Lifting assist device and lifting system

Abstract

To provide a lifting assist device and a lifting system capable of stably lifting an object even at a site where no guide rail is installed.SOLUTION: A reflector 31 is suspended by a lifting device 20. The distance to the reflector 31 is measured by a plurality of laser range finders. It is determined whether or not the reflector 31 is swinging in the horizontal direction based on whether or not each of the plurality of laser range finders receives reflected light from the reflector 31.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present disclosure relates to a lifting assist device and a lifting system. [Background technology]

[0002] In a conventional elevator hoistway lifting support device, an annular frame that surrounds the periphery of a suspended load is detachably attached to the suspended load. A suspended load sway prevention unit is connected to the annular frame. The suspended load sway prevention unit has a pair of guide units. The pair of guide units are guided by a pair of guide rails (see, for example, Patent Document 1). [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2018-203491 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] The above-described conventional elevator hoistway lifting assistance device requires a pair of guide rails to be installed in the hoistway, and therefore cannot be used before the pair of guide rails is installed, nor can it be used at sites where the pair of guide rails is not installed.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and aims to provide a lifting auxiliary device and lifting system that can stably lift objects to be lifted even at sites where guide rails are not installed. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] The lifting auxiliary device of the present disclosure includes a reflector that is suspended and lifted together with the object to be lifted by the lifting device, a plurality of laser rangefinders that are arranged horizontally at intervals from each other and that measure the distance to the reflector by emitting laser light toward the reflector and receiving reflected light from the reflector, and an auxiliary control unit that determines whether the reflector is swaying horizontally based on whether each of the plurality of laser rangefinders receives reflected light from the reflector. [Effects of the Invention]

[0007] According to the present disclosure, the load can be lifted stably even at a site where no guide rails are installed. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0008] [Figure 1] 1 is a configuration diagram showing a lifting system according to a first embodiment. [Figure 2] 2 is a front view showing an operating device for operating the lifting device body of FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 3] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing a control system of the lifting system of FIG. 1. [Figure 4] 2 is a diagram showing a state in which vibration occurs in the reflector of FIG. 1. FIG. [Figure 5] 5 is a front view showing the operating device when the vibration shown in FIG. 4 occurs in the reflector. [Figure 6] 5 is a flowchart showing the operation of the auxiliary control unit in FIG. 4. [Figure 7] 3 is a configuration diagram showing a first example of a processing circuit that realizes each function of an operator-side control unit and a main control unit according to the first embodiment. FIG. [Figure 8] 4 is a configuration diagram showing a second example of the processing circuit that realizes each function of the operator-side control section and the main control section of the first embodiment. FIG. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0009] Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. Embodiment 1 1 is a configuration diagram showing a lifting system according to embodiment 1. In the figure, the lifting system has a lifting device 20 and an auxiliary lifting device 30.

[0010] The lifting device 20 is installed in the elevator shaft 11. The lifting device 20 lifts an object 12 to be lifted in the shaft 11. The object 12 to be lifted is, for example, an elevator hoist.

[0011] The lifting device 20 has a lifting device main body 21, a hanging member 22, and a hook 23. The lifting device main body 21 is installed at the top of the hoistway 11. The lifting device main body 21 lifts the object to be lifted 12 by winding up the hanging member 22. The lifting device main body 21 can also lower the object to be lifted 12 by letting out the hanging member 22.

[0012] The hanging member 22 is pulled out from the lifting device main body 21 and hangs the load 12. A flexible member, such as a chain or a wire rope, is used as the hanging member 22. The hook 23 is connected to the lower end of the hanging member 22. The load 12 is hung on the hook 23.

[0013] The lifting assist device 30 has a reflector 31, a base 32, and a plurality of laser range finders.

[0014] The reflector 31 is suspended and lifted together with the load 12 in the elevator shaft 11 by the lifting device 20. The planar shape of the reflector 31 in the first embodiment is circular. The reflector 31 is connected to the lower end of the hanging member 22 so as to be positioned directly above the load 12. The hanging member 22 is passed through the center of the reflector 31. When the reflector 31 is stationary, the reflector 31 is horizontal.

