Elevator system

Abstract

The invention relates to an elevator system. The elevator system provides information about the state of an elevator to passengers who are scheduled to climb the elevator. An elevator system according to one embodiment of the present invention comprises: an object detection sensor that detects an object in a detection area of a platform; and a passenger determination unit that determines whether the detected object is a passenger who is scheduled to climb the elevator based on object detection information of the object detection sensor.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to an elevator system for notifying expected elevator passengers of elevator status. Background Technology

[0002] Generally, elevators or escalators are installed in various buildings constructed for residential or commercial purposes to move people or objects vertically. Specifically, elevators are representative vertical transportation tools whose advantage is the rapid movement of people or objects in an elevator car to a destination floor in a high-rise building.

[0003] Such elevator systems generally include: an elevator car that transports passengers while moving up and down along a hoistway formed vertically in the building; a mechanical part equipped with an electric motor for generating a predetermined power and a traction machine to move the elevator car to the destination floor in response to passenger button operations; and an elevator controller that controls the mechanical part in response to passenger button operations, so that the elevator car can operate smoothly and stably.

[0004] A typical elevator system closes the elevator doors after a predetermined waiting time has elapsed after the doors open, or when the door closing button is pressed. In other words, even after all passengers waiting to board the elevator car have completed their boarding, the elevator car can only leave after the door closing time has elapsed, or passengers need to press the door closing button to shorten the waiting time.

[0005] However, such additional operations on the door close button may cause the spread of viruses among passengers through contact with the door close button, and may cause the door close button to age and be damaged due to frequent manipulation.

[0006] In an elevator system, each platform can be equipped with a display unit to display the current floor and direction of travel of the elevator car. The display unit can not only display the current floor and direction of travel, but also various status information of the elevator car, such as maximum capacity, maintenance, malfunctions, anomalies, and similar information.

[0007] However, since the display unit often indicates the elevator status via text, a typical elevator system has the following limitations: elevator users can only view the elevator status after approaching the platform, and even if they do not see the display unit after approaching the platform, they may still have to wait for a long time even if the elevator is unavailable due to maintenance, malfunction, or similar reasons.

[0008] To overcome this limitation, recently developed elevator systems notify elevator users at remote locations of the elevator status by providing voice guidance when the elevator is unavailable due to maintenance, malfunction, or similar reasons. However, since such voice guidance continues until the elevator's unavailability due to maintenance, malfunction, or similar reasons is resolved, noise issues arise.

[0009] Furthermore, a problem with typical elevator systems is that, since they only notify users of the elevator status by outputting status information such as maintenance or malfunction, users unaware of this elevator status may still suffer accidents such as falls even when a platform door not connected to the elevator car is opened due to maintenance or malfunction. Summary of the Invention

[0010] Technical issues

[0011] The present invention has been conceived to address the aforementioned problems in the related art, and one aspect of the present invention is to provide an elevator system that ensures the convenience of elevator use by detecting the boarding state of all prospective elevator passengers using object detection sensors, so as to automatically close the elevator door when all prospective elevator passengers have boarded the elevator car.

[0012] Another aspect of the present invention is to provide an elevator system that indicates the elevator status (e.g., maintenance, malfunction, anomaly, maximum capacity, and similar status) by outputting voice guidance, while only allowing the output of voice guidance when there is an object at the platform that is identified as an expected elevator passenger.

[0013] Technical solutions

[0014] According to one aspect of the present invention, an elevator system includes: an object detection sensor configured to detect objects in a detection area of ​​a platform; and a passenger determination unit configured to determine whether the detected object is an expected elevator passenger based on object detection information from the object detection sensor.

[0015] The elevator system may also include a door controller configured to control the opening or closing of the elevator doors based on a judgment of expected elevator passengers.

[0016] In addition, the door controller can close the elevator door if it is in the open state without requiring a door closing input when it determines that the expected elevator passengers have finished boarding the elevator.

[0017] In addition, the door controller can close the elevator door when the expected number of elevator passengers becomes zero, provided that the expected number of elevator passengers was at least one when the elevator door was open.

