Moving line indication image projection device for passenger conveyor

Abstract

To provide a moving line indication image projection device for passenger conveyor that displays in which direction a passenger should move when getting off a footstep to a landing plate at an exit.SOLUTION: A moving line indication image projection device 5 includes: a projector 56 that performs projection on a landing plate 34 at an exit; a right sensor 54 that detects a passenger on a footstep 30; and a control device 50 that, when the right sensor 54 detects a passenger, causes the projector 56 to project, on an upper surface of the landing plate 34 at the exit, a moving line indication image indicating in which direction the passenger should move when getting off the footstep 30.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical field]

[0001] An embodiment of the present invention relates to a passenger conveyor flow line indication image projection device. [Background technology]

[0002] 2. Description of the Related Art Conventionally, in the case of escalators, moving walkways, and the like, a no-entry sign or the like has been displayed at the exit to prevent passengers from boarding the steps from the exit on the opposite side to the boarding entrance. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] JP 2022-166743 A [Patent Document 2] JP 2022-162879 A [Patent Document 3] Patent Publication No. 2022-108604 [Patent Document 4] Patent Publication No. 2021-119095 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] However, there was no way to display which direction passengers should move at the exit. Also, there was a risk that two passengers who got off the steps would move in different directions and collide with each other, but there was a problem in that there was no way to display which direction these passengers should move in to prevent this. For example, if the passenger on the right side of the steps gets off the board and moves straight ahead, and the passenger on the left side of the steps gets off the board and moves to the right, the two passengers will collide.

[0005] In view of the above problems, an embodiment of the present invention aims to provide a passenger conveyor flow line indication image projection device that displays in which direction passengers who step off the steps onto the boarding and alighting board at the exit should move. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] An embodiment of the present invention is a passenger conveyor having a pair of left and right handrails extending in the front-to-back direction from the boarding entrance to the alighting entrance, and steps moving between the pair of left and right handrails from a boarding / alighting board at the boarding entrance to a boarding / alighting board at the alighting entrance, and a flow line indication video projection device, wherein the flow line indication video projection device has a projector that projects onto the upper surface of the boarding / alighting board at the alighting entrance, a passenger sensor that detects passengers standing on the steps, and a control unit that, when the passenger sensor detects the passenger, projects, by the projector, a flow line indication video onto the upper surface of the boarding / alighting board at the alighting entrance, indicating in which direction the passenger should move when they get off the steps. [Brief description of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the escalator according to the first embodiment of the present invention, viewed from the right side. [Diagram 2] FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an escalator and a flow line indicating image projection device. [Diagram 3] FIG. 2 is a plan view of an escalator near the exit of the first pattern. [Figure 4] FIG. 11 is a plan view of an escalator near the exit of the second pattern. [Diagram 5] FIG. 13 is a plan view of an escalator near the exit of a modified example of the second pattern. [Figure 6] FIG. 11 is a plan view of an escalator near the exit of the third pattern. [Figure 7] FIG. 13 is a plan view of an escalator near the exit of a modified example of the third pattern. [Figure 8] FIG. 11 is a plan view of two rows of escalators according to the second embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 11 is a plan view of a modified example of the second embodiment of escalators arranged in two rows. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

[0008] A passenger conveyor according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. In this embodiment, an escalator will be described as the passenger conveyor.

[0009] An escalator 10 of the first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS.

[0010] (1) Escalator 10 First, the structure of escalator 10 will be described with reference to Fig. 1. Fig. 1 is an explanatory diagram of escalator 10 as viewed from the right side. However, in order to make the internal structure of escalator 10 easier to understand, illustration of members on the right side of escalator 10 is omitted. When describing the front-to-rear direction of escalator 10, it is assumed that the upper floor is viewed from the upper floor down to the lower floor, with the upper floor being the rear side and the lower floor being the front side.

[0011] A truss 12, which is the framework of the escalator 10, is supported in the front-to-rear direction by supporting angles 2 and 3 across the upper and lower floors of the building 1.

