Elevator system, relay device, second relay device, relay method, and computer-readable recording medium

Abstract

Provided is an elevator system in which a robot can get on and off the elevator by means of cooperation between an elevator and the robot, wherein the burden of people who participate in modernization or software reform is reduced. The elevator system is provided with: a plurality of first relay devices which are connected so as to be able to receive elevator information obtained from a car operation panel of a corresponding car and to transmit an instruction executable by the car operation panel to each control device; and a second relay device that is connected so as to be able to communicate with each of the plurality of first relay devices. The second relay device receives a use request including call information from a boarding floor to a destination floor of a robot to be managed moving in a facility, and determines an allocation car to which a call of the robot included in the use request is allocated. A call registration request of the robot is transmitted to a first relay device corresponding to the allocated car among the plurality of first relay devices. The first reception unit that has received the registration request transmits the received call registration request of the robot to each control device.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an elevator system, a relay device, a second relay device, a relay method, and a computer-readable recording medium. Background Art

[0002] Patent document 1 discloses a technology in which an unmanned guided vehicle moves floors by means of a button pressing auxiliary unit detachably mounted on an elevator operating panel. The unmanned guided vehicle of this technology has a communication unit that communicates with an additionally provided button pressing auxiliary unit. When the unmanned guided vehicle sends a signal to press an up button at an elevator landing, the up button is pressed by the button pressing auxiliary unit. In addition, the button pressing auxiliary unit detects that the button changes from being lit to being extinguished, and sends the signal to the unmanned guided vehicle.

[0003] Prior art literature

[0004] Patent Literature

[0005] Patent Document 1: Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2022-70316 Summary of the invention

[0006] Problems to be solved by the invention

[0007] In the technology of Patent Document 1, it is necessary to realize the robot's getting on and off the elevator only by the information obtained from the elevator operating panel and the functions that can be executed from the elevator operating panel. Under such limitations, in order to enable the robot to cooperate with the elevator to a high degree, a large amount of human labor is required in the modernization or software modification of the elevator.

[0008] The present disclosure is made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to save the burden on people involved in modernization or software modification when providing an elevator system that realizes the robot's boarding and getting off the elevator through the cooperation of the elevator and the robot.

[0009] Means for solving problems

[0010] The elevator system disclosed in the present invention comprises: a plurality of first relay devices, each corresponding to any one of a plurality of elevator cars installed in a facility, each connected in a manner capable of receiving elevator information obtained from a car operating panel of a corresponding car and sending a command executable from the car operating panel to each station control device; and a second relay device, which is connected to each of the plurality of first relay devices in a manner capable of communicating. The second relay device comprises: a second receiving unit, which receives a utilization request including call information from a boarding floor to a destination floor of a robot moving in the facility; and a second sending unit, which sends a robot call registration request to a first relay device corresponding to an assigned car to which the robot call included in the utilization request is assigned among the plurality of first relay devices. Each of the plurality of first relay devices comprises: a first receiving unit, which receives a robot call registration request sent by the second sending unit; and a first sending unit, which sends the robot call registration request received by the first receiving unit to each station control device.

[0011] The second relay device of the present disclosure is connected to each of the plurality of first relay devices in a manner capable of communicating, and the plurality of first relay devices respectively correspond to any of the plurality of elevator cars installed in the facility, and are respectively connected in a manner capable of receiving elevator information obtained from the car operating panel of the corresponding car and sending instructions executable from the car operating panel to each station control device. The second relay device has: a second receiving unit that receives a utilization request containing elevator call information from the elevator floor to the destination floor of a robot moving in the facility; and a second sending unit that sends a robot call registration request for sending to each station control device to the first relay device corresponding to the assigned car to which the robot's call included in the utilization request is assigned among the plurality of first relay devices.

[0012] The relay device of the present disclosure is connected in a manner that can receive elevator information obtained from the car operating panels of each of the multiple cars of the elevator installed in the facility and send instructions that can be executed from the car operating panels to the control devices corresponding to the multiple cars. The relay device has: a receiving unit that receives a utilization request containing call information from the elevator floor to the destination floor of a robot moving in the facility; and a sending unit that sends a robot call registration request to each control device corresponding to the multiple cars that corresponds to the assigned car to which the robot's call included in the utilization request is assigned.

[0013] The relay method disclosed in the present invention receives elevator information obtained from the car operating panels of each of the multiple cars of an elevator installed in a facility and sends instructions that can be executed from the car operating panels to the control devices corresponding to the multiple cars. The relay method has the following steps: receiving a utilization request containing call information from the boarding floor to the destination floor of a robot moving in the facility; determining an assigned car to which the robot's call contained in the utilization request is assigned based on the elevator information; and sending a robot's call registration request to each control device corresponding to the assigned car.

[0014] The computer-readable recording medium of the present disclosure records a relay program, which causes a computer to execute a process of receiving elevator information obtained from the car operating panels of each of a plurality of cars of an elevator installed in a facility and sending instructions executable from the car operating panels to each control device corresponding to each of the plurality of cars. The relay program is configured to cause the computer to execute the following process: receiving a utilization request containing call information from a boarding floor to a destination floor of a robot moving in the facility, determining an assigned car to which the robot's call contained in the utilization request is assigned based on the elevator information, and sending a robot's call registration request to each control device corresponding to the assigned car.

[0015] Effects of the Invention

[0016] According to the present disclosure, when providing an elevator system that enables a robot to take an elevator and get off an elevator through cooperation between an elevator and a robot, the burden on people involved in modernization or software modification can be saved. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0017] Figure 1 This is a structural diagram of the building system of implementation mode 1.

[0018] Figure 2 This is a block diagram showing the functions of the elevator system according to the first embodiment.

[0019] Figure 3 This is a flowchart showing an operation example of the elevator system according to the first embodiment.

[0020] Figure 4 An example of selection of an assigned car by the second relay device in Embodiment 1 is shown.

[0021] Figure 5 This is a hardware configuration diagram of a main portion of the elevator system according to the first embodiment.

[0022] Figure 6 This is a block diagram showing the functions of the elevator system according to the second embodiment.

[0023] Figure 7 This is a flowchart showing an operation example of the elevator system according to the second embodiment.

[0024] Figure 8 This is a block diagram showing the functions of the elevator system according to the third embodiment.

[0025] Fig. 9 An example of selection of a evacuation floor by the evacuation floor selection unit is shown.

[0026] Fig.10 This is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the elevator system according to the third embodiment.

[0027] Fig.11 This is a block diagram showing the functions of the elevator system according to the fourth embodiment.

[0028] Fig.12 This is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the elevator system according to the fourth embodiment.

