Criterion D

In order to satisfy the expectations of passengers during long hours of flights, IFE companies should design a system which include Wi-Fi access regardless of destinations and operating systems which improves the interaction between humans and machinnes. The growth in In-Flight Wi-Fi has been slow due to the different IP addresses and internet policies of countries. To solve this problem, companies need to design a universal In flight entertainment system specialize for commercial aviation uses so that all airlines bound for anywhere in the world are able to access communication systems for IFE such as in flight wi-fi, live video streaming and many others.

Criterion C - The impact of the issue

Criterion C

In flight entertainment play a very important role in the Aviation world today. Major airlines such as British Airways, Emirates Airlines, Singapore Airlines and Cathay Pacific are the main stakeholders in this particular area. Over the years, these airlines have been investing in large amounts for the comfort of passengers and travelers during long hours of flights.

The usage of in flight entertainment is altering many factors such as economy, business and health. As more airlines are adopting better in flight entertainment every year, more passengers are more likely to use those airlines. This is because the healths of travelers are heavily depended on the level of comfort they receive while on board (Westelaken, Hu, Liu, 2008). Studies have shown that by enhancing passengers' relaxation level, it can directly affect their mood and attitude in a positive way by reducing the level of stress. From this, airlines heavily depends on the quality of their in flight entertainment to improve their image (Sharkley, 2006) and attract more travelers for future and long term incomes. However, since the 9/11 attack, the aviation industry had been facing many financial challenges (Drakos,) to upgrade their in flight entertainment system (Juan, 97-98) and the cost to maintain the entertainment systems is very extravagant as airlines will have to keep adding more audio and video features. This also raises the issue of the reliability and to what extent airlines are willing to invest in a safe IFE system as Wi-Fi is now included as part of the system. Unrestricted access may be breached by online criminals who can threaten the security of aircrafts, which is why the idea has only been accepted by only a few airlines worldwide.

On the contrary, in flight Wi-Fi has not been a standard expectation for passengers yet unlike audio and video entertainment system for each passenger seat as companies like Boeing are still in the process of developing the technology. For the mean time, companies such as Linux and Panasonic Avionics are striding forward in the IFE industry despite the financial slowdown in order to improve the environment of travelers during international flights.   

Criterion B Arts/Entertainment/Leisure

Criterion B
The in flight entertainment of the 21st century is consisted of major components such as Video Display Unit (VDU), Wireless router, Passengers/Personals control unit (PCU), Seat electronic box/unit (SEU) and operating system which acts as an interface between the users and the systems. Each aircrafts seat that can be classified as five star airlines has its own circuit and wiring which connects all the components together for the comfort of passengers.
The most essential component which provides power and energy to the system is known as the Seat Electronic Unit (SEU) and each of the components require their own seat electronic box. The Seat Electronic Boxes are consisted of cable Bundles that connect and transfer all the energy required for the systems to operate. These boxes are then connected to another power source which is controlled from another section where it is restricted to cabin crew and airline personnel only and this is where the (SEU) absorbs and consumes all the power that is needed to power the IFE system. Therefore, the Seat Electronic Unit acts as a hub for transferring power and electricity from the main source to the system through cable wiring. Electrical cables also are connected between seats creating a series circuit which can be switched off or on by the main switch (which is monitored by flight crew).
It then powers the Video Display Unit and Personal Control Unit. In an event of aircraft maintenance, the SEU contains line replaceable units (LRU) so malfunctioned electrical parts can be replaced without replacing the whole system with a new one. The VDU receives video and audio transmissions through wireless connections provided by the airline and the information that are sent and received between the two components are encrypted and designed to protect computer intruders to enhance the security while on board. Marvelous in flight entertainment layouts and are usually designed by companies that invest a lot in terms of providing operating systems. Corporations such as Panasonic Avionics, Thales and Linux are the main providers of IFEs for airliners like Emirates Airlines, Virgin, Etihad and Singapore Airlines. The Personal Control Unit (PCU) allows passengers and users to navigate through the system by using the Operating Systems and altering channels, audio volume and the brightness by using the PCU which also include the touch screen.

Criterion A - Arts / Entertainment / Leisure

Criterion A

As the aviation world is rapidly switching to aircrafts with longer range such as the Airbus 380, entertaining passengers has been the major key towards building better reputation for airlines (Yu, 2008) for future incomes. Airlines such as Emirates Airline, Cathay Pacific and Singapore Airlines are widely known for their quality of the in flight entertainment systems. The aircrafts of today can keep travelers in the air for up to 18 hours and having an excellent entertainment system (Robertson, 2009) is essential in order to satisfy passengers. Good operating systems (Wagner, 2008) may include new features such as the Wi-Fi on board and not all airlines have them since it requires complex systems that may interrupt the communications of pilots (Tung, 2008). The ethical issue this portfolio will focus on will be peoples and machines where IFE systems are evaluated on its effectiveness on passengers during long flights. This is important as IFEs have great impacts on the health of travelers and the aviation industry.