[0012] A drive unit 18 for driving the steps 30 and a pair of left and right step sprockets 24, 24 are provided inside the upper floor machine room 14 at the top end of the truss 12. The drive unit 18 has a motor 20, a reducer 21, a small drive sprocket 19 attached to the output shaft of the reducer 21, and a disk-type electromagnetic brake 23 for stopping the rotation of the motor 20 and maintaining the stopped state. A large drive sprocket 17 is attached to the same shaft of the pair of left and right step sprockets 24, 24, and an endless drive chain 22 is stretched between the large drive sprocket 17 and the small drive sprocket 19. A control device 50 for controlling the motor 20, the electromagnetic brake 23, etc. is provided inside the upper floor machine room 14.

[0013] A pair of left and right driven sprockets 26, 26 are provided inside the lower floor machine room 16 at the lower end of the truss 12. A pair of left and right endless step chains 28, 28 are stretched between the pair of left and right step sprockets 24, 24 on the upper floor and the pair of left and right driven sprockets 26, 26 on the lower floor. A pair of left and right first wheels 301, 301 of a plurality of steps 30 are connected at regular intervals between the pair of left and right step chains 28, 28. When the motor 20 rotates, the first wheel 301 of the step 30 runs on a guide rail dedicated to the first wheel (not shown) fixed to the truss 12, and the second wheel 302 of the step 30 runs on a guide rail dedicated to the second wheel 25 fixed to the truss 12.

[0014] A pair of left and right balustrades 36, 36 are erected on both the left and right sides of the upper part of the truss 12. A handrail rail 39 is provided on the upper part of the balustrade 36, and an endless handrail belt 38 moves along the handrail rail 39.

[0015] An upper floor front skirt guard 40 is provided on the lower front part of the upper floor of the pair of left and right balustrades 36, and a lower floor front skirt guard 42 is provided on the lower front part of the lower floor. Inlet parts 46, 48 which are the entrance and exit of the handrail belt 38 protrude from the front skirt guards 40, 42, respectively. Skirt guards (inner decks) 44 are provided on the lower side parts of the pair of left and right balustrades 36, respectively, and the steps 30 run between the pair of left and right skirt guards 44, 44.

[0016] The handrail belt 38 moves in synchronization with the steps 30 as a result of a belt sprocket (not shown) rotating together with the step sprocket 24 .

[0017] An upper floor boarding / alighting plate 32 is provided horizontally on the ceiling surface of the machine room 14, which is the boarding / alighting entrance between the pair of left and right skirt guards 44, 44 on the upper floor. A lower floor boarding / alighting plate 34 is provided horizontally on the ceiling surface of the machine room 16, which is the boarding / alighting entrance between the pair of left and right skirt guards 44, 44 on the lower floor. A comb-tooth-shaped comb 60 is provided at the tip of the upper floor boarding / alighting plate 32, and the steps 30 enter and exit the comb 60. A comb-tooth-shaped comb 62 is also provided at the tip of the lower floor boarding / alighting plate 34.

[0018] 2, a drive circuit 51 including an inverter circuit for controlling the rotation direction, rotation speed, etc. of motor 20 is connected to control device 50, which serves as a control section of escalator 10. Motor 20 and electromagnetic brake 23 for stopping the rotation of motor 20 are connected to drive circuit 51.

[0019] (2) Configuration of the traffic line indication image projection device 5 Next, a flow line instruction image projection device (hereinafter referred to as "the device") 5 that shows, with a flow line instruction image, in which direction passengers who get off at the exit of escalator 10 may move will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0020] 2, the device 5 is made up of a control device 50, a left passenger sensor (hereinafter referred to as "left sensor") 52, a right passenger sensor (hereinafter referred to as "right sensor") 54, a pair of left and right projectors 56, 56 on an upper floor, and a pair of left and right projectors 58, 58 on a lower floor, and the left sensor 52, the right sensor 54, the projectors 56, 56, and the projectors 58, 58 are connected to the control device 50. The control device 50 serves as a control unit for the escalator 10 and as a control unit for the device 5.

