Remote status monitoring system for elevator fans

Abstract

The present invention proposes a remote status monitoring system for an elevator fan, wherein the fan is used to cool designated equipment in the elevator. The remote status monitoring system includes: a control device, which applies a control reference value to the fan to drive the fan to rotate, thereby obtaining a speed reference value of the fan under the control reference value; a transmission and processing device, wherein at least one of the control reference value and the speed reference value can be selected as a key performance indicator of the status of the fan; the transmission and processing device is capable of receiving and processing the key performance indicator of the status to obtain status data of the fan, and then is capable of sending the status data to a remote server for status monitoring analysis, thereby providing technicians with maintenance operation suggestions related to fan replacement before a functional failure occurs or before a user notices a performance problem.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of elevators or escalators, and in particular to a remote status monitoring system and method for a fan of an elevator or escalator. Background Art

[0002] Cloud connectivity in the new generation of drives enables remote condition monitoring for Condition-Based Maintenance (CBM). This invention uses this technology to remotely monitor the condition of fans (e.g., cooling fans) in elevators or escalators. This method can be used in products using the KDX drive series.

[0003] Early solutions were based on fan speed monitoring limits. If the fan speed fell below the specified monitoring limit, an alarm / warning would be issued. At the next maintenance visit, a fan fault code would be observed, initiating fan replacement. If the fan reached the end of its service life before the next maintenance visit, the drive would issue an overtemperature warning and limit elevator performance (ED%). In the worst-case scenario, the drive would trip to an overtemperature fault for protection, causing an undesirable rapid stop. Summary of the Invention

[0004] Drive cooling fans have a limited lifespan and will likely need to be replaced before the drive reaches the end of its lifespan. Using the method proposed in the present invention, preventive maintenance can be performed based on a fan condition key performance indicator (cKPI), which indicates when the drive cooling fan is experiencing reduced performance and / or deterioration.

[0005] To this end, on the one hand, the present invention proposes a remote status monitoring system for an elevator fan, wherein the fan is used to cool designated equipment in the elevator, and the remote status monitoring system includes: a control device, which applies a control reference value to the fan to drive the fan to rotate, thereby obtaining a speed reference value of the fan under the control reference value; a transmission and processing device, wherein at least one of the control reference value and the speed reference value can be selected as a key performance indicator of the status of the fan, and the transmission and processing device is capable of receiving and processing the key performance indicator of the status to obtain status data of the fan, and then is capable of sending the status data to a remote server for status monitoring analysis, thereby providing technicians with maintenance operation suggestions related to fan replacement before a functional failure occurs or before a user notices a performance problem.

[0006] According to a preferred embodiment, the control reference value is a voltage value applied to the fan.

[0007] According to a preferred embodiment, the control reference value is a voltage value modulated by a pulse width modulation (PWM) technique.

[0008] According to a preferred embodiment, the remote status monitoring system also includes a temperature sensor (NTC, such as a negative temperature coefficient type thermistor) for obtaining the temperature of a specified device; when the temperature obtained from the temperature sensor is less than a first threshold value, the controller is capable of turning off the fan and stopping the fan status monitoring operation; when the temperature obtained from the temperature sensor is greater than the first threshold value and less than a second threshold value (the second threshold value is greater than the first threshold value), the controller is capable of starting the status monitoring operation and determining a suitable control reference value based on the difference between the measured temperature and the first threshold value and a predetermined coefficient; when the temperature obtained from the temperature sensor is greater than the second threshold value, the controller is capable of applying a maximum control reference value to the fan.

[0009] Condition monitoring tests can be performed periodically, for example daily, when the elevator is idle (e.g. at night) and specified equipment in the elevator does not require active cooling using fans, without the need for temperature measurements.

[0010] According to a preferred embodiment, before applying the control reference value, the control device is capable of controlling the fan to perform an initialization procedure to drive the fan to first reach a rated speed and give an audible indication of effective operation.

[0011] According to a preferred embodiment, in case the control reference is constant, the speed reference is considered as the state key performance indicator.

[0012] According to a preferred embodiment, the control reference is a PWM output with a substantially constant duty cycle.

[0013] According to a preferred embodiment, in case the speed reference is constant, the control reference is considered as a state key performance indicator.