[0018] The passenger determination unit may include: a partitioning unit that divides the detection area into at least two partitions, the at least two partitions including a waiting partition around the platform door and a peripheral partition surrounding at least a portion of the waiting partition; an object tracking unit configured to track objects detected by an object detection sensor; a partition determination unit configured to determine the partition where the tracked object is located; a speed determination unit configured to determine the moving speed of the tracked object; and an expected elevator passenger determination unit configured to determine that the tracked object is an expected elevator passenger when the moving speed of the tracked object decreases by a predetermined value or greater than a predetermined value after the tracked object enters the waiting partition from the peripheral partition.

[0019] The passenger determination unit may also include a non-elevator passenger determination unit, which is configured to determine the tracked object as a non-elevator passenger passing through the platform when the tracked object's moving speed does not decrease by a predetermined value or does not decrease by more than a predetermined value after the tracked object enters the waiting area from the peripheral area and the platform door is closed.

[0020] According to another embodiment, the elevator system may also include a door controller configured to control the closing of the elevator doors based on the number of remaining passengers inside the elevator car.

[0021] The passenger determination unit may further include: a partitioning unit that divides the detection area into at least three partitions, the at least three partitions including a waiting partition around the platform door, a perimeter partition surrounding at least a portion of the perimeter of the waiting partition, and an elevator car interior connecting to the waiting partition in an ascending / descending partition; an object tracking unit configured to track objects detected by object detection sensors; a partition determination unit configured to determine the partition where the tracked object is located; an ascending passenger determination unit configured to determine the tracked object as an ascending passenger when the tracked object enters the descending partition from the waiting partition; a descending passenger determination unit configured to determine the tracked object as a descending passenger when the tracked object enters the waiting partition from the descending partition; and a remaining passenger determination unit configured to determine the number of remaining passengers based on the number of ascending passengers and the number of descending passengers.

[0022] The elevator system may further include: a status information creation unit configured to create status information by determining the elevator status; a status information output unit having a voice output unit configured to output status information via voice guidance; and an output controller configured to determine the voice guidance of the voice output unit based on a judgment of the expected elevator passengers.

[0023] In addition, the output controller can control the voice output unit to output voice guidance when at least one of the objects detected by the object detection sensor is identified as an expected elevator passenger.

[0024] In addition, status information may include at least one of maintenance, fault, anomaly, and maximum capacity.

[0025] Beneficial effects

[0026] According to the present invention, the elevator system can prevent accidents by controlling the elevator door to close when the expected elevator passenger has completed boarding after the expected elevator passenger has been detected, and controlling the elevator door to open when the expected elevator passenger is detected during the closing of the elevator door.

[0027] Furthermore, the elevator system according to the present invention can improve user convenience by outputting voice guidance to inform users of elevator status (e.g., maintenance, malfunction, anomaly, maximum capacity, and similar status), while only allowing voice guidance to be output when there is an object at the platform that is identified as an expected elevator passenger. Attached Figure Description

[0028] Figure 1 This is a block diagram of an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0029] Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of a platform using an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0030] Figure 3 This is a flowchart illustrating the process of outputting elevator status information via voice guidance in an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0031] Figure 4 This is a functional block diagram showing the detailed configuration of the passenger determination unit of an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0032] Figure 5 This is a diagram illustrating the detection area of ​​a platform in an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0033] Figure 6 This is a diagram illustrating examples of intended elevator passengers and non-elevator passengers in an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0034] Figure 7 This is a block diagram illustrating an additional configuration of door control in an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0035] Figure 8 This is a block diagram illustrating an additional configuration of a passenger determination unit, which is configured to determine the remaining passengers in an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0036] Figure 9 This is a diagram illustrating an example of passengers boarding an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0037] Figure 10 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a passenger descending an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention. Detailed Implementation

[0038] It should be noted that the technical terms used herein are for illustrative purposes only and are not intended to limit the invention. Furthermore, unless otherwise expressly defined, the technical terms used herein should be interpreted in the sense that is generally understood by one of ordinary skill in the art, and should not be interpreted in an overly broad or overly narrow sense. Moreover, when technical terms used herein are inappropriate and fail to accurately express the spirit of the invention, they should be replaced with technical terms that can be appropriately understood by one of ordinary skill in the art.

[0039] Additionally, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the singular forms “a / an” and “the” are intended to include the plural forms as well. The terms “comprises / comprising” and / or “includes / including” as used herein, when used in this specification, specify the presence of stated features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or groups thereof, but should not be construed as requiring the inclusion of all of these, and some of these may not be included, and do not preclude the presence or addition of one or more other features, integers, steps, operations, elements, components, and / or groups thereof.

