Detecting maintenance personnel arrival at a maintenance site

Abstract

The invention relates to a method for detecting arrival of a maintenance person (120) to a maintenance site (140, 140a-140d). The method comprises scanning (310) radio emissions from radio devices located within radio range of a mobile terminal device (110) carried by the maintenance person (120); detecting (320), in the scanned radio emissions, at least one radio emission from at least one radio node (130) arranged to the maintenance site (140, 140a-140d) for which the maintenance person (120) has at least one open maintenance order; and generating (330) at least one first control signal to a remote monitoring unit (150), the first control signal comprising information indicative of the detection of the arrival of the maintenance person (120) to the maintenance site (140, 140a-140d). The invention also relates to a detection system (100), a mobile terminal device (110), a computer program (525) and a tangible non-transitory computer readable medium for detecting arrival of a maintenance person (120) to a maintenance site (140, 140a-140d).

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention generally relates to the technical field of maintenance. In particular, this invention relates to the maintenance of personnel conveying systems and / or automatic door systems. Background Technology

[0002] Typically, remote monitoring units, such as service centers, can continuously, i.e., 24 / 7, receive information from one or more maintenance stations (e.g., personnel transport systems, such as elevator systems, escalator systems, and / or pedestrian walkways; and / or automatic door systems). For example, the remote monitoring unit can receive fault codes from one or more maintenance stations and generate maintenance commands for, for example, maintenance personnel based on the received fault codes. During, for example, a normal maintenance visit performed by maintenance personnel, one or more maintenance operations may cause the remote elevator monitoring unit to generate one or more unnecessary fault codes. These unnecessary fault codes, in turn, lead to the generation of unnecessary maintenance commands. Therefore, unnecessary fault codes may reduce the accuracy of generated maintenance commands and increase unnecessary maintenance visits.

[0003] Therefore, solutions need to be developed to at least partially improve the service accuracy of personnel conveying systems or automatic door systems. Summary of the Invention

[0004] To provide a basic understanding of some aspects of various embodiments of the invention, a simplified overview is given below. This overview is not a comprehensive summary of the invention. It is neither intended to identify key or essential elements of the invention nor to depict its scope. The following overview merely presents some concepts of the invention in a simplified form as a prelude to a more detailed description of exemplary embodiments of the invention.

[0005] The purpose of this invention is to provide a method, detection system, mobile terminal device, computer program, and computer-readable medium for detecting the arrival of maintenance personnel at a maintenance site. Another purpose of this invention is to improve the accuracy of maintenance at maintenance sites by providing the same method, detection system, mobile terminal device, computer program, and computer-readable medium.

[0006] The object of the present invention is achieved by the method, detection system, mobile terminal device, computer program and computer-readable medium as defined by the respective independent claims.

[0007] According to a first aspect, a method for detecting the arrival of maintenance personnel at a maintenance site is provided, wherein the method includes: scanning radio emissions from radio devices located within the radio range of a mobile terminal device carried by the maintenance personnel; detecting at least one radio emission from at least one radio node deployed at the maintenance site where the maintenance personnel have at least one open maintenance command among the scanned radio emissions; and generating at least one first control signal to a remote monitoring unit in response to detecting at least one radio emission, the first control signal including information indicating that the arrival of maintenance personnel at the maintenance site has been detected.

[0008] Detecting at least one radio transmission from at least one radio node deployed to a maintenance site may include detecting at least one radio transmission that includes identification information of the maintenance personnel for the maintenance site for which they have at least one open maintenance command.

[0009] The method may also include generating instructions for maintenance personnel to arrive at the maintenance site via a mobile terminal device.

[0010] At least one first control signal may further include instructions to ignore subsequent fault codes from the maintenance site and / or prevent one or more open maintenance commands from shutting down the maintenance site.

[0011] The method may further include: after generating at least a first control signal, continuing to scan for radio emissions within the radio range of a mobile terminal device carried by maintenance personnel, detecting the termination of radio emissions from at least one radio node deployed to the maintenance site, and generating at least one second control signal, the second control signal including information indicating that the maintenance personnel have left the maintenance site for a remote monitoring unit.

[0012] The method may also include applying a delay before generating at least one second control signal.

[0013] Alternatively or additionally, at least one second control signal may further include an instruction to terminate ignoring subsequent fault codes from the maintenance site.

[0014] Radio transmissions from at least one radio node may be based on at least one short-range radio technology.

[0015] Maintenance stations can be personnel conveyor systems or automatic door systems.

[0016] According to a second aspect, a detection system is provided for detecting the arrival of maintenance personnel at a maintenance site, wherein the detection system includes: a mobile terminal device carried by the maintenance personnel, at least one radio node deployed at the maintenance site, and a remote monitoring unit communicatively connected to the mobile terminal device, wherein the mobile terminal device is configured to: scan for radio emissions from radio devices located within the radio range of the mobile terminal device; detect at least one radio emission from at least one radio node deployed at the maintenance site in the scanned radio emissions, for which the maintenance personnel have at least one open maintenance command; and, in response to detecting at least one radio emission, generate at least one first control signal to the remote monitoring unit, the first control signal including information indicating that the arrival of maintenance personnel at the maintenance site has been detected.