[0029] Fig.13 This is a structural diagram of the building system of implementation mode 5.

[0030] Fig.14 This is a block diagram showing the functions of the elevator system according to the fifth embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] Hereinafter, the embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. In addition, the same reference numerals are given to the same elements in each figure, and repeated description is omitted.

[0032] Implementation Method 1

[0033] 1-1. Configuration of Building System in Embodiment 1

[0034] Figure 1 This is a structural diagram of the building system of implementation mode 1.

[0035] The building system is applied to a facility. The facility is, for example, an indoor facility or an outdoor facility, or a facility composed of a combination of the indoor facility and the outdoor facility. The facility is, for example, composed of one or more buildings. The facility may also be, for example, a part of a building. The building system applied to the facility includes a robot 1 that moves in the facility. In this example, the robot 1 operates according to the control of the robot server 2. The robot 1 communicates with the robot server 2 wirelessly. A management room 3 is provided in the facility. The management room 3 is a place where managers of the facility manage the facility. The robot server 2 is, for example, provided in the management room 3. The building system includes an elevator system as an internal system.

[0036] The elevator system includes an elevator. A hoistway 4 of the elevator is provided in the facility. The hoistway 4 is a space across multiple floors with the vertical direction as the length direction. An elevator machine room 5 is provided above the hoistway 4. In the facility, a landing station 6 is provided on each floor. The landing station 6 is a place connected to the hoistway 4.

[0037] The elevator has a plurality of units and a group management device 7. Each unit has a traction machine 8, a deflection wheel 9, a main rope 10, a car 11, a counterweight 12, and a control device 13 for each unit. The group management device 7, the traction machine 8, the deflection wheel 9, and the control device 13 for each unit are installed in a machine room 5. The car 11 and the counterweight 12 are installed in a hoistway 4. The traction machine 8 includes a motor that generates a driving force and a sheave that rotates by the driving force generated by the motor. The main rope 10 is hung around the sheave of the traction machine 8 and the deflection wheel 9. The main rope 10 supports the load of the car 11 on one side of the sheave of the traction machine 8. The main rope 10 supports the load of the counterweight 12 on the other side of the sheave of the traction machine 8. The car 11 and the counterweight 12 travel to opposite sides of the hoistway in the vertical direction by the driving force generated by the motor of the traction machine 8 through the sheave of the traction machine 8 and the main rope 10. The car 11 travels in the hoistway 4, thereby transporting users, robots, and the like riding in the car 11 between a plurality of floors of a facility.

[0038] Each control device 13 of each unit corresponds to the car 11 of the same unit. Each control device 13 is electrically connected to the traction machine 8 of the same unit. Each control device 13 is connected to the corresponding car 11 via the car transmission cable 16. Each control device 13 controls the travel of the car 11 by controlling the traction machine 8. Each control device 13 of each unit is electrically connected to the group management device 7 via the transmission cable 14. The group management device 7 receives the information of the user's landing call received by the landing operation panel (not shown) set at the landing 6 of the elevator. The group management device 7 assigns the landing call to any car 11.

[0039] The car 11 has a car operating panel 15. The car operating panel 15 is an elevator operating panel for receiving car call operations by elevator users. The car call information received by the car operating panel 15 of the car 11 is transmitted to each control device 13 corresponding to the car 11 via the car transmission cable 16.

[0040] The elevator system includes a plurality of first relay devices 30 and second relay devices 40. The first relay device 30 is, for example, a protocol converter. Each first relay device 30 corresponds to an arbitrary unit. The first relay device 30 is electrically connected to each station control device 13 of the corresponding unit via a relay cable 17. The relay cable 17 connected to the first relay device 30 is electrically connected to a car transmission cable 16 that connects each station control device 13 and the car 11 in the unit corresponding to the first relay device 30. Each first relay device 30 is installed in a machine room 5.

[0041] The second relay device 40 is a device separate from the group management device 7. The second relay device 40 is installed in the management room 3. The second relay device 40 is electrically connected to the robot server 2 via the cable 18. The second relay device 40 can also be connected to the robot server 2 wirelessly. The second relay device 40 is electrically connected to each first relay device 30 via the shaft transmission cable 19. The second relay device 40 is connected to each station control device 13 via the first relay device 30 for each unit. That is, each first relay device 30 is between the corresponding station control device 13 and the second relay device 40.

[0042] The second relay device 40 reads the relay program recorded in the computer-readable recording medium and acts according to the program, thereby executing each function. The recording medium recording the relay program may be built into the second relay device 40, or connected to the second relay device 40. The relay program may be installed in the second relay device 40 through a communication network such as the Internet, or may be installed in the second relay device 40 by reading from an external removable recording medium recording the relay program.

[0043] In a building system, a robot 1 uses an elevator to access multiple floors of a facility. When the robot 1 uses the elevator, a utilization request including elevator call information is sent. The utilization request is sent, for example, from a robot server 2 that controls the robot 1. Alternatively, the utilization request may be sent from the robot 1. The elevator call information of the robot 1 includes information about the elevator floor and the destination floor of the robot 1. The utilization request is sent to the second relay device 40. The second relay device 40 processes the elevator call of the robot 1 to be assigned to any elevator car 11.

[0044] The call allocation of the robot 1 is performed based on, for example, the elevator information. The elevator information is transmitted from, for example, each first relay device 30 to the second relay device 40. In this example, the group control device 7 does not perform a process of allocating the call of the robot 1 to any car 11. The second relay device 40 transmits a registration request including the call information to the first relay device 30 corresponding to the car 11 to which the call of the robot 1 is allocated. The second relay device 40 transmits information identifying the car 11 to which the call of the robot 1 is allocated to the robot server 2 that controls the robot 1.

[0045] The first relay device 30 that has received the call registration request from the second relay device 40 pretends to be the car operating panel 15 of the corresponding car 11, and sends a command that can be executed from the car operating panel 15 to each station control device 13. Here, the second relay device 40 sends the call information to each station control device 13 that controls the car 11 as a car call of the car 11.

[0046] 1-2. Functions of the elevator system according to Embodiment 1

[0047] Figure 2 This is a block diagram showing the functions of the elevator system according to the first embodiment.

[0048] The robot server 2 has a transmitting unit 21 and a receiving unit 22. The second relay device 40 has a receiving unit 401 as a second receiving unit, a transmitting unit 402 as a second transmitting unit, a seat setting unit 403, a selecting unit 404, a transmitting timing determining unit 405, and an elevator information storage unit 420. Each of the first relay devices 30 has a receiving unit 301 as a first receiving unit and a transmitting unit 302 as a first transmitting unit.

