Elevator autonomous mobile body cooperation system

Abstract

To provide an elevator autonomous mobile body cooperation system that restores an autonomous mobile body that derailed when getting on or off a car.SOLUTION: An elevator autonomous cooperation system according to an embodiment comprises an autonomous mobile body that is autonomously mobile, a first server that manages the autonomous mobile body, a second server that manages the elevator and can perform communications with the first server, and a control panel that is configured to be able to control an elevator car and can perform communications with the first server via the second server, and once the autonomous mobile body obtains a call for using the elevator from the first server, the control panel causes the car to respond to the call and open the car arrived at the boarding point in response to the call, and then generate a step between a floor of the car and a floor of the boarding point when the autonomous mobile body fails to get on or off the car.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 2

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Embodiments of the present invention relate to an elevator autonomous mobile body cooperation system.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, in elevator systems, autonomous mobile bodies such as robots are moved to different floors in a building to perform various operations. Along with this, cases where some kind of obstacle occurs to the autonomous mobile body have occurred.

[0003] For example, Patent Document 1 discloses an elevator system that can detect the state of a cleaning robot by an alarm when an abnormality occurs in the cleaning robot that cleans a designated floor unmanned.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0004]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0005] However, in the technology of Patent Document 1, after detecting an alarm, a response from a worker or the like is required to recover or eliminate the autonomous mobile body. As an example, when getting on and off the car, the wheels may get stuck in the gap between the floor of the car and the floor of the landing, and the robot may lose its wheels. In such a case, it is desirable to be able to recover without requiring a response from a worker.

[0006] The problem to be solved by the present embodiment is to provide an elevator autonomous mobile body cooperation system capable of recovering an autonomous mobile body that has lost its wheels when getting on and off the car.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] The elevator autonomous mobile cooperation system according to the embodiment includes an autonomous mobile that can move autonomously, a first server that manages the autonomous mobile, a second server that manages an elevator and can communicate with the first server, and a control panel that is configured to be able to control a car of the elevator and can communicate with the first server via the second server. When the control panel acquires a call for the autonomous mobile to use the elevator from the first server, the control panel makes the car respond to the call, opens the door of the car that has arrived at the landing in response to the call, and if the autonomous mobile fails to board or alight from the car, the control panel creates a step between the floor of the car and the floor of the landing.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0008]

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DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] (Overall Configuration of Elevator / Robot Cooperation System) FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the overall configuration of an elevator / robot cooperation system 1 according to the embodiment.

[0010] As shown in FIG. 1, the elevator / robot cooperation system 1 of the embodiment includes an elevator system 2, a plurality of robot clouds 300 (300a, 300b, 300c ···), and a robot 500.

[0011] The elevator system 2 includes a car 50, a control panel 100, a controller 150, and an elevator shaft 200. The elevator system 2 may include a plurality of cars 50. In this case, the control panel 100 and the controller 150 are also provided for each individual car 50. The configuration including the control panel 100, the controller 150, and the elevator shaft 200 may be referred to as an elevator control system 2B.

[0012] The elevator system 2 of the embodiment is installed in a building 3 having a plurality of floors (levels) such as an office building or an apartment building. More specifically, the elevator system 2 includes a car 50, a control panel 100, and a controller 150 in a hoistway 30 provided in the building 3. In addition, in the hoistway 30, a rope for driving the car 50, a hoisting machine, a counterweight, and the like are provided.

[0013] The car 50 is provided with a door 53 that opens and closes in conjunction with the door 63 of the landing 60 at the landing 60, and a robot 500 can board in addition to the elevator users. By moving the car 50 up and down in the hoistway 30, users and the robot 500 can be transferred between different floors.

[0014] The control panel 100 is connected wirelessly or wiredly to a rope for driving the car 50, a hoisting machine, a counterweight, and the door 53 provided on the car 50, and controls these components to operate the car 50. The control panel 100 is also connected wirelessly or wiredly to the controller 150.

[0015] The controller 150 is connected to a server 210 in the elevator shaft 200 via a network. Thereby, the controller 150 controls communication between the control panel 100 and the server 210 and mediates various signals between the control panel 100 and the server 210. Thus, the controller 150 is an intermediary device having an interface function and a hub function for mediating signals between the control panel 100 and the server 210.

[0016] The elevator cloud 200 is a computer system placed on the cloud including a server 210 and the like. The elevator cloud 200 may include one or more computers having physical components such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), and a RAM (Random Access Memory).

[0017] The server 210 instructs the control panel 100 regarding various controls for each part of the car 50, and receives various requests and various data from the control panel 100. These exchanges between the server 210 and the control panel 100 are performed via the controller 150. Also, the server 210 is connected to individual servers 310 of a plurality of robot clouds 300 via a network respectively.