[0015] When the load 12 and the reflector 31 are seen from directly above while being suspended by the lifting device 20, the reflector 31 is larger than the load 12. In other words, when the inside of the hoistway 11 is seen from directly above, the entire load 12 is covered by the reflector 31.

[0016] The base 32 is placed on the floor 11a of the elevator shaft 11. The plurality of laser range finders are installed on the base 32 at intervals from one another in the horizontal direction. That is, the plurality of laser range finders are installed on the floor 11a.

[0017] The plurality of laser range finders include a first range finder 33, a second range finder 34, a third range finder 35, and a fourth range finder 36.

[0018] The first distance meter 33, the second distance meter 34, the third distance meter 35, and the fourth distance meter 36 are arranged at 90 degree intervals from each other, centered on the point at which the reflector 31 is suspended by the lifting device 20, when viewed from directly above.

[0019] In the first embodiment, the first distance meter 33 is installed on the north side of the suspension point of the reflector 31. The second distance meter 34 is installed on the east side of the suspension point of the reflector 31. The third distance meter 35 is installed on the south side of the suspension point of the reflector 31. The fourth distance meter 36 is installed on the west side of the suspension point of the reflector 31.

[0020] Furthermore, when the state in which the load 12 and the reflector 31 are suspended by the lifting device 20 is viewed from directly above, the first distance meter 33, the second distance meter 34, the third distance meter 35, and the fourth distance meter 36 are each positioned outside the load 12 and inside the outer periphery of the reflector 31.

[0021] Each of the first rangefinder 33, the second rangefinder 34, the third rangefinder 35, and the fourth rangefinder 36 emits a laser beam toward the reflector 31 and receives the reflected light from the reflector 31 to measure the distance to the reflector 31. In Fig. 1, the laser beam and the reflected light are indicated by dashed lines.

[0022] Although not shown in Fig. 1, the lifting device main body 21 is operated by an operator using an operating device 24 as shown in Fig. 2. The operating device 24 is provided with a display 25, a direction operating unit 26, and a main operating unit 27.

[0023] The display 25 displays whether the reflector 31 is swinging, i.e., whether the load to be lifted 12 is swinging. The display 25 also displays the position of the reflector 31 in the lifting direction. In Figure 2, it is displayed that there is no swinging, and that the reflector 31 and the load to be lifted 12 are located 5 m above the floor 11a.

[0024] The direction operation unit 26 is operated by an operator when a deflection of the reflector 31 is detected. Therefore, the direction operation unit 26 is not normally operated. The main operation unit 27 is operated when the load 12 is raised or lowered.

[0025] Figure 3 is a block diagram showing a control system of the lifting system of Figure 1. The operator 24 has an operator-side control unit 28. The operator-side control unit 28 has, as functional blocks, an operator-side transmitting / receiving unit 28a, a command generating unit 28b, and an auxiliary control unit 37.

[0026] The controller-side transmitter-receiver 28a transmits and receives signals to and from the first distance meter 33, the second distance meter 34, the third distance meter 35, and the fourth distance meter 36. The controller-side transmitter-receiver 28a also transmits and receives signals to and from the lifting device main body 21.

[0027] The command generating unit 28b generates a command signal for the lifting device main body 21 based on the operation of the direction operating unit 26 and the main operating unit 27.

[0028] The auxiliary control unit 37 is a part of the lifting auxiliary device 30. That is, the lifting auxiliary device 30 has the auxiliary control unit 37 in addition to the reflector 31, the base 32, and a plurality of laser range finders. In the first embodiment, the auxiliary control unit 37 is provided in the controller-side control unit 28, but the auxiliary control unit 37 may be incorporated in a device separate from the controller 24.

[0029] The auxiliary control unit 37 has, as functional blocks, a display unit 37a and a shake determination unit 37b.