[0021] 3, the left sensor 52 and the right sensor 54 are provided on a pair of left and right skirt guards 44, 44 at the center of the upper and lower floors. The left sensor 52 is a photoelectric sensor for detecting passengers standing on the left side of the moving step 30, and the right sensor 54 is a photoelectric sensor for detecting passengers standing on the right side of the step 30.

[0022] A pair of left and right projectors 56, 56 are provided on the balustrade 36 directly above the boarding and alighting board 32 on the upper floor (see FIG. 1). The pair of left and right projectors 56, 56 can project flow-line instruction images such as figures, letters, pictures, etc. onto the upper surface of the boarding and alighting board 32 on the upper floor. Here, the "flow-line instruction image" is an indication that instructs the passenger in the direction (flow line) to move when the passenger gets off the steps 30. Specifically, it is an image such as an arrow or letters indicating the direction to move, an area in a color such as red, blue, or yellow that indicates the movement range, i.e., the range within which the passenger should proceed, a picture (mark) that calls attention, or a combination of these images.

[0023] 3 to 7, the pair of left and right projectors 58, 58 are provided on the pair of left and right balustrades 36, 36 directly above the lower floor boarding 34. The pair of left and right projectors 58, 58 project the above-mentioned flow line instruction image onto the upper surface of the lower floor boarding 34.

[0024] Below, several patterns will be described in which the device 5 uses flow line instruction images to show in which direction passengers who get off at the exit of the escalator 10 should move. In the following explanation, the steps 30 of the escalator 10 are in a descending operation, and the entrance / exit on the lower floor side is the exit. In Figs. 3 to 9, passengers standing on the steps 30 are shown with the character "Normal" surrounded by a white circle, and passengers walking or running down the steps 30 are shown with the character "Quick" surrounded by a home plate-shaped pentagon, and the direction of travel of the passengers is shown by the corner with the widest angle of the pentagon.

[0025] (3) First pattern The first pattern of the device 5 will be described with reference to Fig. 3. In the first pattern, a passenger is moving from an upper floor to a lower floor while standing on the right side of the steps 30, and when this passenger reaches the exit, a flow line instruction image showing in which direction the passenger should move on the boarding / alighting board 34 after getting off the steps 30 is projected onto the boarding / alighting board 34 by a pair of left and right projectors 58, 58.

[0026] When the right sensor 54 detects a passenger, the control device 50 causes a pair of left and right projectors 58, 58 to project an image of an arrow 101, which indicates to move forward on the board 34, onto the center of the upper surface of the board 34 on the lower floor side. At this time, the arrow 101 may be displayed in any color, for example, white or blue, but is displayed so as to be easily visible, taking into consideration the color of the board 34, etc. Passengers who have disembarked can easily determine in which direction on the board 34 they should move by looking at the arrow 101.

[0027] (4) Second Pattern Next, the second pattern of the device 5 will be described with reference to Fig. 4. The second pattern is a case where there are passengers on both the left and right sides of the step 30, for example, a passenger on the right side of the step 30 is standing on the step 30 and descending, and a passenger on the left side is walking down the step 30, which is the most common pattern in daily life. The passenger state in Fig. 1 represents the second pattern.

[0028] In this case, the right sensor 54 on the right side detects the passenger on the right side, and the left sensor 52 detects the passenger on the left side. Note that the left sensor 52 and the right sensor 54 are photoelectric sensors, and therefore detect only the presence of passengers, and do not detect the state of each passenger, i.e., whether they are standing still on the steps 30, walking, or running down.

