Elevator button panel controller and method for providing contactless access to elevator button panels

Abstract

A method for registering a user's request for contactless access to an elevator button panel (104) is disclosed. The method includes: sensing (302) a motion of an object (108) directed toward the elevator button panel (104) by a user via a sensor (202) associated with the elevator button panel (104); determining (304) a distance (212) of the object (108) from the elevator button panel (104); comparing (306) the distance of the object (108) to a distance threshold (208) to determine whether the object (108) is within the distance threshold (208), the distance threshold indicating that the user an intention to activate a button on the elevator button panel (104); in response to determining that the distance is within the distance threshold (208), determining (308) a magnitude and direction of a speed (214) of the object (108) while in motion; and registering the user's request to activate the button when: the magnitude of the speed (214) of the object (108) is greater than a magnitude of a threshold speed (210), and the direction is a positive direction indicating that the object (108) is moving toward the button that the user intended to activate.

Description

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of elevators and, in particular, to a method for providing a user with contactless access to an elevator button panel. Furthermore, the present invention relates to an elevator button panel controller for performing the proposed method and to an elevator installation having such a button panel.

[0002] Elevators are very commonly used as a mode of transportation to get from one floor of a building to another, whether in multi-story apartments, commercial complexes, hospitals, shopping malls, restaurants, etc. However, in recent years, elevator users have become reluctant to touch surfaces such as elevator buttons and door handles due to the higher possibility of virus transmission.

[0003] Contactless or touchless elevator technologies are known that use technologies such as quick response (QR) code scanning, an application installed on the user's smartphone, or proximity sensors incorporated into the elevator buttons to detect the user and his / her gesture. However, each of the existing technologies has certain technical limitations. For example, the user may forget to bring their smartphone, or there may be connectivity issues, which may hinder access to the elevator buttons in a contactless / non-contact mode. In addition, there may be some users, such as housekeepers, delivery drivers, etc., who do not have smartphones or cannot understand the instructions and therefore cannot access the elevator buttons in a contactless / non-contact mode.

[0004] Even if a proximity sensor is incorporated into an elevator button, the proximity sensor detects the proximity of a user around the elevator button and registers a call simply based on the user's gesture. However, a technical challenge still faced when using such a sensor is that "nuisance or disruptive calls" cannot be avoided because it may happen that a user who is in proximity of an elevator button and performs a gesture may not actually intend to access the elevator button.

[0005] JP2011162307 describes an alternative method that uses contactless buttons to register destination floors, and recognizes the position of a user's hand, etc., even before button operation is recognized. The operating panel utilizes a distance measuring device that detects the distance between an object, such as a user's hand, approaching a button, and the distance between the object detected by the distance measuring device and the pressed button. Buttons with a distance below a predetermined threshold are registered.

[0006] However, in this alternative approach, only the distance of the object from the button on the operator panel is taken into account, which can still lead to "nuisance calls" because there may be more than one object within the threshold distance. Because the system is not smart enough to handle this situation, it becomes difficult to register a call to the desired elevator button.

[0007] Therefore, need a kind of technology that allows user to access elevator button in non-contact / non-touch mode by efficiently, quickly and correctly understanding user's intention.In addition, need a kind of method that only needs to provide minimum other additional hardware in elevator compared with traditional elevator.

[0008] According to one aspect of the present invention, a method for registering a user's request for contactless access to an elevator button panel is disclosed. The method includes sensing, via a sensor associated with the elevator button panel, movement of an object directed by a user toward the elevator button panel. The method also includes determining a distance of the object from the elevator button panel. The method also includes comparing the distance of the object to a distance threshold to determine whether the object is within the distance threshold, the distance threshold indicating the user's intent to activate a button on the elevator button panel. The method also includes determining a magnitude, i.e., a magnitude and direction, of a velocity of the object during the movement in response to determining that the distance is within the distance threshold. The method also includes registering the user's request to activate the button when the magnitude of the velocity of the object is greater than a threshold velocity magnitude and the direction is a positive direction indicating the object's movement toward the button that the user intends to activate.

[0009] According to another aspect of the present invention, the distance of the object from the elevator button panel is determined by measuring a time difference between a signal transmitted from the sensor and a corresponding signal received by the sensor after being reflected from the object; and the magnitude of the velocity of the object is determined based on the distance and the time difference associated with the object.