[0018] Individual robot clouds 300a, 300b, 300c... are computer systems placed on the cloud each including a server 310a, 310b, 310c... and the like. Individual robot clouds 300 may include one or more computers having physical components such as a CPU, a ROM, and a RAM.

[0019] These robot clouds 300 each manage and control at least one or more robots 500. These robots 500 are grouped, for example, by different models, and one robot cloud 300 is assigned to each different model.

[0020] The server 310 receives various requests and various data from the server 210 of the elevator cloud 200. The server 310 is connected to the corresponding robot 500 in the building 3 via a network, and transmits various instructions to the robot 500. Also, when moving the robot 500 to different floors, the server 310 requests the server 210 of the elevator cloud 200 to have the robot 500 use the elevator.

[0021] The calls made by server 310 to server 210 include a landing call and a destination floor call. A landing call is an operation to call the car 50 to the landing 60 on a predetermined floor. In the case of a general user, for example, a landing call is made using a landing call button (not shown) provided at the landing 60. A destination floor call is an operation to direct the car 50 in which the robot 500 has boarded to the desired floor. In the case of a general user, for example, a destination floor call is made using a destination floor call button (not shown) provided inside the car 50.

[0022] As described above, in the elevator / robot cooperation system 1, the servers 210 and 310 provided in the elevator cloud 200 and the robot cloud 300 respectively are connected via a network, enabling the cooperation and control of the elevator system 2 and the robot 500.

[0023] Note that the elevator / robot cooperation system 1 is an example of an elevator autonomous mobile body cooperation system that cooperates with the robot 500 as an autonomous mobile body. Also, the server 310 in the robot cloud 300 is an example of a first server that manages the robot 500, and the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200 is an example of a second server that manages the elevator.

[0024] The robot 500 as an autonomous mobile body autonomously moves inside the building 3 while receiving instructions from the server 310 of the corresponding robot cloud 300 among a plurality of robot clouds 300, and performs various operations such as delivery or cleaning inside the building 3.

[0025] (Example of the configuration of each part of the elevator / robot cooperation system) Next, with reference to FIGS. 2 to 4, a detailed configuration example of the elevator system 2, the server 310 in the robot cloud 300, and the robot 500 included in the elevator / robot cooperation system 1 will be described.

[0026] FIG. 2 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the detailed configuration of the elevator system 2 according to the embodiment.

[0027] As shown in FIG. 2, the elevator system 2 includes a car 50, a rope 6, a counterweight 7 attached to the rope 6, and a hoist 8 for winding up the rope 6 in a hoistway 30 (see FIG. 1).

[0028] The car 50 is connected to the counterweight 7 via the rope 6. By driving the hoist 8 to feed the rope 6, the car 50 moves up and down in the hoistway 30 while balancing with the counterweight 7. Also, a door 53 is provided on the front surface of the car 50, that is, on the side of the car entrance and exit of the car 50.

[0029] The control panel 100 included in the elevator control system 2B includes a control unit 101, a transmission / reception unit 102, and a storage unit 104.

[0030] The control unit 101 is a hardware processor such as a CPU. The control unit 101 reads and executes a control program and the like from the storage unit 104 to perform operation control of the car 50 and cooperation with the robot 500. The cooperation between the control panel 100 and the robot 500 is performed via, for example, the controller 150, the elevator cloud 200, and the above-described robot cloud 300 (see FIG. 1).

[0031] The transmission / reception unit 102 is a communication device having a predetermined communication protocol and performs information transmission / reception processing between the control panel 100 and the controller 150.

[0032] The storage unit 104 is a storage medium (memory device) such as a ROM or a RAM, for example. The storage unit 104 stores control parameters and control programs used for various functions of the control panel 100.

[0033] The controller 150 included in the elevator control system 2B includes a control unit 151, a transmission / reception unit 152, and a storage unit 154.

[0034] The control unit 151 is a hardware processor such as a CPU, and mainly controls the operation of the transmission / reception unit 152.

[0035] The transmission / reception unit 152 consists of a communication device having a predetermined communication protocol, and performs communication processing between the control panel 100 and the controller 150, and communication processing between the controller 150 and the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200. For example, when the transmission / reception unit 152 receives an operation signal transmitted from the control panel 100, it transmits the operation signal to the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200.

[0036] The storage unit 154 is a storage medium such as a ROM or a RAM, for example. The storage unit 154 stores control parameters, control programs, etc. used for various functions of the controller 150.

[0037] The elevator cloud 200 included in the elevator control system 2B includes the server 210 as described above. The server 210 includes a control unit 211, transmission / reception units 212(212a, 212b, 212c···), 213, and a storage unit 214.

[0038] The control unit 211 is a hardware processor such as a CPU. By reading and executing a control program etc. from the storage unit 214, the control unit 211 performs overall management of the elevator system 2 and cooperation with the server 310 in the robot cloud 300. As an example of such cooperation, the control unit 211 receives a call for the robot 500 to use the elevator from the server 310 in the robot cloud 300. The call is further transmitted from the control unit 211 to the control panel 100 via the controller 150, and under the control of the control panel 100, a response by the car 50 is executed.