[0040] It should also be noted that the accompanying drawings are intended only to aid in understanding the concept of the invention and should not be construed as limiting the invention.

[0041] In the following sections, exemplary embodiments of the invention will be described in more detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0042] Figure 1 This is a block diagram of an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 2 This is a schematic diagram of a platform having an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0043] In the following text, reference will be made to Figure 1 and Figure 2 An elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention is illustrated schematically.

[0044] An elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention is configured to notify the elevator status (e.g., maintenance, malfunction, anomaly, maximum capacity, and similar status) via voice guidance, while only allowing voice guidance to be output when there is an object at the platform that is identified as a prospective elevator passenger planning to board the elevator.

[0045] Therefore, referring to Figure 1 The elevator system according to this embodiment may include: a status information creation unit (100) configured to create elevator status information; a status information output unit (200) configured to output elevator status information; an object detection sensor (300) configured to detect objects at the platform; a passenger determination unit (400) configured to determine whether an object is a passenger; and an output controller (500) configured to control the output of the status information output unit (200).

[0046] The status information creation unit (100) can determine the elevator status to create status information. Here, the status information created by the status information creation unit (100) may include maintenance, fault, abnormality, and maximum capacity.

[0047] Specifically, the status information creation unit (100) can determine the elevator status as maintenance state when the elevator operation mode is switched to maintenance mode via administrator mode, and can determine the elevator status as abnormal state when the elevator operation mode is switched to abnormal mode via administrator mode. Additionally, the status information creation unit (100) can determine the elevator status as fault state when a fault is detected in the elevator or when the elevator operation mode is switched to fault mode. Furthermore, the status information creation unit (100) can determine the elevator status as maximum capacity state when the measured total weight of passengers in the elevator car is greater than or equal to a reference weight (e.g., 90% of the allowable boarding weight).

[0048] The status information output unit (200) can output the status information created by the status information creation unit (100) in various forms, so that the expected elevator passengers can view the elevator status.

[0049] Reference Figure 2 The status information output unit (200) may include a text output unit (210), which is configured to output status information via text guidance. The text output units (210) are individually arranged on each floor of the platform and can output not only status information, but also the current floor information and direction of movement information of the elevator car.

[0050] Furthermore, the status information output unit (200) may include a voice output unit (230), which is configured to output status information via voice guidance. The voice output unit (230) may also be arranged separately on each floor of the platform, together with the text output unit (210). Therefore, the elevator system according to this embodiment can notify passengers of elevator status (e.g., maintenance, malfunction, anomaly, maximum capacity, and similar information) via voice guidance, thereby notifying passengers at a remote location of the elevator status.

[0051] An object detection sensor (300) may be installed on the platform to detect objects in the detection area (a) on the platform. Here, the object detection sensor (300) may be installed individually on each floor of the platform, preferably on the jamb of the platform.

[0052] The object detection sensor (300) can be implemented using a radar sensor, but is not limited thereto. It should be understood that the object detection sensor (300) can be implemented using various sensors capable of detecting objects within a predetermined range. Preferably, the object detection sensor (300) is implemented using a millimeter-wave (mmWave) radar sensor to improve the accuracy of object detection.

[0053] Here, some objects detected by the object detection sensor (300) may be expected elevator passengers planning to board the elevator, while other objects may be non-elevator passengers passing through the detection area (a) of the platform without planning to board the elevator. When the object detection sensor (300) detects an object, the passenger determination unit (400) can determine whether the object is an expected elevator passenger or a non-elevator passenger based on the detection information from the object detection sensor (300). Here, the passenger determination unit (400) is located on the central control panel and can individually determine the expected elevator passengers on each floor of the platform. The following will refer to... Figures 4 to 6 The details of the passenger determination unit (400), configured to determine whether an object is a prospective elevator passenger or a non-elevator passenger, will be explained below. Furthermore, the passenger determination unit (400) can determine the number of remaining passengers in the elevator car based on detection information from the object detection sensor (300), which will be referred to below. Figures 8 to 10 To elaborate in detail.

[0054] The output controller (500) can determine and control whether the status information output unit (200) outputs status information. Here, the output controller (500) can be set on the central control panel and can individually control the status information output unit (200) on each floor of the platform.

