Shere Limited
10 Deacon Field
Guildford
Surrey
GU2 8YT
22nd October 2010
Outline Proposal
Ref: KH/LT/221010
Calvin Tan
Luichart Technology
272 Bath Street,
Glasgow,
G2 4JR
Dear Calvin,
Following the meeting held on Tuesday 28th September to discuss an opportunity for Shere
to produce and supply self service DVD kiosks for theme parks, we have produced the
attached outline proposal for your attention.
Business Opportunity
Visitors to Alton Towers can capture their day out with a personalised recording of their day
through the park and on the various rides. On entry to the park, they are offered a RFID
(radio frequency identification) wristband to wear during their visit. The wristbands are read
by a network and their movements through the park are recorded and matched to
personalised footage.
At the end of their day, the visitors can purchase a DVD at a shop. Staff at the shop match
the RFID with the visitor’s recording and then take payment for the DVD. Creating a DVD
takes 3 to 5 minutes. The throughput is limited at the shop and can be greatly increased by
the introduction of a self service kiosk facility that will:
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Accept and identify the RFID wristband
Locate footage linked to RFID
Allow visitors to select specific recordings through touch screen
View recordings from a large video screen
Confirm selections and take payment using cash or card
Produce and dispense a DVD.
Timescales
We initially accepted the challenge to deliver a kiosk facility by February 2011 but we now
understand that implementation by June 2011 to be the revised objective.
Our Approach
Shere has considered the information from our discussions to date and has reviewed
material available in the public domain. In this document we have set out our understanding
of the business process and technology requirements. We have also described a typical
customer use case with process exceptions and described a remote support use case.
Further discussion is required to ensure these are accurate and meet your requirements.
When working with a client to provide a business solution through kiosk technology, we
undertake the following steps:
Shere Limited. Registered in England No. 78235
Registered address: 10 Deacon Field, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 8YT
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Initial engagement
Joint workshops to agree design and build requirements
Production of a detailed design / solution requirement documentation and signoff
Agree contractual and commercial arrangements
Production of a pilot kiosk
Amend kiosk design based on information gained from pilot
Full scale production and deployment
Ongoing support and maintenance.
We recommend that the next logical step in our engagement with Luichart Technology is to
hold a workshop or series of workshops to refine exact requirements; business, technical,
physical design, application design, support and service levels, volumes, etc. At this point we
would also engage some third party resources to supplement the skills available at Shere for
the physical design of the kiosk and the graphical assets for the application.
Commercials
Indicative charges have been included in this document to provide a Rough Order of
Magnitude (ROM). When we work together to refine the full business requirements and
design considerations, we will be able to provide a formal proposal that is capable of
commercial acceptance.
Shere is very keen to support Luichart Technology in this venture and is willing to commit
development time to assist in gathering requirements and producing design documentation.
We do however need to engage third party support for which we require funding. The charge
for this is likely to be £3,000 to £5,000.
Next Steps
Please review the proposal and I will call you in a couple of days to discuss how we can take
this opportunity forward. In the meantime, if you have any questions please do not hesitate
to call me.
Yours sincerely,
Kevin Hughes
Shere Limited
10 Deacon Field
Guildford
GU2 8YT
Tel: +44 (0)1483 557400
Fax: +44(0)1483 557401
Web: www.shere.com
Mob: +44 (0) 7733 310 145
Email: [email protected]
Shere Limited. Registered in England No. 78235
Registered address: 10 Deacon Field, Guildford, Surrey, GU2 8YT
Estimate for work involved to deliver kiosk application video product.
Contents
1
Introduction ................................................................................................................ 4
2
The Technology ........................................................................................................... 4
3
Requirements .............................................................................................................. 4
4
Assumptions ................................................................................................................ 5
5
The Kiosk Application .................................................................................................... 5
5.1 Customer Use Case ......................................................................................................5
Exception 1 – The RFID tag cannot be read ............................................................................6
Exception 2 – The tag is read but the record cannot be found on the system ...................................6
Exception 3 – Customer abandons the transaction during the video selection process ........................6
Exception 4 – Customer payment fails ..................................................................................6
Exception 5 – There is a problem producing the DVD ................................................................7
Exception 6 – The kiosk has a fault that means it cannot process transactions .................................7
5.2 Remote Support Use Case .............................................................................................7
5.3 The Kiosk Design .........................................................................................................7
Initial Sketch.................................................................................................................7
Additional Considerations .................................................................................................8
5.4 Resources and Charges .................................................................................................8
Summary of Charges........................................................................................................9
Software Development .....................................................................................................9
Kiosk Build and Deployment charges .................................................................................. 10
Annual Support and Maintenance Charges ........................................................................... 10
6
Disclaimer and confidentiality ........................................................................................ 11
1 Introduction
Visitors to the Alton Towers can be captured on video during their visit to the park and then encouraged to
buy a DVD that contains a montage of the video clips. We understand that the system places a reliance on
stock footage with small customer sequences being spliced in.