[0017] Detection of at least one radio transmission from at least one radio node deployed to a maintenance site may include a mobile terminal device that can be configured to detect at least one radio transmission, which includes identification information of a maintenance personnel for a maintenance site for which they have at least one open maintenance command.

[0018] Mobile terminal devices can also be configured to generate instructions for maintenance personnel to arrive at maintenance sites.

[0019] At least one first control signal may further include instructions to ignore subsequent fault codes from the maintenance site and / or prevent one or more open maintenance commands from shutting down the maintenance site.

[0020] The mobile terminal device can also be configured to: after generating at least a first control signal, continue scanning radio emissions within the radio range of the mobile terminal device, detect the termination of radio emissions from at least one radio node deployed to the maintenance site, and generate at least one second control signal, the second control signal including information indicating that maintenance personnel have left the maintenance site for a remote monitoring unit.

[0021] The mobile terminal device can also be configured to apply a delay before generating at least one second control signal.

[0022] Alternatively or additionally, at least one second control signal may further include an instruction to terminate ignoring subsequent fault codes from the maintenance site.

[0023] Radio transmissions from at least one radio node may be based on at least one short-range radio technology.

[0024] Maintenance stations can be personnel conveyor systems or automatic door systems.

[0025] According to a third aspect, a mobile terminal device for detecting the arrival of maintenance personnel at a maintenance site is provided, wherein the mobile terminal device includes: a processing unit and a storage unit including computer program code, wherein the storage unit and the computer program code are configured together with the processing unit to cause the mobile terminal device to at least: scan for radio emissions from radio devices located within the radio range of the mobile terminal device; detect, among the scanned radio emissions, at least one radio emission from at least one radio node deployed to the maintenance site, for which the maintenance personnel have at least one open maintenance command; and, in response to detecting at least one radio emission, generate at least one first control signal to a remote monitoring unit, the first control signal including information indicating that the arrival of maintenance personnel at the maintenance site has been detected.

[0026] According to a fourth aspect, a computer program is provided, wherein the computer program includes instructions that, when executed by a mobile terminal device as described above, cause the mobile terminal device to perform the method as described above.

[0027] According to the fifth aspect, a tangible non-volatile computer-readable medium is provided, wherein the tangible non-volatile computer-readable medium includes the computer program as described above.

[0028] Various exemplary and non-limiting embodiments of the invention with respect to structure and operation methods, as well as their additional objects and advantages, will be best understood from the following description of specific exemplary and non-limiting embodiments when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings.

[0029] The verbs “comprising” and “including” are used herein as limitations on disclosure, neither excluding nor requiring the presence of any uncited features. Unless otherwise expressly stated, the features described in the dependent claims may be freely combined with each other. Furthermore, it should be understood that the use of “a” or “an” throughout this document, i.e., the singular form, does not exclude the plural. Attached Figure Description

[0030] In the accompanying drawings, embodiments of the invention are shown by way of example rather than limitation.

[0031] Figure 1 An example of a detection system according to the present invention is shown schematically.

[0032] Figures 2A-2D An example of a maintenance site according to the present invention is illustrated schematically.

[0033] Figure 3 An example of the method according to the invention is illustrated schematically.

[0034] Figure 4 Another example of the method according to the invention is illustrated schematically.

[0035] Figure 5 An example of a component of a mobile terminal device according to the present invention is shown schematically. Detailed Implementation

[0036] Figure 1 An example of a detection system 100 according to the present invention for detecting the arrival of maintenance personnel 120 at maintenance station 140 is illustrated. The detection system 100 according to the present invention includes a mobile terminal device 110 carried by the maintenance personnel 120, at least one radio node 130 disposed at the maintenance station 140, and a remote monitoring unit 150. The maintenance station 140 may be a personnel transport system 140a-140c as described herein or an automatic door system 140d. The personnel transport system 140a-140c may be an elevator system 140a, an escalator system 140b, or a mobile walking system 140c. The remote monitoring unit 150 may receive fault codes from the maintenance stations 140, 140a-140d, and generate maintenance commands, such as service requests, to, for example, the maintenance personnel 120 based on the received fault codes.

