Boeing invents a self-cleaning airline lavatory

Good news for airline passengers who get the heebie-jeebies when they walk into an airline lavatory: Boeing has invented a self-cleaning bathroom.

The prototype announced by the aircraft manufacturer uses ultraviolet light that is triggered when the bathroom is unoccupied to kill germs in just three seconds.

“In the prototype, we position the lights throughout the lavatory so that it floods the touch surfaces like the toilet seat, sink and countertops with the UV light once a person exits the lavatory, “ said Jeanne Yu, Boeing’s director of environmental performances for commercial planes.

The design uses a hands-free faucets, soap dispenser, trash lid and hand dryer, plus a toilet seat that lifts itself so that all the surfaces are exposed to the UV rays.

Boeing said it has filed a patent for the design and plans further study before it can be offered to airlines.

To read more about travel, tourism and the airline industry, follow me on Twitter at @hugomartin.

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