If you've ever transited through busy metro stations during rush hour, you're familiar with the bustling energy of crowds and the congested pathways that challenge the nerves and schedules of the passengers. As cities keep growing and the need for sustainable mobility increases, more stations need to adapt to serve the different groups of people.
But what if there was a solution to avoid the rush hour bottlenecks and help guide people in ways that would ensure a pleasant journey for everyone? KONE’s first digital twin concept enables better people flow by creating virtual replicas of public stations. It simulates the conditions and the flow of people through urban hubs with real-time data.
“If we can make transiting through these hubs smoother, less crowded and more comfortable, more users will be drawn to a service that is the very backbone of sustainable urban mobility,” says Tero Hottinen, Head of Strategic Technology Partnerships, responsible for AWS collaboration at KONE.
The first digital twin concept was created by a multinational team of KONE’s data scientists, engineers, and business experts in partnership with AWS. The concept prototype, an early version of the innovation, was successfully piloted at the metro station beneath the Helsinki main railway station in Finland, modelling the people flow within the station.
“It was exciting for not only the development team, but also for our customer and partners to see the prototype come to life," notes Juha-Matti Kuusinen, Head of Digital Innovation at KONE. Kuusinen has been leading the concept development from the beginning, bringing the experts working together towards a common vision.
“Public transport hubs are technically challenging environments in many aspects. It was clear that if we can make it in a busy metro hub, we can make it in any public transportation station,” says Jari Karhu, Senior Lead Data Scientist at KONE.
A real-life 3D model of people flow
So what is our digital twin innovation concept and how is it going to change the way our customers think about urban flow?
The digital twin proof-of-concept (PoC) combines real-time and historical data from people flow sensors with elevator, escalator, and train status information. The model provides valuable insights into location-specific people flow dynamics, helping improve user experience and plan for future capacity needs.
“Harnessing data from public Application Programming Interfaces (API), external sensors and from KONE connected equipment, we generate a real-life 3D model of the people flow within the station. The model is connected to various data sources, making things move in real-time in that same 3D space,” Karhu explains.
The smooth and eye-catching user interface (UI) is backed up with AWS cloud technology and platform. The result is a whole package that enables customers to test different people flow scenarios. The goal is for every aspect of people flow to be optimized to improve both user experience and overall transport capacity.
Accelerating innovation in partnership with AWS
The innovative, cross-sectoral collaboration with AWS has brought top notch digital tech into the world of operational technology – and that in itself has been an experience on both sides of the partnership. The collaboration has been a great learning curve for both global leaders.
“We bring the OT (operational technology) to the IT,” Hottinen says. “AWS came with a ‘let’s do it now’ attitude and rapid innovation capability and scalability in methodology and processes. However, instead of trying to push a square peg into a round hole, we’ve both had to look at how we can adjust and adapt.”
He thinks it’s also been a great journey for AWS as they have learned to adapt to practical, real-world scenarios with an industrial partner. Working with new technologies – and partners – comes with the opportunity to disrupt and optimize old ways of working.
Creative problem solving and many learnings
Besides external partnership, innovation has also required a strong bond within the close-knit team of KONE’s digital experts. When the team was first given the challenge, they created a prototype within four days.
“Together, we’ve made a few brave calls, solved many problems and had great fun all the way,” says Karhu.
It’s a sentiment which is shared by Lead Data Scientist Diana Andrei, the team’s algorithm whiz. She spends her time analyzing data and providing understandable customer insights.
“What gets me excited is that it’s something new. It’s exciting to see my imprint on it,” says Andrei, who joined KONE four years ago after leaving a successful career in academia. “It’s an awesome team. A lot of collaboration, a lot of learning and never boring. It's a completely different approach.”
Global expertise feeds global innovation
The multinational nature of the team – Finnish, Romanian, Indian – is reflective of the deep need for global expertise when it comes to innovation in technology.
Andrei also works closely with Data Engineer Aniket Kanthale who takes care of the data pipelines. Kanthale is based in India but currently “on site” in Finland.
Kanthale agrees that the team has a special bond, adding that from Diwali celebrations to the opportunity to travel and participate in workshops, he feels he is valued and given the chance to grow and learn.
“Everyone is treated as an equal, that's what I love. You are allowed to be courageous, whatever the idea you have,” says Kanthale.
According to the team, it’s this open-minded approach, combined with access to resources, that makes KONE a great place to work – and a natural home for experts seeking a fulfilling career in technology and innovation.
“If your company provides you with all the tools and resources you need, developing an idea becomes very smooth. That's how you get a good product – like the digital twin,” says Kanthale.
“I’ve really grown as a leader through this process,” says Karhu, who recalls audible gasps from the crowd when demonstrating the digital twin UI at a partner event in Sweden.
“I guess that was the closest I’ll experience to being a rockstar,” he says.