[0049] The sending unit 21 of the robot server 2 has a function of sending a utilization request including the elevator call information of the robot 1 to the receiving unit 401 of the second relay device 40, and a function of sending a robot operation stop signal and a robot operation recovery signal to the receiving unit 401 of the second relay device 40. The robot operation here is the operation of the elevator corresponding to the elevator call of the robot 1. In addition, the robot operation stop signal is a signal requesting the robot operation to be stopped due to a robot-side reason such as a failure of the robot 1. In addition, the robot operation recovery signal is a signal requesting the recovery of the robot operation during the robot operation stop. The receiving unit 22 of the robot server 2 has a function of receiving, from the sending unit 402 of the second relay device 40, the assigned car information that specifies the car 11 to which the elevator call of the robot 1 is assigned.

[0050] The receiving unit 401 of the second relay device 40 has a function of receiving a utilization request and a robot operation stop signal from the transmitting unit 21 of the robot server 2 and a function of receiving elevator information from the transmitting unit 302 of the first relay device 30 .

[0051] The elevator information storage unit 420 has a function of storing elevator information. The elevator information includes information obtained from the car operating panel 15 of each unit. The elevator information related to each unit includes the car position information of the car 11, the car travel direction information, the lighting information of the door open button light, the lighting information of the destination floor button in the car, and the registration permission information of the destination floor button in the car.

[0052] The ranking setting unit 403 has a function of setting the ranking of a part or all of the plurality of cars 11 as candidate cars to which the call of the robot 1 is assigned. The ranking setting unit 403 sets the ranking of each car 11 based on the elevator information stored in the elevator information storage unit 420.

[0053] The selection unit 404 has a function of selecting an assigned car to which the call of the robot 1 is assigned from the candidate cars whose rankings are set by the ranking setting unit 403. The selection unit 404 selects an assigned car according to the ranking set by the ranking setting unit 403. For example, the selection unit 404 selects a candidate car whose ranking is set to the first as the assigned car.

[0054] The sending timing determination unit 405 has a function of determining the timing of sending a car call for the boarding floor of the assigned car selected by the selection unit 404 based on the elevator information stored in the elevator information storage unit 420. For example, the sending timing determination unit 405 determines the timing located in front of the travel direction of the car 11 in the order of the boarding floor and the destination floor as the sending timing of the car call for the boarding floor.

[0055] The sending unit 402 of the second relay device 40 has the function of sending a registration request for a car call at the boarding floor of the assigned car selected by the selection unit 404 and a registration request for a car call at the destination floor of the assigned car to the receiving unit 301 of the first relay device 30. In addition, the sending unit 402 of the second relay device 40 has the function of sending information to the receiving unit 22 of the robot server 2 to determine the assigned car selected by the selection unit 404.

[0056] The receiving unit 301 of the first relay device 30 has a function of receiving a call registration request or the like from the transmitting unit 402 of the second relay device 40. The receiving unit 301 of the first relay device 30 has a function of receiving elevator information from each station control device 13 of the corresponding unit whenever the elevator information related to the corresponding unit changes.

[0057] The transmission unit 302 of the first relay device 30 has a function of transmitting the call registration request transmitted by the transmission unit 402 of the second relay device 40 as a car call of the car 11 of the corresponding unit to each station control device 13 that controls the car 11. The transmission unit 302 of the first relay device 30 has a function of transmitting elevator information to the receiving unit 401 of the second relay device 40 whenever the elevator information related to the corresponding unit changes.

[0058] 1-3. Operation example of elevator system

[0059] Figure 3 This is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the elevator system according to Embodiment 1. Here, a series of operations until the elevator system registers the boarding floor car call of the robot 1 will be described. In addition, this flowchart shows a part of the relay method according to the embodiment of the present disclosure.

[0060] In step S100, the second relay device 40 determines whether the receiving unit 401 has received a use request including the call information of the robot 1 from the transmitting unit 21 of the robot server 2. If the result is that the determination is confirmed to be established, the process proceeds to step S102, and if the determination is not confirmed to be established, the process returns to step S100 again.

[0061] In step S102, the ranking setting unit 403 sets the ranking of candidate cars for the plurality of cars 11 based on the information stored in the elevator information storage unit 420. When the process of step S102 is performed, the process proceeds to step S104.

[0062] In step S104, the selection unit 404 selects, as an assigned car, the candidate car whose rank is set to the first place by the rank setting unit 403. When the process of step S104 is performed, the process proceeds to step S106.

[0063] In step S106, the sending timing determination unit 405 determines whether the condition that the elevator car is located in front of the travel direction of the assigned car in the order of the elevator floor and the destination floor is established based on the elevator information. If the result is that the condition is not confirmed to be established, the processing returns to step S106 again. If the condition is confirmed to be established, the processing enters step S108.

[0064] In step S108, the sending unit 402 sends a registration request for a car call at the boarding floor of the assigned car selected by the selection unit 404 to the receiving unit 301 of the first relay device 30 corresponding to the assigned car. In addition, the sending unit 402 sends the assigned car information that determines the assigned car selected by the selection unit 404 to the receiving unit 22 of the robot server 2. Then, the processing of the second relay device 40 ends.

[0065] Next, use Figure 4 Next, an example of selection of an assigned car by the second relay device 40 in Embodiment 1 will be described. Figure 4 An example of selection of an assigned car by the second relay device 40 in Embodiment 1 is shown.

[0066] In this example, the elevator has eight units, namely, A to H. The utilization request of the robot 1 sent to the second relay device 40 via the robot server 2 or the like is sent when the robot 1 is to move from the boarding floor to the destination floor. The position setting unit 403 obtains the elevator status for each unit based on the elevator information. The elevator status related to each unit includes the safety restricted floor determination information, the car position / travel direction information, and the information of the distance from the boarding floor of the robot 1 to the car 11. The safety restricted floor determination information is information for determining the safety restricted floor where boarding and disembarking are restricted from the perspective of safety. The car position / travel direction information is information indicating whether it is located in front of the car 11 in the travel direction in the order of the boarding floor and the destination floor. When setting the position of the allocation candidate, the utilization setting of these information has priority. In this example, the order of the safety restricted floor determination information, the car position / travel direction information, and the information of the distance from the boarding floor of the robot 1 to the car 11 is in descending order of priority.

[0067] The position setting unit 403 first performs a determination process based on the highest priority safety restricted floor determination information. The position setting unit 403 determines whether the boarding floor or the destination floor is a safety restricted floor based on the in-car destination floor button registration permission information stored in the elevator information storage unit 420. However, depending on the elevator system, sometimes the specification is set to invalidate the elevator call registration for the floor located on the opposite side of the travel direction of the car, that is, the back floor. In such an elevator system, the back floor will be included in the floors that cannot be registered in the in-car destination floor button registration permission information, and it may be impossible to accurately determine the safety restricted floor.

