Elevator system

Abstract

To prevent reduction in operation efficiency caused by a useless response by determining the necessity of a wheelchair compatible car when a general call button and a wheelchair call button are pressed.SOLUTION: This elevator system comprises: a general call button; a wheelchair call button; a camera; a speed sensor; call management means; determination means; and allocation control means. The determination means determines, when the general call button and the wheelchair call button are continuously operated, whether a user who has operated each button is a general user not needing a wheelchair compatible car on the basis of a camera image and a detection speed of the speed sensor. The allocation control means cancels one of the general call and the wheelchair call stored in the call management means in accordance with the determination result of the determination means, and allocates one of cars to a landing on the basis of the other call.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Embodiments of the present invention relate to an elevator system.

Background Art

[0002] In an elevator system having a plurality of cabs, a wheelchair-accessible cab (hereinafter referred to as a wheelchair-accessible car) may be provided. The wheelchair-accessible car is set to have a longer door opening time than a normal cab. Also, a call button for wheelchair users, a back mirror, etc. are installed in the cab interior.

[0003] Note that the term "wheelchair user" includes not only wheelchair users but also users using a walking aid such as a cane, the elderly, etc. That is, a user who has difficulty walking compared to a general user is called a "wheelchair user".

[0004] In such an elevator system equipped with a wheelchair-accessible car, in addition to a landing call button for general users (hereinafter referred to as a general call button) at each landing, a landing call button for wheelchair users (hereinafter referred to as a wheelchair call button) is installed side by side. By pressing either call button, the elevator (cab) is configured to be called to the landing. When the general call button is pressed, a landing call called "general call" is registered, and a cab other than the wheelchair-accessible cab responds. When the wheelchair call button is pressed, a landing call called "wheelchair call" is registered, and the wheelchair-accessible cab responds.

[0005] However, some users may not be aware of the difference between the general call button and the wheelchair call button and may press both buttons. In this case, if a normal car arrives first, the "general call" will be canceled when the car arrives, but the "wheelchair call" will not be canceled. This is because if the "wheelchair call" is canceled, the user who pressed the button may not be able to board the wheelchair-accessible car if they are a wheelchair user. The wheelchair-accessible car will also respond to the "wheelchair call", resulting in two cars, including the wheelchair-accessible car, arriving at the landing. If the wheelchair-accessible car responds first, the "general call" will be canceled, so only the wheelchair-accessible car will arrive at the landing.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0006]

Patent Document 1

Patent Document 2

Patent Document 3

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0007] As described above, when the general call button and the wheelchair call button are pressed, two cars, including the wheelchair-accessible car, may arrive. In this case, if the user who pressed the button is a general user, the wheelchair-accessible car will respond unnecessarily, leading to a decrease in operating efficiency.

[0008] Therefore, the problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an elevator system that can determine the necessity of a wheelchair-accessible car when the general call button and the wheelchair call button are pressed and prevent a decrease in operating efficiency due to unnecessary responses.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0009] An elevator system according to an embodiment includes a plurality of carriages including a wheelchair-compatible carriage. The elevator system includes a general call button, a wheelchair call button, a camera, a speed sensor, a call management means, a determination means, and an allocation control means. The general call button is installed at a landing on any floor. The wheelchair call button is installed separately from the general call button at the landing. The camera photographs a user approaching near the installation of the general call button or the wheelchair call button. The speed sensor detects the speed of a user approaching near the installation of the general call button or the wheelchair call button. The call management means stores a general call registered by an operation of the general call button and a wheelchair call registered by an operation of the wheelchair call button together with the floor information of the landing. When the general call button and the wheelchair call button are continuously operated, the determination means determines, based on the image of the camera and the detected speed of the speed sensor, whether the user who operated each button is a general user who does not need the wheelchair-compatible carriage. The allocation control means cancels one of the general call and the wheelchair call stored in the call management means according to the determination result of the determination means, and causes one of the carriages of each carriage to respond to the landing based on the remaining call.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0010]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

[0011] Hereinafter, each embodiment will be described with reference to the drawings. Note that the disclosure is merely an example, and the invention is not limited by the content described in the following embodiments. Modifications that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art are naturally included in the scope of the disclosure. For the sake of clarity, in the drawings, the size, shape, etc. of each part may be changed and schematically represented with respect to the actual embodiment. In a plurality of drawings, the same reference numerals may be assigned to corresponding elements, and detailed descriptions may be omitted.