Arts/entertainment/leisure

In-flight Wi-Fi poised for take off
Topics:
wireless communications
wireless fidelity
industry profiles
Reading Level (Lexile): 1240L
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April 14, 2008 San Francisco Chronicle (CA) Edition: 5starSection: BusinessPage: D1Author: Ryan Kim; Chronicle Staff Writer
Ryan KimChronicle Staff Writer. "In-flight Wi-Fi poised for take off" San Francisco Chronicle (CA)2008-04-14: D1.School Library Collection By NewsbankOnline. Infoweb by Newsbank, Inc. November 26, 2008.
Wireless Internet access offering full broadband speed will undergo tests at 4 airlines in the next few months Wireless Internet is literally taking off. We're talking cruising at 35,000 feet above the Earth.
A handful of airlines are poised to offer wireless Internet access inside their planes, giving passengers the ability to answer e-mails, conduct work, social network and otherwise entertain themselves. That Internet black hole known as the airplane cabin will soon be no more.
JetBlue in December began a pilot test of in-flight wireless service that offers users access to Yahoo e-mail and chat and allows Wi-Fi-enabled BlackBerry devices to get e-mail. In the coming months, American Airlines, Southwest Airlines, Alaska Airlines and Virgin America will begin trials of more robust Wi-Fi services that offer full broadband speeds to laptops, media players and gaming devices. Regular Wi-Fi service could begin on many of the airlines by the end of this year.
Many of the test flights will involve planes flying to and from the Bay Area.
The services use a variety of technologies, but they offer the same basic premise: provide people with the Internet access they enjoy at home, in the office or at hotspots.
"More of what we do on the ground these days is Internet-connected. It's the nexus of what we do, so to offer that same capability in-flight is very valuable," said Doug Backelin, manager of in-flight communications and technology for American Airlines.
In-flight wireless will not include cell phone service, which the Federal Communications Commission and the Federal Aviation Administration have blocked so far. Most of the airlines also have vowed to disable Skype and other Internet phone services accessible through laptops and Wi-Fi phones. The European Commission, however, has approved in-flight cell phone service, which is being tested out by carriers such as Air France, Emirates and Ryanair.
The cost of the domestic Wi-Fi service is still being worked out. Aircell, which is providing the wireless service for American and Virgin America, is looking at charging $12.95 for flights longer than three hours and less for shorter trips. Row 44, which supplies the technology for Alaska Airlines and Southwest, is working with its carrier partners to set pricing, which hasn't been determined. JetBlue uses technology from its subsidiary LiveTV and is offering wireless access free on its one test airplane, which flies cross-country.
The carriers hope to provide connection speeds comparable to DSL service, around 1 to 2 Mbps for each user. The technology providers they're relying on are achieving wireless in the skies in two very different ways.
Aircell installs antennas on the bottom of the plane that communicate with its own network of 92 cell towers on the ground. Inside the plane, there will be at least two Wi-Fi access points that provide a signal to travelers. The company said the setup can deliver 3 Mbps to the plane, which is compressed and allows travelers to share the equivalent of a 15 Mbps connection.
LiveTV offers a similar setup but with a narrower slice of radio spectrum than Aircell. As such, it can't provide the same bandwidth, which limits its offerings to e-mail and online chatting. The company plans to roll out satellite Internet service beginning in 2009.
Row 44 delivers Internet access via satellites, which beam data back and forth using a flat antenna on top of airplanes. The service, which uses three satellites that are shared by Hughes Networks Systems, is able to provide 30 Mbps to the plane and can operate over the ocean for international flights.
Analysts predict the service will be embraced by passengers, especially business travelers. In a recent Forrester Research survey, 55 percent of travelers on flights of four hours or more said they would be interested in paying for in-flight wireless access. Airline executives are expecting Wi-Fi in the skies to become a standard feature aboard all planes.
'Bare minimum'"Wi-Fi is going to be a vanilla amenity," said Charles Ogilvie, Virgin America's director of in-flight entertainment and partnerships. "Once you put a product or feature out there and it really starts to resonate with users, it becomes the standard and the bare minimum."
Wi-Fi lovers will have some limits to deal with when surfing in the sky. Skype and other Internet phone services will be disabled to ensure peace and quiet in the cabin. Users trying to download large files also will have their traffic throttled to guarantee other users aren't adversely affected.
"If you're streaming video, you might be ... at the back of the line or the loading may be slower than you'd like to see," said Jack Blumenstein, CEO of Aircell. "But if you're on a flight with not a lot of activity, you'll find you can do what you want."
The use of wireless on board raises a number of new questions for airlines. Flight attendants likely will have to field technical questions for the first time. They'll also have to police against passengers viewing inappropriate content online.
"The airlines have all cut back already, so there's less staffing," said Sara Nelson, a spokeswoman for the Association for Flight Attendants. "This is just going to increase our role and make it more difficult."
Steve Jarvis, vice president of marketing, sales and customer experience for Alaska Airlines, admits offering wireless may add to their flight attendants' workload. But he said the system is being designed to work with minimal support.
New opportunitiesCreating the infrastructure for broadband in the skies is opening up new opportunities for airlines. Row 44 is looking at providing wireless users with a form of Internet protocol television. Virgin American is using the new connectivity to provide Internet access to its seatback entertainment systems. Virgin is also tapping game developers to create networked games that can be played by passengers in the same plane and by travelers on different flights.
"The basis for all of this is the understanding that we have a captive audience at 35,000 feet who want more than just the experience of watching the seat in front of them," Virgin's Ogilvie said. "There are so many possibilities on the application side that the Internet will enable now."
Wi-Fi in the skies -- Alaska Airlines: Testing wireless Internet access this summer -- American Airlines: Testing service on 15 planes by mid-year -- Continental: Testing limited wireless next year -- JetBlue: Currently testing one plane offering limited Yahoo e-mail, IM chat and BlackBerry e-mail service -- Southwest Airlines: Testing service on four planes in late summer -- Virgin America: Testing service late this year Source: Chronicle research
"If you're streaming video, you might be ... at the back of the line or the loading may be slower than you'd like to see."
Jack Blumenstein CEO of Aircell
"We have a captive audience at 35,000 feet who want more than ... watching the seat in front of them."
Charles Ogilvie Virgin America's director of in-flight entertainment and partnerships
Memo:E-mail Ryan Kim at rkim@sfchronicle.com