The problem the concession holder has currently is that the DVDs are retailed manually through a shop facility
and that the operation is firstly expensive (cost of labour) and secondly restricts the number of DVDs sold.
Currently the scheme has to be restricted to a sun set of people visiting the park despite a 15% uptake rate by
eligible people.
In this document below, we outline a proposed kiosk application and attempt to put some estimates against
the development, build and deployment. The exact nature of the requirement is not fully understood and so
the estimates are provisional and based on a number of assumptions which are detailed below.
2 The Technology
At the time of writing details of the technology used for capturing and archiving the video sequences are not
fully understood. The application comprises a number of video cameras which are mounted around the park.
The video cameras are connected by a fibre optic network. From our initial discussions we understand that the
band width of this network far exceeds the requirement. A large number of computers process the video and
a central server archives the video adding some Meta data. The assumption is that this data includes the
camera location and time the video was shot.
On arriving at the park visitors are presented with an RFID wrist band that they wear throughout their stay.
This wrist band is identified when they pass the camera locations and presumably the sequence of video shot
at that time is tagged with their unique ID.
On leaving the park the customers are offered the opportunity to buy a DVD. The creation and sale of the DVD
is currently a manual process. The customer identifies themselves to the system using the RFID tag they were
given. Once the customer’s footage is located they are allowed to choose which sequences they use. Once
they have selected what they want this is burnt to a DVD.
We recommend that a technology / system architecture workshop is held to gain a full understanding of
volumes, performance, security standards and resilience that need to be factored into the design.
3 Requirements
The stated requirements from Luichart Technology are as follows:
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27” Flat screen HD display screen and separate touchscreen control.
RFID tag reader & Collection bin
Cash (Note & Coin); CC & Debit card payment receiver
Primera DP-XRP Disc Publisher with integral Colour Printer & Dispenser
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•
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Option for Photo printer
Control unit
12TB storage
Ethernet
Back up PSU 2 Hours minimum
The unit needs to present to a group of up to six people, we currently envisage a footprint permitting
five kiosks to be positioned around a column approx. diameter of 600mm.
The proposed two equipment racks will not be parallel but angled (77 degrees to each other approx.)
opening to the kiosk front and giving a “/\” foundation to support a “crescent” frontage
There is a need for a pro-active support model monitoring and applying fixes or initiating a site visit.
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4 Assumptions
The assumptions listed below have been used to assess an initial estimate of the development effort involved:
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There are a number of software components in existence that interface to the various devices and
these components have a reasonable third party API. We understand that these components exist but
at the time of writing no detailed specification has been provided.
Shere is not responsible for the distribution and management of video. The kiosk software will be
provided with an API that will return a video in a format that can be displayed to the customer and
also passed to the DVD encoder.
Card payments will be processed using the Shere hosted BMS route.
5 The Kiosk Application
5.1 Customer Use Case
The customer will arrive at the kiosk. It may be the case that the kiosk is not able to process the transaction
due to some fault (see Exception 6); otherwise the customer will identify themselves. The transaction will be
started by the customer either directly placing their tag in the tag reader bin or by touching the screen, by
doing so they will be requested to present their tag. The only means of identification will be the RFID wrist tag
that was presented to the customer on arrival at the park. As it is a requirement to capture and retain the
wrist tag the customer will be asked to place the wrist tag into the mouth of the tag bin. The kiosk will then
read the tag. If the tag is read and the video record found then the tag will be retained. If the tag cannot be
read then see Exception 1. If the record cannot be found see Exception 2.
Once the record is found the customer will be presented with their video sequences. They will be free to
browse these video clips by scrolling through them and running them at will. The reason for allowing this
editing process is that it is not always the case that the tagged video sequence will contain a shot of the
customer. Therefore they must be allowed to remove sequences that they don't want. It is anticipated that
some sort of basket will be used that the customer can drag the sequences into and arrange in their desired
order. At any point in this process the customer can abandon the transaction, see Exception 3.
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Once the customer has selected the video sequences that they wish to appear on their DVD they will be asked
for payment. The customer will be able to pay using either cash or card but not a mixture of the two. If
payment fails see exception 4. Due to the relatively long time it will take to burn the DVD, in the order of 3 – 4
minutes, the DVD burn process should be started once payment has commenced. In the case of card
transactions this will mask some of the time it takes to burn the DVD.