[0037] The mobile terminal device 110 carried by maintenance personnel 120 may be, for example, a mobile phone or a tablet computer. The mobile terminal device 110 of the detection system 100 according to the invention may include a communication interface unit 530, which provides an interface for communicating with any other unit (e.g., at least one radio node 130 deployed to maintenance site 140); one or more other radio devices, such as other mobile terminal devices; a remote monitoring system 150; and / or any other unit. The communication interface unit 530 of the mobile terminal device 110 carried by maintenance personnel 120 may include one or more communication devices, such as at least one radio transceiver, at least one antenna, etc. Communication between the mobile terminal device 110 and at least one radio node 130 deployed to maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d, and / or communication between the mobile terminal device 110 and one or more other radio devices may be based on at least one short-range radio technology. At least one short-range radio technology may include, for example, but not limited to, Bluetooth, wireless local area network (WLAN), and / or Zigbee. Mobile terminal device 110 can be configured to receive and transmit radio transmissions to at least one radio node 130 located at maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d, and / or receive and transmit radio transmissions to other radio devices (e.g., mobile terminal devices carried by users other than maintenance personnel 120). Communication between mobile terminal device 110 and remote monitoring unit 150 can be based on one or more known wireless communication technologies.

[0038] At least one radio node 130 of the detection system 100 according to the present invention may include a communication interface unit for providing an interface for communication with any other unit (e.g., a mobile device 110 carried by maintenance personnel 120); one or more other radio devices, such as other mobile terminal devices; and / or any other unit. The communication interface unit of at least one radio node 130 may include one or more communication devices, such as at least one radio transceiver, at least one antenna, etc. Communication between at least one radio node 130 deployed to maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d and the mobile device 110 carried by maintenance personnel 120, and / or communication between at least one radio node 130 deployed to maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d and one or more other radio devices may be based on at least one short-range radio technology. At least one short-range radio technology may include, for example, but not limited to, Bluetooth, wireless local area network (WLAN), and / or Zigbee. At least one node device 130 may be configured to receive and transmit radio transmissions to and from mobile devices 110 carried by maintenance personnel 120 and / or from other wireless devices (e.g., mobile terminal devices carried by users other than maintenance personnel 120). At least one radio node 130 of the detection system 100 according to the invention may be deployed at maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d, specifically for detecting the arrival of maintenance personnel 120 at maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d. Alternatively or additionally, at least one radio node 130 may already exist at maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d, and may also be used for one or more other purposes at maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d in addition to detecting the arrival of maintenance personnel 120 at maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d.

[0039] Figures 2A-2D Examples of maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d according to the present invention are illustrated schematically. Figure 2A In the example, maintenance station 140 is elevator system 140a. Elevator system 140a may include at least one elevator car 202, which is configured to travel along at least one elevator shaft 204 between a plurality of floors 206a-206n and an elevator control system (e.g., elevator control unit 205). Figure 2AExample elevator system 140a includes one elevator car 202 traveling along an elevator shaft 204; however, elevator system 140a may also include a group of elevators, i.e., a group of two or more elevator cars 202, each elevator car traveling along a separate elevator shaft 204, the elevator shaft 204 being configured as a unit operation serving the same floors 206a-206n. Elevator control system 205 may be configured to at least partially control the operation of elevator system 140a. Elevator control system 205 may be located, for example, in a machine room (for clarity, in...). Figure 2A (The machine room is not shown) or one of the floors 206a-206n of the elevator system 140a.

[0040] Elevator system 140a may also include user interface devices 208, 210a-210n, 212, which enable users (such as passengers and / or maintenance personnel) to interact with elevator system 140a. User interface devices 208, 210a-210n, 212 may include, for example, a car operation panel 208 disposed inside each elevator car 202, floor call panels 210a-210n disposed to each landing 206a-206n, and at least one maintenance panel 212 (e.g., a check drive station, maintenance access panel (MAP), test and emergency panel, and / or any other maintenance or inspection-related panel) for providing one or more maintenance, test, inspection, and / or emergency operations of elevator system 140a. Figure 2A The example shows a maintenance panel 212 of elevator system 140a, but elevator system 140a may further include one or more other maintenance panels 212. Figure 2A An example maintenance panel 212 of the elevator system 140a is disposed inside the pit of the elevator shaft 204. Alternatively or additionally, one or more maintenance panels 212 may be disposed in at least one elevator car 202, inside the machine room, one or more landings 206a-206n, and / or any other location within the elevator system 140a. At least one maintenance panel 212 should be accessible only to authorized personnel. User interface devices 208, 210a-210n, 212 may include input devices, such as buttons, keyboards, touchscreens, etc., for requesting services from the elevator system 140a, i.e., for interacting with at least one user. The requested services may, for example, refer to requesting transportation from the elevator system 140a, requesting to open / close elevator doors (car doors and / or landing doors), requesting communication connections to a service center, indicating an emergency, etc. In addition, user interface devices 208, 210a-110n, 212 may include one or more output devices, such as displays, speakers, touchscreens, etc., for outputting information. Elevator system 140a may also include one or more other known elevator-related entities, such as hoisting systems, safety circuits and equipment, elevator door systems, etc. (for clarity, in...) Figure 2A (Not shown in the text).