[0012] FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of an elevator system according to this embodiment. In the elevator system according to this embodiment, a plurality of carriages including a wheelchair-compatible carriage are group-managed. In the example of FIG. 1, a configuration is shown in which a total of three carriages, namely, two general carriages 12a and 12b and one wheelchair-compatible carriage 12w, are group-managed.

[0013] The wheelchair-compatible carriage 12w is, for example, a carriage whose door opening time is set longer than that of the general carriages 12a and 12b. In addition, a call button for wheelchair users, a rearview mirror, etc. are installed in the interior of the wheelchair-compatible carriage 12w. The general carriages 12a and 12b are carriages with standard specifications.

[0014] Since the wheelchair-compatible carriage 12w has a longer door opening time than the other general carriages 12a and 12b, passengers can get on and off without hurry. For this reason, not only wheelchair users but also users who are difficult to walk compared to general users, such as users using a walking aid (such as a cane), pregnant women, and elderly people, also need it. In the following description, users who need the wheelchair-compatible carriage 12w are referred to as "specific users". On the other hand, users who do not need the wheelchair-compatible carriage 12w are referred to as "general users".

[0015] In the example of FIG. 1, a configuration is shown in which two general cars 12a and 12b and one wheelchair-compatible car 12w are group-managed. However, any configuration in which two or more cars including at least one general car and at least one wheelchair-compatible car are group-managed may be used.

[0016] In the figure, 11a, 11b, and 11w are elevator control devices (also referred to as car control devices). The elevator control devices 11a, 11b, and 11w are provided for each of the cars (general cars 12a and 12b, wheelchair-compatible car 12w) group-managed in the elevator system, and perform driving control of the corresponding cars.

[0017] Specifically, the elevator control devices 11a and 11b perform control of a motor (hoist) (not shown) for moving the general cars 12a and 12b up and down in the hoistway, opening and closing control of the doors, and the like. Similarly, the elevator control device 11w performs control of a motor for moving the wheelchair-compatible car 12w up and down in the hoistway, opening and closing control of the doors, and the like. Note that the opening and closing time of the door of the wheelchair-compatible car 12w is set longer than that of the general cars 12a and 12b in the elevator control device 11w. These elevator control devices 11a, 11b, and 11w are configured by a computer including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, and the like.

[0018] At each landing (elevator hall) 13, a general call button 14, a wheelchair call button 15, a camera 16, and a speed sensor 17 are installed. The general call button 14, the wheelchair call button 15, the camera 16, and the speed sensor 17 are each connected to the group management control device 20 via a transmission cable (not shown).

[0019] The general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 are push-type operation buttons for registering a landing call. Actually, they consist of an upward button and a downward button. Note that only the upward button is installed on the lowest floor, and only the downward button is installed on the uppermost floor. A "landing call" refers to a call signal registered by operating the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 at the landing, and includes the registered floor (floor information) and the information on the destination direction. In contrast, a "car call" refers to a call signal registered by operating a destination call button (not shown) provided inside the car 11, and includes the information on the destination floor.

[0020] Also, in the following description, the landing call registered by pressing the general call button 14 is denoted as a "general call", and the landing call registered by pressing the wheelchair call button 15 is denoted as a "wheelchair call". The information on the general call and the wheelchair call registered by the user is transmitted to the group management control device 20.

[0021] In FIG. 1, for the sake of convenience, one general call button 14 and one wheelchair call button 15 are illustrated, but a plurality of general call buttons 14 and wheelchair call buttons 15 may be installed at the landing 13 (see FIG. 2). Also, at least one general call button 14 and at least one wheelchair call button 15 are installed at the landing 13 on each floor.