[0014] According to a preferred embodiment, the remote server is a cloud server or a local server.

[0015] According to a preferred embodiment, the transmission and processing device comprises one or more of the following: a serial interface, a diagnostic framework software, an electrified central processing unit.

[0016] According to a preferred embodiment, the fan in the elevator is one of the following: an elevator car ventilation system fan, an elevator motor fan, an elevator inverter fan, an elevator drive fan, an escalator motor fan, an escalator inverter fan, and an escalator drive fan.

[0017] On the other hand, the present invention further provides an elevator, comprising the remote status monitoring system described above.

[0018] On the other hand, the present invention provides a remote status monitoring method for a fan of an elevator, wherein the fan is used to cool designated equipment in the elevator, and the remote status monitoring method includes: applying a control reference value to the fan through a control device to drive the fan to rotate, thereby obtaining a speed reference value of the fan under the control reference value; selecting at least one of the control reference value and the speed reference value as a key performance indicator of the status of the fan, receiving and processing the key performance indicator of the status through a transmission and processing device to obtain status data of the fan; and then sending the status data to a remote server through the transmission and processing device for status monitoring and analysis, thereby providing technicians with maintenance operation suggestions related to fan replacement before a functional failure occurs or before a user notices a performance problem.

[0019] According to a preferred embodiment, the control reference value is a voltage value applied to the fan.

[0020] According to a preferred embodiment, the control reference value is a voltage value modulated by a pulse width modulation (PWM) technique.

[0021] According to a preferred embodiment, the remote status monitoring method also includes obtaining the temperature of a specified device through a temperature sensor; when the temperature obtained from the temperature sensor is less than a first threshold value, the controller is capable of turning off the fan and stopping the fan status monitoring operation; when the temperature obtained from the temperature sensor is greater than the first threshold value and less than a second threshold value (the second threshold value is greater than the first threshold value), the controller is capable of starting the status monitoring operation and is capable of determining a suitable control reference value based on the difference between the measured temperature and the first threshold value and a predetermined coefficient; when the temperature obtained from the temperature sensor is greater than the second threshold value, the controller is capable of applying a maximum control reference value to the fan.

[0022] According to a preferred embodiment, before applying the control reference value, the control device controls the fan to perform an initialization procedure to drive the fan to reach the rated speed first, and gives an audible indication of effective operation.

[0023] According to a preferred embodiment, in case the control reference is constant, the speed reference is considered as the state key performance indicator.

[0024] According to a preferred embodiment, the control reference is a PWM output with a substantially constant duty cycle.

[0025] According to a preferred embodiment, in case the speed reference is constant, the control reference is considered as a state key performance indicator. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0026] The above and other features and advantages of the present invention will become more apparent from the following detailed description taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, which are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the scope of the present invention in any way, wherein:

[0027] Figure 1 A schematic diagram showing a process of remote status monitoring of a cooling fan;

[0028] Figure 2 A typical cooling fan speed vs. voltage curve diagram is shown. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0029] The foregoing and other technical contents, features, and technical effects of the present invention are clearly presented in the following detailed description of the embodiments with reference to the accompanying drawings. The following description contains various specific details to facilitate understanding, but these details should be considered merely exemplary. In addition, descriptions of well-known functions and structures may be omitted for the sake of clarity and brevity.

[0030] Throughout the specification and claims of this application document, the word "comprise" and variations mean "including but not limited to", and are not intended to exclude other parts, wholes or steps. It should be understood that the singular forms "a", "an" and "the" include plural references unless the context clearly stipulates otherwise. In the present invention, the expression "or" includes any or all combinations of the words listed together. In addition, although expressions such as "first" and "second" may be used to describe the various elements of the present invention, they are not intended to limit the corresponding elements. The above expressions are not intended to limit the order or importance of the corresponding elements. The above expressions are used to distinguish one component from another, and without departing from the scope of the present invention, "first element" can be written as "second element", and similarly, "second element" can be written as "first element".

[0031] The principle of the remote status monitoring system for an elevator fan proposed by the present invention will be described below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0032] After the control software is powered on, the cooling fan has an initialization sequence. First, the cooling fan starts up to rated speed to remove dust and give an audible indication of efficient operation. After this, the fan is given a 50% PWM reference value (this is just an example value, other values ​​that rotate the fan in a known manner are possible) and the resulting fan speed (as a percentage of rated speed) after the transient is averaged and sampled. Figure 1 .