[0068] Here, when the car 11 stops without direction, since no floor will become the rear floor, the safety restricted floor and the rear floor can be determined separately. Therefore, the position setting unit 403 reads the in-car destination floor button registration permission information obtained when the car 11 stops without direction for the most recent time. Then, the position setting unit 403 determines whether the robot 1's boarding floor or destination floor is included in the safety restricted floors that cannot be registered in the read in-car destination floor button registration permission information. Then, the position setting unit 403 excludes the car 11 whose boarding floor or destination floor is included in the safety restricted floors from the candidate cars. Figure 4 In the example shown, the position setting unit 403 temporarily sets cars A to D whose boarding floors and destination floors are service floors to be ranked first, and excludes cars E to H whose boarding floors or destination floors are safety-restricted floors from the candidate cars. In addition, the position setting unit 403 may also omit subsequent position setting processing for car 11 excluded from the candidate cars, for example.

[0069] Next, the position setting unit 403 performs a determination process based on the car position / travel direction information with the second highest priority. The position setting unit 403 determines whether the robot 1 is located ahead of the car 11 in the travel direction in the order of the boarding floor and the destination floor. Figure 4 In the example shown, the position setting unit 403 temporarily sets the No. A and No. B machines, which are located in front of the travel direction of the car 11 in the order of the boarding floors and the destination floors, to be ranked first, and temporarily sets the No. C and No. D machines, which are not located in front of the travel direction of the car 11 in the order of the boarding floors and the destination floors, to be ranked third.

[0070] Next, the position setting unit 403 performs a determination process based on the distance from the boarding floor with the second highest priority. The position setting unit 403 sets the car 11 with a shorter distance from the boarding floor to a higher position. For cars A and B that are temporarily tied for the first place, the position setting unit 403 sets car A, which is one floor away from the boarding floor, to the first place, and car B, which is three floors away from the boarding floor, to the second place. In addition, for cars C and D that are temporarily tied for the third place, the position setting unit 403 sets car C, which is one floor away from the boarding floor, to the third place, and car D, which is two floors away from the boarding floor, to the fourth place.

[0071] When there are candidate cars with the same rank after the rank setting based on the elevator state, the rank setting unit 403 sets the car 11 with a smaller unit number to a higher rank so that there are no candidate cars with the same rank.

[0072] The selection unit 404 selects the A car, which is set as the first car by the order setting unit 403, as the assigned car.

[0073] 1-4. Effects of the elevator system according to Embodiment 1

[0074] Next, the effects of the elevator system according to the first embodiment will be described.

[0075] The second relay device 40 receives the utilization request from the robot server 2 and selects the assigned car to which the call included in the utilization request is to be assigned. The second relay device 40 transmits the registration request for the elevator call to the first relay device 30 connected to each station control device 13 that controls the assigned car via the shaft transmission cable 19. The first relay device 30 pretends to be the car operating panel 15 of the assigned car and transmits the registration request as the car call to each station control device 13. In this way, since the group management device 7 does not need the function of communicating with the second relay device 40, etc., even the group management device 7 without the communication function can realize the cooperation between the elevator and the robot 1. In addition, since it is not necessary to modernize the elevator and modify the software of the group management device 7 when making the old model elevator and the robot 1 cooperate, it is possible to suppress the burden of the management personnel who manage the elevator in terms of expenses and management work.

[0076] Furthermore, the second relay device 40 can distinguish between the safety restricted floor and the rear floor and make a determination based on the in-car destination floor button registration availability information obtained when the car 11 made its most recent non-directional stop. As a result, the possibility of misjudging the rear floor as a safety restricted floor can be reduced, so the rear floor can be included in the candidate cars. As a result, since the number of candidate cars increases, it is possible to select an appropriate assigned car for improving operation efficiency.

[0077] In addition, the second relay device 40 can set the car that is located in front of the travel direction of the car 11 in the order of the boarding floor and the destination floor to a position ahead of the car that is not located in the order of the boarding floor and the destination floor according to the elevator information. As a result, the car 11 that can move more smoothly from the boarding floor to the destination floor can be set to a position ahead, thereby improving the operating efficiency.

[0078] Furthermore, the ranking setting unit 403 sets the ranking as the candidate for allocation based on the information stored in the elevator information storage unit 420. The selection unit 404 selects the candidate car set as the first one by the ranking setting unit 403 as the allocated car. Thus, the second relay device 40 can obtain the effect of being able to allocate the car 11 that allows the robot 1 to board and reach the boarding floor as soon as possible. In addition, since the second relay device 40 selects the allocated car, it is possible to obtain a further effect that the processing load of the group management device 7 can be reduced.

[0079] When the condition that the boarding floor and the destination floor of the robot 1 are located in the travel direction of the assigned car in the order of the boarding floor and the destination floor are satisfied, the second relay device 40 determines that it is time to send a car call to the boarding floor of the robot 1. When the boarding floor and the destination floor of the robot 1 are located at the back floor, for example, when the car call is made to these floors, it is possible that the car call disappears when the direction of the car 11 is reversed. The determination of the above conditions has the effect of avoiding such a phenomenon. In addition, it has the effect of being able to move smoothly to the destination floor without reversing the travel direction of the car 11 after the robot 1 boards.

[0080] 1-5. Modifications

[0081] The elevator system of Embodiment 1 may adopt the following modified forms. In addition, these modified examples can also be applied to the elevator systems of other embodiments described later.

[0082] The robot 1 may communicate with the second relay device 40 without going through the robot server 2 .

[0083] In addition, part or all of the functions of the robot server 2 and the second relay device 40 may be mounted on a device installed outside the facility. Part or all of the functions of the robot server 2 and the second relay device 40 may also be installed on multiple hardware. In this case, each hardware is connected in a manner that can communicate with each other through a communication network such as the Internet. In addition, part or all of the functions of the robot server 2 and the second relay device 40 may also be installed through processing and storage resources on a cloud service.

[0084] Figure 5 This is a hardware configuration diagram of the main part of the elevator system of Embodiment 1. Each function of the elevator system can be realized by the processing circuit 100. The processing circuit 100 has at least one processor 100a and at least one memory 100b. The processing circuit may also have at least one dedicated hardware 100c together with the processor 100a and the memory 100b, or instead of them.

[0085] When the processing circuit has a processor 100a and a memory 100b, each function of the building system is implemented by software, firmware, or a combination of software and firmware. At least one of the software and firmware is described as a program. The program is stored in the memory 100b. The processor 100a implements each function of the elevator system by reading and executing the program stored in the memory 100b.