[0022] The camera 16 is an imaging device for photographing the landing 13. In this embodiment, it is used to photograph a user approaching the vicinity of the installation of the general call button 14 or the wheelchair call button 15. The installation location of the camera 16 may be anywhere as long as it can photograph a user moving from the boarding and alighting side of each unit towards the landing 13 (see FIG. 2). The image photographed by the camera 16 is transmitted to the group management control device 20 in real time.

[0023] The speed sensor 17 detects the speed of a user approaching the general call button 14 or the wheelchair call button 15. For example, when the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 are installed separately at various locations in a pair, the speed sensor 17 is installed at each location (see Fig. 2). Also, when the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 are installed separately at various locations individually, the speed sensor 17 is installed near the installation location of the general call button 14 and the installation location of the wheelchair call button 15, respectively.

[0024] As the speed sensor 17, for example, a radar gun is used, and the moving speed is detected from the frequency change when the electromagnetic wave irradiated toward the measurement target (the user in this embodiment) is reflected back by the measurement target. Note that the speed sensor 17 is not limited to the above-described radar gun, and any device that can detect the speed of a user approaching each button may be used. The speed information of the user detected by the speed sensor 17 is transmitted to the group management control device 20 in real time.

[0025] The group management control device 20 is a device for group management control of the operation of the carriages of each unit, and is configured by a computer including a CPU, a ROM, a RAM, etc., similar to the elevator control devices 11a, 11b, and 11w. In this embodiment, the group management control device 20 is provided with an image storage unit 21, a speed storage unit 22, a call management unit 23, a determination unit 24, and an allocation control unit 25. Note that these processing units are actually realized by software or a combination of software and hardware.

[0026] The image storage unit 21 sequentially stores the captured images obtained from the camera 16 in time series order in units of frame time. The speed storage unit 22 stores the speed of the user detected by the speed sensor 17 (the average speed when the user is moving from the landing 13 toward the installation location of the general call button 14 or the wheelchair call button 15).

[0027] The call management unit 23 stores, at the landing 13 on each floor, the general call registered by operating the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call registered by operating the wheelchair call button 15 together with the information of the registered floor, and also stores the information of the car (assigned car) to which these calls are assigned.

[0028] When the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 are continuously operated, the determination unit 24 determines whether the user who operated each button is a general user based on the captured image of the camera 16 and the detected speed of the speed sensor 17.

[0029] Note that "when the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 are continuously operated" means that buttons in the same direction are continuously operated for each. That is, when the upward general call button 14 and the upward wheelchair call button 15 are continuously pressed, and when the downward general call button 14 and the downward wheelchair call button 15 are continuously pressed.

[0030] Also, "continuously operated" means that the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 are operated within a certain time. The "certain time" is determined based on the average time when the user presses one of the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 and then presses the other, and is appropriately set according to the arrangement interval between the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 at the landing 13 on each floor.

[0031] When the determination unit 24 is divided processually, it is divided into a first determination unit 24a, a second determination unit 24b, and a third determination unit 24c. Specific processing will be described later with reference to FIGS. 4 to 6, and will be briefly explained here.

[0032] The first determination unit 24a determines whether the user approaching the general call button 14 or the wheelchair call button 15 is a general user based on the captured image of the camera 16 stored in the image storage unit 21.

[0033] The second determination unit 24b determines whether a user approaching the general call button 14 or the wheelchair call button 15 is a general user based on the detection speed of the speed sensor 17 stored in the speed storage unit 22.

[0034] When the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 are continuously operated, the third determination unit 24c determines whether the user who operated each button (the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15) is a general user based on the determination results of the first determination unit 24a and the second determination unit 24b.

[0035] When a new landing call (general call and wheelchair call) is stored in the call management unit 23, the allocation control unit 25 selects, as the allocated car, the car to which the landing call is to be allocated based on the operation information (current position, driving direction, door open / closed state, etc.) of the general cars 12a, 12b and the wheelchair-targeted car 12w obtained from the elevator control devices 11a, 11b, 11w. When a general call is registered as a landing call, the allocation control unit 25 selects one of the general cars 12a, 12b as the allocated car, and when a wheelchair call is registered, the allocation control unit 25 selects the wheelchair-targeted car 12w as the allocated car.