[0055] Specifically, whenever the status information creation unit (100) creates status information, the output controller (500) can control the text output unit (210) to output the status information created by the status information creation unit (100). Here, the output of status information by the text output unit (210) can continue until the corresponding status is terminated. Conversely, the voice output unit (210) may not always output the status information created by the status information creation unit (100). Specifically, when the status information creation unit (100) creates status information, the output controller (500) can determine whether to output the status information through the voice output unit (210) based on the judgment result of the passenger determination unit (400). Preferably, the output controller (500) controls the voice output unit (230) to output voice guidance only at the platform on the floor where the passenger determination unit (400) determines that there is at least one expected elevator passenger.

[0056] Therefore, the elevator system according to this embodiment can prevent noise caused by meaningless voice guidance by outputting voice guidance only when there is an object identified as an expected elevator passenger at the platform.

[0057] Figure 3 This is a flowchart illustrating the process of outputting elevator status information via voice guidance in an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0058] In the following text, refer to Figure 3 This paper will describe the process of outputting elevator status information through voice guidance in an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0059] When the status information creation unit (100) creates status information (such as maintenance, fault, abnormality, maximum capacity and similar information) (S100), the output controller (500) can control the text output unit (210) on each floor to output the status information in text form (S200).

[0060] Then, the output controller (500) can determine whether the object detection sensor (300) on each floor has detected an object (S300). When an object is detected (S300 - Yes), the output controller (500) can determine, based on the determination result of the passenger determination unit (400), whether there is a floor where at least one expected elevator passenger is present among the detected objects (S400).

[0061] When it is determined that there is a floor in which at least one expected elevator passenger exists among the detected objects (S400 - Yes), the output controller (500) can control the voice output unit (230) to output voice guidance at the platform on the corresponding floor (S500).

[0062] Conversely, if no object is detected (S300-No) or if there is no expected elevator passenger among the detected objects (S400-No), the output controller (500) can control the voice output unit (230) not to output voice guidance at the platform on the corresponding floor, and can continue to perform object detection and determine whether there is an expected elevator passenger on the corresponding floor until the resulting elevator state terminates.

[0063] Figure 4 This is a block diagram showing the detailed configuration of the passenger determination unit in an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 5 This is a diagram illustrating the detection area of ​​the platform in an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Figure 6 This is a diagram illustrating examples of intended elevator passengers and non-elevator passengers in an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0064] Next, refer to Figures 4 to 6The passenger determination unit (400) of the elevator system according to the embodiment will be described in more detail.

[0065] As described above, the passenger determination unit (400) can determine whether the object detected by the object detection sensor (300) is a prospective elevator passenger or a non-elevator passenger. Therefore, referring to... Figure 4 The passenger determination unit (400) may include: a partitioning unit (410) for dividing the detection area; an object tracking unit (420) configured to track the detected object; a partition determination unit (430) configured to determine the partition where the tracked object is located; a speed determination unit (440) configured to determine the moving speed of the tracked object; an expected elevator passenger determination unit (450) configured to determine whether the tracked object is an expected elevator passenger; and a non-elevator passenger determination unit (460) configured to determine whether the tracked object is a non-elevator passenger.

[0066] The partitioning unit (410) can divide the detection area into partitions, including a waiting partition and a peripheral partition surrounding at least a portion of the perimeter of the waiting partition, where expected elevator passengers planning to board the elevator generally wait.

[0067] More specifically, refer to Figure 5 The partitioning unit (410) can divide the detection area (a) into: a predetermined area around the elevator door (d) as a waiting partition (a1) and a predetermined area surrounding the waiting partition (a1) excluding the elevator door (d) or the wall on the side of the elevator door (d) as a peripheral partition (a2). Preferably, the size of the waiting partition (a1) can be set to be proportional to the internal area of ​​the elevator car, so as to be proportional to the capacity of the elevator car. Although Figure 5 The detection area (a) and each of the divided partitions are shown to have a rectangular shape, but it should be understood that the invention is not limited thereto. Alternatively, the detection area (a) and each of the divided partitions may have a circular shape.

[0068] Based on the object detection information detected by the object detection sensor (300), the object tracking unit (420) can track the detected object individually. That is, the object tracking unit (420) can identify the object detected by the object detection sensor (300) and can track the same object to track the movement path of the corresponding object.

[0069] The partition determination unit (430) can determine the partition where the tracked object is located, based on the partitioning information of the partitioning unit (410). Additionally, the speed determination unit (440) can determine the movement speed of the tracked object based on its movement path over time.