[0086] The processor 100a is also called a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a processing device, an arithmetic device, a microprocessor, a microcomputer, or a DSP. The memory 100b is composed of a nonvolatile or volatile semiconductor memory such as a RAM, a ROM, a flash memory, an EPROM, or an EEPROM.

[0087] In the case where the processing circuit has dedicated hardware 100c, the processing circuit is implemented by, for example, a single circuit, a complex circuit, a programmed processor, parallel programmed processors, an ASIC, an FPGA, or a combination thereof.

[0088] Each function of the elevator system can be implemented by a processing circuit separately. Alternatively, each function of the elevator system can also be implemented by a processing circuit in a unified manner. Regarding each function of the elevator system, a part can also be implemented by dedicated hardware 100c, and the other part can be implemented by software or firmware. In this way, the processing circuit implements each function of the building system through dedicated hardware 100c, software, firmware, or a combination thereof.

[0089] Implementation Method 2

[0090] In the second embodiment, the differences from the example disclosed in the first embodiment are described in particular detail. With regard to features not described in the second embodiment, any features of the example disclosed in the first embodiment may be adopted.

[0091] 2-1. Functions of the elevator system according to Embodiment 2

[0092] Figure 6 1 is a block diagram showing the functions of the elevator system according to Embodiment 2. The second relay device 40 according to Embodiment 2 has a door opening determination unit 406 in addition to the functions of the second relay device 40 according to Embodiment 1.

[0093] The door opening determination unit 406 has a function of determining, based on the elevator information stored in the elevator information storage unit 420, whether the assigned car selected by the selection unit 404 has arrived at the boarding floor and has opened its door.

[0094] 2-2. Operation Example of Elevator System According to Embodiment 2

[0095] Figure 7 2 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the elevator system according to Embodiment 2. Figure 5 A series of operations from registering the boarding floor car call of the robot 1 according to the processing of the flowchart shown to sending the boarding instruction to the robot 1 will be described.

[0096] In step S200, the door opening determination unit 406 determines whether the door opening condition that the assigned car has opened the door at the boarding floor of the robot 1 is satisfied based on the elevator information stored in the elevator information storage unit 420. Here, the door opening determination unit 406 determines whether the car position of the current assigned car is the boarding floor based on the car position information, and determines whether the door opening button light is in a lit state based on the lighting information of the door opening button light related to the assigned car. If the result is that at least one of these determinations is not confirmed to be satisfied, the processing returns to step S200 again, and if both of these determinations are confirmed to be satisfied, the processing proceeds to the next step S202.

[0097] In step S202, the transmission unit 402 transmits, to the reception unit 301 of the first relay device 30 corresponding to the assigned car, a registration request for the destination floor car call of the assigned car selected by the selection unit 404. When the process of step S202 is executed, the process proceeds to step S204.

[0098] In step S204 , the transmitting unit 402 transmits the robot boarding instruction for the assigned car selected by the selecting unit 404 to the receiving unit 22 of the robot server 2 .

[0099] 2-3. Effects of the elevator system according to Embodiment 2

[0100] Next, the effects of the elevator system according to the second embodiment will be described.

[0101] The door opening determination unit 406 of the second relay device 40 enters the sending process of the car call registration of the destination floor when it is determined that the door of the assigned car is open at the boarding floor of the robot 1. Thus, since the destination floor can be registered before the robot 1 is about to board the elevator, the risk of the destination floor becoming a useless call can be reduced.

[0102] Implementation 3

[0103] In Embodiment 3, the differences from the example disclosed in Embodiment 1 or Embodiment 2 are described in particular detail. For features not described in Embodiment 3, any features of the example disclosed in Embodiment 1 or Embodiment 2 may be adopted.

[0104] 3-1. Functions of the elevator system according to Embodiment 3

[0105] Figure 81 is a block diagram showing the functions of the elevator system of Embodiment 3. The robot server 2 of Embodiment 3 has a closed determination unit 23 in addition to the functions of Embodiments 1 and 2. Furthermore, the second relay device 40 of Embodiment 3 has a robot operation determination unit 407 and a retreat floor selection unit 408 in addition to the functions of the second relay device 40 of Embodiments 1 and 2.

[0106] The enclosure determination unit 23 has a function of determining whether the robot 1 is enclosed in the car 11 and notifying the building manager, etc. The structure of the enclosure determination unit 23 is not limited. For example, the receiving unit 22 of the robot server 2 receives the elevator information transmitted from the transmitting unit 402 of the second relay device 40. Then, the enclosure determination unit 23 determines whether the robot 1 is enclosed in the car 11 based on the received elevator information.

[0107] The robot operation determination unit 407 has a function of determining the suspension and resumption of the robot operation for transporting the robot 1 to the destination floor based on the elevator information stored in the elevator information storage unit 420. Specifically, the robot operation determination unit 407 reads the in-car destination floor button registration permission information acquired when the car 11 stops without direction the most recent time. Then, the robot operation determination unit 407 determines whether the condition that the destination floor of the robot 1 is included in the safety restricted floors that cannot be registered in the read in-car destination floor button registration permission information is satisfied. Then, if this condition is satisfied, the robot operation determination unit 407 determines the suspension of the robot operation.

[0108] Furthermore, if the condition becomes unsatisfactory during the predetermined waiting time from when the robot operation is determined to be suspended, the robot operation determination unit 407 determines that the robot operation is resumed. Here, the time limit of the waiting time is set to reduce the possibility that the robot 1 is trapped in the car 11 and continues to wait due to the suspension of the robot operation caused by the elevator side. The waiting time can be set appropriately.

[0109] The evacuation floor selection unit 408 has a function of selecting an evacuation floor to which the robot 1 evacuates based on the elevator information stored in the elevator information storage unit 420. When the robot operation changes from suspension to resumption, it is required to quickly evacuate the robot in the car 11 to the outside of the car 11. When the robot operation changes from suspension to resumption, the evacuation floor selection unit 408 selects an evacuation floor for the robot in the car 11 to evacuate.

[0110] Fig. 9An example of the evacuation floor selection by the evacuation floor selection unit 408 is shown. In this example, the floors of the facility are 1F to 7F, the boarding floor of the robot 1 is 2F, and the destination floor is 6F. In addition, the car 11 that the robot 1 is riding is traveling from 2F to 6F, and the current car position is 3F.

[0111] like Fig. 9 As shown, the evacuation floor selection unit 408 obtains the elevator state of the unit corresponding to the assigned car boarded by the robot 1 based on the elevator information stored in the elevator information storage unit 420. The elevator state here includes the safety restricted floor information and the distance information from the current car position.