[0039] Each of the transmission / reception units 212(212a, 212b, 212c···) consists of a communication device having a predetermined communication protocol, and performs communication processing between the server 210 and the servers 310 in individual robot clouds 300.

[0040] The transmission / reception unit 212a corresponds to, for example, the robot cloud 300a and performs communication processing with the robot cloud 300a. The transmission / reception unit 212b corresponds to, for example, the robot cloud 300b and performs communication processing with the robot cloud 300b. The transmission / reception unit 212c corresponds to, for example, the robot cloud 300c and performs communication processing with the robot cloud 300c.

[0041] In this way, by providing the transmission / reception unit 212 for each individual robot cloud 300, when there is an access from a predetermined robot cloud 300 or the like, the elevator cloud 200 can determine from which robot cloud 300 the access is made.

[0042] The transmission / reception unit 213 consists of a communication device having a predetermined communication protocol and performs communication processing between the server 210 and the controller 150.

[0043] The storage unit 214 is, for example, a storage medium (memory device) such as a ROM or a RAM. The storage unit 214 stores control parameters, control programs, etc. used for various functions of the server 210.

[0044] FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing an example of the detailed configuration of the server 310 in the robot cloud 300 according to the embodiment. FIG. 3 shows the basic configuration of the robot cloud 300, and each individual robot cloud 300 may have the configuration shown in FIG. 3.

[0045] As shown in FIG. 3, the server 310 in the robot cloud 300 includes a control unit 311, a transmission / reception unit 312, and a storage unit 314.

[0046] The control unit 311 is a hardware processor such as a CPU. The control unit 311 controls various processes related to the corresponding robot 500 and various processes related to cooperation with the elevator system 2. More specifically, the control unit 311 comprehensively manages and controls the robot 500 to autonomously move the robot 500 within the building 3 and perform operations such as delivery or cleaning.

[0047] The movement of the robot 500 within the building 3 includes movement between different floors using the car 50 of the elevator system 2. When the movement of the robot 500 between different floors is required, the control unit 311 moves the robot 500 to the landing 60 on the current floor and sends a landing call to the server 210 in the elevator hoistway 200. When the car 50 that responds to the landing call arrives at the landing 60 where the robot 500 is waiting, the robot 500 autonomously moves and boards that car 50. The control unit 211 sends a further destination floor call to the server 210 in the elevator hoistway 200 to move the car 50 on which the robot 500 has boarded to the desired floor.

[0048] The transceiver unit 312 consists of a communication device having a predetermined communication protocol and performs communication processing between the server 310 and the server 210 in the elevator hoistway 200, and communication processing between the server 310 and the robot 500.

[0049] The storage unit 314 is a storage medium (memory device) such as a ROM or a RAM, for example. Control parameters, control programs, etc. used for various functions of the server 310 are stored in the storage unit 314.

[0050] FIG. 4 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the detailed configuration of the robot 500 according to the embodiment. As shown in FIG. 4, the robot 500 includes a control unit 501, a transceiver unit 502, a drive unit 503, a storage unit 504, and various sensors 505.

[0051] The control unit 501 is a hardware processor such as a CPU. By reading and executing the control program and the like in the storage unit 504, the control unit 501 executes various operations within the building 3. At this time, the control unit 501 executes various operations while following the instructions from the server 310 in the robot cloud 300 and receiving feedback from various sensors 505.

[0052] The transmission / reception unit 502 consists of a communication device having a predetermined communication protocol, and performs communication processing between the robot 500 and the server 310 in the robot cloud 300.

[0053] The drive unit 503 is a mechanism including wheels and the like, and drives the robot 500 to travel when the drive unit 503 is driven. Note that the drive unit 503 is not limited to those listed above.

[0054] The storage unit 504 is a storage medium (memory device) such as a ROM or a RAM, for example. In the storage unit 504, control parameters and control programs used for various functions of the robot 500 are stored.

[0055] The various sensors 505 are configured to be able to detect the state of the robot 500 itself and the surrounding situation, and may include at least any one of, for example, an infrared sensor, an acceleration sensor, and a camera. Note that the various sensors 505 are not limited to those listed above.

[0056] (Cooperation operation in the elevator / robot cooperation system) Next, with reference to FIGS. 5 to 12, the cooperation operation between the elevator system 2 and the robot 500 in the elevator / robot cooperation system 1 of the embodiment will be described. FIGS. 5 to 12 are schematic diagrams sequentially illustrating the cooperation operation between the elevator system 2 and the robot 500 in the elevator / robot cooperation system 1 according to the embodiment.

[0057] More specifically, FIGS. 5 to 9 show the cooperative operation between the elevator system 2 and the robot 500 when the robot 500 gets on the car 50. Also, FIGS. 10 to 12 show the cooperative operation between the elevator system 2 and the robot 500 when the robot 500 gets off the car 50.

