Pic Credit: SouthEndPatch

A touch screen kiosk can be already deployed in many car parks, both indoor and outdoor, in order to take payments from car users.

The advantages of kiosks in this transport sector include consistent and valuable service 24 hours a day. This is extremely beneficial in that most car parks are typically self-service and non-staff attended.

But as well as paying to park a car via a touch screen unit, one can now rent out a bike.

Bike kiosks are being deployed in various countries in an effort to encourage the public to ditch their cars at home, be green and go for an environmentally-friendly bike ride.

Some stations in America consist of bike racks with bicycles attached to a solar-powered touch screen kiosk where members can swipe cards to rent bikes. Citizens can pay a set figure for all day, or have free trips that are 30 minutes or less.

The bike kiosks will require the same approach as outdoor kiosks in that they need to be designed specifically to handle the environment and elements. The units should be sturdy, highly robust, weather-proof and readable in the high glare sunlight.

In urban areas, vandalism is rife so ensure the machines and the display screens are anti-vandal; and that it is made from powerful material such as special anodized aluminium and special powder paint for outdoor use. An internal heating/ventilation system is essential to keep the PC at optimum running temperature and a water proof shell.

The bike kiosks can be stabilised and secured through bolts set into a purpose-set concrete base and a sophisticated locking mechanism.

So why not go for a leisurely bike ride with the partner and kids this summer with the help of a bike kiosk!

Self Service Kiosks are a fantastic advancement of technology and have made everyday activities a whole lot easier and simpler to do.

The advantages of kiosks to a customer include consistent, valuable service 24 hours a day and this benefit can be particularly vital in non-staff attended outdoor environments such as car parks which are typically self-service.

Outdoor kiosks require a different approach to indoor kiosks and need to be designed specifically for outdoor deployment in public areas. Overall an outdoor kiosk needs to be suitable for operation in any urban setting and should therefore be fully weather proof, highly robust, readable and sturdy.

Here are some key points that you need to know to ensure your outdoor kiosk is a success.

Display Screen

The screen must be designed for high glare settings and be anti-vandal. This requires a high- luminance, transflective LCD and an ambient light sensor that automatically increases and decreases brightness when necessary, to make it easy to read in the dark or when the sun is shining. The screen should also use toughened glass and a protection bezel and needs to be suitable for use with gloved hands.

Material

An outdoor kiosk needs to be made from a powerful material such as special anodized aluminium and special powder paint for outdoor use. It requires internal heating / ventilation system to keep the PC at optimum running temperature and a water proof shell. The kiosk and its accessories are stabilised and secured through bolts set into a purpose-set concrete base and a sophisticated locking mechanism.

Applications

Outdoor kiosks can be used for any application and are most commonly found as: Payment kiosks in car parks, Information and help kiosks in towns, Way finding kiosks is tourist and business areas and Ticketing kiosks in transport stations.

There are multiple benefits to these Touch screen self-service kiosks being installed in your business. Visit www.protouch.co.uk today to find out more.

This month, we are excited to be exhibiting our three off the shelf kiosk designs at the KioskCom Self Service Expo 2009.

Starting on the 30th September at the Olympia in London, we will be exhibiting our Xen Kiosk Series for visitors to view and order on the same day. 

As well as exhibiting our multifunctional kiosk, Protouch’s managing director, Tom Quarry will be taking part in the education programme, holding a seminar at 1.45pm-2.15pm on the 30th September called ‘EPoS for the store of the future.’

Tom will discuss Protouch’s award winning EPoS kiosk hardware, focusing on the Kiddicare case study. Attendees will learn how our award winning kiosk managed more customers with less staff costs, as well as increasing customer spend and enhancing the sales processed in store.

Our stand will be based at 162 and will display the wall mountable Xen X4, the award winning slim floor standing Xen X5 and the larger floor standing Xen X6.

All users and resellers are encouraged to come along to our stand to talk to our team about their kiosk needs. We have a wide range of applications that can be installed onto the kiosks to make them relevant to each business such as: an Internet kiosk, ticket kiosk, payment kiosk, information kiosk, card dispensing kiosk and much more.

We at Protouch want to meet the extremely wide need for self service kiosks and make kiosk deployment simple. Our kiosks offer numerous accessory combinations which can easily be modified, at any time.

Customers simply select what they want, choose their accessories and graphics; resulting in a fully customised kiosk.

Our kiosks on display have already proven themselves to be successful products in varying industry sectors. Refined over the last nine years each kiosk is set to meet three specific economies of scale; quality, price and reliability, suitable for end users and retailers.

This strategy has seen us achieve a top quality kiosk system in the award winning and innovative Xen X5 Kiddicare Kiosk, which will be fully explained in Tom’s kiosk seminar.

As well as the kiosk seminar and exhibition, we will also be taking part in the Minicom Digital Signage Expert Tour KioskCom. This free tour will provide an overview of a selection of carefully hand-picked exhibitors, following the accurate path of the digital signage supply chain.

From content creation to digital measure ment, the tour will outline how they fit into the overall Digital Signage Puzzle.

The tour has been specifically designed to give visitors a bird’s eye view of the overall application by providing the full end-to-end story with real live demos of each piece in the puzzle, and overview of the solution which visitors would not normally get. Visitors can sign up for the tour here.