Baltimore Ike Kiosks
The City of Baltimore and Downtown Partnership of Baltimore have worked with IKE (short for “Interactive Kiosk Experience”) Smart City for digital way-finding kiosks throughout Downtown Baltimore. IKE kiosks are deployed currently at 16 locations in the public right-of-way, connecting pedestrians with valuable information like event promotion, interactive maps, social service information and even free Wifi!
Art of Baltimore highlights up to 15 local artists on the entire kiosk network for 15 weeks! That’s three artists a month showcased to thousands of people everyday; June through September.
Ike Key Features
The IKE platform hosts a suite of applications designed to drive locals and visitors to nearby businesses, make transit information readily available, promote events and activities, display social service information, and provide free Wi-Fi.
Each IKE has a double-sided post-pandemic numbers. digital display with apps offering an array of uses like helping pedestrians discover nearby attractions and parks and providing them with multi-modal directions to destinations within the area. Information about public events or public safety can be pushed to the kiosks in real-time, this proved particularly useful in relaying important safety information during the Covid-19 pandemic.
Safety & Emergency Communications
Built in security cameras, an emergency messaging system and increased lighting make each Ike Kiosks a safety hub as well as informational one.
Wifi & Cellular Functionality
Free public wifi so you are always connected downtown.
Data & Analytics
Usage data, pedestrian counting and pedestrian patterns. DPOB uses this broad information to understand who is downtown and when. This helps us better formulate downtown events, understand pedestrian patterns during road closures and see the most popular areas of our city for pedestrians.
Fun Fact: Via BreezoMeter, Ike Kiosks can monitor air pollution.
Wayfinding
Encourages 21st century way-finding, eliminating the need for outdated and expensive static street signs. One touch interactive mapping can help you find food, activities, landmarks and local businesses.
Fun Fact: Each kiosk features an up to date schedule for local transportation.
Multi-Lingual Functionality
Baltimore is a beautifully blended city! Kiosks are available in English, Spanish, French, German, Korean, Japanese, Italian, Somali, Bosnian, Portuguese, and Arabic.
City & Community
Downtown Partnership manages community advertising space and kiosk content, working with City agencies and local non-profits to share the free space and to incorporate their content and initiatives onto the kiosks.
Art of Baltimore
Downtown Partnership, in conjunction with IKE Smart City, Maryland Art Place, and Bromo Arts District, launched Art of Baltimore in response to the Covid-19 pandemic. This campaign displayed works by local artists on the the IKE kiosks, cross promoted them on DPOB social media, and paid them for the usage of their work, so they could have extra cash in hand to help combat any immediate, pandemic-related financial hardships incurred. The response to this campaign was overwhelmingly positive and it will be making a return in May of 2023.
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