Avoiding Jet Bridge-to-Aircraft Collision with a Radar Sensor and LED Indicator

Due to the difficulty of manually maneuvering jet bridges up to aircraft without sensor guidance, a major airline had experienced occasional damage when jet bridges collided with aircraft or other ground support equipment. When this occurred, it resulted in flight delays.

The airline and Banner designed a solution that employs a Q90R2 Radar Sensor and a WLS27 Pro LED strip light. The sensor mounts to the jet bridge and reflects radar waves off the aircraft to read the distance between the two. The sensor feeds information to the LED strip light with Banner’s Pulse Frequency Modulation (PFM) output, which guides the operator by displaying a row of light segments that gradually change from green to yellow to red, in order to efficiently guide the movement of the jet bridge up to the aircraft. This enables operators to quickly mate up the jet bridge to the aircraft without worrying about colliding. The Q90R2 sensor also outputs the distance information via the additional IO-link output to enable automation of the jet bridge remotely, reducing delays due to worker shortages.

This solution enables the airline to much more efficiently guide and position its jet bridges to its aircraft. The airline significantly decreased incidences of collision between jet bridge and aircraft, as well as between jet bridge wheels and other ground support equipment. With the benefit of visual feedback, workers can learn jet bridge operation faster, and they can move between airports easier. The solution has allowed the airline to log better boarding times & fewer delays.

The WLS27 Pro LED strip light has RGBW LEDs and is programmable with Banner’s Pro Editor software or IO-Link communication. Pro Editor software allows users to program device status, colors and animation. The rugged IP69 rated Banner Q90R2 Radar Sensor is able to handle the harsh outdoor environment and is still able to acquire accurate distance information. This is true even in conditions of heavy fog, rain, snow or ice, where optical sensors wouldn’t be effective.