Once payment is successful and the DVD is being burnt a selection of video sequences from the customers
DVD will be played back. There may also be some potential for advertisements to be played during this period.
If payment succeeds then the customers DVD will be produced along with the relevant documentation. This
will include a Credit / Debit Sales Voucher and, in the case of card payment, an optional receipt. It is
anticipated that on occasion there may be a problem issuing a DVD. In this case see Exception 5.
The transaction will end successfully at this point and return automatically to the start screen.
Exception 1 – The RFID tag cannot be read
If the RFID tag cannot be read then the kiosk will offer the customer the option of representing the tag. This
will be achieved by the customer starting the transaction again. There will be no control on how many times
the customer can attempt to have the tag read. The assumption is that after a couple of attempts they will
realise that it is not working and give up. After a number of consecutive read failures it may be appropriate to
present a meaningful message.
Exception 2 – The tag is read but the record cannot be found on the system
If the tag is successfully read but the record relating to the unique ID cannot be found the customer will be
informed of the fact with an appropriate message. There will be no control over how many times the
customers attempts to locate his recording of the day.
Exception 3 – Customer abandons the transaction during the video selection process
Sometimes customers will abandon the transaction by walking away before the product is paid for. In these
situations the software will automatically return to the start screen. It is anticipated that the number of
transactions that terminate with this exception will be quite high. This is because it is expected that people will
play around with the kiosk, taking it to the point of payment.
Exception 4 – Customer payment fails
If the customer’s preferred method of payment fails then the transaction will terminate. It may be possible in
future to allow them to try again using a different method. It will be worth emphasising to the customer that
they could order the DVD over the internet, perhaps printing out their RFID code for identification at a later
date. This feature is dependent on the internet ordering side being set up.
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Exception 5 – There is a problem producing the DVD
At some point the DVD encoder may be unable to create a DVD due to a fault. In this case the receipt will
always be printed so that the customer has a proof of payment. The fact that there was a problem that meant
the customer did not get their DVD will be recorded for after sales queries. The customer can be prompted to
seek a member of staff.
Exception 6 – The kiosk has a fault that means it cannot process transactions
On occasion the kiosk will be unable to process transactions. This may be due to a fault, a jammed DVD for
example, or it may be because the printer of DVD encoder is out of stock. In these situations a clear message
will be presented on the screen, indicating the nature of the problem for local staff. The nature of the problem
will also be sent to support staff electronically.
5.2 Remote Support Use Case
Remote support will be provided by the Shere Help Desk. The kiosks will transmit a regular State of Health
messages. These messages will contain information about the various devices in the kiosk configuration. Each
kiosk will appear on the Help Desk monitor as either Red, Amber or Green. If the kiosk is listed as Red then it
will be out of action. Amber will indicate that the kiosk is running with reduced functionality but is still
processing transactions. An example may be that the cash mechanism has a fault but payment cards can still
be accepted. This will provide the information needed for the Help Desk to liaise with Shere Support Engineers
or local staff.
5.3 The Kiosk Design
Initial Sketch
The drawing shown below shows an initial sketch of how the kiosk configuration could look based on the
discussion to date. The individual kiosks would be arranged in a pentagonal configuration around a central
column which could potentially be used to store shared components such as server or storage devices.
In this sketch the large 27 inch HD Flat Screens for viewing the day’s filming are mounted above the touch
screens that are used by the customer to navigate through the recording selection and payment process. Card
and cash payment mechanisms are place to the side of the touch screen and a collection tray is positioned
below for dispensing the DVD and payment receipts.
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When Shere develops a kiosk solution for a client, we work closely with a graphical design company to take
forward initial sketches for the design and incorporate the technical and user requirements. For the
application, Shere works with a third party to produce the graphical assets taking them from the conceptual
ideas to a final design that has the client’s look and feel requirements.
Typically we use Jedco Product Designers Limited www.jedco.co.uk for the kiosk design and Palmiero Design
Limited www.palmiero-design.co.uk for the production of the graphical assets.
Additional Considerations
There are other design, business and technical considerations that will be considered at the next stage and in
the design workshops, for example:
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Sound; speakers to play music or play the sound track that will be added to the DVD
More than one DVD; the customer’s may be invited to purchase more than one DVD although
considerations for timings need to be evaluated
Attractor for device; when not in use the screens can play a series of attractors providing advertising
features to use the kiosks, demonstrators of how to use the kiosk, etc
Payment Card Processing; specific requirements to be discussed.