[0058] In addition, (a) of FIGS. 5 to 12 shows the state of the car 50 landed at a predetermined landing 60. (b) of FIGS. 5 to 12 is a top view of the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60. (b) of FIGS. 5 to 12 is a cross-sectional view of the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60 as viewed from the side.

[0059] When it becomes necessary to move the robot 500 to another floor in the building 3, the server 310 in the robot cloud 300 moves the robot 500 to the landing 60 on the current floor and transmits a landing call to the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200.

[0060] The information of the landing call transmitted from the server 310 is further transmitted from the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200 to the control panel 100 via the controller 150. At this time, when the elevator system 2 includes a plurality of cars 50, the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200 assigns an appropriate car 50 based on the operating status of each car 50 and transmits the landing call information to the control panel 100 that controls the car 50.

[0061] Upon receiving the information of the landing call transmitted from the server 310, the control panel 100 makes the car 50 respond to the landing call. That is, the control panel 100 directs the car 50 to the landing 60 on the floor where the robot 500 is waiting to get on the car 50.

[0062] As shown in Fig. 5(a), when the car 50 arrives at the landing 60 on the floor where the robot 500 is waiting to board, the control panel 100 opens the door of the car 50. Also, in conjunction with this, the door 63 of the landing 60 is also opened. As a result, the door 53 of the car 50 and the door 63 of the landing 60 are opened, and the robot 500 can board the car 50.

[0063] As shown in Fig. 5(c), when landing on the landing 60, the car 50 is controlled to stop at a height position where the heights of these floors 51, 61 are substantially equal so that there is no step between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60.

[0064] As shown in Figs. 5(b) and 5(c), there is a predetermined gap RC between the floor 51 of the car 50 that has landed on the landing 60 and the floor 61 of the landing 60. Thereby, when the car 50 is running, interference between the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60 can be suppressed. Such a gap RC is also called a running clearance.

[0065] When the doors 53 of the car 50 and the door 63 of the landing 60 are opened, the robot 500 starts boarding the car 50.

[0066] As shown in Fig. 6(a), here, it is assumed that the wheel 513 provided in the drive unit 503 (see Fig. 4) of the robot 500 has come off due to the gap RC between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60.

[0067] As shown in Figs. 6(b) and 6(c), the wheel-off of the robot 500 occurs, for example, when the wheel 513 gets caught on the edge of the floor 51 of the car 50 or the like. The wheel 513 caught on the edge of the floor 51 of the car 50 intersects the traveling direction of the robot 500 and may get caught in these gaps RC by facing the direction in which the gap RC between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60 extends, resulting in wheel-off.

[0068] If the wheel 513 fits too deeply into the gap RC by a predetermined amount or more, it may be difficult for the robot 500 to autonomously recover from the wheel-off state. In this case, the robot 500 sends a signal indicating the failure to board the car 50 to the server 310 in the robot cloud 300. The server 310 sends a signal indicating the boarding failure from the robot 500 to the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200.

[0069] When the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200 receives the boarding failure signal, it instructs the control panel 100 via the controller 150 to perform an operation to recover the wheel-off of the robot 500.

[0070] As shown in Fig. 7(a), when receiving the instruction from the server 210, the control panel 100 moves the car 50 by a minute distance to create a slight step between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60. At this time, the instruction from the server 210 also includes an instruction on which direction (up or down) to move the car 50. If it is assumed that wheel-off occurs when the robot 500 boards the car 50, the control panel 100 lowers the car 50 by a minute distance according to the instruction from the server 210.

[0071] As shown in Fig. 7(c), thereby, the height position of the floor 51 of the car 50 becomes slightly lower than the floor 61 of the landing 60, and the gap RC between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60 also moves downward by the amount the floor 51 of the car 50 has moved downward.

[0072] However, the downward distance of the car 50 is extremely small, and the step generated between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60 is also extremely small. Therefore, such behavior of the car 50 has no impact on the boarding and alighting of the elevator users to the car 50.

[0073] As shown in FIG. 8, by moving the car body 50 as described above, the gap RC between the floor 51 of the car body 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60 moves downward, and the wheels 513 that were facing in the direction along the gap RC can be directed toward the floor 51 side of the car body 50, which is the original traveling direction of the robot 500. Thereby, the wheels 513 of the robot 500 are disengaged from the gap RC between the floor 51 of the car body 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60, and the robot 500 that has derailed can be restored.

[0074] Incidentally, when the wheels 513 of the robot 500 are deeply engaged in the gap RC, the wheels 513 may not be disengaged from the gap RC during a single descending operation of the car body 50. For this reason, the control panel 100 may repeat the vertical movement of the car body 50 a plurality of times. Thereby, it becomes easier for the wheels 513 to be disengaged from the gap RC.

