Baggage-handling robots among new tech being explored for Changi’s T5

Exhibition also showcases other innovations such as smart system to predict flight delays

- Esther Loi

Robotic arms that can lift and move oversized baggage weighing up to 35kg are on display at the T5 In The Making exhibition at Terminal 3's arrival hall.

(ST PHOTO: BRIAN TEO)

At the tap of a button on a mobile app, an autonomous mobility device or wheelchair can be summoned for seniors or passengers with reduced mobility to ferry them across the upcoming Changi Airport Terminal 5 (T5) after they cross immigration.

And away from the bustle of passengers catching their flights, robotic arms can lift and move oversized baggage weighing up to 35kg, reducing the backbreaking labour of workers in baggage-handling areas.

These are among the new technologies being explored for T5 that will be showcased at the T5 In The Making exhibition at Terminal 3’s arrival hall from Jan 6 to March.

The exhibition is divided into five zones, which take visitors on a journey through the airport’s past and offer a glance at T5’s design, scale and possible innovations.

After being issued a personalised “boarding pass” with their name, visitors will be greeted by a 2.7m-tall globe enveloped in animation, documenting the opportunities T5 can capture from rising air travel demand in Asia — and why it needs to be built.

They are then given a quick overview of the evolution of land reclamation efforts over the decades, which eventually laid the ground for the airport today, while learning about the contributions of airport veterans.