[0070] The expected elevator passenger determination unit (450) can receive the partition position of the tracked object from the partition determination unit (430) to determine the movement of the tracked object between partitions, and can receive the movement speed of the tracked object over time from the speed determination unit (440) to determine the speed change in each partition. It can also determine that the tracked object is an expected elevator passenger when the movement speed of the tracked object decreases by a predetermined value or when the tracked object moves after entering the waiting partition (a1) from the peripheral partition (a2).

[0071] As an example, refer to Figure 6 In cases where both the first object (u1) and the second object (u2) detected by the object detection sensor (300) enter the waiting zone (a1) from the peripheral zone (a2), but the first object (u1) has reduced its moving speed by a predetermined value or more and stops after entering the waiting zone (a1), while the second object (u2) has not reduced its moving speed by a predetermined value or more even after entering the waiting zone (a1), the expected elevator passenger determination unit (450) can determine that the first object (u1) is an expected elevator passenger and the second object (u2) is not an expected elevator passenger.

[0072] The non-elevator passenger determination unit (460) can receive the partition position of the tracked object from the partition determination unit (430) to determine the movement of the tracked object between partitions, and can receive the movement speed of the tracked object over time from the speed determination unit (440) to determine the speed change in each partition. It can also determine that the tracked object is a non-elevator passenger when the movement speed of the tracked object does not decrease by a predetermined value or does not decrease by more than a predetermined value after the tracked object enters the waiting partition from the surrounding partition.

[0073] As an example, refer to Figure 6 In cases where both the first object (u1) and the second object (u2) detected by the object detection sensor (300) enter the waiting zone (a1) from the peripheral zone (a2), but the first object (u1) has reduced its moving speed by a predetermined value or more and stopped after entering the waiting zone (a1), while the second object (u2) has not reduced its moving speed by a predetermined value or more even after entering the waiting zone (a1), the non-elevator passenger determination unit (460) determines that the second object (u2) is a non-elevator passenger and the first object (u1) is not a non-elevator passenger.

[0074] In addition, when an object that has entered the surrounding zone (a2) has stopped and has not entered the waiting zone (a1) or has moved out of the detection zone (a), the non-elevator passenger determination unit (460) can determine that the corresponding object is a non-elevator passenger.

[0075] Here, when the elevator door is open, it is expected that elevator passengers can board the elevator without slowing down in the waiting area (a1). Therefore, the following operation can be performed when the elevator door is closed: the expected elevator passengers are determined by the expected elevator passenger determination unit (450) based on the moving speed of the object, or the non-elevator passengers are determined by the non-elevator passenger determination unit (460).

[0076] Preferably, when a corresponding object enters the waiting area (a1) from the peripheral area (a2), even if the corresponding object does not decelerate after entering the waiting area (a1), the expected elevator passenger determination unit (450) can determine that the object that has entered the peripheral area (a2) with the elevator door open is an expected elevator passenger. Conversely, the non-elevator passenger determination unit (460) may not determine that the object that has entered the peripheral area (a2) with the elevator door open is a non-elevator passenger, even if the object does not decelerate after entering the waiting area (a1).

[0077] Figure 7 This is a block diagram illustrating an additional configuration of door control in an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 8 This is a block diagram illustrating an additional configuration of a passenger determination unit in an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention, configured to determine the remaining passengers. Figure 9 This is a diagram illustrating an example of passengers boarding an elevator in an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention. Additionally, Figure 10 This is a diagram illustrating an example of a passenger descending an elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0078] In the following text, reference will be made to Figures 7 to 10 This embodiment describes how the configuration of the elevator doors is controlled based on the judgment result of the passenger determination unit (400) in the elevator system according to this embodiment.

[0079] According to this embodiment, the elevator system can automatically close the elevator door when it is determined that all expected elevator passengers have boarded the elevator car after the elevator door to the platform has been opened, and can also automatically close the elevator door when it is determined that all passengers inside the elevator car have disembarked after the elevator door to the platform has been opened and there are no remaining passengers inside the elevator car.

[0080] Therefore, the elevator system according to this embodiment includes a door controller (600) for controlling the opening or closing of the elevator doors. The door controller (600) can control the elevator doors to close based on detection information from an object detection sensor (300) or a judgment result from a passenger determination unit (400).