[0041] When maintenance station 140 is elevator system 140a, example locations of at least one radio node 130 are discussed below. At least one radio node 130 may be arranged, for example, at at least one elevator car 202, such as on the roof of at least one elevator car 202; at least one maintenance panel 212; the car operation panel 208 of elevator car 202; at least one landing call device 210a-210n; and / or any other location in elevator system 140a. For example, if elevator system 140a includes one or more wireless elevator call buttons or call stations, at least one of the one or more wireless elevator call buttons or call stations may include at least one radio node 130. Figure 2A The image shows some non-limiting examples of arranging at least one radio node 130 to an elevator system 140a. Figure 2A An example elevator system 140a includes a radio node 130 disposed to at least one elevator car 202 (e.g., on the roof of the elevator car 202) and a radio node 130 disposed to a maintenance panel 212. As described above, Figure 2A Only some non-limiting examples of at least one radio node 130 of elevator system 140a are shown, but the detection system 100 according to the invention may include any other number of radio nodes 130 arranged at any location of elevator system 140a.

[0042] exist Figure 2B In the example, maintenance station 140 is escalator system 140b. Escalator system 140b may include a transport entity 220 and an escalator control system (e.g., escalator control unit 225), the transport entity 220 including steps arranged on a circular track. Escalator control system 225 may be configured to control the operation of escalator system 140b. Escalator control system 225 may, for example, be arranged on one of platforms 222, 224 of escalator system 140b. Figure 2B In the example, the escalator control system 225 is arranged on the first platform of the escalator system 140b, namely the top platform 222. Alternatively, the escalator control system 225 may be arranged on the second platform of the escalator system 140b, namely the bottom platform 224. The escalator system 140b may further include one or more other known escalator-related entities, such as drive machines, etc. (for clarity, in...) Figure 2B(Not shown in the diagram). When maintenance station 140 is the escalator system 140b, example locations of at least one radio node 130 are discussed next. At least one radio node 130 may be arranged, for example, at the escalator control system 225, the first platform 222, the second platform 224, and / or any other location of the escalator system 140b. Figure 2B The image shows a non-limiting example of arranging at least one radio node 130 to an escalator system 140b. Figure 2B The example escalator system 140b includes a radio node 130 disposed on a top platform 222 near the escalator control system 225 and a radio node 130 disposed on a bottom platform 224 of the escalator system 140b. As described above, Figure 2B Only one non-limiting example of at least one radio node 130 of the escalator system 140b is shown, but the detection system 100 according to the invention may include any other number of radio nodes 130 arranged at any location of the escalator system 140b.

[0043] exist Figure 2C In the example, maintenance station 140 is a mobile walking system 140c. The mobile walking system 140c may include a transport entity 230 and a mobile walking control system (e.g., a mobile walking control unit 235). The transport entity 230 includes treads arranged to a circular track. The mobile walking control system 235 may be configured to control the operation of the mobile walking system 140c. The mobile walking control system 235 may, for example, be arranged to one of the platforms 232, 234 of the mobile walking system 140c. Figure 2C In the example, the mobile walking control system 235 is positioned on the first platform of the mobile walking system 140c, namely the top platform 232. Alternatively, the mobile walking control system 235 may be positioned on the second platform of the mobile walking system 140c, namely the bottom platform 234. Figure 2C In the example, the mobile walking system 140c is an inclined mobile walking system, i.e., a mobile walking system configured to transport people or goods on an inclined plane (e.g., between two floors). However, the mobile walking system 140c according to the invention can also be a horizontal mobile walking system, i.e., a mobile walking system configured to transport people or goods on a horizontal plane. The mobile walking system 140c may further include one or more other known mobile walking-related entities, such as drive machines, etc. (for clarity, in...) Figure 2C(Not shown in the text). When maintenance station 140 is the mobile walking system 140c, example locations of at least one radio node 130 are discussed next. At least one radio node 130 can be deployed, for example, to the mobile walking control system 235, the first platform 232, the second platform 234, and / or any other location of the mobile walking system 140c. Figure 2C The image shows a non-limiting example of deploying at least one radio node 130 into a mobile walking system 140c. Figure 2C The example mobile pedestrian system 140c includes a radio node 130 disposed on a top platform 232 near an escalator control system 235, and a radio node 130 disposed on a bottom platform 234. As described above, Figure 2C Only one non-limiting example of at least one radio node 130 of the mobile walking system 140c is shown, but the detection system 100 according to the invention may include any other number of radio nodes 130 arranged at any location of the mobile walking system 140c.