[0036] Here, when the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 are continuously operated, the general call and the wheelchair call are continuously stored in the call management unit 23 within the above-mentioned fixed time. The allocation control unit 25 determines from the continuity of the general call and the wheelchair call stored in the call management unit 23 that the buttons 14, 15 have been continuously operated, and cancels one of the general call and the wheelchair call according to the determination result of the determination unit 24. "Cancellation" means deleting the information of the call from the call management unit 23.

[0037] Specifically, when the determination unit 24 determines that the user who operates each of the buttons 14 and 15 is a general user, the allocation control unit 25 cancels the wheelchair call in the call management unit 23. Then, the allocation control unit 25 allocates the general call to either one of the general cages 12a and 12b. On the other hand, when the determination unit 24 determines that the user who operates each of the buttons 14 and 15 is a specific user, the allocation control unit 25 cancels the general call in the call management unit 23. Then, the allocation control unit 25 allocates the wheelchair call to the wheelchair-compatible cage 12w.

[0038] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of an arbitrary landing 13 according to the present embodiment. In the figure, 18a, 18b, and 18w are landing doors. The landing door 18a opens and closes in conjunction with the cage door when the general cage 12a arrives. The landing door 18b opens and closes in conjunction with the cage door when the general cage 12b arrives. The landing door 18w opens and closes in conjunction with the cage door when the wheelchair-compatible cage 12w arrives.

[0039] A general call button 14a and a wheelchair call button 15a are installed on the wall surface 19a between the landing doors 18a and 18b. The wheelchair call button 15a is installed at a position lower than the general call button 14a so that it is easier for wheelchair users to operate.

[0040] Here, a speed sensor 17a is installed near the general call button 14a and the wheelchair call button 15a. In the example of FIG. 2, the speed sensor 17a is installed between the general call button 14a and the wheelchair call button 15a. The speed sensor 17a is installed facing the front of the user who is the detection target of the user approaching the general call button 14a or the wheelchair call button 15a.

[0041] On the wall surface 19b between the landing doors 18b and 18w, a general call button 14b, a wheelchair call button 15b, and a speed sensor 17b are also installed in the same manner as the wall surface 19a.

[0042] In the example of Fig. 2, the general call button 14a and the wheelchair call button 15a, and the general call button 14b and the wheelchair call button 15b are installed on the wall surfaces 19a and 19b in a paired form, respectively. However, for example, the general call button 14a may be installed on the wall surface 19a and the wheelchair call button 15a may be installed on the wall surface 19b. In this case, the speed sensor 17a is installed near the general call button 14a on the wall surface 19a. The speed sensor 17b is installed near the wheelchair call button 15a on the wall surface 19b.

[0043] That is, when the general call button 14a and the landing call button 15a are arranged separately, the speed sensors 17a and 17b are individually installed near the respective buttons 14a and 15a to detect the speed of the user approaching the general call button 14a or the landing call button 15a. In this case, for the detection of the user's speed, the results of both the speed sensors 17a and 17b may be used, or the result of the speed sensor 17b may be preferentially used for detection.

[0044] In addition, at least one camera 16 is installed in the landing 13 to photograph the users in the landing 13. In the example of Fig. 2, it is installed on the wall surface above the landing door 18b facing the landing 13. Note that the camera 16 may be installed anywhere as long as it can photograph the users approaching the installation location of the call button, such as the ceiling surface of the landing 13, etc. For example, a camera that widely photographs the landing 13, such as a security camera, may be used.

[0045] Next, the operation of this embodiment will be described. Fig. 3 is a flowchart showing the processing flow of the elevator system according to this embodiment. Now, assume a case where the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 are arranged in a paired form or individually at an arbitrary floor landing 13. A camera 16 and a speed sensor 17 are installed in the landing 13. The camera 16 photographs the user approaching the general call button 14 or the wheelchair call button 15 (step S11). The image captured by the camera 16 is transmitted to the group management control device 20 in real time and stored in the image storage unit 21 in chronological order.

[0046] Further, the speed sensor 17 detects the moving speed when the user approaches the general call button 14 or the wheelchair call button 15 from the boarding area 13 (step S12). The speed detected by the speed sensor 17 is transmitted to the group management control device 20 in real time and stored in the speed storage unit 22.

