Elevators That Know Your Floor
From PDI
Since most room keys in hotels are digital now, they should be able to tell the elevators which floors to go to automatically. This has several advantages:
- You don't have to reach across people and fight your way to the controls in a crowded elevator.
- Security is improved. Perhaps you can only go the floor that your key is programmed for.
- When a group of people get into the elevator, the elevator can instantly know all the floors to go to.
- Others in the elevator won't necessarily know which floor you're getting off on which can in some cases protect your privacy.
- People can only go to floors other than their own if someone on that floor has authorized their passage, thus increasing security.
In one implementation, the panel can light up to show which floors it detects it needs to go to, but if people want to go to different floors, they can push a lit button again to disable that floor, and choose another floor. They will only be allowed to go to that floor if their key card authorizes it.
When you exit the elevator, a lighted path in the floor, ceiling, or wall could show you to your room to save you from having to decipher all the room range signs. That does not even require installing the new lights: the existing lights can blink, dim slightly, or otherwise highlight the direction you need to head to.