This article relates to Arts/entertainment and leisure because it is a new form of activity which the society use in order to do many things including work, entertainment and communication. This relates to the equality of access in the IT world because international borders can affect the connections of wifi on board aircraft. However, for example in the European Union, it would be easier because international borders doensn't affect the connections.

Criterion C - The Impact of the Issue

The aviation industry is crucial for today's society. It's the key that connects the world together other than internet. Many major metropolitans rely heavily on it as a source of economic income (Marks, 2008). At the same time, the world is also heavily depended on crude oil to fuel the industry and if it declines, it'll have enormous impacts on corporations such as Boeing, Airbus, American Airlines, Emirates and British Airways. However, the environment needs to be balance if aviation industry were to continue because large amount of green house gases can influence disorders such as lung cancers and natural disasters such as hurricanes (The Associated Press, 2008).
Thus, these can hurt a country's economy in the long run due to the overspending in health and fixing damages because of hurricanes and flood (Grier, 2008). This can alter the flow of politics as more and more leaders are now using the question of environment to support their campaign, such as Algore or Barrack Obama (Dumaine, 2008). As new leaders emerge, foreign policies can change based on the amount of green house gases that countries produced based on their industries. Therefore, how can today’s society rely on aviation if it is the factor that can affect their health and environment? Therefore, new policies and standards should be created to fit the amount of CO2 gases released in order to contain the air for the sake of health and environmental security (Ewers, 2008).

Criteria B

Criteria B

The factor that guarantee aircrafts safety standards originate from a process called CAD/CAM. "CAD" stands for Computer Aided Design while "CAM" is the short form for Computer Aided Manufacture. Before anything gets manufactured, airplane parts such as the tail, wings and cockpit are artificially designed in computers in order to preview it. Therefore, it is like a stimulator to observe the consequences of the behaviors of the materials under certain circumstances. During the CAD process, architects would transfer construction drawings into the computer. From there the operator would have to use knowledge of engineering maths to design the 2D and 3D designs of all the required materials. Furthermore, aspects such as the reliability and security will be tested to evaluate the quality of the output.
After the designs have been proven proper for its usage, the process of "CAD" will take over. The transformation from "CAD" and "CAM" is through software called "Mastercam" (developed by CNC Software.inc). Based on the final product from "CAM", engineers would then create sets of instructions for computers on how to produce the prototypes. By utilizing Mastercam, engineers would have the options ranges from surface pocketing to the creation of 3D and 2D objects.
There are many sophisticated and complex machining process a prototype has to go through and as technology advances, more and more methods are being introduced into the market for huge corporations such as GMC, Boeing and Airbus. The way mastercam works is; it displays materials in the screen computer and in order to modify the appearance. In today's world, options in mastercam software include drilling, pocketing, peel mill and many others. CNC's latest development now is involving reducing the amount of CO2 emissions during the process by improving the physical packaging of the product, and enhancing ways in which to save up energy and improve the efficiency of it. Because of this, man other major companies are turning green to attract engineering industries to purchase their product since the consumers of today are looking for merchandises that can delay the consequences of global warming and this can have a huge impact in the flow of the business world.