[0047] Here, when one of the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 is operated by the user (NO in step S13), the general call or wheelchair call registered by the button operation is stored in the call management unit 23. In this case, the assignment control unit 25 selects one car selected to assign the general call or wheelchair call by normal assignment processing and directs it to the boarding area 13 (step S22).

[0048] On the other hand, when the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 are continuously operated by the user (YES in step S13), the general call and the wheelchair call are continuously stored in the call management unit 23. In this case, the assignment control unit 25 cancels one of the general call and the wheelchair call according to the result of the determination process (steps S14 to S16) of the determination unit 24 and performs the assignment process using the other call.

[0049] Hereinafter, with reference to FIGS. 4 to 6, the first to third determination processes executed by the determination unit 24 will be described in detail. (First determination process) FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing the flow of the first determination process according to the present embodiment. The first determination unit 24a of the determination unit 24 acquires an image captured immediately before the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 are continuously operated from the image storage unit 21, and analyzes the image to detect the user near the buttons 14 and 15 (step A11).

[0050] Here, the user near the buttons 14 and 15 is detected using the captured image immediately before the continuous operation of the buttons 14 and 15. However, for example, the user may be tracked on each image obtained from the camera 16 in chronological order, and when the user comes near the buttons 14 and 15, the user may be detected as the button operator.

[0051] When a user who has continuously operated the buttons 14 and 15 is detected, the first determination unit 24a determines whether the user is using a walking aid by analyzing the image of this user (step A12). The "walking aid" is, for example, a wheelchair, a cane, a walker, etc.

[0052] Note that, for the determination process of whether the user is using a walking aid, for example, a method of extracting the feature amount of the user on the image and determining from the similarity between the feature amount and the feature amount of the user who has used the walking aid learned in advance, or several types of pattern images of the user who has used the walking aid are prepared, and a pattern matching method of comparing these pattern images with the image of the user obtained from the captured image is used.

[0053] When the user is using a walking aid (YES in step A12), the first determination unit 24a determines that the specific user has performed the button operation (step A13). On the other hand, when the user is not using a walking aid (NO in step A12), the first determination unit 24a determines that the general user has performed the button operation (step A14). The first determination unit 24a notifies the third determination unit 24c of the determination result in step A13 or step A14 (step A15).

[0054] (Second determination process) FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the flow of the second determination process according to the present embodiment. The second determination unit 24b of the determination unit 24 acquires the moving speed of the user detected in step S12 (FIG. 3) from the speed storage unit 22 (step B11), and determines whether or not the moving speed is equal to or higher than a predetermined fixed value (step B12). The above-mentioned "fixed value" is determined by the average walking speed of general users.

[0055] If the speed of the user is less than the fixed value (NO in step B12), the second determination unit 24b determines that a specific user has performed a button operation (step B13). On the other hand, if the speed of the user is equal to or higher than the fixed value (YES in step B12), the second determination unit 24b determines that a general user has performed a button operation (step B14). The second determination unit 24b notifies the third determination unit 24c of the determination result of step B13 or step B14 (step B15).

[0056] (Third determination process) FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the flow of the third determination process according to the present embodiment. The third determination unit 24c of the determination unit 24 finally determines whether or not the user who has continuously operated the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 is a general user based on the determination results of the first determination unit 24a and the second determination unit 24b.

[0057] When the determination results of the first determination unit 24a and the second determination unit 24b are both general users (YES in step C11), the third determination unit 24c determines that the user who has continuously operated the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 is a general user (step C12). That is, when it is detected that the user is not using a walking aid and is moving at a speed equal to or higher than a certain value, it is determined that the user who has continuously operated the buttons 14 and 15 is a general user.

[0058] On the other hand, when the determination results of the first determination unit 24a and the second determination unit 24b are both specific users (NO in step C11 → YES in step C13), the third determination unit 24c determines that the user who continuously operates the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 is a specific user (step C14). That is, when it is detected that the user is using a walking aid and moving at a speed less than a certain value, it is determined that the user who continuously operates the buttons 14 and 15 is a specific user.

