand and fragmented systems that remain heavily reliant on manual labor and unreliable communications. With the transportation industry focused on the development of cleaner and smarter road-based mobility solutions for the general population, the current lack of technological solutions in this space will continue to be a barrier for many disadvantaged communities. The proposed automated mobility platform (AMPs) addresses these concerns, providing a system of accessible energy efficient electrical vehicles and scalable on-demand services particularly suited for use in complex indoor environments. The flexible system is an innovative combination of technologies that deliver robust automatous navigation, shared manual control, and operations management capabilities, to help facilities get people and equipment to the right places, at the right times, as usage grows in these constantly changing environments. Phase I produced a robust design concept developed from stakeholder interviews, market analysis, and systems engineering. Technical feasibility of the system was established through the development and testing of certain sub-systems. While initial phase I efforts will continue to the end of the scheduled grant period, the concept has already matured to the point that a prototype, demonstration system can now be developed with limited technical risk and using known partners. In addition, multiple facilities have already expressed interest and support for continued engagement in the development and testing of the AMPs solution proving product-market fit. To commercialize the innovation, Phase II objectives will focus on developing a prototype system and demonstration space. This combination of assets will allow the team to refine and validated the system through the involvement of a wide range of potential users, representing diverse disadvantaged communities. With initial validation in place, the prototype will also be used to physically demonstrate the benefits of the system to key industry stakeholders to gain commitments for the deployment of commercial pilots. There are over 1,300 airports in the United States according to the Bureau of Transportation Statistics. Each of these is a potential customer for AMPs initial deployments and do not include other large-scale facilities AMPs can serve. The estimated impact of an AMPs commercial deployment at just a single US large hub airport will provide an equitable travel experience to nearly 1 million PRM a year, over $150M in labor savings over the life of the system for service providers, and enable new revenue generation streams for service providers and airport facilities. Additionally, AMPs has the potential to enhance energy and operations efficiency within the airport by: • Intelligently adapting to demand, autonomously repositioning, queueing, and charging vehicles, as well as, • Improving passenger delivery time and reliability, directly impacting airplane fuel consumption and greenhouse gas emissions that result from passenger delays.