[0029] When the left sensor 52 detects a passenger on the left side and the right sensor 54 detects a passenger on the right side, the control device 50 uses a pair of left and right projectors 58, 58 to project an image of an arrow 102 onto the right side of the boarding / alighting board 34 on the lower floor side, with the front part of the arrow 102 projected so as to bend toward the right side of the boarding / alighting board 34. An image of an arrow 103 is projected onto the left side of the boarding / alighting board 34, with the front part of the arrow 103 projected so as to bend toward the left side of the boarding / alighting board 34. Between the arrows 102 and 103, arrows 104 and 105 smaller than the arrows 102 and 103 are projected in directions approaching each other, and a caution mark 106 is displayed at the tip of each arrow. The arrows 103 and 104 are projected in blue, the small arrows 104 and 105 are projected in red, and the caution mark 106 is projected in yellow.

[0030] This tells passengers on the right side of the step 30 that they should move along the right arrow 101, and passengers on the left side of the step 30 that they should move along the left arrow 102. And, a caution mark 106 is projected in the center between the red arrows 104 and 105, so that these passengers can be alerted to the risk of collision.

[0031] (5) Example of the second pattern change A modification of the second pattern will be described with reference to FIG.

[0032] In a modified example of the second pattern, the flow line instruction image is shown by an image of a colored area, rather than by the arrows 102 and 103. That is, a pair of left and right projectors 58, 58 projects, for example, blue light onto the right side of the upper surface of the boarding board 34 for passengers on the right side of the steps 30 to form an area 107, and projects, for example, red light onto the left side of the upper surface of the boarding board 34 for passengers on the left side of the steps 30 to form an area 108. This makes it possible to indicate that passengers on the left side should move along the blue area 107, and passengers on the right side should move along the red area.

[0033] (6) The third pattern Next, a third pattern of the present device 5 will be described with reference to FIG.

[0034] The third pattern is a pattern that is applied when multiple passengers are descending from the steps 30 to the boarding and alighting board 34 in sequence on the left and right sides of the steps 30, and the boarding and alighting board 34 is always filled with passengers, so that even if a pair of left and right projectors 58, 58 project an image indicating traffic flow onto the upper surface of the boarding and alighting board 34 between the pair of left and right handrails 36, 36, the image is hidden by other passengers and cannot be seen.

[0035] In this third pattern, a pair of left and right projectors 58, 58 project text images only on the right side of the board 34, i.e., on the top surface of the board 34 in front of the right-side railing 36. For example, a rectangular area 110 is formed only on the right side of the board 34 by projection, and text such as "Watch out for your rear left!" or "Watch out for congestion! Be careful of collisions" is displayed inside this rectangular area 110. Alternatively, an arrow pointing to the right or an arrow pointing to the left overlapped with an X mark is displayed so that only passengers on the right side can see it.

[0036] A passenger on the right side of the step 30 can look at the rectangular area 110 to be careful of the left rear or to move to avoid contact due to congestion. The rectangular area 110 is projected onto at least the upper surface of the right side of both the left and right sides of the boarding and alighting board 34.

[0037] Note that the rectangular area 110 may be projected only onto the upper surface of the left side of the boarding / alighting board 34 in accordance with the movement patterns of passengers on the left and right sides.

[0038] (7) Example of the third pattern change A modification of the third pattern will be described with reference to FIG.

[0039] In the third modified pattern, a rectangular area 110 is displayed not only on the right side of the upper surface of the boarding / alighting board 34 but also on both the left and right sides, and a rectangular area 111 is formed on the left side as well as the right side of the upper surface of the boarding / alighting board 34 by projection from a pair of left and right projectors 58, 58. "Watch out, right passengers" is projected onto this left rectangular area 111 to alert passengers on the left side of the steps 30, and "Watch out, left passengers" is projected onto the rectangular area 110. Passengers on both sides are then urged to proceed straight in the direction of travel.

[0040] (8) Effects According to this embodiment, the device 5 projects a flow line instruction image, which indicates the direction of movement, to passengers descending to the boarding / alighting plate 34, which is the exit of the escalator 10, so that passengers on either side can move safely without bumping into each other.