[0033] In one embodiment, the fan does not have speed control, but the control method used is feed-forward, i.e., no speed feedback of the cooling fan is utilized, so that when the control reference value (e.g., 50% PWM voltage to the cooling fan) is kept constant, the additional friction caused by worn ball bearings or dust, etc., causes the resulting actual speed of the cooling fan to decrease. Therefore, this deviation in the resulting speed over time is indicative of the cooling fan status and performance level.

[0034] For example, the averaged cooling fan speed at 50% of the PWM reference value is used as a condition key performance indicator (cKPI). This is transmitted to the KONE Controller and Electrification Central Processing Unit (KCECPU) via the KONE Drive Serial Interface (KDSI) using the Diagnostics Framework (DF) routine for KPI transmission. The DF processes the incoming cKPI samples and transmits them to the cloud for data analysis (condition diagnosis and prognosis, as well as service requirement creation processes). This allows technicians to receive maintenance action recommendations related to cooling fan replacement before functional failure occurs.

[0035] Therefore, in the case where the control reference is constant, the speed reference is considered as the state key performance indicator.

[0036] Figure 1 In the controller flow shown, if the temperature is below 40 degrees Celsius, fan monitoring is turned off. If the temperature is between 40 and 59 degrees Celsius, then: calculate the error value (measured temperature minus the target value (40 degrees Celsius)) and multiply the error value by a coefficient (0.05) to obtain the appropriate control value for voltage control; turn on the fan; and turn on fan monitoring. If the temperature is above 59 degrees Celsius, then: set the fan voltage to maximum (100% PWM).

[0037] Another embodiment is a cooling fan with speed control. 50% of the nominal fan speed (just an example value) is given as a speed reference value, and after the actual speed stabilizes to 50% of the nominal value, the resulting control reference value (PWM voltage) is averaged / filtered and sampled as a state key performance indicator (cKPI) named "Cooling fan control force at 50% speed".

[0038] Therefore, in case the speed reference is constant, the control reference is considered as the state KPI.

[0039] Typical cooling fan speed and voltage curves are as follows: Figure 2 shown.

[0040] The Diagnostic Framework (DF) described above is software that runs in the elevator controller, but it can also run in a separate or separate controller or computer. Generally speaking, the controller receives and samples fan speed signals (Example 1) or fan voltage (Example 2), processes the signals (storing, filtering, averaging, etc.), calculates status data, and sends the status data to a remote (cloud or local) server for preventative condition monitoring analysis. Based on this analysis, maintenance actions (immediate service call, part replacement at the next service visit, survey at the next service visit, etc.) are initiated.

[0041] The proposed method enables remote monitoring of the drive cooling fan status, providing analytical data for when to replace the fan before a functional failure occurs or a user notices a performance issue. This method can be applied to KONE KDX drive products.

[0042] The condition monitoring analysis proposed by the present invention may also provide information about the schedule of future maintenance visits.

[0043] Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the above-described systems and methods may be widely applicable to elevator car ventilation system fans, elevator motor fans, elevator inverter / drive fans, escalator motor fans, and escalator inverter / drive fans.

[0044] The foregoing description is merely an exemplary embodiment of the present invention and is not intended to limit the scope of protection of the present invention, which is determined by the appended claims. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that changes and modifications may be made to the various embodiments described herein without departing from the scope of the present invention as defined by the appended claims. Furthermore, descriptions of well-known functions and configurations may be omitted for clarity and brevity.

[0045] Finally, it should also be understood that certain technical features in the embodiments may not be necessary for solving specific technical problems, and thus these technical features may be absent or omitted without affecting the solution of the technical problem or the formation of a technical solution; moreover, the features, elements and / or functions of one embodiment may be appropriately combined, coupled or coordinated with the features, elements and / or functions of one or more other embodiments, unless the combination, coupling or coordination is obviously not feasible.

