A father-and-son team of businessmen from Los Angeles has found a solution for getting rid of the vast amount of bacteria on airplanes, which comes in the form of a robot.
Entrepreneurs Arthur and Mo Kreitenberg's invention, called the Germfalcon, has been in development for several years and is able to kill bacteria like Escherichia coli (E.coli) and Methicillin-resistant Staphylococcus aureus (MSRA) in different parts of the cabin thanks to ultra violet light, according to the Daily Mail.
MRSA can live for up to 168 hours and cause infections, skin disease, pneumonia and sepsis. E.coli can live for up to 96 hours and cause urinary tract infection, respiratory illness and diarrhea.
The team says these germs can stay on surfaces within an aircraft for up to a week, and that airlines don't have clear rules for cleaning planes, the Daily Mail reported. They added that 3.5 billion people are expected to fly this year and face the risk of getting sick because of this issue.
"Germs will survive on aeroplane surfaces sometimes for as long as seven days," Mo said on the team's Kickstarter page. "There are no regulations or cleanliness standards for the passenger cabins of airplanes. Aeroplane travelers are at heightened risk of catching the common cold, flu, or more serious infections."
The Germfalcon measures the size of a drink cart and uses motion sensors for navigation when it patrols the aisles of a plane. While moving through aisles, the machine spreads its "wings" over seats on both sides to clean them, using the same UV-C lamps used to disinfect areas at hospitals and water treatment plants.
The bot also comes with settings for sanitizing toilets and galleys, as well as fans with filters for cleaning the air and sucking in dust particles, the Daily Mail reported. Mo said the robot has a 99.99-percent germ-kill rate in under 10 minutes.
The Kreitenbergs will soon build their fourth and final Germfalcon prototype and prepare it for commercial production, and they are currently trying to raise money for the robot on Kickstarter. Backers will get a chance to fly on the first germ-free flight.