[0075] As shown in FIG. 9, after the recovery from derailment, the robot 500 finishes boarding the car body 50. At this time, a signal indicating that the boarding of the car body 50 has been completed may be transmitted from the robot 500 to the server 310 in the robot cloud 300. The server 310 can further transmit the boarding completion signal from the robot 500 to the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200.

[0076] When it becomes necessary to move the robot 500 to another floor in the building 3, in order to move the robot 500 that has boarded the car body 50 to a desired floor, the server 310 in the robot cloud 300 sends a destination floor call to the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200 for the car body 50 on which the robot 500 has boarded.

[0077] The information of the destination floor call transmitted from the server 310 is further transmitted from the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200 to the control panel 100 via the controller 150 of the corresponding car body 50.

[0078] When the control panel 100 receives the destination floor call information sent from the server 310, it causes the car 50 on which the robot 500 has boarded to respond to the destination floor call. That is, the control panel 100 directs the car 50 to the floor specified by the destination floor call.

[0079] As shown in FIG. 10, when the car 50 on which the robot 500 has boarded arrives at the landing 60 of the designated floor, the control panel 100 opens the door of the car 50. Also, in conjunction with this, the door 63 of the landing 60 is also opened. As a result, the door 53 of the car 50 and the door 63 of the landing 60 are opened, and the robot 500 can get off the car 50.

[0080] As shown in FIG. 11(a), here, it is assumed that the wheels 513 of the robot 500 are disengaged due to the gap RC between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60.

[0081] As shown in FIGS. 11(b) and (c), the wheel detachment of the robot 500 occurs, for example, when the wheel 513 catches on the edge of the floor 61 of the landing 60 or the like. The wheel 513 caught on the edge of the floor 61 of the landing 60 intersects the traveling direction of the robot 500 and may fit into these gaps RC and become detached, such as by facing the direction in which the gap RC between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60 extends.

[0082] Also in this case, there may be a situation where it is difficult for the robot 500 to autonomously recover from the wheel-detached state. In this case, the robot 500 transmits a signal indicating that the disembarkation from the car 50 has failed to the server 310 in the robot cloud 300. The server 310 transmits a signal indicating the disembarkation failure from the robot 500 to the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200.

[0083] When the server 21 within the elevator cloud 200 receives the disembarkation failure signal, it instructs the control panel 100 to perform an operation to recover the wheel detachment of the robot 500 via the controller 150.

[0084] As shown in Fig. 12(a), when receiving an instruction from the server 210, the control panel 100 moves the car 50 a small distance to create a slight step between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60. At this time, if it is assumed that derailment occurs when the robot 500 gets off the car 50, the control panel 100 raises the car 50 a small distance in response to an instruction from the server 210.

[0085] As shown in Fig. 12(c), as a result, the height position of the floor 51 of the car 50 becomes slightly higher than the floor 61 of the landing 60, and as the floor 51 of the car 50 moves upward, the wheel 513 floats from the gap RC between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60 together with the main body of the robot 500.

[0086] However, the ascending distance of the car 50 is extremely small, and the step generated between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60 is also extremely small. Therefore, such behavior of the car 50 has no impact on the boarding and alighting of the elevator users on the car 50.

[0087] By moving the car 50 as described above, the wheel 513 of the robot 500 can float from the gap RC between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60, and the wheel 513 that was facing in the direction along the gap RC can be turned toward the floor 61 side of the landing 60, which is the original traveling direction of the robot 500. As a result, the wheel 513 of the robot 500 can be disengaged from the gap RC between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60, and the derailed robot 500 can be restored.

[0088] In addition, when the wheel 513 of the robot 500 is deeply stuck in the gap RC, the wheel 513 may not be disengaged from the gap RC with a single ascending operation of the car 50. For this reason, the control panel 100 may repeat the vertical movement of the car 50 multiple times. As a result, it becomes even easier for the wheel 513 to be disengaged from the gap RC.

[0089] After recovery from derailment, the robot 500 ends getting off the car 50. At this time, the robot 500 may send a signal indicating that the getting-off of the car 50 is completed to the server 310 in the robot cloud 300. The server 310 can further send the signal of the completion of getting off from the robot 500 to the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200.

[0090] Note that the getting-on and -off failure signals such as the signal indicating that the robot 500 has failed to get on the car 50 and the signal indicating that the robot 500 has failed to get off the car 50 are examples of the first signal. Also, the getting-on and -off completion signals such as the signal indicating that the getting-on of the car 50 by the robot 500 is completed and the signal indicating that the getting-off is completed are examples of the second signal.

[0091] In addition to the signal of the failure of getting on and off the car 50, the robot 500 may send a signal indicating that it has recovered by the above operation of the car 50 to the server 310 in the robot cloud 300. The server 310 can further send the recovery signal from the robot 500 to the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200. Thereby, the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200 may determine whether additional recovery operations are necessary. Also, the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200 may notify the users at the landing 60 by presenting information notifying the recovery of the robot 500 at the landing 60.