[0010] According to yet another aspect of the present invention, when it is sensed that a plurality of objects are simultaneously directed toward the elevator button panel, the method further includes: determining a plurality of distances corresponding to the plurality of objects in a manner such that each distance corresponds to each object, such that the determined plurality of distances are within the distance threshold; and selecting, from the plurality of objects, an object having the shortest distance (d) from the elevator button panel based on the determined plurality of distances.

[0011] According to yet another aspect of the present invention, the sensor includes at least one of a time-of-flight (ToF) optical sensor and an ambient light sensor packaged on a single chip, and wherein the ambient light sensor is capable of detecting ambient light within a sensing range of the sensor.

[0012] According to yet another aspect of the present invention, the method further includes providing a first notification and a second notification to the user. In response to the object crossing the distance threshold, the first notification is provided to the user regarding selection of the button that the user intended to select, and the second notification is provided to the user confirming that the elevator button panel has registered the user's request to provide contactless access to the button.

[0013] According to yet another aspect of the present invention, the first notification and / or the second notification is generated / sent in the form of at least one of an audio type notification, a visual type notification, and a combination thereof.

[0014] According to yet another aspect of the present invention, the method further includes providing the first notification as a flashing type notification and the second notification as a continuous or uninterrupted or solid type notification using a light emitting diode (LED) embedded in the elevator button panel when the first notification and the second notification are the visual type notifications.

[0015] According to yet another aspect of the present invention, an elevator button panel controller for registering a user's request to provide contactless access to an elevator button panel is disclosed. The elevator button panel controller includes a sensor associated with the elevator button panel and capable of sensing the movement of an object directed by the user toward the elevator button panel. The elevator button panel controller also includes a distance determination unit capable of determining the distance of the object from the elevator button panel. The elevator button panel controller also includes a comparison unit capable of comparing the distance of the object with a distance threshold to determine whether the object is within the distance threshold, the distance threshold indicating the user's intention to activate a button on the elevator button panel. The elevator button panel controller also includes a speed determination unit capable of determining a magnitude and direction of a speed of the object during the movement in response to determining that the distance is within the distance threshold. The elevator button panel controller also includes an output unit capable of registering the user's request to activate the button when the magnitude of the speed of the object is greater than a threshold speed and the direction is a positive direction indicating the object is moving toward the button that the user intends to activate.

[0016] According to yet another aspect of the present invention, the distance determining unit is capable of determining the distance of the object from the elevator button panel by measuring a time difference between a signal transmitted from the sensor and a corresponding signal received by the sensor after being reflected from the object, and the speed determining unit is capable of determining the magnitude of the speed of the object based on the distance associated with the object and the time difference.

[0017] According to another aspect of the present invention, when it is sensed that multiple objects are simultaneously directed toward the elevator button panel, the elevator button panel can further cause the distance determination unit to determine multiple distances corresponding to the multiple objects, with each distance corresponding to each object, so that the determined multiple distances are within the distance threshold. The elevator button panel can further cause the selection unit to select, from the multiple objects, the object having the shortest distance (d) from the elevator button panel based on the determined multiple distances.

[0018] According to yet another aspect of the present invention, the sensor includes at least one of a time-of-flight (ToF) optical sensor and an ambient light sensor packaged on a single chip, and wherein the ambient light sensor is capable of detecting ambient light within a sensing range of the sensor.

[0019] According to yet another aspect of the present invention, the output unit is further capable of providing a first notification and a second notification to the user. In response to the object crossing the distance threshold, the first notification is provided to the user regarding selection of the button that the user intended to select, and the second notification is provided to the user, confirming that the elevator button panel has registered the user's request to provide contactless access to the button.

[0020] According to yet another aspect of the present invention, the first notification and / or the second notification is generated / sent in the form of at least one of an audio type notification, a visual type notification, and a combination thereof.

[0021] According to still another aspect of the present invention, the elevator button panel controller is further capable of providing the first notification as a flashing type notification and the second notification as a continuous type notification using a light emitting diode (LED) embedded in the elevator button panel when the first notification and the second notification are the visual type notifications.

