Nikkei Research's People Flow Measurement Solution Using LiDAR

In 2020, Nikkei Research launched a novel people flow measurement solution known as SKIA. Since then, it has been adopted by clients ranging from real estate developers and facility management companies to retail stores and other establishments.

One notable example of a user is Haneda Future Development Co., Ltd., a joint venture of 9 companies led by Kajima Corporation. The company is currently developing a smart city -- HANEDA INNOVATION CITY (HICity) -- next to Haneda Airport, where it cooperates with companies and startups using advanced technologies to introduce new possibilities for the future to the public. Ahead of its grand opening planned for the autumn of 2023, Nikkei Research's SKIA has been operating since 2022 at the Foot Spa & Sky Deck. SKIA can analyze people flow and send the data to a visualized platform in real time. Using this technology from a satellite control room, HICity can inspect facilities congestion and prevent unnecessary accidents.

SKIA uses LiDAR (Light Detection and Ranging), a technology popular in autonomous vehicles, which can detect and measure objects surrounding the instrument with light pulses that are invisible to the human eye. It can categorize people and static objects separately and record the movement or the motionless state of each person. Unlike surveillance cameras, it does not collect personal data such as photos of faces. The algorithm of the analysis is based on joint research with Professor Mihoko Niitsuma of the Laboratory of Chuo University and Nikkei Research. The solution outputs visualization of the real-time status and over time crowdedness of a given space.

There are a number of other common uses of the solution. It can be deployed in a retail store to observe the number of customers and customer behavior for evaluating campaign effectiveness or optimizing shelving and staff distribution. In a multi-use retail facility, it can measure the people flow in each space for increasing the time visitors spend at the facility and to plan effective guidance. In an office, it can collect usage-related information for redesigning office space to optimize functions and bring about better employee engagement.

More details are available from the links below.
https://www.nikkei-r.co.jp/english/column/9144
https://www.nikkei-r.co.jp/english/column/9172

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