[0044] exist Figure 2D In the example, maintenance station 140 is an automatic door system 140d. Automatic door system 140d may include at least one automatic door 240 and a door control system (e.g., door control unit 245). Door control system 245 may be configured to control the operation of at least one automatic door 240, such as opening and / or closing. At least one automatic door 240 may be an elevator car door, a building door, or a door of a gate device (e.g., a safety gate or a rotary gate). In other words, automatic door system 140d may be, for example, a building door system or a gate system. Figure 2D In the example, automatic door 240 is a building door. Automatic door system 140d may also include at least one user interface device 242, which enables users (e.g., passengers and / or maintenance personnel) to interact with automatic door system 140d. At least one user interface device 242 of automatic door system 140d may be used, for example, for access control via automatic door 240. Automatic door system 140d may further include one or more other known automatic door-related entities, such as drive mechanisms, etc. (for clarity, in...) Figure 2D (Not shown in the text). When maintenance station 140 is the automatic door system 140d, example locations of at least one radio node 130 are discussed next. At least one radio node 130 can be arranged, for example, at any other location of the door control system 245, at least one automatic door 240, at least one user interface device 242, and / or the automatic door system 140d. Figure 2D The image shows a non-limiting example of arranging at least one radio node 130 to an automatic door system 140d. Figure 2D The example automatic door system 140d includes a radio node 130 arranged to a door control system 245. As described above, Figure 2D Only one non-limiting example of at least one radio node 130 of the automatic door system 140d is shown, but the detection system 100 according to the invention may include any other number of radio nodes 130 arranged at any location in the automatic door system 140d.

[0045] Now, through reference Figure 3 To describe at least some aspects of the invention, in Figure 3 The diagram schematically illustrates an example of a method for detecting the arrival of maintenance personnel 120 at maintenance stations 140, 140a-140d, wherein maintenance station 140 may be a personnel transport system 140a-140c as described above, such as elevator system 140a, escalator system 140b, or mobile pedestrian system 140c, or automatic door system 140d. The expression "maintenance personnel 120 arrives at maintenance stations 140, 140a-140d" in the context of this application means that maintenance personnel 120 arrives at the area surrounding maintenance stations 140, 140a-140d, which may include one or more entities of maintenance stations 140, 140a-140d.

[0046] In step 310, the mobile terminal device 110 carried by maintenance personnel 120 scans (i.e., observes) radio transmissions from radio devices located within the radio range (i.e., radio coverage area) of the mobile terminal device 110 carried by maintenance personnel 120. The mobile terminal device 110 is capable of receiving radio transmissions from radio devices, for example, receiving radio transmissions from at least one radio node 130 arranged at maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d, and / or other mobile terminal devices within its radio range. The term radio range refers to the area within which the communication interface unit 530 of the mobile terminal device 110 can receive radio transmissions from radio devices. By arranging multiple radio nodes 130 at different locations on maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d, the radio nodes 130 can cover a larger (i.e., wider) portion of maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d, which further improves the accuracy of the mobile terminal device 110 receiving radio transmissions from the radio nodes 130. Radio transmissions from wireless devices (e.g., at least one radio node 130 deployed to maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d) may be based on at least one short-range radio technology, such as Bluetooth, WLAN and / or Zigbee.

[0047] In step 320, the mobile terminal device 110 carried by maintenance personnel 120 detects at least one radio transmission from at least one radio node 130 deployed to maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d in a scanned radio transmission, for which maintenance personnel 120 has at least one initiation maintenance command. Detecting at least one radio transmission from at least one radio node 130 deployed to maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d in step 320 may include detecting at least one radio transmission that includes identification information of maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d, for which maintenance personnel 120 has at least one initiation maintenance command. In other words, the detected at least one radio transmission may include identification information of maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d, for which maintenance personnel 120 has at least one initiation maintenance command. The at least one initiation maintenance command assigned to maintenance personnel 120 may be stored in the mobile terminal device 110 carried by maintenance personnel 120, for example, in the storage unit 520 of the mobile terminal device 110. As described above, the mobile terminal device 110 can receive at least one initiation maintenance command from the remote monitoring unit 150. Each of the at least one initiation maintenance command may include maintenance information, including, but not limited to, identification information of maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d and / or received fault codes. Radio transmissions from each radio node 130 deployed to maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d may include at least the identification information of maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d. The identification information of maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d may include, for example, the equipment number of maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d and / or the equipment number of one or more entities of maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d. The identification information of maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d may be included, for example, in the payload of the radio transmission. In addition to maintaining the identification information of stations 140, 140a-140d, radio transmissions from each radio node 130 may include an identifier (ID) assigned to (i.e., dedicated to) the radio node 130, such as a Bluetooth address (BD_ADDR) or a Media Access Control (MAC) address. The ID assigned to the radio node 130 may depend on the short-range radio technology used.