[0022] According to another aspect of the present invention, an elevator facility is described that includes an elevator button panel. The elevator button panel is communicatively coupled to an elevator button panel controller. The elevator button panel includes at least one of a car operating panel (COP) and a landing operating panel (LOP). According to embodiments of the present disclosure, the COP can be positioned inside the elevator car, while the LOP can be positioned outside the elevator car, such as in a lobby area.

[0023] The idea behind the embodiments of the present disclosure can be explained as being based on, among other things, the following observations and recognitions.

[0024] As briefly mentioned in the introduction, technical methods for registering a user's request to provide contactless access to an elevator button panel have been proposed. In such prior art methods, a sensor is used to determine the proximity of the user's hand to the button panel, and the contactless call is registered based on the user's gesture.

[0025] However, in such prior art methods, nuisance calls may occur due to the use of sensors to determine the proximity of the user's hand and to register calls based on hand gestures. Additionally, other prior art methods rely on the user to register a contactless call to an elevator button using a mobile device.

[0026] It has now been recognized that in such prior art methods, an excessive number of nuisance calls may occur. Such nuisance calls may be registered because the system is not intelligent enough to understand the user's intention.

[0027] Furthermore, other prior art methods rely on mobile devices to access elevator buttons in a contactless mode, limiting their use to people who do not have mobile devices or due to poor connectivity.

[0028] To reduce the likelihood of such "nuisance calls" and limit reliance on mobile devices for contactless access to elevator button panels, this document proposes an efficient and hassle-free technique for contactless / touchless access to elevator buttons by considering the distance and speed of an object. The object associated with the user can be their finger or any other object used by the user. Regarding distance as a factor, the distance of the object associated with the user must be within a distance threshold pre-set by the elevator button panel controller. It can be understood that the distance threshold helps the elevator button panel controller avoid analyzing other objects that are near the elevator button panel but not within its distance threshold. In other words, considering the distance factor provides a first-level filter for the elevator button panel controller when identifying objects pointing toward the elevator buttons. Furthermore, another factor considered by the elevator button panel controller is the object's speed and direction of motion. The object's speed must be greater than a pre-set threshold speed, and the object's direction of motion must be toward the elevator buttons. Thus, considering the speed factor further helps the elevator button panel controller determine the user's intention regarding the elevator button they wish to select and select that elevator button accordingly.

[0029] Thus, a call to the elevator button is registered only when an object moving toward the elevator button at a speed greater than a threshold speed crosses a distance threshold. This technique not only provides a fast and accurate prediction of the user's intention, but also avoids nuisance calls that may occur when only the proximity of objects associated with the user relative to the elevator button is considered.

[0030] In the following, embodiments of the method proposed herein will be described with respect to an example in which a user pointing an object at an elevator button panel wants to access the elevator buttons in contactless mode. An object is said to be pointing at an elevator button panel if it is moving within the sensing distance of a sensor associated with the panel.

[0031] In order to determine whether an object associated with a user is moving toward the elevator button panel, a sensor is used. The sensor is associated with each of the buttons on the elevator button panel, and when the object is within the sensing range of any of the elevator buttons, the sensor senses the object.

[0032] In one embodiment, the sensor includes a time of flight (ToF) optical sensor. In another embodiment, the sensor may include an ambient light sensor packaged together with the time of flight (ToF) optical sensor on a single chip. The ambient light sensor is capable of detecting ambient light within the sensing range of the sensor.

[0033] Furthermore, the sensor calculates the distance of the object from the elevator button panel by measuring a time difference between a signal transmitted from the sensor and a corresponding signal received by the sensor after being reflected from the object.

[0034] Furthermore, the calculated distance is compared to a predefined distance threshold to determine whether the object is within the distance threshold. This acts as a first filter. If the object associated with the user is within the distance threshold, then it is determined that the user is requesting to activate a button on the elevator button panel.

[0035] In one embodiment, a first notification is provided to the user when an object crosses a distance threshold. The first notification simply signals the user's intention to select a button. Thus, the first notification informs the user that a particular button on the elevator button panel has been selected based on the movement of an object associated with the user. Therefore, if the user did not intend to select that particular button, the user can withdraw the object and proceed accordingly. The first notification can be an audio notification, a visual notification, or a combination thereof. Furthermore, when the first notification is visual, a flashing notification can be provided using a light-emitting diode (LED) embedded in the elevator button panel.