[0030] The display unit 37a displays the position of the reflector 31 in the lifting direction, i.e., the position of the object to be lifted 12, on the display 25 based on signals from the first distance meter 33, the second distance meter 34, the third distance meter 35, and the fourth distance meter 36.

[0031] The shake determination unit 37b determines whether or not the reflector 31 is shaking in the horizontal direction based on whether or not the first rangefinder 33, the second rangefinder 34, the third rangefinder 35, and the fourth rangefinder 36 receive reflected light from the reflector 31.

[0032] The display unit 37a displays the determination result by the shake determination unit 37b on the display 25. The auxiliary control unit 37 may also notify the operator that a shake has occurred by sound such as a buzzer or an announcement.

[0033] Specifically, the shake determination unit 37b determines that shake has occurred when one or more laser range finders do not receive reflected light. Therefore, the criteria for determining whether shake has occurred depend on the size of the reflector 31 and the positions of the multiple laser range finders. For example, the positions of the multiple laser range finders may be set so that it is determined that shake has occurred when the reflector 31 has swung to the point where it hits or is about to hit the wall of the elevator shaft 11.

[0034] In addition, the shake determination unit 37b determines the shake direction of the reflector 31 based on whether or not the first rangefinder 33, the second rangefinder 34, the third rangefinder 35, and the fourth rangefinder 36 receive reflected light from the reflector 31.

[0035] The display unit 37a displays information relating to the swing direction of the reflector 31 on the display 25. That is, the auxiliary control unit 37 causes the operating device 24 to display information relating to the swing direction of the reflector 31.

[0036] The auxiliary control unit 37 can transmit a correction command signal to the lifting device main body 21 to correct the swing of the reflector 31. The correction command signal is a signal that, when the reflector 31 swings, changes the hanging inclination angle of the hanging member 22 so that the swing is opposite to the swing direction, thereby suppressing the swing. The correction command signal is generated when the worker operates the direction operation unit 26 after checking information regarding the swing direction.

[0037] The correction command signal may be automatically generated by the auxiliary control unit 37 based on the determination result of the shake determination unit 37b.

[0038] The lifting device main body 21 has a main control unit 21a, which has, as functional blocks, a main transmitting / receiving unit 21b, a drive control unit 21c, and a hanging angle adjustment unit 21d.

[0039] The main transmitter / receiver 21b transmits and receives signals to and from the controller-side transmitter / receiver 28a. The drive controller 21c controls the winding and feeding of the hanging member 22 in response to a drive command signal from the controller 24.

[0040] A suspension angle adjustment mechanism (not shown) is provided in the lifting device main body 21. The suspension angle adjustment mechanism is a mechanism that changes the suspension inclination angle of the suspension member 22. The suspension angle adjustment unit 21d controls the suspension angle adjustment mechanism in response to a correction command signal from the operation device 24. In other words, the suspension angle adjustment unit 21d controls the suspension inclination angle of the suspension member 22 in response to the correction command signal.

[0041] Fig. 4 is a configuration diagram showing a state in which deflection occurs in the reflector 31 of Fig. 1. In this example, the laser light from the second range finder 34 does not hit the reflector 31 but reaches the ceiling 11b of the elevator shaft 11. Therefore, the second range finder 34 does not receive the reflected light.

[0042] Fig. 5 is a front view showing the operating device 24 when the deflection shown in Fig. 4 occurs in the reflector 31. The display 25 displays the determination result by the deflection determination unit 37b, which indicates that the reflector 31 has deflected in the east-west direction and contacted the wall of the elevator shaft 11. The display 25 also displays that the position of the reflector 31 when the deflection occurred was 10 m from the floor 11a.

[0043] Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation of the auxiliary control unit 37 of Fig. 4. When lifting of the load 12 is started, the auxiliary control unit 37 acquires distance information from a plurality of laser distance meters in step S101. Then, in step S102, the auxiliary control unit 37 displays the distance from the floor 11a to the reflector 31 on the display 25.