[0092] By the way, in an existing elevator system, there is a technique to eliminate a step by adjusting the heights of these floors when a step occurs between the floor of the car landed at the landing and the floor of the landing. As described above, the operation of intentionally causing a step by moving the car 50 landed at the landing 60 by a minute distance and recovering the derailed robot 500 can be easily executed by diverting such existing techniques.

[0093] Note that the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200 can determine whether the robot 500 has failed to board the car 50 or has failed to alight based on whether the call received from the server 310 in the robot cloud 300 is a landing call, a destination floor call, or the like.

[0094] That is, after responding to a landing call from the server 310 in the robot cloud 300, if a boarding / alighting failure signal is received, it can be determined that the robot 500 has failed to board the car 50. Also, after responding to a destination floor call from the server 310 in the robot cloud 300, if a boarding / alighting failure signal is received, it can be determined that the robot 500 has failed to alight from the car 50.

[0095] Alternatively, the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200 may be able to determine whether the robot 500 has failed to board the car 50 or has failed to alight from the car 50 based on whether the signal received from the robot 500 is a boarding failure signal or an alighting failure signal.

[0096] (Processing example of elevator / robot cooperation system) Next, with reference to FIG. 13, a processing example by the elevator system 2 of the embodiment will be described. FIG. 13 is a flowchart showing an example of the procedure of the wheel-off recovery process of the robot 500 by the elevator system 2 according to the embodiment.

[0097] As shown in FIG. 13, the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200 receives a call such as a landing call or a destination floor call from the server 310 in the robot cloud 300 (step S101). The server 210 in the elevator cloud 200 instructs the control panel 100 via the controller 150, and the control panel 100 causes the car 50 to respond to the call (step S102).

[0098] While the robot 500 performs boarding and alighting operations in response to a call for the responding car 50, the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200 monitors whether or not a boarding / alighting failure signal such as a boarding failure signal or an alighting failure signal transmitted from the robot 500 is received via the server 310 in the robot cloud 300 (step S103).

[0099] When a boarding / alighting failure signal is received from the robot 500 (step S103: Yes), the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200 determines whether the boarding / alighting failure of the robot 500 occurred during boarding on the car 50 or during alighting (step S104).

[0100] If the robot 500 has failed to board the car 50 (step S104: Yes), the server 210 instructs the control panel 100 via the controller 150, and the control panel 100 lowers the car 50 by a small distance (step S105). If the robot 500 has failed to alight from the car 50 (step S104: No), the server 210 instructs the control panel 100 via the controller 150, and the control panel 100 raises the car 50 by a small distance (step S106).

[0101] If no boarding / alighting failure signal is received while the robot 500 performs boarding and alighting operations (step S103: No), the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200 skips the processing after step S104.

[0102] After this, the server 210 in the elevator cloud 200 may be configured to receive a recovery signal from the robot 500 or a boarding / alighting completion signal such as a boarding completion signal or an alighting completion signal.

[0103] Thus, the wheel - off recovery process of the robot 500 by the elevator system 2 of the embodiment ends.

[0104] (Summary) In recent years, robots that autonomously move inside buildings and perform various tasks such as delivery or cleaning have been developed. Also, in buildings with multiple floors, technologies have been proposed for robots to move to different floors using elevators.

[0105] However, when a robot moves using an elevator, the robot may derail due to the gap between the floor of the car and the floor of the landing, and may fail to get on or off the car. In such a case, if the robot cannot autonomously recover, it is necessary for a worker or the like to actually go to the site to deal with it. This increases the burden on the worker and may also hinder the smooth operation of the elevator.

[0106] According to the elevator / robot cooperation system 1 of the embodiment, after the control panel 100 opens the door of the car 50 that has arrived at the landing 60 in response to a call, if the robot 500 fails to get on or off the car 50, a step is created between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60.

[0107] Thereby, the robot 500 that has derailed when getting on or off the car 50 can be recovered. Therefore, the burden on the worker can be reduced and the elevator can be operated smoothly.

[0108] According to the elevator / robot cooperation system 1 of the embodiment, after the control panel 100 opens the door of the car 50, when receiving a signal indicating that the robot 500 has failed to get on or off the car 50 from the server 210 in the hoistway 200, a step is created between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60.

[0109] In this way, by the robot 500 emitting a getting-on / off failure signal, it is possible to detect that an abnormality has occurred to the robot 500 when getting on or off the car and quickly recover it.

[0110] According to the elevator / robot cooperation system 1 of the embodiment, when the robot 500 fails to board the car 50, the control panel 100 lowers the car 50 by a minute distance to create a step between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60.