[0036] Furthermore, once it has been determined that the user is requesting to activate a button on the elevator button panel, the method applies a second filter to reconfirm the user's intent. The second filter determines the magnitude and direction of the velocity of an object associated with the user. The magnitude of the object's velocity is determined based on the object's distance and the time difference associated with the object. Furthermore, the determination of the velocity direction asserts whether the object is moving toward the elevator button panel or moving backwards away from the elevator button panel.

[0037] In addition, a determination is made as to whether the magnitude of the object's speed is greater than a threshold speed magnitude. Based on this determination, when the magnitude of the speed is greater than the speed threshold magnitude and the direction of the speed is toward the elevator button panel, a user's request to activate the button is registered.

[0038] Furthermore, when the user's request to activate the button is registered, a second notification is provided to the user. The second notification may be an audio type notification, a visual notification, or a combination thereof. Furthermore, when the second notification is of a visual type, a continuous type notification is provided using a light emitting diode (LED) embedded in the elevator button panel. In some cases, a high brightness mode of the LED is considered a continuous type notification.

[0039] Furthermore, in one embodiment, multiple objects may be simultaneously pointing toward the elevator button panel, each within a distance threshold. Conventionally, determining the user's intention in such situations is difficult. However, the proposed invention solves this problem by selecting the object with the shortest distance from the elevator button panel from among the multiple objects.

[0040] Embodiments of the method presented herein can be implemented, executed, or controlled in an elevator button panel controller. To this end, the elevator button controller includes sensors and various processing units, such as a distance determination unit, a comparison unit, a speed determination unit, and an output unit. The proposed method can be implemented using hardware, software, or a combination of both.

[0041] It will be noted that in this document, possible features and advantages of embodiments of the present invention are described, in part, with respect to a method for registering a user's request for contactless access to an elevator button panel, in part with respect to an elevator button panel controller for executing the method, and in part with respect to an elevator facility having such a button panel. Those skilled in the art will recognize that these features can be appropriately transferred from one embodiment to another, and that these features can be modified, adjusted, combined, and / or replaced, etc., to obtain further embodiments of the present invention.

[0042] In the following, advantageous embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. However, neither the drawings nor the description should be interpreted as limiting the present invention.

[0043] Figure 1A and Figure 1B side and top views of an exemplary environment 100 of an elevator button panel controller for registering a user's request to provide the user with contactless access to an elevator button panel according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;

[0044] Figure 2 Shown is a block diagram 200 illustrating a panel controller for registering a user's request to provide the user with contactless access to an elevator button panel according to an embodiment of the present disclosure; and

[0045] Figure 3 A method 300 for registering a user's request to provide the user with contactless access to an elevator button panel is shown according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0046] The figures are schematic only and are not drawn to scale. Identical reference numerals indicate identical or similar features.

[0047] Figure 1A and Figure 1BSide and top views of an exemplary environment 100 of an elevator button panel controller (hereinafter also referred to as a "panel controller") for registering a user's request to provide the user with contactless access to an elevator button panel according to an embodiment of the present disclosure are shown. In one embodiment, the elevator button panel can be completely touchless in the form of a liquid crystal display. In another embodiment, a conventional elevator can be modified with minimal hardware to provide contactless functionality. Various technologies can be used for the interactive surface of the elevator button panel, such as capacitive touch (e.g., surface capacitance, projected capacitance, etc.), infrared grid, infrared acrylic projection, optical imaging, dispersive signal technology, and acoustic pulse recognition. Those skilled in the art will appreciate that the panel controller can be implemented in a variety of environments in addition to the environment shown in FIG. Furthermore, the exemplary environment 100 has been shown in different views (such as a side view and a top view) to provide a clearer understanding of the present invention.

[0048] Combine Figure 2 A detailed explanation of the exemplary environment 100 is provided. Figure 2 A block diagram 200 illustrates a panel controller 102 for registering a user's request to provide the user with contactless access to an elevator button panel, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. According to an embodiment, the panel controller 102 may be coupled to an elevator button panel 104 associated with an elevator in a multi-story building. The elevator button panel 104 may be a button panel located inside the elevator or a call button panel located outside the elevator. The panel controller 102 may include a sensor 202, a processing unit 204, a memory 206, and a unit 216. The memory 206 may be communicatively coupled to the processing unit 204 and the unit 216. Furthermore, the memory 206 may store a value 208 for a distance threshold D, a value 210 for a threshold speed magnitude, a determined distance 212, and a determined speed 214. The significance and use of each of these stored quantities will be explained in subsequent sections of the specification.