Claims

1. A remote status monitoring system for an elevator fan, wherein the fan is used to cool designated equipment in the elevator, the remote status monitoring system comprising: a control device for applying a control reference value to the fan to drive the fan to rotate, thereby obtaining a speed reference value of the fan under the control reference value; a transmission and processing device, wherein at least one of the control reference value and the speed reference value can be selected as a key performance indicator of the status of the fan, the transmission and processing device can receive and process the key performance indicator to obtain status data of the fan, and then can send the status data to a remote server for status monitoring and analysis, thereby providing technicians with maintenance operation suggestions related to fan replacement before functional failure occurs or before users notice performance problems, Among them, when the control reference value is constant, the speed reference value is regarded as the state key performance indicator, Among them, when the speed reference value is constant, the control reference value is regarded as the state key performance indicator.

2. The remote status monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein: The control reference value is a voltage value applied to the fan.

3. The remote status monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein: The control reference value is a value of a voltage modulated by a pulse width modulation (PWM) technique.

4. The remote status monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein: The remote status monitoring system further includes a temperature sensor for obtaining the temperature of a designated device; When the temperature obtained from the temperature sensor is less than a first threshold, the controller can turn off the fan and stop the fan status monitoring operation; When the temperature obtained from the temperature sensor is greater than a first threshold and less than a second threshold (the second threshold being greater than the first threshold), the controller is capable of initiating a state monitoring operation and determining an appropriate control reference value based on a difference between the measured temperature and the first threshold and a predetermined coefficient; When the temperature obtained from the temperature sensor is greater than a second threshold, the controller can apply a maximum control reference value to the fan.

5. The remote status monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein: Before applying the control reference value, the control device can control the fan to perform an initialization procedure to drive the fan to reach the rated speed first and give an audible indication of effective operation.

6. The remote status monitoring system according to claim 1, wherein: The control reference is a PWM output having a substantially constant duty cycle.

7. The remote status monitoring system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein: The remote server is a cloud server or a local server.

8. The remote status monitoring system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein: The transmission and processing device includes one or more of the following: a serial interface, a diagnostic framework software, and an electrified central processing unit.

9. The remote status monitoring system according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein: The fan in the elevator is one of the following: an elevator car ventilation system fan, an elevator motor fan, an elevator inverter fan, an elevator drive fan, an escalator motor fan, an escalator inverter fan, and an escalator drive fan.

10. An elevator comprising the remote status monitoring system according to any one of claims 1 to 9.

11. A method for remotely monitoring the status of a fan in an elevator, wherein the fan is used to cool a designated device in the elevator, the method comprising: Applying a control reference value to the fan through a control device to drive the fan to rotate, thereby obtaining a speed reference value of the fan under the control reference value; selecting at least one of the control reference value and the speed reference value as a key performance indicator of the state of the fan, and receiving and processing the key performance indicator of the state by a transmission and processing device to obtain state data of the fan; The status data is then sent to a remote server through a transmission and processing device for status monitoring and analysis, thereby providing technicians with maintenance operation suggestions related to fan replacement before functional failures occur or before users notice performance problems. Among them, when the control reference value is constant, the speed reference value is regarded as the state key performance indicator, Among them, when the speed reference value is constant, the control reference value is regarded as the state key performance indicator.

12. The remote status monitoring method according to claim 11, wherein: The control reference value is a voltage value applied to the fan.

13. The remote status monitoring method according to claim 11, wherein: The control reference value is a value of a voltage modulated by a pulse width modulation (PWM) technique.

14. The remote status monitoring method according to any one of claims 11 to 13, wherein: The remote status monitoring method further includes obtaining the temperature of the designated device via a temperature sensor; When the temperature obtained from the temperature sensor is less than a first threshold, the controller can turn off the fan and stop the fan status monitoring operation; When the temperature obtained from the temperature sensor is greater than a first threshold and less than a second threshold (the second threshold being greater than the first threshold), the controller is capable of initiating a state monitoring operation and determining an appropriate control reference value based on a difference between the measured temperature and the first threshold and a predetermined coefficient; When the temperature obtained from the temperature sensor is greater than a second threshold, the controller can apply a maximum control reference value to the fan.

15. The remote status monitoring method according to any one of claims 11 to 13, wherein: Before applying the control reference value, the control device controls the fan to perform an initialization procedure to drive the fan to reach the rated speed first, and gives an audible indication of effective operation.

16. The remote status monitoring method according to claim 13, wherein: The control reference is a PWM output having a substantially constant duty cycle.

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