[0112] When selecting the evacuation floor, the use of these information is set with priority. In this example, the order of the safety restricted floor determination information and the information of the distance from the current car position is the order of priority from high to low.

[0113] The retreat floor selection unit 408 first performs a determination process based on the highest priority safety restricted floor determination information. The retreat floor selection unit 408 determines whether each floor is a safety restricted floor based on the in-car destination floor button registration permission information stored in the elevator information storage unit 420. Here, the retreat floor selection unit 408 reads the in-car destination floor button registration permission information obtained at the time of the most recent non-directional stop of the car 11, similarly to the setting action of the position setting unit 403. Then, the retreat floor selection unit 408 determines whether each floor is included in the safety restricted floors that cannot be registered in the read in-car destination floor button registration permission information. Then, the retreat floor selection unit 408 excludes the safety restricted floors from the retreat floor candidates. Fig. 9 In the illustrated example, the evacuation floor selection unit 408 excludes the safety restricted floors 4F and 6F from the evacuation floor candidates, and temporarily sets the service floors 1F to 3F, 5F, and 7F as evacuation floor candidates.

[0114] When the decision processing based on the safety restricted floor decision information cannot uniquely determine the candidate for the retreat floor, the retreat floor selection unit 408 performs a decision processing based on the distance from the current car position with the second highest priority. The retreat floor selection unit 408 selects the floor with the shortest distance from the current car position in the current travel direction of the car from among the multiple retreat floor candidates as the retreat floor.

[0115] 3-2. Operation Example of Elevator System According to Embodiment 3

[0116] Fig.10 1 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the elevator system according to Embodiment 3. Figure 7A series of operations from when a getting-on instruction is sent to the robot 1 to when a getting-off instruction is sent to the robot 1 will be described based on the processing of the flowchart shown in FIG.

[0117] In step S300, the second relay device 40 determines whether a request to stop the operation of the robot is issued due to a reason on the robot side. Here, the second relay device 40 determines whether the receiving unit 401 receives the robot operation stop signal sent by the robot server 2. If the result is that the determination is not confirmed to be established, the process proceeds to step S302, and if the determination is confirmed to be established, the process proceeds to step S304.

[0118] In step S302, the robot operation determination unit 407 of the second relay device 40 determines whether the robot operation suspension determination due to the elevator side is performed. If the determination is not confirmed, the process proceeds to step S306, and if the determination is confirmed, the process proceeds to step S308.

[0119] In step S304, the second relay device 40 determines whether the robot operation is restored. Here, the second relay device 40 determines whether the receiving unit 401 receives the robot operation restoration signal within a predetermined standby time from the reception of the robot operation suspension signal. If the result is that the determination is not confirmed to be established, the process proceeds to step S310, and if the determination is confirmed to be established, the process proceeds to step S308.

[0120] In step S306, the door opening determination unit 406 of the second relay device 40 determines whether the door of the car 11 is open at the destination floor based on the elevator information. Here, the door opening determination unit 406 determines whether the condition that the current car position is the destination floor in the car position information and the lighting information of the door opening button light is in the lighting state is satisfied. If the result is that the determination is not confirmed to be satisfied, the processing returns to step S306 again, and if the determination is confirmed to be satisfied, the processing proceeds to step S318.

[0121] In step S308, the evacuation floor selection unit 408 of the second relay device 40 selects an evacuation floor. When the process of step S308 is completed, the process proceeds to step S312.

[0122] In step S310, the robot 1 is manually caused to get off the car 11. Here, the confinement determination unit 23 determines that the robot 1 is confined in the car 11, and notifies the building manager or the like.

[0123] In step S312, the evacuation floor selection unit 408 of the second relay device 40 determines whether a car call can be made at the evacuation floor. Here, the evacuation floor selection unit 408 determines whether the condition that the evacuation floor is located ahead of the current car position in the direction of travel of the car is satisfied. If the result is that the determination is not confirmed to be satisfied, the process returns to step S312 again, and if the determination is confirmed to be satisfied, the process proceeds to step S314.

[0124] In step S314, the transmission unit 402 of the second relay device 40 transmits a registration request for the car call of the evacuation floor selected by the evacuation floor selection unit 408 to the reception unit 301 of the first relay device 30. When the process of step S314 is completed, the process proceeds to step S316.

[0125] In step S316, the door opening determination unit 406 of the second relay device 40 determines whether the door of the car 11 is open at the evacuation floor based on the elevator information. Here, the door opening determination unit 406 determines whether the condition that the current car position is the evacuation floor in the car position information and the lighting information of the door opening button light is in the lighting state is satisfied. If the result is that the determination is not confirmed to be satisfied, the processing returns to step S316 again, and if the determination is confirmed to be satisfied, the processing proceeds to step S318.

[0126] In step S318 , the transmitting unit 402 of the second relay device transmits a robot descending instruction to the receiving unit 22 of the robot server 2 .

[0127] 3-3. Effects of the elevator system according to Embodiment 3

[0128] Next, the effects of the elevator system according to the third embodiment will be described.

[0129] When the receiving unit 401 receives the robot operation resumption signal within the predetermined waiting time from the reception of the robot operation suspension signal, the second relay device 40 performs the selection process of the evacuation floor by the evacuation floor selection unit 408. Thus, even if the robot operation is temporarily suspended due to a malfunction or the like, the possibility of resuming the robot operation can be retained. Thus, the labor and time of manually getting the robot 1 down from the car can be reduced.

[0130] In addition, the second relay device 40 can distinguish the safety restricted floor from the rear floor based on the in-car destination floor button registration availability information obtained when the car 11 made the most recent non-directional stop. As a result, since the possibility of misjudging the rear floor as a safety restricted floor can be reduced, misjudgment in the selection process of the retreat floor can be reduced.

[0131] Furthermore, the evacuation floor selection unit 408 prioritizes floors that are shorter in distance from the current car position in the evacuation floor selection process, so that the robot 1 can be quickly evacuated.

[0132] Implementation 4

[0133] In Embodiment 4, the differences from the examples disclosed in Embodiments 1 to 3 are described in particular detail. For features not described in Embodiment 4, any features of the examples disclosed in Embodiments 1 to 3 may be adopted.

[0134] 4-1. Functions of the elevator system according to Embodiment 4

[0135] Fig.11 1 is a block diagram showing the functions of the elevator system according to Embodiment 4. The second relay device 40 according to Embodiment 4 has an elevator operation determination unit 409 and an erroneous determination prevention unit 410 in addition to the functions of the second relay device 40 according to Embodiment 3.

[0136] The elevator operation determination unit 409 has a function of determining whether the operation state of the car 11 of each unit is in operation or in rest, based on the elevator information stored in the elevator information storage unit 420 .