[0111] Thereby, the height of the floor 51 of the car 50 on the traveling direction side of the robot 500 can be made lower than the floor 61 of the landing 60 behind the traveling direction of the robot 500. Therefore, the wheels 513 of the robot 500 fitted in the gap RC between the floors 51 and 61 are likely to come off, and it becomes easier to recover the robot 500.

[0112] Also, as described above, the operation of lowering the car 50 that has landed on the landing 60 by a minute distance can be easily performed by diverting the technology for eliminating the step generated between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60. Since the descending distance of the car 50 is minute, it does not affect the boarding and alighting of other users to the car 50.

[0113] According to the elevator / robot cooperation system 1 of the embodiment, when the robot 500 fails to get off the car 50, the control panel 100 raises the car 50 by a minute distance to create a step between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60.

[0114] Thereby, the height of the floor 51 of the car 50 behind the traveling direction of the robot 500 can be made higher than the floor 61 of the landing 60 on the traveling direction side of the robot 500. Therefore, the wheels 513 of the robot 500 fitted in the gap RC between the floors 51 and 61 are likely to come off, and it becomes easier to recover the robot 500.

[0115] Also, as described above, the operation of raising the car 50 that has landed on the landing 60 by a minute distance can be easily performed by diverting the technology for eliminating the step generated between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60. Since the ascending distance of the car 50 is minute, it does not affect the boarding and alighting of other users to the car 50.

[0116] According to the elevator / robot cooperation system 1 of the embodiment, when the robot 500 fails to get on or off the car 50, the control panel 100 moves the car 50 up and down by a minute distance a predetermined number of times to create a step between the floor 51 of the car 50 and the floor 61 of the landing 60. In this way, by repeating the up and down movement of the car 50 one or more times, it becomes even easier to recover the robot 500.

[0117] In the above-described embodiment, when the robot 500 that has failed to get on or off the car 50 transmits a signal of failure to get on or off, the control panel 100 of the elevator system 2 causes the car 50 to perform an operation to recover the robot 500. However, the elevator system 2 may determine that the robot 500 has failed to get on or off the car 50 by a method other than the above.

[0118] For example, when the getting on and off of the car 50 is completed, as described above, in the case where the robot 500 transmits a signal of completion of getting on and off, after opening the door of the car 50 that has responded to the call from the server 310 in the robot cloud 300 at the landing 60, if the signal of completion of boarding from the robot 500 is not received even after a predetermined time has elapsed, the control panel 100 may cause the car 50 to perform an operation to recover the robot 500.

[0119] Even in such a configuration, it is possible to detect that an abnormality has occurred in the robot 500 when the car gets on and off, and perform the above-described recovery operation in the car 50 to recover the robot 500.

[0120] In addition, in the above-described embodiment, the description has been made on the premise that both the robot 500 and the user use the same car 50. However, the elevator system 2 may be provided with a car 50 dedicated to the robot 500 separately from the car 50 used by the user.

[0121] Even in such a configuration, when the robot 500 derails in the car 50 for the robot 500, the same recovery operation as described above can be performed to recover the robot 500. As described above, the above recovery operation can be performed safely not only for the user but also for the robot 500.

[0122] (Modification example) Next, with reference to FIG. 14, the elevator system 6 of the modification example of the embodiment will be described. The elevator system 6 of the modification example is different from the above-described embodiment in that it holds information for each robot 500.

[0123] FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram showing an example of the configuration of the elevator system 6 according to the modification example of the embodiment. In FIG. 14, the same components as those in the above-described embodiment are denoted by the same reference numerals, and the description thereof may be omitted.

[0124] As shown in FIG. 14, the elevator system 6 of the modification example includes an elevator control system 6B having a control panel 100, a controller 150, and an elevator cloud 600. The elevator cloud 600 included in the elevator control system 6B is configured as a computer system placed on the cloud including a server 610 and the like.

[0125] The server 610 in the elevator cloud 600 includes a control unit 611 and a storage unit 614 instead of the control unit 211 and the storage unit 214 provided in the server 210 of the embodiment.

[0126] Similar to the above-described embodiment, the elevator cloud 600 is configured to be able to cooperate with the respective servers 310 of a plurality of robot clouds 300a, 300b, 300c,... provided for each model of the robot 500. The storage unit 614 stores different robot information 615 (615a, 615b, 615c,...) for each model of the robot 500 managed by each individual robot cloud 300. These robot information 615 includes information on various specifications such as the wheel diameter, wheel width, and body weight of the robot 500 that differ for each model.

[0127] The robot information 615a is information of the robot 500 managed by, for example, the robot cloud 300a, the robot information 615b is information of the robot 500 managed by, for example, the robot cloud 300b, and the robot information 615c is information of the robot 500 managed by, for example, the robot cloud 300c.

[0128] The control unit 611 is a hardware processor such as a CPU, and controls the controller 150 and the control panel 100 to respond to calls from the server 310 in the robot cloud 300 or perform a recovery operation when the robot 500 derails or the like.

