Oct 11, 2018   SOURCE: PR NewsWire

Department of Homeland Security Funds Indoor Mapping Startup To Help Millions of Passengers Navigate Through CBP Processing

OAKLAND, Calif., Oct. 11, 2018 /PRNewswire-PRWeb/ -- Today, LocusLabs, in partnership with the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Science and Technology Directorate (S&T) is announcing a real-time wayfinding and communication initiative that will help enhance the traveler experience during the international customs and security process. Through the Silicon Valley Innovation Program, DHS S&T is investing in LocusLabs' development of guidance software and valuable analytics technology for potential U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) and Transportation Security Administration (TSA) applications.

Since 2015, LocusLabs has been digitally enabling smart buildings by providing global venues, enterprises, and brands a location platform to share, manage, and communicate information about their physical space. They have a unique toolset for location-based content management that allows airports to place virtual objects and indicators throughout their physical space, visible to passengers via mobile applications.

Due to their expansive airline and airport ecosystem which includes partnerships with American, United, Delta and Lufthansa, the company is an ideal partner for DHS S&T. Leveraging the LocusMaps indoor navigation platform already present in dozens of travel apps worldwide, international travelers could have access to a number of new capabilities: 

    --  Detailed Wait Times: As they go through CBP and TSA checkpoints, they
        will experience a more enhanced navigation, allowing them to better
        understand exactly how much time it will take them to get through the
        customs and security process so they can better plan their journey
        through the airport.
    --  New Accessible routing: The app will now accommodate routes that are
        accessible for wheelchairs and persons with limited mobility.
    --  Push Notifications: CBP and TSA will have the ability to push messages
        directly to passenger smartphones as needed to communicate vital,
        contextual information, as it happens.

These new features will better serve the segment of international passengers with disabilities as well as provide the broader audience of passengers with more critical information to improve their day-of travel.

"Our ecosystem houses massive amounts of behavioral data in airports, which can provide valuable insights to DHS S&T," said Campbell Kennedy, CEO of LocusLabs. "With our many global partnerships with the largest airlines and travel apps in the world, we're confident we can enable dramatic improvements in airport operations, analyzing bottlenecks and other obstructions to help optimize passenger flow."

Privacy and security are top-of-mind during this development. LocusLabs collects only anonymous data from passengers and users must proactively opt-in to the program. "Our philosophy is that if passengers choose to provide anonymous data, the app should always give them something of great value in return," states Kennedy. In this case, LocusMaps will provide security checkpoint, wait times, and critical operational notifications to international travelers.

To further develop their technology for government application, the Department of Homeland Security Science and Technology Directorate has granted LocusLabs $199,100 for one phase of development, of a possible four phases. Now, LocusMaps, the company's' indoor wayfinding platform will better serve the 300M+ passengers who have access to the solution today.

LocusLabs has recently made great strides to improve the passenger experience including pilots involving augmented reality wayfinding at two of the worlds largest airports - Dallas Fort Worth International and London Heathrow. The company is also going to soon be releasing LocusMaps 2.0, which includes a host of new features, coming soon.

About LocusLabs
LocusLabs digitizes the indoor world by providing customers a geospatial location platform to share, manage and communicate about their physical space. Their proprietary Reality Capture System creates and manages detailed maps of indoor spaces and enables applications to become location-aware on a micro level. Global venues, enterprises and brands then create contextual experiences for customers or employees to search, navigate and discover what they are looking for in spaces all over the world. The company currently has hundreds of millions of mobile users and partnerships with American Airlines, United Airlines, Delta Air Lines, Lufthansa, TripIt, Priority Pass and many more. Find out more at LocusLabs.com, or follow us on Twitter.

SOURCE LocusLabs