5.4 Resources and Charges
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Summary of Charges
The following charges are highly indicative and are based on the discussions to date with the stated
assumptions contained in this document:
Item
Quantity / Comment
Kiosk Application Design
Kiosk physical design
Business requirements gathering and solution design
Software Development
Kiosk Build and installation
Annual Support & Maintenance
Payment card processing
Palmiero Design Limited
Jedco Product Designers Limited
Shere investment
74 man days
x5 kiosks for 1 configuration
Subject to SLAs
tba
Indicative Total
Charge
£3,000
£3,000
No charge
£65,860
£98,000
£15,000
tba
£184,860
Note that all prices quoted at subject to contract and are exclusive of VAT.
Software Development
Given our current understanding of the requirement these estimates should be considered as highly indicative
and these charges may increase depending on the actual requirements or additional functionality.
Understanding what software Luichart currently have available is the key to providing a more accurate
estimate.
Item
System work with customer
Graphical User Interface
Integration of the existing Luichart APIs
Kiosk specific business logic
Back office interface
Comments
Estimate in
man days
This includes refining and documenting the
requirement to a point where the customer
can sign it off and it can be referenced in the
contract.
This includes the creating of the applications
screens, incorporation of graphical assets.
The assumption is that the Luichart will be
providing a set of device drivers with a mature
API
This covers the writing of software to handle
events that a person would do in the manned
retailing environment. An example would be
the handling of repayments should the DVD
not burn.
Extending the Shere Insight interface to
support this application.
6
Test and QA
Total
5
25
15
3
20
74
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Using a blended Shere day rate of £ 890 would indicate an estimated development charge of £65,860.
Kiosk Build and Deployment charges
The following components are required for a kiosk as shown in 5.3 above. This assumes that the kiosks will
share the storage and backup facility:
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27” Flat screen HD display screen
22" inch touch screen control
Cash and note components
RFID tag reader
Primera DP-XRP Disc Publisher with integral Colour Printer & Dispenser (sourced by client)
Photo printer
High spec PC
12TB storage device
UPS Back up PSU 2 Hours minimum
Servers x2
Kiosk and associated metalwork / wiring
Gigabit switch
Licensing - Windows CALS, SQL CALS, Anti Virus
Dameware/LanDesk
Build and test
Project management
Installation and commissioning.
Indicative one-off charges for the above are in the region of £90,000. Further discussions are required to
ensure this a complete list of components to deliver requirements.
Annual Support and Maintenance Charges
Shere provides an extensive support service that will provide remote monitoring and support. Our help desk
facility based in Guildford is staffed by first and second level support and is available for direct response to
park staff that may need assistance or wish to report a failure.
Regular preventative maintenance will be carried out at convenient times to ensure maximum reliability.
Support engineers are oncall and available to respond directly to a reported fault (either through remote
monitoring or reported by the park staff).
Service Levels can be established to meet the kiosk needs for availability and response time to failures.
Indicative annual charges for kiosk support and maintenance, including the application, are in the region of
£3,000 per individual kiosk.
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6 Disclaimer and confidentiality
The information contained in this proposal is strictly confidential and proprietary to Shere Limited (“Shere”)
and must not be disclosed to any other person by Luichart Technology (“Luichart”) or by any of its employees
without the prior written consent of Shere. Similarly, the information must not be further reproduced and
must only be used by Luichart for the purpose of evaluation of the proposal.
Luichart is permitted to disclose the information only to those of its employees and/or professional advisors
who need to have access to it and Luichart will notify such employees and/or professional advisors of the
terms of this understanding and that they may only use the information to the extent required to enable them
to carry out the evaluation. If Luichart does not accept this proposal, all copies of this document must be
returned immediately to Shere.
The proposal is prepared on the basis that it is subject to Contract.
This document has been prepared in good faith in reliance upon information provided by Luichart. Therefore,
Shere can accept no liability for any consequence arising out of reliance on any such information that proves
to be inadequate, inaccurate or incomplete. Furthermore, Shere gives no warranty or representation that any
business case of Luichart can or will be met. Shere shall have no liability to Luichart based on or relating to the
use by Luichart of any of the information contained in this proposal.
Unless otherwise stated, this proposal is indivisible and therefore it may only be accepted as a whole. This
proposal is valid for 30 days.
Shere
Shere Limited
10 Deacon Field
Guildford
GU2 8YT
Tel: 01483 557 400
Fax: 01483 557 401
Copyright in this document is the property of Shere Ltd.
If Luichart does not accept this proposal, all copies of this document must be returned immediately to Shere
Ltd.
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