[0129] When instructing the control panel 100 to control the recovery operation of the robot 500, the control unit 611 refers to the robot information 615 stored in the storage unit 614 and instructs the control panel 100 to perform different recovery operations according to the specifications of the robot 500. Which of the plurality of robot information 615a, 615b, 615c... to refer to is determined based on which of the plurality of robot clouds 300a, 300b, 300c... is responding to the call.

[0130] As an example of the recovery operation according to the specifications of the robot 500, the distance by which the car body 50 is raised or lowered is changed according to the wheel diameter of the robot 500. That is, for a robot 500 with a large wheel diameter, the up and down distance of the car body 50 can be increased accordingly, and for a robot 500 with a small wheel diameter, the up and down distance of the car body 50 can be decreased accordingly.

[0131] Thereby, even for a robot 500 with a large wheel diameter, the car body 50 can be moved a sufficient distance, so that the wheel caught in the gap RC is likely to come off. On the other hand, in the case of a robot 500 with a small wheel diameter, it is not necessary to move the car body 50 an unnecessarily long distance, and the influence on users and the like can be further suppressed.

[0132] As another example of the recovery operation according to the specifications of the robot 500, the number of times the car 50 is moved up and down can be changed according to the weight of the robot 500. That is, in the case of the robot 500 with a large weight, where it is likely to fit deeper into the gap RC, increasing the number of times the car 50 is moved up and down makes it easier to recover the robot 500. On the other hand, for the robot 500 with a small weight, it is considered that it can be easily recovered even if the number of times the car 50 is moved up and down is reduced, and the number of times the car 50 is inadvertently moved up and down can be reduced to further suppress the impact on users and the like.

[0133] Although several 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 novel 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, and are included in the invention described in the claims and the equivalent scope thereof.

Explanation of Reference Numerals

[0134] 1... Elevator / Robot Cooperation System, 2, 6... Elevator System, 2B, 6B... Elevator Control System, 50... Car, 51, 61... Floor, 53, 63... Door, 60... Landing, 100... Control Panel, 150... Controller, 200, 600... Hoistway, 210, 310, 610... Server, 300... Robot Cloud, 500... Robot.

Claims

1. An autonomous mobile body capable of autonomous movement, A first server that manages the autonomous mobile body, A second server that manages an elevator and is communicable with the first server, A control panel configured to be able to control a car of the elevator and communicable with the first server via the second server, comprising: The control panel, When obtaining a call for the autonomous mobile body to use the elevator from the first server, causes the car to respond to the call, After opening the door of the car that has arrived at the landing in response to the call, when the autonomous mobile body fails to board or alight from the car, causes a step to occur between the floor of the car and the floor of the landing, An elevator autonomous mobile body cooperation system.

2. The autonomous mobile body, When derailed due to a gap between the car and the landing during boarding or alighting from the car, transmits a first signal indicating that boarding or alighting from the car has failed to the first server, The first server, Transmits the first signal received from the autonomous mobile body to the control panel via the second server, The control panel, After opening the door of the car, when receiving the first signal from the first server, causes a step to occur between the floor of the car and the floor of the landing, The elevator autonomous mobile body cooperation system according to Claim 1.

3. The autonomous mobile body, When boarding or alighting from the car is completed, transmits a second signal indicating that boarding or alighting from the car has been completed to the first server, The first server, Transmits the second signal received from the autonomous mobile body to the control panel via the second server, The control panel, After opening the door of the car, when a predetermined time has elapsed without receiving the second signal from the first server, causes a step to occur between the floor of the car and the floor of the landing, The elevator autonomous mobile body cooperation system according to Claim 1.

4. The control panel, When the autonomous mobile body fails to board the car, lowers the car by a minute distance to cause a step to occur between the floor of the car and the floor of the landing, When the autonomous mobile body fails to alight from the car, raises the car by a minute distance to cause a step to occur between the floor of the car and the floor of the landing, The elevator autonomous mobile body cooperation system according to Claim 1.

5. When the autonomous mobile fails to board or alight from the car, it includes that the autonomous mobile derails due to the gap between the car and the landing when boarding or alighting from the car. The second server has a storage unit storing information on the size of the wheels provided on the autonomous mobile. The control panel adjusts the magnitude of the step between the floor of the car and the floor of the landing based on the information on the size of the wheels. The elevator autonomous mobile cooperation system according to claim 1.

6. The control panel When the autonomous mobile fails to board or alight from the car, performs a process of moving the car up and down by a minute distance a predetermined number of times to create a step between the floor of the car and the floor of the landing. The elevator autonomous mobile cooperation system according to claim 1.

7. The second server has a storage unit storing information on the weight of the autonomous mobile. The control panel adjusts the number of times of creating a step between the floor of the car and the floor of the landing based on the information on the weight of the autonomous mobile. The elevator autonomous mobile cooperation system according to claim 6.

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