[0049] Furthermore, the sensor 202 may include a sensor array, such that each sensor in the sensor array is associated with a button on the elevator button panel 104. Furthermore, each sensor may include a time-of-flight (ToF) optical sensor and an ambient light sensor packaged on a single chip. A ToF optical sensor is a device that uses light to measure distance. In operation, a ToF sensor emits carefully controlled light toward objects surrounding the ToF sensor. Some of the light incident on the object is reflected to the sensor, where it is detected, processed, and compared with the emitted light. In one embodiment, the controlled light is transmitted as short pulses. In this case, the distance to the object is determined by measuring the time from transmission to reception. In another embodiment, modulated light can be used, and the phase delay of the returning light can be measured to determine the distance to the object. Each of the buttons on the elevator button panel 104 may be combined with a light-emitting diode (LED) 106 to provide the user with notifications (a first notification and a second notification) confirming the selection of an elevator button. The LED 106 may be a single LED located next to the elevator button, or it may be in the form of a strip surrounding the elevator button. In another embodiment, an organic LED (OLED) using an organic compound as an emitting electroluminescent layer can also be used to provide visual notifications. According to other embodiments of the present disclosure, the panel controller 102 can also use an audio device to provide notifications (i.e., audio type notifications), or provide notifications by using a combination of audio-visual devices (i.e., a combination of audio-visual notifications). In addition, unit 216 may include a distance determination unit 218, a comparison unit 220, a speed determination unit 222, a selection unit 224, and an output unit 226. According to embodiments of the present disclosure, these units 218-226 and the processing unit 204 may include hardware components for performing various different operations of the panel controller 102, such as processors, microprocessors, microcontrollers, and application-specific integrated circuits. It must be understood by those skilled in the art that the processing unit 204 can perform all the functions of the units 218-226 according to various embodiments of the present disclosure.

[0050] Now back to the reference Figure 1A and Figure 1B , environment 100 depicts two different embodiments of a method for providing a user with contactless access to an elevator button panel 104. Figure 1A and Figure 1BIn an exemplary embodiment shown on the left side of FIG, environment 100 depicts an object 108 near an elevator button panel 104. Object 108 can be a finger on a user's hand or palm, used by a user to access an elevator button, or an object such as a key, a stick, or a toothpick. The motion of object 108 directed toward an elevator button on elevator button panel 104 is sensed by sensor 202. To understand the user's intention to access the elevator button, distance determination unit 218 determines the distance of object 108 from the elevator button on elevator button panel 104. Furthermore, regardless of the type of object, the distance to the object is determined from the geometric center of object 108.

[0051] As from Figure 1A and Figure 1B As can be seen, the distance of object 108 is determined from the elevator button corresponding to "Floor 5" when object 108 is within the sensing range of the sensor associated with the elevator button corresponding to Floor 5. The distance of object 108 is determined based on a time-of-flight technique, i.e., by calculating the time (time difference) it takes for an optical signal to strike object 108 and return to sensor 202 after striking object 108. This time is then multiplied by the speed of the optical signal to determine the distance of object 108.

[0052] Once the distance 212 of the object 108 is determined, in the next step, the comparison unit 220 compares the determined distance 212 with the distance threshold D 208 pre-stored in the memory 206 of the panel controller 102. As discussed above, the determination that the distance of the object is within the distance threshold D 208 helps the panel controller 102 select the corresponding elevator button (in this case, "Floor 5") on the elevator button panel 104. Upon confirming that the distance of the object 108 is within the distance threshold D 208, the panel controller 102 immediately provides a flashing notification (as a first visual notification) to the user via the LED 106. Thus, the flashing notification can ascertain the user's intention to access the elevator button corresponding to Floor 5. According to other embodiments of the present disclosure, the first visual notification can be provided by changing the color of the LED, for example, "green" indicating selected and "red" indicating unselected, to ascertain the user's request to access the elevator button.