[0059] When the determination results of the first determination unit 24a and the second determination unit 24b are different (NO in step C11 → NO in step C13), the third determination unit 24c determines that the user who continuously operates the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 is a specific user (step C15).

[0060] In this way, it is finally determined whether the user is a general user or not from the determination results of the first determination unit 24a and the second determination unit 24b. Therefore, for example, in the case of a user who is not using a walking aid but has a slow walking speed, such as an elderly person or a pregnant woman, the first determination unit 24a using the camera 16 determines that the user is a "general user", and the second determination unit 24b using the speed sensor 17 determines that the user is a "specific user". However, since it falls under the case of "when the determination results of the first determination unit 24a and the second determination unit 24b are different", it can be determined as a specific user.

[0061] Also, in the case of a user who is using a walking aid due to a foot injury but is accustomed to handling the walking aid and has a fast moving speed, the first determination unit 24a using the camera 16 determines that the user is a "specific user", and the second determination unit 24b using the speed sensor 17 determines that the user is a "general user". However, since it falls under the case of "when the determination results of the first determination unit 24a and the second determination unit 24b are different", it can be determined as a specific user.

[0062] The third determination unit 24c notifies the assignment control unit 25 of the determination result in step C12, C14, or C15 (step C16). Returning to FIG. 3, when the third determination unit 24c determines that the user who has continuously operated the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 is a general user (YES in step S17), the allocation control unit 25 cancels the wheelchair call among the general calls and wheelchair calls stored in the call management unit 23 (step S18). Then, the allocation control unit 25 allocates the remaining general call to the general car 12a or 12b and makes the call registration floor respond (step S19).

[0063] On the other hand, when the third determination unit 24c determines that the user who has continuously operated the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 is a specific user (NO in step S17), the allocation control unit 25 cancels the general call among the general calls and wheelchair calls stored in the call management unit 23 (step S20). Then, the allocation control unit 25 allocates the remaining wheelchair call to the wheelchair corresponding car 12w and makes the call registration floor respond (step S21).

[0064] Thus, according to the present embodiment, when the user operates both the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15, if the user is a general user, the wheelchair call is cancelled and the general car 12a or 12b responds. Therefore, it is possible to eliminate the wasteful response of the wheelchair corresponding car 12w to the general user and prevent the reduction of the operation efficiency. On the other hand, if the user is a specific user such as a wheelchair user, the wheelchair corresponding car 12w responds. In this case, since the general call is cancelled, it is possible to eliminate the wasteful response of the general car 12a or 12b to the specific user and prevent the reduction of the operation efficiency.

[0065] In addition, in this embodiment, since it is finally determined whether the user is a general user or a specific user based on the determination result using the camera 16 and the determination result using the speed sensor 17, for example, even if a walking aid is not being used, an elderly person or a pregnant woman with a slow walking speed can be determined as a specific user, and the wheelchair-compatible basket 12w can be made to respond. Also, even if a walking aid is being used, if the user is moving quickly, that user can be determined as a specific user, and the wheelchair-compatible basket 12w can be made to respond. That is, by using the camera 16 and the speed sensor 17, specific users who require the wheelchair-compatible basket 12w can be correctly determined, and the situation when the two call buttons 14 and 15 are operated can be handled.

[0066] (Modification example) In the above-described embodiment, when the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 are continuously operated, one of the calls is cancelled and one car is made to respond. However, depending on the situation at the landing 13 (the waiting situation of the users), it may be preferable to make two cars respond.

[0067] Hereinafter, a form in which two cars are made to respond according to the situation at the landing will be described. Note that detailed descriptions of the same parts as in the above-described embodiment will be omitted.

[0068] When the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 are continuously operated, before the determination unit 24 makes a determination, the allocation control unit 25 uses the captured image of the camera 16 to detect the number of users in the landing 13 where the buttons 14 and 15 were operated.

[0069] Specifically, the allocation control unit 25 acquires an image when the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15 are continuously operated from the image storage unit 21. The allocation control unit 25 analyzes the image to detect the number of users around the entrances and exits of each car.