[0081] The door controller (600) can control the elevator door to close when the object detection sensor (300) on the floor where the elevator has stopped does not detect an object in the detection zone (a). Specifically, when the elevator door opens, the door controller (600) can wait for a preset time period starting from the time the elevator door is fully open, and then control the elevator door to close when the object detection sensor (300) does not detect an object. Here, the preset time period can be shorter than the time period before the elevator door automatically closes, and may be sufficient for the first passenger to disembark from the elevator car. For example, the preset time period can be 3 seconds.

[0082] Preferably, even if the object detection sensor (300) detects an object on a floor where the elevator has stopped, the door controller (600) will control the elevator door to close when no detected object is determined to be an expected elevator passenger. Specifically, the door controller (600) may control the elevator door to close when the number of one or more expected elevator passengers becomes zero when the elevator door is open.

[0083] In this way, the elevator system according to this embodiment can automatically close the elevator doors once it is determined that all expected elevator passengers have boarded the elevator car after the elevator doors have opened at the platform. This eliminates the need for passengers to individually press the close button, thus preventing the transmission of viruses through touching the close button. Furthermore, the elevator system according to this embodiment may include a voice recognition system for calling the elevator or entering the destination floor via voice at the platform. In this elevator system, elevator passengers do not need to touch any buttons during the entire elevator use, thereby completely preventing the transmission of viruses through button contact during elevator use.

[0084] On the other hand, the door controller (600) can control the elevator doors to close based on the number of remaining passengers inside the elevator car. Specifically, the door controller (600) can control the elevator doors to close when there are no remaining passengers inside the elevator car.

[0085] Therefore, such as Figure 8 As shown, the passenger determination unit (400) may include: an elevator boarding passenger determination unit (470) configured to determine passengers boarding the elevator car; an elevator disembarking passenger determination unit (480) configured to determine passengers disembarking from the elevator car; and a remaining passenger determination unit (490) configured to determine the remaining passengers inside the elevator car. Here, the partition determination unit (430) of the passenger determination unit (400) can divide the detection area (a) into partitions, which include not only a waiting partition (a1) and a surrounding partition (a2), but also a disembarking partition (a3). Here, the disembarking partition (a3) ​​may be a partition that connects the waiting partition (a1) to the interior of the elevator car (c), such as in... Figure 9 and Figure 10In the example shown.

[0086] The passenger boarding unit (470) can determine that the object being tracked by the object tracking unit (420) is a passenger boarding the elevator when the tracked object (u3) enters the descending zone (a3) ​​from the waiting zone (a1) when the elevator door is open. Figure 9 In the example shown. Additionally, the disembarking passenger determination unit (480) can determine that the tracked object (u4) is a disembarking passenger when the elevator door is open and the tracked object (u4) enters the waiting area (a1) from the disembarking area (a3). Figure 10 In the example shown.

[0087] The remaining passenger determination unit (490) can determine the number of remaining passengers in the elevator car by comparing the number of passengers boarding the elevator at each floor's platform with the number of passengers disembarking. Specifically, the remaining passenger determination unit (490) can determine that the remaining passenger number is the value obtained by subtracting the total number of disembarking passengers from the total number of passengers boarding the elevator on all floors.

[0088] In this way, the elevator system according to the invention can maximize the efficiency of elevator operation by automatically closing the elevator door when it is determined that there are no remaining passengers in the elevator car after all passengers inside the elevator car have disembarked from the elevator car after the elevator has reached the platform.

[0089] On the other hand, when the operating mode is normal mode, the door controller (600) can control the opening or closing of the elevator door based on platform call input, door closing button input, door opening button input, destination floor input, elevator car arrival at the platform, door opening time, and similar information. When the operating mode is switched to maintenance mode or fault mode, the door controller (600) can use a separate administrator manipulation module to control the elevator door based on the administrator's input. For example, when the operating mode is normal mode, the door controller (600) can automatically control the elevator door in the open state to close after a preset time period. When the operating mode is maintenance mode, if no closing input operation is performed through the administrator manipulation module even after the preset time period, the door controller (600) may not control the elevator door to close.

[0090] In this embodiment, even when the operating mode is maintenance mode or fault mode and no closing input operation has occurred via the administrator control module, the door controller (600) can immediately close the elevator doors that are open at the platform when an expected elevator passenger is detected. Here, the elevator doors include the platform door and the car door. If the elevator car is not located at the corresponding platform, the door controller (600) can control the platform door of the corresponding platform to close independently of the car door.