[0044] Next, in step S103, auxiliary control unit 37 determines whether the position of reflector 31 in the horizontal direction is normal. If the position of reflector 31 is normal, that is, if there is no vibration in reflector 31, auxiliary control unit 37 displays a message indicating normality on display 25 in step S104. At this time, "No abnormality" is displayed on display 25, for example, as shown in FIG. 2.

[0045] If the position of the reflector 31 is not normal, that is, if the reflector 31 is shaking, the auxiliary control unit 37 displays the direction of the shaking on the display 25 in step S106. Thereafter, the auxiliary control unit 37 outputs a correction command signal in step S107.

[0046] After the processing of step S104 or step S107, the auxiliary control unit 37 determines in step S105 whether or not the lifting of the object to be lifted 12 has been completed. If the lifting of the object to be lifted 12 has not been completed, the auxiliary control unit 37 returns to the processing of step S101. If the lifting of the object to be lifted 12 has been completed, the auxiliary control unit 37 ends the processing.

[0047] In such a lifting auxiliary device 30, a reflector 31 is suspended by the lifting device 20. A plurality of laser range finders measure the distance to the reflector 31. Whether or not the reflector 31 is swinging in the horizontal direction is determined based on whether or not each of the plurality of laser range finders receives reflected light from the reflector 31.

[0048] Therefore, if the reflector 31 and the load 12 begin to sway, the sway can be suppressed by changing the lifting speed or temporarily suspending the lifting. Therefore, the load 12 can be stably lifted even at a site where no guide rails are installed.

[0049] Furthermore, even at sites with long lifting strokes, it is easy to check whether or not there is any swinging, and if swinging does occur, it is easy to determine where the swinging occurred.

[0050] Furthermore, the reflector 31 is larger than the load 12, and each of the multiple laser distance meters is positioned outside the load 12 when viewed from directly above. This allows for more reliable detection of the swing of the reflector 31 and the load 12. Furthermore, because the reflector 31 hits the wall before the load 12 hits the wall, damage to the load 12 can be reduced. This reduces the effort required for the worker to check whether the load 12 will hit or get caught on the wall.

[0051] The multiple laser range finders include a first range finder 33, a second range finder 34, a third range finder 35, and a fourth range finder 36. The first range finder 33, the second range finder 34, the third range finder 35, and the fourth range finder 36 are arranged at 90-degree intervals when viewed from directly above. This makes it possible to detect the swing of the reflector 31 and the load 12 in all directions. Furthermore, the direction of the swing can be determined more accurately.

[0052] The reflector 31 is suspended in the elevator shaft 11. The laser range finders are installed on the floor 11a of the shaft 11. This allows the elevator equipment, which is the load 12, to be stably lifted in the narrow shaft 11. This makes it possible to suppress damage to the load 12 and the shaft equipment.

[0053] Furthermore, the direction of swing of the reflector 31 is determined based on whether or not each of the multiple laser range finders receives reflected light from the reflector 31. This makes it possible to select a response according to the swing direction, and the load 12 can be lifted stably.

[0054] Furthermore, in the lifting system described above, the determination result of whether or not the reflector 31 is swinging is displayed on the operating device 24. Therefore, the worker can operate the operating device 24 to lift the load 12 without frequently checking the actual lifting state of the load 12, thereby improving workability.

[0055] Furthermore, information regarding the swing direction of the reflector 31 is displayed on the operating device 24. Therefore, the operator can easily check the swing direction of the reflector 31.

[0056] Furthermore, the auxiliary control unit 37 can transmit a correction command signal to the lifting device 20 to correct the swing of the reflecting plate 31. This allows the swing of the reflecting plate 31 and the object to be lifted 12 to be suppressed early.

[0057] Furthermore, in response to the correction command signal, the main control section 21a controls the hanging inclination angle of the hanging members 22. Therefore, the swinging of the reflecting plate 31 and the load 12 can be suppressed at an earlier stage.

[0058] The planar shape of the reflector 31 is not limited to a circle.