[0041] Next, the escalators 10, 100 of the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

[0042] In this embodiment, escalator 10, which is a first passenger conveyor, and escalator 100, which is a second passenger conveyor, are arranged side by side in two rows. The configurations of escalator 10, escalator 100, and this device 5 are the same as those of escalator 10 and this device 5 described in embodiment 1, and both are in downward operation. Escalator 10 spans from the third floor to the second floor, and escalator 100 spans from the second floor to the first floor. On the second floor, boarding and alighting plate 34 at the exit of escalator 10 and boarding and alighting plate 32 at the entrance of escalator 100 are arranged adjacent to each other.

[0043] When a passenger standing on the right side of the step 30 of the escalator 10 descending from the third floor to the second floor transfers to the escalator 100 going from the second floor to the first floor, an image of an arrow 112, which is an image indicating a flow line, is projected by the projectors 56, 56 of the device 5 at the exit of the escalator 10 and the projectors 58, 58 of the device 5 at the entrance of the escalator 100, in order to smoothly show the transfer movement. The arrow 112 extends forward on the boarding and alighting board 34 at the exit, bends in a U-shape toward the adjacent boarding and alighting board 32 just before the front end of the boarding and alighting board 34, and extends forward (to the lower floor) from near the rear end of the boarding and alighting board 32 toward the step 30 of the escalator 100. That is, the arrow 112 is projected onto at least the upper surface of the right side of both the left and right sides of the boarding and alighting board 34.

[0044] Also, an image of arrow 113 is displayed alongside the image of arrow 112 on boarding / alighting board 32 so that passengers getting on escalator 100 from the second floor can board in two lines without colliding with passengers transferring. In this case, arrow 112 is projected onto at least the upper left surface of both the left and right sides of boarding / alighting board 32. This arrow 113 has its origin near the center of the rear end of boarding / alighting board 32 and becomes nearly parallel to arrow 112 just before the steps 30, but between the origin and the parallel part, it is slightly closer to the arrow 112 side. In the part where these arrows 112 and 113 are close to each other, an image of a caution mark 114 indicating a collision is projected between the arrows.

[0045] As a result, passengers descending from the third floor to the second floor can safely transfer to step 30 of escalator 100 by moving along arrow 112. Also, passengers getting on from the second floor are encouraged by arrow 113 to line up in two lines, thereby avoiding the risk of collision.

[0046] A modification of the second embodiment will be described with reference to FIG.

[0047] In the second embodiment, the passenger flow line indication images are arrows 112 and 113, but in this modified example, they are replaced by colored areas.

[0048] That is, a blue area 115 covering from boarding / alighting platform 34 to boarding / alighting platform 32 is projected as an image indicating the flow of passengers who board the right side of step 30 of escalator 10 and transfer to escalator 100. A red area 116 is projected as an image indicating the flow of passengers who are on the left side of step 30 of escalator 10. A yellow area 117 is projected as an image indicating the flow of passengers who are on the right side of step 30 of escalator 100 from the second floor. This makes it possible to clearly indicate the direction of movement for each passenger. Modified Example

[0049] In the above embodiment 1, the case is shown where the steps 30 are descending, but even when the steps 30 are ascending, a pair of projectors 56, 56 on the left and right sides of the upper floor are used to project an image indicating the flow of passengers descending to the boarding and alighting board 32 on the upper floor.

[0050] Furthermore, the patterns in the above embodiment are merely examples, and passenger flow line indication images other than these patterns may be projected.

[0051] Furthermore, in the above embodiment, the present invention has been described as being applied to the escalator 10, but it may instead be applied to a moving walkway.

[0052] Depending on the structure of the building, the flow line indication image may be projected onto the upper surface of at least one of the left and right sides of the boarding / alighting board, for example, in the case where the escalator 10 is installed along a wall surface and there is a wall surface on the left or right side of the escalator 10.