[0053] However, at this stage, providing contactless access to the elevator button corresponding to floor 5 may not be considered final, as the flashing notification merely indicates to the user that, based on the position of the object 108 associated with the user, the user appears to want to access the elevator button corresponding to floor 5. Therefore, this also provides the user with the opportunity to modify the position of the object 108 associated with the user to point to the correct elevator button, if necessary. This step thus allows avoiding any nuisance calls that might otherwise be registered due to an incorrect position of the object 108 associated with the user.

[0054] Once it is determined that the user actually wants to access the elevator button corresponding to floor 5, the speed determination unit 222 determines the magnitude and direction of the object 108's speed during its movement. The determined magnitude of the object's speed 214 is compared with the magnitude of the threshold speed 210 pre-stored in the memory 206 of the panel controller 102. Here, the magnitude of the threshold speed 210 refers to a predefined threshold speed. Furthermore, based on the determined direction of the object's speed, it is determined whether the object 108 is moving toward or away from the elevator button corresponding to floor 5. If the determined magnitude of the object's speed 214 is greater than the magnitude of the threshold speed 210 and the direction of the object's speed is toward the elevator button corresponding to floor 5, the output unit 224 provides the user with a bold-type notification (as a second visual-type notification) via the LED 106, confirming that the call to the elevator button corresponding to floor 5 has been registered, thereby providing contactless access to the elevator button panel 104. According to other embodiments of the present disclosure, a second notification in the form of a visual type notification may be provided by changing the color of an LED, for example, changing the color from green (indicating the first notification) to "yellow" indicating that the user's request to activate the button has been registered. It will be appreciated by those skilled in the art that the first notification and the second notification may also be provided as a combination of visual and audio type notifications, or vice versa. For example, when the distance of the object is detected to be within the distance threshold, a visual type notification (first notification) may be provided by changing the color of the LED corresponding to "Floor 5" to "green", followed by an audio type notification (second notification) that "your request for Floor 5 has been registered".

[0055] In another exemplary embodiment, Figure 1A and Figure 1BAs shown on the right side of FIG1 , it may happen that the user intentionally or unintentionally points multiple objects 110a, 110b, and 110c at the elevator button panel 104, causing different objects to enter the sensing range of different elevator buttons at the same time. For example, as shown on the right side of FIG1 , objects 110a and 110b are within the sensing range of the elevator button corresponding to floor 5, while object 110c is also partially within the sensing range of the elevator button corresponding to floor 6. In addition, the distance of each of the objects (110a, 110b, and 110c) is within the distance threshold D 208. In such a scenario, it may become difficult to understand the user's intention in a conventional manner. However, the panel controller 102 of the present disclosure is robust enough to understand this situation and, with the help of the selection unit 224, ultimately selects the object 110b having the shortest distance d from the elevator button panel 104, thereby understanding that the user intends to register a call to the elevator button corresponding to floor 5 rather than floor 6.

[0056] Furthermore, to register a call to the elevator button corresponding to floor 5, the panel controller 102 determines the magnitude and direction of the object 110b's speed as it moves, using the speed determination unit 222. The panel controller 102 compares the determined magnitude of the object 110b's speed 214 with the speed threshold 210 pre-stored in the memory 206 of the elevator button panel controller 102. A determination is then made as to whether the object 110b is moving toward or away from the elevator button corresponding to floor 5. If the determined magnitude of the object 110b's speed 214 is greater than the threshold speed 210 and the speed direction of the object 108 is toward the elevator button corresponding to floor 5, the output unit 226 provides a bold type notification to the user via the LED 106, confirming that the call to the elevator button corresponding to floor 5 has been registered, thereby providing contactless access to the elevator button panel 104.

[0057] Figure 3 Depicted is a method 300 for registering a user's request to provide the user with contactless access to an elevator button panel, according to an embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0058] like Figure 3 As illustrated in FIG, method 300 includes one or more blocks illustrating a method for registering a user's request to provide the user with contactless access to an elevator button panel. Method 300 can be described in the general context of computer-executable instructions. Generally, computer-executable instructions can include routines, programs, objects, components, data structures, procedures, modules, and functions that perform specific functions or implement specific abstract data types.

[0059] The order in which method 300 is described is not intended to be construed as limiting, and any number of the described method blocks can be combined in any order to implement the method. Additionally, individual blocks may be deleted from the method without departing from the spirit and scope of the subject matter described herein.