[0059] Furthermore, the number of laser range finders is not limited to four, but may be two, three, five or more.

[0060] The number of lifting devices 20 may be two or more.

[0061] Furthermore, the lifting system and the lifting auxiliary device 30 of the first embodiment may be used in a place other than the elevator shaft 11.

[0062] Alternatively, the plurality of laser range finders may be installed directly above the reflector 31 and facing downward.

[0063] Furthermore, each function of the operator-side control unit 28 and the main control unit 21a in the first embodiment is realized by a processing circuit. Fig. 7 is a configuration diagram showing a first example of a processing circuit that realizes each function of the operator-side control unit 28 and the main control unit 21a in the first embodiment. The processing circuit 100 in the first example is dedicated hardware.

[0064] The processing circuit 100 may be, for example, a single circuit, a composite circuit, a programmed processor, a parallel programmed processor, an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit), an FPGA (Field Programmable Gate Array), or a combination thereof. Each function of the operator side control unit 28 and the main control unit 21a may be realized by a separate processing circuit 100, or all functions may be realized by the processing circuit 100.

[0065] 8 is a configuration diagram showing a second example of a processing circuit that realizes each function of the operator-side control unit 28 and the main control unit 21a according to embodiment 1. The processing circuit 200 of the second example includes a processor 201 and a memory 202.

[0066] The processor 201 may be, for example, a central processing unit (CPU), a graphics processing unit (GPU), a microprocessor, a microcontroller, or a digital signal processor (DSP).

[0067] In the processing circuit 200, each function of the controller side control unit 28 and the main control unit 21a is realized by software, firmware, or a combination of software and firmware. The software and firmware are written as programs and stored in the memory 202. The processor 201 realizes each function by reading and executing the programs stored in the memory 202.

[0068] It can also be said that the programs stored in memory 202 cause the computer to execute the procedures or methods of the above-mentioned sections. Here, memory 202 refers to non-volatile or volatile semiconductor memory, such as RAM (Random Access Memory), ROM (Read Only Memory), flash memory, EPROM (Erasable Programmable Read Only Memory), and EEPROM (Electrically Erasable and Programmable Read Only Memory). Magnetic disks, flexible disks, optical disks, compact disks, minidisks, DVDs, and the like also fall under memory 202.

[0069] It should be noted that some of the functions of the above-described units may be realized by dedicated hardware, and other parts may be realized by software or firmware.

[0070] In this way, the processing circuit can realize the functions of each of the above-mentioned units by hardware, software, firmware, or a combination of these.

[0071] Although the preferred embodiments have been described in detail above, the present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and various modifications and substitutions can be made to the above-described embodiments without departing from the scope of the claims.

[0072] Various aspects of the present disclosure are summarized below as appendices.