[0091] Therefore, when a platform door not connected to the elevator car is opened due to elevator maintenance or malfunction, the elevator system according to the invention can prevent safety accidents (such as falls and similar incidents) from occurring to users who are unaware of elevator maintenance or malfunction.

[0092] While exemplary embodiments have been described herein, it should be understood that these embodiments are given by way of illustration only, and various modifications, variations, and alterations can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the spirit and scope of the invention. Therefore, it should be understood that the embodiments disclosed herein are intended to illustrate, not limit, the technical concept of the invention, and the scope of the technical concept of the invention is not limited by the embodiments. The scope of protection of the invention should be interpreted in accordance with the foregoing claims, and all technical concepts within the scope of their equivalents should be interpreted as being included within the scope of the invention.

Claims

1. An elevator system, comprising: An object detection sensor is configured to detect objects in the detection area of ​​the platform; as well as The passenger determination unit is configured to determine whether the detected object is an expected elevator passenger based on the object detection information from the object detection sensor.

2. The elevator system according to claim 1, further comprising: The door controller is configured to control the opening or closing of the elevator doors based on a judgment of the expected elevator passengers.

3. The elevator system according to claim 2, wherein the door controller, upon determining that the expected elevator passenger has completed boarding the elevator, controls the elevator door, which is in the open state, to close without any door closing input operation.

4. The elevator system of claim 3, wherein the door controller controls the elevator door, which is in the open state, to close when the expected number of elevator passengers becomes zero, wherein the expected number of elevator passengers was at least one when the elevator door was open.

5. The elevator system according to claim 1, wherein the passenger determination unit comprises: A partitioning unit divides the detection area into at least two partitions, the at least two partitions including a waiting partition around the platform door and a peripheral partition surrounding at least a portion of the waiting partition; An object tracking unit is configured to track objects detected by the object detection sensor; A partition determination unit is configured to determine the partition in which the tracked object is located; A speed determination unit is configured to determine the moving speed of the tracked object; as well as The expected elevator passenger determination unit is configured to determine that the tracked object is the expected elevator passenger when the moving speed of the tracked object decreases by a predetermined value or greater than the predetermined value after the tracked object enters the waiting area from the peripheral area.

6. The elevator system of claim 5, wherein the passenger determination unit further comprises a non-elevator passenger determination unit, the non-elevator passenger determination unit being configured to determine the tracked object as a non-elevator passenger passing through the platform when the moving speed of the tracked object does not decrease by the predetermined value or does not decrease by more than the predetermined value after the tracked object enters the waiting area from the peripheral area and the platform door is closed.

7. The elevator system according to claim 1, further comprising: The door controller is configured to control the closing of the elevator doors based on the number of remaining passengers inside the elevator car.

8. The elevator system according to claim 7, wherein the passenger determination unit comprises: The partitioning unit divides the detection area into at least three partitions, including a waiting partition around the platform door, a peripheral partition surrounding at least a portion of the perimeter of the waiting partition, and an ascending / descending partition connecting the interior of the elevator car to the waiting partition. An object tracking unit is configured to track objects detected by the object detection sensor; A partition determination unit is configured to determine the partition in which the tracked object is located; The passenger boarding unit is configured to identify the tracked object as a passenger boarding the elevator when the tracked object enters the deceleration zone from the waiting zone. The disembarking passenger determination unit is configured to determine the tracked object as a disembarking passenger when the tracked object enters the waiting area from the disembarking area; as well as The remaining passenger determination unit is configured to determine the remaining passenger number based on the number of passengers boarding the elevator and the number of passengers disembarking.

9. The elevator system according to claim 1, further comprising: The status information creation unit is configured to create status information by determining the elevator status; A status information output unit includes a voice output unit, which is configured to output the status information via voice guidance. as well as An output controller is configured to determine the voice guidance output from the voice output unit based on a judgment of the expected elevator passengers.

10. The elevator system of claim 9, wherein the output controller controls the voice output unit to output the voice guidance when at least one of the objects detected by the object detection sensor is determined to be the expected elevator passenger.

11. The elevator system of claim 10, wherein the status information includes at least one of maintenance, fault, abnormality, and maximum capacity.

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