[0070] When there are a certain number or more of users at the landing 13, the allocation control unit 25 performs allocation control based on these calls without canceling either the general call or the wheelchair call stored in the call management unit 23. That is, the allocation control unit 25 allocates the general call to the general car 12a or 12b, and allocates the wheelchair call to the wheelchair-compatible car 12w.

[0071] According to this modification, in a situation where there are a large number of users at the landing 13, even when one user operates the general call button 14 and the wheelchair call button 15, the wheelchair call or the general call is not canceled, so two cars respond. Therefore, a large number of users waiting at the landing 13 can be efficiently transported.

[0072] According to at least one of the embodiments described above, when the general call button and the wheelchair call button are pressed, it is possible to provide an elevator system that can determine the necessity of a wheelchair-compatible car and prevent a decrease in operation efficiency due to unnecessary responses.

[0073] Although some embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the gist of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included in the scope and gist of the invention, as well as in the invention described in the claims and the equivalent scope thereof.

Description of Reference Numerals

[0074] 11a, 11b, 11w... elevator control devices, 12a, 12b... general cars, 12w... wheelchair-compatible cars, 13... landing, 14, 14a, 14b... general call buttons, 15, 15a, 15b... wheelchair call buttons, 16... camera, 17, 17a, 17b... speed sensors, 18a, 18b, 18w... landing doors, 20... group management control device, 21... image memory unit, 22... speed memory unit, 23... call management unit, 24... determination unit, 24a... first determination unit, 24b... second determination unit, 24c... third determination unit, 25... allocation control unit.

Claims

1. An elevator system comprising a plurality of carriages including a wheelchair-compatible carriage, a general call button installed at a landing on any floor, a wheelchair call button installed separately from the general call button at the landing, a camera that photographs a user approaching the vicinity of the installation of the general call button or the wheelchair call button, a speed sensor that detects the speed of a user approaching the vicinity of the installation of the general call button or the wheelchair call button, call management means for storing a general call registered by operating the general call button and a wheelchair call registered by operating the wheelchair call button together with the floor information of the landing, determination means for determining, based on the image of the camera and the detected speed of the speed sensor, whether the user who operated each button is a general user who does not require the wheelchair-compatible carriage when the general call button and the wheelchair call button are operated continuously, allocation control means for canceling one of the general call and the wheelchair call stored in the call management means according to the determination result of the determination means and causing one of the carriages to respond to the landing based on the remaining call An elevator system comprising the same.

2. The allocation control means when it is determined by the determination means that the user is a general user, cancels the wheelchair call and causes a carriage other than the wheelchair-compatible carriage to respond to the landing based on the general call The elevator system according to claim 1.

3. The allocation control means when it is determined by the determination means that the user is not a general user, cancels the general call and causes the wheelchair-compatible carriage to respond to the landing based on the wheelchair call The elevator system according to claim 1.

4. The determination means includes: a first determination means for determining whether a user approaching the vicinity of the installation of the general call button or the wheelchair call button is a general user based on an image of the camera; a second determination means for determining whether a user approaching the vicinity of the installation of the general call button or the wheelchair call button is a general user based on the detection speed of the speed sensor; and a third determination means for determining that the user who operated each button is not a general user when the determination results of the first determination means and the second determination means are different. The elevator system according to claim 1.

5. The first determination means: determines that the user is a general user when a user walking without using a walking aid is detected in the image of the camera. The elevator system according to claim 4.

6. The second determination means: determines that the user is a general user when a user moving at a speed equal to or higher than a certain value is detected by the speed sensor. The elevator system according to claim 4.

7. The first determination means: when the general call button and the wheelchair call button are continuously operated, determines whether the user is a general user using an image immediately before the continuous operation. The elevator system according to claim 4.

8. When the general call button and the wheelchair call button are continuously operated, it includes that the general call button and the wheelchair call button are operated within a certain time. The elevator system according to claim 4.

9. The allocation control means: When there are a plurality of users at the landing, without canceling the general call and the wheelchair call stored in the call management means, two cars including the wheelchair-compatible car are made to respond from among the respective cars. The elevator system according to claim 1.

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