[0137] The erroneous determination preventing unit 410 has a function of preventing the elevator operation determining unit 409 from erroneously determining that the elevator is stopped based on the elevator information stored in the elevator information storing unit 420 when the car position is at the terminal floor.

[0138] 4-2. Operation Example of Elevator System According to Embodiment 4

[0139] Fig.12 This is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the elevator system according to the fourth embodiment. Fig.12 The routine shown is always performed for each unit in the elevator system.

[0140] exist Fig.12 In step S400 of the routine shown, the elevator operation determination unit 409 determines whether the operation state of the car 11 of each unit is in operation or in rest based on the elevator information stored in the elevator information storage unit 420. Here, when the destination floor buttons in the car of all floors are not registered and the destination floor buttons in the car of all floors cannot be registered, the elevator operation determination unit 409 determines that the elevator is in rest. Otherwise, it is determined that the elevator is in operation. As a result, when the elevator is in operation, the process proceeds to step S402, and when the elevator is in rest, the process proceeds to step S404.

[0141] In step S402, the transmission unit 402 of the second relay device 40 transmits a notification that the elevator is in operation to the reception unit 22 of the robot server 2. When the process of step S402 is completed, the process proceeds to step S406.

[0142] In step S404, the transmission unit 402 of the second relay device 40 transmits a notification that the elevator is at rest to the reception unit 22 of the robot server 2. When the processing of step S404 is completed, the processing of this routine ends.

[0143] In step S406, the erroneous determination prevention unit 410 determines whether the condition that the current car position is located at the terminal floor is satisfied based on the elevator information stored in the elevator information storage unit 420. If the result is that the condition is not satisfied, the process returns to step S406 again. On the other hand, if the condition is satisfied, the process transfers to step S408.

[0144] In step S408, the erroneous determination prevention unit 410 determines whether the car 11 has reversed direction or stopped without direction based on the elevator information stored in the elevator information storage unit 420. If the result is that the determination is not confirmed, the process returns to step S408 again. On the other hand, if the determination is confirmed, this routine ends.

[0145] 4-3. Effects of the elevator system according to Embodiment 4

[0146] Next, the effects of the elevator system according to the fourth embodiment will be described.

[0147] The second relay device 40 can determine whether the elevator car is in operation or in rest in the elevator operation determination unit 409, and notify the robot server 2 of the determination result in real time. In addition, the determination result in the elevator operation determination unit 409 can also be used as the elevator state used in the setting operation in the position setting unit 403. In this case, for example, a candidate car that is in rest can also be excluded from the allocation candidate.

[0148] When the car is located at the terminal floor, the erroneous determination prevention unit 410 can temporarily suspend the elevator operation determination unit 409 until it is determined that the direction of the car is reversed or the car stops without direction. This can prevent the following situation: when the car is located at the terminal floor, all floors become back floors and the determination in the elevator operation determination unit 409 becomes an erroneous determination.

[0149] Implementation method 5

[0150] In the fifth embodiment, the differences from the examples disclosed in the first to fourth embodiments are described in particular detail. For features not described in the fifth embodiment, any features of the examples disclosed in the first to fourth embodiments may be adopted.

[0151] 5-1. Configuration of building system according to Embodiment 5

[0152] Fig.13 This is a structural diagram of a building system in Embodiment 5. The elevator system as an internal system of the building system in this embodiment integrates the plurality of first relay devices 30 and second relay devices 40 of the elevator system in Embodiments 1 to 4 into a relay device 50. Since the other structures are the same as those of the building system in each embodiment, detailed description is omitted.

[0153] The relay device 50 is electrically connected to each control device 13 of each car 11 via a relay cable 17. The relay cable 17 connected to the relay device 50 is electrically connected to a car transmission cable 16 connecting each control device 13 of each car 11 and the car 11. The relay device 50 is installed in the machine room 5.

[0154] The relay device 50 is electrically connected to the robot server 2 via the cable 18. The relay device 50 may be wirelessly connected to the robot server 2. In addition, the relay device 50 may be installed in the management room 3.

[0155] 5-2. Functions of the elevator system according to Embodiment 5

[0156] Fig.14 1 is a block diagram showing the functions of the elevator system according to the fifth embodiment. Fig.11 Compared with the functions of the second relay device 40 shown in the figure, a receiving unit 411 is provided in place of the receiving unit 401 , and a transmitting unit 312 is provided in place of the transmitting unit 402 . Fig.14 The other functions of the relay device 50 are Fig.11 The second relay device has the same structure.

[0157] The sending unit 21 of the robot server 2 has a function of sending a utilization request including the elevator call information of the robot 1 to the receiving unit 411 of the relay device 50, and a function of sending a robot operation stop signal and a robot operation resumption signal to the receiving unit 411 of the relay device 50. The receiving unit 22 of the robot server 2 has a function of receiving, from the sending unit 312 of the relay device 50, the assigned car information for identifying the car 11 to which the elevator call of the robot 1 is assigned.

[0158] The receiving unit 411 of the relay device 50 has a function of receiving a utilization request and a robot operation stop signal from the transmitting unit 21 of the robot server 2, and a function of receiving elevator information from each station control device 13. The receiving unit 411 of the relay device 50 has a function of receiving elevator information from each station control device 13 of the corresponding unit whenever the elevator information related to the corresponding unit changes.

[0159] The sending unit 312 of the relay device 50 has the function of sending a registration request for a car call at the boarding floor of the assigned car selected by the selection unit 404 and a registration request for a car call at the destination floor of the assigned car to the station control device 13 of each corresponding car. In addition, the sending unit 312 of the relay device 50 has the function of sending information that determines the assigned car selected by the selection unit 404 to the receiving unit 22 of the robot server 2.

[0160] The functions of the transmitter 21 and the receiver 22 included in the robot server 2 of Embodiments 1 to 5 may also be included in the robot 1. The second relay device 40 or the relay device 50 may communicate directly with the robot 1 without going through the robot server 2.

[0161] Description of symbols

[0162] 1: robot; 2: robot server; 3: management room; 4: hoistway; 5: machine room; 6: landing station; 7: group management device; 8: traction machine; 9: deflection wheel; 10: main rope; 12: counterweight; 13: each control device; 14: transmission cable; 15: car operating panel; 16: car transmission cable; 17: relay cable; 18: cable; 19: hoistway transmission cable; 21: transmitter; 22: receiver; 23: closure judgment unit; 30: first relay device; 40: second relay device; 50: relay device; 1 00: processing circuit; 100a: processor; 100b: memory; 100c: dedicated hardware; 301: receiving unit; 302: sending unit; 312: sending unit: 401: receiving unit; 402: sending unit; 403: position setting unit; 404: selecting unit; 405: sending timing determination unit; 406: door opening determination unit; 407: robot operation determination unit; 408: retreat floor selection unit; 409: elevator operation determination unit; 410: misjudgment prevention unit; 411: receiving unit; 420: elevator information storage unit.