[0048] In step 330, in response to detecting at least one radio transmission from at least one radio node 130 deployed to maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d for which maintenance personnel 120 have an open maintenance command, the mobile terminal device 110 generates at least one first control signal to the remote monitoring unit 150. The at least one first control signal may include information indicating that at least one maintenance personnel 120 has been detected arriving at maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d. This implements a general and simple method for detecting the arrival of at least one maintenance personnel 120 at maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d. In other words, the scanned radio transmissions may include at least one radio transmission from at least one radio node 130 deployed to maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d for which maintenance personnel 120 have at least one open maintenance command, and / or at least one radio transmission from at least one radio node 130 deployed to maintenance site 140 for which maintenance personnel 120 do not have at least one open maintenance command. However, at least one first control signal to the remote monitoring unit 150 is generated only in response to the detection of at least one radio transmission from at least one radio node 130 of at least one maintenance site 140, 140a-140d, which is deployed to maintenance personnel 120 for which at least one open maintenance command is given. The remote monitoring unit 150 may be located in the field, i.e., at maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d, or not in the field, i.e., outside of maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d, such as a cloud server-based remote monitoring unit, such as... Figure 1 As shown in the example. The remote monitoring unit 150 can be, for example, a cloud server, service center, maintenance center, or data center. The mobile terminal device 110 and the remote monitoring unit 150 are communicatively connected to each other. Communication between the mobile terminal device 110 and the remote monitoring unit 150 can be based on one or more known wireless communication technologies.

[0049] In response to the detection in step 320 of at least one radio transmission from at least one radio node 130 deployed to at least one maintenance site 140, 140a-140d for which maintenance personnel 120 has an open maintenance command, mobile terminal device 110 may further generate an indication that maintenance personnel 120 has arrived at maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d. In other words, mobile terminal device 110 may be configured to generate an indication, such as a visual and / or auditory indication, that maintenance personnel 120 has arrived at the correct maintenance site 140, 140a-140d for which maintenance personnel 120 has at least one open maintenance command. The indication may be generated via one or more input / output (I / O) devices of the user interface (UI) unit 540 of mobile terminal device 110. The generation of the instruction can be performed after detection step 320 or after step 330, i.e., after generating at least one first control signal to the remote monitoring unit 150.

[0050] In response to receiving at least one first control signal from mobile terminal device 110, remote monitoring unit 150 may ignore, i.e., omit, subsequent fault codes from maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d. Alternatively or additionally, at least one first control signal may further include instructions for remote monitoring unit 150 to ignore subsequent fault codes from maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d. Ignoring may include, for example, remote monitoring unit 150 not generating a maintenance command in response to receiving subsequent fault codes from maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d. This ensures that unnecessary (i.e., incorrect) fault codes resulting from one or more maintenance-related operations performed by maintenance personnel 120 during maintenance visits to maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d do not cause remote monitoring unit 150 to generate unnecessary (i.e., incorrect) maintenance commands. This, in turn, can improve the accuracy of generated maintenance commands and reduce unnecessary maintenance visits. Alternatively or additionally, at least one first control signal may further include an instruction for the remote monitoring unit 150 to prevent the closure of one or more open maintenance commands for the maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d. This prevention may include, for example, in response to receiving one or more recovery instructions from the maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d, the remote monitoring unit 150 not closing the open maintenance commands for the maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d. This ensures that incorrect recovery instructions resulting from one or more maintenance-related operations performed by maintenance personnel 120 during maintenance access to the maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d do not lead to the remote monitoring unit 150 incorrectly closing one or more open maintenance commands for the maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d.

[0051] Figure 4 An example embodiment of the method according to the present invention is illustrated schematically. After generating at least a first control signal to the remote monitoring unit 150 in step 410 and step 330, the mobile terminal device 110 may continue to scan for radio transmissions within its radio range.

[0052] In step 420, the mobile terminal device 110 can detect the end of radio transmission from at least one radio node 130 deployed to maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d, and the maintenance personnel 120 has at least one "Open Maintenance" command for maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d upon arrival. In other words, the mobile terminal device 110 can detect that at least one radio transmission from at least one radio node 130 deployed to maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d is no longer detected in the scanned radio transmissions, and the maintenance personnel 120 has at least one "Open Maintenance" command for maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d upon arrival. In response to user input received from the maintenance personnel 120, the mobile terminal device 110 can disable at least one maintenance command after one or more maintenance operations are completed at maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d. Therefore, after one or more maintenance operations are completed at maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d, at least one maintenance command may no longer need to be enabled. The mobile terminal device 110 can also generate a shutdown instruction to the remote monitoring unit 150 to indicate the shutdown of at least one maintenance command.

[0053] In step 430, in response to the detection of the end of radio transmission from at least one radio node deployed to maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d, the mobile terminal device 110 may generate at least one second control signal to the remote monitoring unit 150, indicating that maintenance personnel 120 has at least one "Open Maintenance" command for maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d upon their arrival. The at least one second control signal may include information indicating that maintenance personnel 120 has left maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d. The mobile terminal device 110 may apply a delay before generating the at least one second control signal. If no radio transmission is detected from at least one radio node deployed to maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d that maintenance personnel 120 has at least one "Open Maintenance" command for upon their arrival during the delay period, the mobile terminal device 110 may generate at least one second control signal to the remote monitoring unit 150 to notify maintenance personnel 120 that they have left maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d. On the other hand, if at least one radio transmission is detected during the delay from at least one radio node deployed to at least one maintenance site 140, 140a-140d that has at least one open maintenance command when maintenance personnel 120 arrives, the mobile terminal device 110 does not generate at least one second control signal to the remote monitoring unit 150. This indicates that maintenance personnel 120 has not actually left maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d. Conversely, visibility, i.e., connection to or reception from said at least one radio node 130, may have been lost at least temporarily. By applying the delay, the mobile terminal device 110 can ensure, i.e., confirm, that maintenance personnel 120 has actually left maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d.

