Retail inMotion
Inflight Payment Terminals
American Airlines
American Airlines uses iPhones for their onboard retail. However, these are not designed for non-consumer use. A payment device needed to be integrated so the swipe could work both left and right.
For long-haul flights the phone battery did not last long enough; the flight attendants did not want the additional weight of a battery attached all the time, however on long-haul flights they needed the extra charge.
Working through use cases with AA a modular solution was strongly preferred with a removable battery. This led to a magnetic attachment solution where in normal use the payment device can be snapped onto the case. This can also be flipped through 180 degrees for left or right-handed use.
If additional power is needed on a long haul flight, the payment device can be snapped off, and a battery inserted between the two. The system works seamlessly to fast charge each component through the sled; while the battery can be charged separately, its USB-C connector is hidden when it is in place, avoiding confusion as to which connector to plug in.
The payment device could not be enclosed due to PCI regulatory requirements, so CMF decisions for the sled were led by the polished finish, matching with harder wearing, grippier finishes as requested by AA.
Other projects
Boxclever has completed multiple payment device projects for Spirit Airlines, Frontier, Hawaiian, Thomas Cook and Condor using Apple and Android phones and tablets.