Claims

1. An elevator system, wherein: The elevator system has: a plurality of first relay devices, each corresponding to any one of a plurality of elevator cars installed in the facility, each connected in a manner capable of receiving elevator information obtained from a car operating panel of the corresponding car and transmitting a command executable from the car operating panel to each control device; as well as a second relay device connected to each of the plurality of first relay devices in a communicable manner, The second relay device comprises: a second receiving unit for receiving a utilization request including call information from a boarding floor to a destination floor of a robot moving in the facility; as well as a second transmitting unit that transmits the robot's call registration request to a first relay device corresponding to an assigned car among the plurality of first relay devices to which the robot's call included in the utilization request is assigned, Each of the plurality of first relay devices has: a first receiving unit configured to receive the elevator call registration request of the robot transmitted by the second transmitting unit; and A first transmitting unit transmits the call registration request of the robot received by the first receiving unit to each of the elevator control devices.

2. The elevator system according to claim 1, wherein: The elevator information includes at least one of car position information related to the corresponding car, car travel direction information, door opening button light lighting information, car destination floor button lighting information, and car destination floor button registration permission information. Each of the plurality of first relay devices is configured to send the elevator information to the second relay device. The second relay device receives the elevator information from each of the plurality of first relay devices, and determines the assigned car based on the received elevator information.

3. The elevator system according to claim 2, wherein: The second relay device further comprises: a ranking setting unit for setting a ranking of at least one of the plurality of cars as a candidate car to which the call of the robot included in the utilization request is assigned, based on the received elevator information; as well as A selection unit selects the assigned car from among the candidate cars whose rankings are set by the ranking setting unit.

4. The elevator system according to claim 3, wherein: The elevator information includes information on whether the destination floor button in the car can be registered. The ranking setting unit is configured to exclude the following cars from the candidate cars: the boarding floor or the destination floor is included in the floor that cannot be registered in the received in-car destination floor button registration permission information obtained at the time of the most recent non-directional stop of the car.

5. The elevator system according to claim 3 or 4, wherein: The elevator information includes the car position information and the car travel direction information. The position setting unit is configured to determine whether the condition that the car is located in front of the car's travel direction starting from the current car position in the order of the boarding floors and the destination floors is met based on the received car position information and the car travel direction information, and set the position of the candidate car based on whether the condition is met.

6. The elevator system according to any one of claims 3 to 5, wherein: The elevator information includes the car position information and the car travel direction information. The ranking setting unit is configured to set the ranking of the candidate car based on the distance from the current car position to the boarding floor calculated based on the received car position information and the car travel direction information.

7. The elevator system according to any one of claims 3 to 6, wherein: The second relay device also has a sending timing determination unit, which determines whether the condition that the boarding floor and the destination floor are located sequentially in front of the car's travel direction from the current assigned car position is met based on the car position information and the car travel direction information, and sends a car call registration request to the assigned car when the condition is met.

8. The elevator system according to any one of claims 3 to 7, wherein: The second relay device further comprises a door opening determination unit, which determines whether a door opening condition is met when the door of the assigned car is opened at the boarding floor. The second transmitting unit is configured to transmit a registration request for a car call of the destination floor to the first relay device corresponding to the assigned car when the door opening condition is satisfied.

9. The elevator system according to any one of claims 3 to 8, wherein: The second relay device further includes a robot operation determination unit that determines whether the robot operation is restored to be possible within a waiting time from the stop determination when a stop determination of the robot operation due to a factor on the elevator side is made.

10. The elevator system according to claim 9, wherein: The second relay device includes a evacuation floor selection unit configured to select a evacuation floor to which the robot should evacuate when the robot operation determination unit determines that the robot has recovered to be able to operate.

11. The elevator system according to any one of claims 1 to 10, wherein: The second relay device comprises: an elevator operation determination unit, which determines whether the elevator is in operation; as well as The erroneous determination preventing unit suspends determination in the elevator operation determination unit until the elevator reverses direction or stops without direction when the elevator is located at the terminal floor.

12. A second relay device connected to each of a plurality of first relay devices in a communicable manner, wherein the plurality of first relay devices respectively correspond to any one of a plurality of elevator cars installed in a facility, and are respectively connected in a manner capable of receiving elevator information obtained from a car operating panel of the corresponding car and sending instructions executable from the car operating panel to each control device, wherein: The second relay device has: a second receiving unit for receiving a utilization request including call information from a boarding floor to a destination floor of a robot moving in the facility; as well as A second transmitting unit transmits a call registration request of the robot to be transmitted to each of the control devices to a first relay device corresponding to an assigned car among the plurality of first relay devices to which the call of the robot included in the utilization request is assigned.

13. A relay device connected in a manner capable of receiving elevator information obtained from a car operating panel of each of a plurality of elevator cars installed in a facility and transmitting instructions executable from the car operating panel to each control device corresponding to each of the plurality of elevator cars, wherein: The relay device has: a receiving unit that receives a request for utilizing call information from a boarding floor to a destination floor of a robot moving in the facility; and A transmitting unit transmits a call registration request of the robot to each control device corresponding to an assigned car among each control device corresponding to the plurality of cars, the call of the robot included in the utilization request being assigned to the assigned car.

14. An elevator system, wherein: The elevator system includes the relay device according to claim 13.

15. A relay method, receiving elevator information obtained from a car operating panel of each of a plurality of elevator cars installed in a facility and sending a command executable from the car operating panel to each control device corresponding to each of the plurality of elevator cars, wherein: The relay method has the following steps: receiving a utilization request including elevator call information from a boarding floor to a destination floor of a robot moving in the facility; determining, based on the elevator information, an assigned car to which the call of the robot included in the utilization request is assigned; and A call registration request of the robot is transmitted to each control device corresponding to the assigned car.

16. A computer-readable recording medium having a relay program recorded thereon, the relay program causing a computer to execute a process of receiving elevator information obtained from a car operating panel of each of a plurality of elevator cars installed in a facility and sending a command executable from the car operating panel to each control device corresponding to each of the plurality of elevator cars, wherein: The relay program is configured to cause the computer to execute the following processing: receiving a utilization request including elevator call information from a boarding floor to a destination floor of a robot moving in the facility; determining, based on the elevator information, an assigned car to which the call of the robot included in the utilization request is assigned; and A call registration request of the robot is transmitted to each control device corresponding to the assigned car.

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