[0060] At block 302 , the method 300 may include sensing, by the sensor 202 associated with the elevator button panel 104 , a motion of an object 108 directed by a user toward the elevator button panel 104 .

[0061] At block 304, the method 300 may include determining a distance 212 corresponding to the object 108 from the elevator button panel 104. The distance of the object 108 is determined based on a time-of-flight technique, i.e., by calculating the time it takes for an optical signal to strike the object 108 and return to the sensor 202 after striking the object 108. The time taken is then multiplied by the speed of the optical signal to determine the distance of the object 108.

[0062] At block 306 , the method 300 may include comparing the distance 212 of the object 108 to the distance threshold 208 to determine whether the object 108 is within the distance threshold 208 indicating a user's intent to access a button on the elevator button panel 104 .

[0063] At block 308 , the method 300 may include determining a magnitude and direction of the velocity 214 of the object 108 while the object is in motion.

[0064] At block 310 , method 300 may include registering a user's request to activate a button when the magnitude of velocity 214 of object 108 is determined to be greater than the magnitude of threshold velocity 210 and the determined direction is a positive direction indicating object 108 moving toward a button the user intended to select.

[0065] The description of an embodiment with several components in communication with each other does not imply that all of these components are required. On the contrary, various optional components are described to illustrate the wide variety of possible embodiments of the invention.

[0066] When a single device or article is described herein, it is apparent that more than one device / article (whether or not they cooperate) may be used in place of a single device / article. Similarly, where more than one device or article is described herein (whether or not they cooperate), it is apparent that a single such / article may be used in place of more than one device or article, or a different number of devices / articles may be used rather than the number of devices or programs shown. The functions and / or features of a device may alternatively be embodied by one or more other devices that are not explicitly described as having such functions / features. Therefore, other embodiments of the present invention need not include the device itself.

[0067] Finally, the language used in the specification is primarily selected for readability and instructional purposes and may not be selected to describe or limit the subject matter of the present invention. Therefore, it is intended that the scope of the present invention be limited not by this specific embodiment, but by any claims issued upon application herein. Therefore, the embodiments of the present invention are intended to be illustrative and not to limit the scope of the invention set forth in the appended claims.

[0068] Although the various aspects and embodiments described herein relate to elevators, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that various aspects of the present disclosure may also be applied in combination with other types of conveying or transportation devices, such as elevators, escalators, moving walkways, wheelchair lifts, etc. The various aspects and embodiments described herein are for purposes of illustration and are not intended to be limiting, with the true scope and spirit being indicated by the following claims.

Claims

1. A method for registering a user's request to provide contactless access to an elevator button panel (104), the method comprising: sensing (302) motion of an object directed by a user toward the elevator button panel (104) via a sensor (202) associated with the elevator button panel (104); determining a distance (212) of the object (108) from the elevator button panel (104); comparing (306) the distance of the object (108) to a distance threshold (208) to determine whether the object (108) is within the distance threshold (208), the distance threshold indicating the user's intent to activate a button on the elevator button panel (104); In response to determining that the distance is within the distance threshold (208), determining a magnitude and direction of a velocity (214) of the object (108) while in motion; The user's request to activate the button is registered when: The magnitude of the velocity (214) of the object (108) is greater than the magnitude of a threshold velocity (210), and The direction is a positive direction indicating movement of the object (108) toward the button that the user intends to activate.

2. The method according to claim 1, wherein: determining the distance of the object (108) from the elevator button panel (104) by measuring a time difference between a signal transmitted from the sensor (202) and a corresponding signal received by the sensor (202) after reflection from the object (108); and The magnitude of the velocity (214) of the object (108) is determined based on the distance associated with the object (108) and the time difference.

3. The method according to claim 1 or 2, further comprising, when sensing that a plurality of objects (110a, 110b, 110c) are simultaneously directed toward the elevator button panel (104), determining a plurality of distances corresponding to the plurality of objects (110a, 110a, 110c) in a manner such that each distance corresponds to each object, and wherein the determined plurality of distances are within the distance threshold (208); and Based on the determined plurality of distances, an object (110b) having the shortest distance (d) from the elevator button panel (104) is selected from among the plurality of objects (110a, 110b, 110c).