[0053] Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, this embodiment is presented as an example and is not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the scope of the invention and its equivalents described in the claims. [Explanation of symbols]

[0054] 5... Flow line indication image projection device, 10... Escalator, 30... Steps, 32... Boarding and alighting board, 34... Boarding and alighting board, 36... Handrail, 50... Control device, 52... Left sensor, 54... Right sensor, 56... Projector, 58... Projector, 101... Arrow, 102... Arrow

Claims

1. A passenger conveyor having a pair of left and right handrails extending in the front-rear direction from the boarding entrance to the alighting entrance, and a step moving between the pair of left and right handrails from a boarding / alighting board at the boarding entrance to a boarding / alighting board at the alighting entrance; A flow line indication image projection device; having The flow line indicating image projection device includes: A projector that projects images onto an upper surface of the boarding platform at the exit; a passenger sensor for detecting a passenger standing on the step; a control unit that, when the passenger sensor detects the passenger, projects, by the projector, a flow line instruction image on an upper surface of the boarding plate at the exit, the flow line instruction image indicating in which direction the passenger should move when getting off the steps; A passenger conveyor flow line indication image projection device comprising:

2. The passenger sensor includes: a left passenger sensor provided at a lower portion of the left handrail for detecting the passenger on the left side of the step; a right passenger sensor provided at a lower portion of the right handrail for detecting the passenger on the right side of the step; having the control unit, when the left passenger sensor detects the passenger on the left side, projects, by the projector, the left-side flow line indication image indicating the movement direction of the left-side passenger, onto the left side of the boarding and alighting board at the exit, and, when the right passenger sensor detects the passenger on the right side, projects, by the projector, the right-side flow line indication image indicating the movement direction of the right-side passenger, onto the right side of the boarding and alighting board at the exit.

2. The passenger conveyor flow line indication image projection device according to claim 1.

3. The flow line instruction image is projected onto the upper surface of the boarding board between the pair of left and right handrails.

2. The passenger conveyor flow line indication image projection device according to claim 1.

4. The flow line indication image is projected onto at least one upper surface of the left and right sides of the boarding and alighting board.

2. The passenger conveyor flow line indication image projection device according to claim 1.

5. The projector is provided on the handrail at the exit or on the ceiling of a building in which the passenger conveyor is installed.

2. The passenger conveyor flow line indication image projection device according to claim 1.

6. A pair of first handrails extending in the front-rear direction from the first boarding entrance on the first floor to the first exit on the second floor; A first step that moves between the pair of left and right first railings from a boarding / alighting board at the first boarding entrance to a boarding / alighting board at the first alighting entrance; a first passenger conveyor having A pair of second handrails extending in the front-rear direction from the second boarding entrance on the second floor to the second exit on the third floor; A second step that moves between the pair of second handrails on the left and right sides from a boarding / alighting board at the second boarding entrance to a boarding / alighting board at the second alighting entrance; a second passenger conveyor having A flow line indication image projection device; having The boarding and alighting board at the first exit and the boarding and alighting board at the second exit are adjacent to each other, The flow line indicating image projection device includes: a projector that projects onto an upper surface of the boarding platform at the first exit and an upper surface of the boarding platform at the second exit; a passenger sensor for detecting a passenger standing on the first step; a control unit that, when the passenger sensor detects the passenger, projects, by the projector, a flow line indication image indicating a direction in which the passenger will get off the first step and transfer from the first passenger conveyor to the second passenger conveyor, onto an upper surface of the board at the first exit and an upper surface of the board at the second exit; A passenger conveyor flow line indication image projection device comprising:

7. The flow line indication image is an image of an arrow indicating the direction of movement of the passenger.

7. The passenger conveyor flow line indication image projection device according to claim 1 or 6.

8. The flow line instruction image is an image of characters indicating the direction of movement of the passenger, 7. The passenger conveyor flow line indication image projection device according to claim 1 or 6.

9. The flow line indication image is an image showing the passenger movement range with a color area.

7. The passenger conveyor flow line indication image projection device according to claim 1 or 6.

Images