[0054] In response to receiving at least one second control signal from the mobile terminal device 110, the remote monitoring unit 150 may terminate ignoring subsequent fault codes from the maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d. Alternatively or additionally, the at least one second control signal may further include an instruction from the remote monitoring unit 150 to terminate ignoring subsequent fault codes from the maintenance sites 140, 140a-140d.

[0055] Figure 5An example of components of a mobile terminal device 110 according to the present invention is illustrated schematically. The mobile terminal device 110 may include a processing unit 510 containing one or more processors, a storage unit 520 containing one or more memories, a communication interface unit 530 containing one or more communication devices, and possibly a user interface (UI) unit 540. The aforementioned components may be communicatively connected to each other, for example, via an internal bus. The storage unit 520 may store and maintain portions of a computer program (code) 525 and any other data. The computer program 525 may include instructions that, when executed by the processing unit 510 of the mobile terminal device 110, cause the processing unit 510 and thus the mobile terminal device 110 to perform desired tasks, such as operation of the mobile terminal device 110 and / or at least some of the aforementioned method steps. Therefore, the processing unit 510 may be arranged to access the storage unit 520 and retrieve and store any information therefrom. For clarity, the term "processor" here refers to any unit suitable for processing information and controlling the operation of the mobile terminal device 110 and other tasks. Operation may also be implemented using a microcontroller solution with embedded software. Similarly, storage unit 520 is not limited to a specific type of memory, but any type of memory suitable for storing the described multiple pieces of information can be applied in the context of this invention. Communication interface unit 530 provides an interface for communicating with any external unit, such as remote monitoring unit 150, at least one node device 130, one or more wireless devices, one or more databases, and / or any other external unit described. Communication interface unit 530 can be based on one or more known wireless communication technologies to exchange multiple pieces of information. Communication interface unit 530 may include one or more communication devices, such as at least one radio transceiver, at least one antenna, etc. User interface unit 540 may include one or more input / output (I / O) devices, such as buttons, keyboards, touchscreens, microphones, speakers, displays, etc., for receiving user input and output information. Computer program 525 may be a computer program product, which may be contained in a tangible, non-volatile (non-transitory) computer-readable medium carrying embedded computer program code 525 for use with a computer (i.e., mobile terminal device 110).

[0056] The specific examples provided in the description above should not be construed as limiting the applicability and / or interpretation of the appended claims. Unless otherwise expressly stated, the list and groups of examples provided in the description above are not exhaustive.

Claims

1. A method for detecting the arrival of maintenance personnel (120) at maintenance stations (140, 140a-140d), the method comprising: Scan (310) for radio transmissions from a wireless device located within the radio range of a mobile terminal device (110) carried by the maintenance personnel (120). Detect (320) at least one radio transmission from at least one radio node (130) in the scanned radio transmissions, said at least one radio node being deployed to the maintenance site (140, 140a-140d), said maintenance personnel (120) having at least one open maintenance command for said maintenance site, and In response to the detection of the at least one radio transmission, at least one first control signal is generated (330) to the remote monitoring unit (150), the first control signal including information indicating that the maintenance personnel (120) have arrived at the maintenance site (140, 140a-140d). The at least one first control signal further includes an instruction to ignore subsequent fault codes from the maintenance sites (140, 140a-140d) and / or to prevent one or more open maintenance commands from shutting down the maintenance sites (140, 140a-140d).

2. The method of claim 1, wherein detecting at least one radio transmission from at least one radio node (130) arranged to the maintenance site (140, 140a-140c) comprises detecting at least one radio transmission, the at least one radio transmission comprising identification information of the maintenance personnel (120) for the maintenance site (140, 140a-140c) for which they have at least one open maintenance command.

3. The method according to any one of the preceding claims further includes generating an instruction for the maintenance personnel (120) to arrive at the maintenance site (140, 140a-140d) via the mobile terminal device (110).

4. The method according to claim 1, further comprising: After generating at least one first control signal, the scanning (410) continues to scan the radio transmissions within the radio range of the mobile terminal device (110) carried by the maintenance personnel (120). The detection (420) detects the termination of radio transmissions from at least one radio node (130) of a maintenance station (140, 140a-140d) to which the maintenance personnel (120) have at least one open maintenance command upon the arrival of the maintenance personnel (120), and Generate (430) at least one second control signal, the second control signal including information indicating that the maintenance personnel (120) have left the maintenance site (140, 140a-140d) to the remote monitoring unit (150).