4. The method according to claim 1 or 2, wherein: The sensor (202) includes at least one of a time-of-flight (ToF) optical sensor and an ambient light sensor packaged on a single chip, and wherein the ambient light sensor is capable of detecting ambient light within a sensing range of the sensor (202).

5. The method of claim 1 , further comprising providing a first notification and a second notification to the user, wherein the first notification is provided to the user regarding selection of the button that the user intended to select in response to the object (108) crossing the distance threshold, and wherein the second notification is provided to the user confirming that the elevator button panel (104) has registered the user's request to provide contactless access to the button.

6. The method according to claim 5, wherein: The first notification and / or the second notification is generated / sent in the form of at least one of an audio type notification, a visual type notification, and a combination thereof.

7. The method of claim 6, further comprising providing the first notification as a flashing type notification and the second notification as a continuous type notification using a light emitting diode (LED) (106) embedded in the elevator button panel (104) when the first notification and the second notification are the visual type notifications.

8. An elevator button panel controller (102) for registering a user's request to provide contactless access to an elevator button panel (104), the elevator button panel controller (102) comprising: a sensor (202) associated with the elevator button panel (104) and capable of sensing motion of an object (108) directed by a user toward the elevator button panel (104); a distance determination unit (218) capable of determining a distance (212) between the object (108) and the elevator button panel (104); a comparison unit (220) capable of comparing the distance of the object (108) to a distance threshold (208) to determine whether the object is within the distance threshold (208), the distance threshold indicating the user's intention to activate a button on the elevator button panel (104); a velocity determination unit (222) capable of determining a magnitude and direction of a velocity (214) of the object (108) while in motion in response to determining that the distance is within the distance threshold (208); as well as An output unit (226) capable of registering a request by the user to activate the button when: the magnitude of the velocity (214) of the object (108) is greater than the magnitude of a threshold velocity (210), and The direction is a positive direction indicating movement of the object (108) toward the button that the user intends to activate.

9. The elevator button panel controller (102) according to claim 8, wherein: The distance determination unit (218) is capable of determining the distance of the object (108) from the elevator button panel by measuring a time difference between a signal transmitted from the sensor (202) and a corresponding signal received by the sensor (202) after being reflected from the object (108); and The speed determination unit (222) is capable of determining a magnitude of the speed (214) of the object (108) based on the distance associated with the object (108) and the time difference.

10. The elevator button panel controller (102) according to claim 8, when sensing that a plurality of objects (110a, 110b, 110c) are simultaneously directed toward the elevator button panel (104), the elevator button panel controller is further capable of: The distance determination unit (218) determines a plurality of distances corresponding to the plurality of objects (110a, 110b, 110c) in a manner that each distance corresponds to each object, and wherein the determined plurality of distances are within the distance threshold (208); and A selection unit (224) selects an object (110b) having the shortest distance (d) from the elevator button panel (104) among the plurality of objects (110a, 110b, 110c) based on the determined plurality of distances.

11. The elevator button panel controller (102) according to claim 8, wherein The sensor (202) includes at least one of a time-of-flight (ToF) optical sensor and an ambient light sensor packaged on a single chip, and wherein the ambient light sensor is capable of detecting ambient light within a sensing range of the sensor (202).

12. The elevator button panel controller (102) according to claim 8, wherein The output unit (226) is further capable of providing a first notification and a second notification to the user, wherein the first notification is provided to the user regarding selection of the button that the user intended to select in response to the object crossing the distance threshold, and wherein the second notification is provided to the user confirming that the elevator button panel (104) has registered the user's request to provide contactless access to the button.

13. The elevator button panel controller (102) according to claim 12, wherein: The first notification and / or the second notification is generated / sent in the form of at least one of an audio type notification, a visual type notification, and a combination thereof.

14. The elevator button panel controller (102) of claim 13, further capable of providing the first notification as a flashing type notification and the second notification as a continuous type notification using a light emitting diode (LED) (106) embedded in the elevator button panel (104) when the first notification and the second notification are the visual type notifications.

15. An elevator installation having an elevator button panel (104) communicatively coupled to an elevator button panel controller (102) according to claims 8 to 14, wherein the elevator button panel (104) comprises at least one of a car operating panel (COP) and a landing operating panel (LOP).

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