[0073] (Appendix 1) A reflector that is suspended and lifted together with the object to be lifted by a lifting device; a plurality of laser range finders arranged at intervals in the horizontal direction, emitting laser light toward the reflector and receiving reflected light from the reflector to measure the distance to the reflector; an auxiliary control unit that determines whether or not the reflector is deflecting in the horizontal direction based on whether or not each of the plurality of laser range finders receives reflected light from the reflector; A lifting assist device equipped with: (Appendix 2) When the state in which the object to be lifted and the reflector are suspended by the lifting device is viewed from directly above, The reflector is larger than the object to be lifted, A lifting assist device as described in Appendix 1, wherein each of the plurality of laser rangefinders is positioned outside the object to be lifted. (Appendix 3) the plurality of laser rangefinders include a first rangefinder, a second rangefinder, a third rangefinder, and a fourth rangefinder; A lifting auxiliary device as described in Appendix 1 or Appendix 2, wherein the first distance meter, the second distance meter, the third distance meter, and the fourth distance meter are arranged, when viewed from directly above, at 90 degrees offset from each other around the suspension point of the reflector by the lifting device. (Appendix 4) The reflector is suspended in the elevator shaft by the lifting device, 4. The lifting assist device according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of laser range finders are installed on the floor of the elevator shaft. (Appendix 5) A lifting auxiliary device described in any one of Appendix 1 to Appendix 4, wherein the auxiliary control unit determines the swing direction of the reflector based on whether or not each of the multiple laser rangefinders receives reflected light from the reflector. (Appendix 6) Lifting equipment, and Lifting auxiliary device described in Appendix 1 or Appendix 2 Equipped with The auxiliary control unit is a lifting system that displays the determination result of whether or not the reflector is vibrating on an operating device that operates the lifting device. (Appendix 7) Lifting equipment, and Lifting auxiliary equipment as described in Appendix 5 Equipped with The auxiliary control unit is a lifting system that displays information regarding the swing direction of the reflector on an operating device that operates the lifting device. (Appendix 8) Lifting equipment, and a lifting assist device as set forth in Appendix 5; Equipped with A lifting system in which the auxiliary control unit is capable of transmitting a correction command signal to the lifting device to correct the deflection of the reflector. (Appendix 9) The lifting device is a hanging member for hanging the reflector and the load; A lifting device body that winds up the hanging member; a main control unit that controls the lifting device body; It has 9. The lifting system according to claim 8, wherein the main control unit controls the suspension inclination angle of the suspension member in response to the correction command signal. [Explanation of symbols]

[0074] 11 elevator shaft, 11a floor, 12 load to be lifted, 20 lifting device, 21 lifting device main body, 21a main control unit, 22 hanging member, 24 operating device, 30 auxiliary lifting device, 31 reflector, 33 first distance meter (laser distance meter), 34 second distance meter (laser distance meter), 35 third distance meter (laser distance meter), 36 fourth distance meter (laser distance meter), 37 auxiliary control unit.

Claims

1. A reflector that is suspended and lifted together with the object to be lifted by a lifting device; a plurality of laser range finders arranged at intervals in the horizontal direction, emitting laser light toward the reflector and receiving reflected light from the reflector to measure the distance to the reflector; an auxiliary control unit that determines whether or not the reflector is deflecting in the horizontal direction based on whether or not each of the plurality of laser range finders receives reflected light from the reflector; A lifting assist device equipped with:

2. When the state in which the object to be lifted and the reflector are suspended by the lifting device is viewed from directly above, The reflector is larger than the object to be lifted, The lifting assist device according to claim 1 , wherein each of the plurality of laser range finders is arranged outside the object to be lifted.

3. the plurality of laser rangefinders include a first rangefinder, a second rangefinder, a third rangefinder, and a fourth rangefinder; A lifting auxiliary device as described in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the first distance meter, the second distance meter, the third distance meter, and the fourth distance meter are arranged, when viewed from directly above, at 90 degree intervals from each other around the suspension point of the reflector by the lifting device.

4. The reflector is suspended in the elevator shaft by the lifting device, The lifting assist device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the plurality of laser range finders are installed on a floor of the elevator shaft.

5. The lifting auxiliary device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the auxiliary control unit determines the swing direction of the reflector based on whether or not each of the plurality of laser range finders receives reflected light from the reflector.

6. Lifting equipment, and The lifting assist device according to claim 1 or 2. Equipped with The auxiliary control unit is a lifting system that displays the determination result of whether or not the reflector is vibrating on an operating device that operates the lifting device.

7. Lifting equipment, and The lifting assist device according to claim 5 . Equipped with The auxiliary control unit is a lifting system that displays information regarding the swing direction of the reflector on an operating device that operates the lifting device.

8. Lifting equipment, and The lifting assist device according to claim 5, Equipped with A lifting system in which the auxiliary control unit is capable of transmitting a correction command signal to the lifting device to correct the deflection of the reflector.

9. The lifting device is a hanging member for hanging the reflector and the load; A lifting device body that winds up the hanging member; a main control unit that controls the lifting device body; It has The lifting system according to claim 8 , wherein the main control unit controls the hanging inclination angle of the hanging member in response to the correction command signal.

Images