News: Touch and Travel System Being Tested For Rail
Posted by Matthew Justice on Mar 19, 2008
A new innovative e-ticketing system developed by Deutsche Bahn and Vodafone is being tested across Germany by 200 rail passengers. The e-ticketing concept is based on new mobile phone technology called Near Field Communication (NFC). This technology provides non-contact data transmission within the distance of just a few centimeters.
The new system is set to transform the mobile phone into a train ticket. Travelers will have to sign on before departure by simply holding their phone next to a Touchpoint and sign off again on arrival at their destination. Train platforms and bus stops will be fitted with these so-called "Touchpoints" used to connect the phone to the ticketing network. At the end of the journey, the distance traveled and the cost of the journey is calculated, and customers receive an invoice for their trips.
This technology is not really aviation related but I could see this technology being used automating some the boarding process of airlines maybe in the future.
Source Non-Mobile: http://www.abtn.co.uk/...
Tags: Mobile, Products, Travel
Technorati Tags: Mobile, Products, Travel