5. The method of claim 4, further comprising applying a delay before generating the at least one second control signal.

6. The method of claim 4 or 5, wherein the at least one second control signal further includes an instruction to terminate ignoring subsequent fault codes from the maintenance stations (140, 140a-140d).

7. The method of claim 1, wherein the radio transmissions from the at least one radio node (130) are based on at least one short-range radio technology.

8. The method according to claim 1, wherein the maintenance station (140, 140a-140d) is a personnel conveying system (140a-140c) or an automatic door system (140d).

9. A detection system (100) for detecting the arrival of maintenance personnel (120) at maintenance stations (140, 140a-140d), said detection system (100) comprising: The mobile terminal device (110) is carried by the maintenance personnel (120). At least one radio node (130) is deployed to the maintenance sites (140, 140a-140d), and The remote monitoring unit (150) is communicatively connected to the mobile terminal device (110). The mobile terminal device (110) is configured as follows: Scan for radio emissions from a wireless device located within the radio range of the mobile terminal device (110). Detect (320) at least one radio transmission from the at least one radio node (130) deployed at the maintenance site (140, 140a-140d) in the scanned radio transmissions, and the maintenance personnel (120) having at least one open maintenance command for the maintenance site, and In response to the detection of the at least one radio transmission, at least one first control signal is generated (330) to the remote monitoring unit (150), the first control signal including information indicating that the arrival of the maintenance personnel (120) at the maintenance site (140, 140a-140d) has been detected. The at least one first control signal further includes an instruction to ignore subsequent fault codes from the maintenance sites (140, 140a-140d) and / or to prevent one or more open maintenance commands from shutting down the maintenance sites (140, 140a-140d).

10. The detection system (100) of claim 9, wherein detection of at least one radio transmission from at least one radio node (130) deployed to the maintenance site (140, 140a-140c) comprises: The mobile terminal device (110) is configured to detect at least one radio transmission, the at least one radio transmission including the identification information of the maintenance personnel (120) for a maintenance site (140, 140a-140c) for which they have at least one open maintenance command.

11. The detection system (100) according to claim 9 or 10, wherein the mobile terminal device (110) is further configured to enable the maintenance personnel (120) to generate an instruction to arrive at the maintenance site (140, 140a-140d).

12. The detection system (100) according to claim 9, wherein the mobile terminal device (110) is further configured to: After generating at least one first control signal, the scanning of radio emissions within the radio range of the mobile terminal device (110) continues. The detection extends from the deployment of the maintenance personnel (120) to the termination of radio transmissions of at least one radio node (130) of a maintenance site (140, 140a-140d) for which at least one open maintenance command is issued upon the arrival of the maintenance personnel (120). Generate at least one second control signal, the second control signal including information indicating that the maintenance personnel (120) have left the maintenance site (140, 140a-140d) to the remote monitoring unit (150).

13. The detection system (100) of claim 12, wherein the mobile terminal device (110) is further configured to apply a delay before generating the at least one second control signal.

14. The detection system (100) according to claim 12 or 13, wherein the at least one second control signal further includes an instruction to terminate ignoring subsequent fault codes from the maintenance stations (140, 140a-140d).

15. The detection system (100) according to claim 9, wherein the radio transmissions from the at least one radio node (130) are based on at least one short-range radio technology.

16. The detection system (100) according to claim 9, wherein the maintenance station (140, 140a-140d) is a personnel conveying system (140a-140c) or an automatic door system (140d).

17. A mobile terminal device (110) for detecting the arrival of maintenance personnel (120) at maintenance stations (140, 140a-140d), said mobile terminal device (110) comprising: Processing unit (510), and A storage unit (520) includes a computer program product (525), wherein the storage unit (520) and the computer program product (525) are configured together with the processing unit (510) to cause the mobile terminal device (110) to at least: Scan for radio emissions from a wireless device located within the radio range of the mobile terminal device (110). At least one radio transmission from at least one radio node (130) is detected in the scanned radio transmissions, the at least one radio node being deployed to the maintenance site (140, 140a-140d), and the maintenance personnel (120) have at least one open maintenance command for the maintenance site, and In response to the detection of the at least one radio transmission, at least one first control signal is generated to the remote monitoring unit (150), the first control signal including information indicating that the maintenance personnel (120) have arrived at the maintenance site (140, 140a-140d). The at least one first control signal further includes an instruction to ignore subsequent fault codes from the maintenance sites (140, 140a-140d) and / or to prevent one or more open maintenance commands from shutting down the maintenance sites (140, 140a-140d).

18. A computer program product (525) comprising instructions that, when executed by a mobile terminal device (110) according to claim 17, cause the mobile terminal device (110) to perform the method according to any one of claims 1 to 8.

19. A tangible, non-volatile, computer-readable medium comprising a computer program product (525) according to claim 18.

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