Elevator system

Abstract

To properly determine whether or not a waiting passenger and a robot can get on an elevator.SOLUTION: According to an embodiment, an elevator system includes a group management control device for controlling operation of a plurality of cars, a camera capable of photographing the inside of the cars, an empty space detection device for detecting empty space information indicating an empty space in the cars on the basis of an image photographed by the camera, and a robot communicably connected to the group management control device and the empty space detection device. The robot includes measuring means for measuring an area of a landing floor occupied by a waiting passenger waiting at the landing when the robot arrives at the landing of the predetermined floor and receives empty space information of the car moving toward the predetermined floor, and determining means for determining whether or not the waiting passenger can get on the car moving toward the predetermined floor based on the received empty space information and the area of the landing floor occupied by the waiting passenger.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] FIELD OF THE INVENTION An embodiment of the present invention relates to an elevator system. [Background technology]

[0002] Generally, a technique is known for determining whether waiting passengers can board an elevator by comparing the number of people who can board the elevator with the number of users (waiting passengers) waiting at the landing to board the elevator.

[0003] However, even if there is one person, for example, a general user and a wheelchair user, the area occupied by these users in the elevator is different, so simply comparing the number of people, as with the technology described above, cannot properly determine whether a waiting passenger can board the elevator.

[0004] In recent years, autonomous robots that can move around inside buildings using elevators have become popular. As a technique for determining whether such a robot can get into an elevator, a technique is known in which the robot itself determines whether it can get into the elevator based on the available space inside the elevator.

[0005] However, this technology does not take into consideration waiting passengers, so situations may arise where, for example, a waiting passenger gets into the elevator before the robot, preventing the robot from getting into the elevator, or where the waiting passenger is unable to get into the elevator because the robot gets into the elevator first. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0006] [Patent Document 1] Patent No. 6726145 [Patent Document 2] Patent No. 7305827 [Patent Document 3] Patent No. 5572018 [Patent Document 4] Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2013-170034 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0007] Therefore, the problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an elevator system that can appropriately determine whether waiting passengers or robots can board the elevator. [Means for solving the problem]

[0008] An elevator system according to one embodiment includes a group management control device that controls the operation of a plurality of cars, a camera installed in each of the plurality of cars and capable of capturing images of the interior of the car, an empty space detection device that detects empty space information indicating empty space within the car based on images captured by the camera, and a robot communicably connected to the group management control device and the empty space detection device. The robot includes a measuring means that, upon receiving empty space information for a car that has arrived at a hall at a predetermined floor and is moving toward the predetermined floor, measures an area of ​​the hall floor occupied by a waiting passenger who is waiting at the hall, and a determining means that determines whether the waiting passenger is able to board the car moving toward the predetermined floor based on the received empty space information and the area of ​​the hall floor occupied by the waiting passenger. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 is a diagram illustrating a schematic configuration example of an elevator system according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a configuration of a robot according to the embodiment. [Figure 3A] 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation of the elevator system according to the embodiment. [Figure 3B] 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation of the elevator system according to the embodiment. [Figure 4]FIG. 10 is a diagram for explaining free space information in the embodiment. [Figure 5] 10 is a diagram for explaining a method for measuring the area occupied by waiting customers in the same embodiment. FIG. [Figure 6] 10 is a diagram for explaining a method for measuring the area occupied by waiting customers in the same embodiment. FIG. [Figure 7] 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation of the elevator system according to the embodiment. [Figure 8] 10 is a flowchart illustrating an example of an operation of the elevator system according to the embodiment. [Figure 9] FIG. 2 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration example of an elevator system according to a modified example of the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings. It should be noted that the disclosure is merely an example, and the invention is not limited to the contents described in the following embodiments. Modifications that can be easily conceived by a person skilled in the art are naturally included in the scope of the disclosure. For clearer explanation, the size, shape, etc. of each part may be changed from the actual embodiment and shown schematically in the drawings. Corresponding elements in multiple drawings may be given the same reference numerals, and detailed explanations may be omitted.

[0011] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a schematic configuration example of an elevator system according to one embodiment, in which a group management control device and an autonomous traveling robot are connected so as to be able to communicate with each other.

[0012] The group management control device 1 is a device that performs group management control of the operation of the cars 11A and 11B, and is configured by a computer equipped with a CPU, ROM, RAM, etc. The group management control device 1 is connected to the elevator control devices 10A and 10B so that they can communicate with each other. The group management control device 1 is also connected to the robot 3 so that they can communicate with each other.

[0013] The elevator control device 10A is made up of a computer equipped with a CPU, ROM, RAM, etc., and controls the operation of the car 11A. Specifically, the elevator control device 10A controls a motor (hoisting machine) (not shown) for raising and lowering the car 11A, and controls the opening and closing of doors. Similarly, the elevator control device 10B controls the operation of the car 11B.

[0014] The cars 11A and 11B move up and down in the elevator shaft by being driven by a hoist (not shown). An in-car camera 12A is installed inside the car 11A. The in-car camera 12A is installed, for example, on the ceiling surface inside the car 11A, and continuously captures images of the interior of the car while the car 11A is in operation.

[0015] Similarly, an in-car camera 12B is installed inside the car 11B. The in-car camera 12B is installed, for example, on the ceiling surface inside the car 11B, and continuously captures images of the inside of the car while the car 11B is in operation.

[0016] The car interior camera 12A is communicably connected to the empty space detection device 2A. Similarly, the car interior camera 12B is communicably connected to the empty space detection device 2B. The car interior cameras 12A and 12B are not limited to being installed on the ceiling, but may be installed in any location that allows them to capture the entire interior of the car.

[0017] In the following, when there is no particular distinction between the elevator control devices 10A and 10B, they will be simply referred to as the elevator control device 10. Similarly, when there is no particular distinction between the cars 11A and 11B, they will be simply referred to as the cars 11. When there is no particular distinction between the in-car cameras 12A and 12B, they will be simply referred to as the in-car cameras 12. When there is no particular distinction between the empty space detection devices 2A and 2B, they will be simply referred to as the empty space detection device 2.

[0018] Platform call buttons (not shown) are installed at the platform of each floor. The platform call buttons are buttons that waiting passengers use to register platform calls. Note that a "platform call" is a call signal that is registered by operating a platform call button installed at the platform of each floor, and includes information on the registered floor and destination direction. In contrast, a "car call" is a call signal that is registered by operating a destination call button (not shown) installed in the car 11, and includes information on the destination floor.

[0019] Hall calls registered at the halls and car calls registered in the cars are transmitted to the group management control device 1. When a hall call is registered, the group management control device 1 selects the most suitable car (allocated car) from among multiple cars based on the operation information of the multiple cars (current position, driving direction, etc. of the car), and performs allocation control to have the car respond to the registered floor of the hall call.

[0020] The empty space detection device 2 analyzes the image captured by the in-car camera 12 to detect empty space information indicating the empty space inside the car 11. The empty space information is information indicating the area of ​​the car floor that is not occupied by passengers riding in the car 11. Details of the empty space information will be described later.

[0021] The robot 3 is an autonomous robot that can travel in a car 11 within a building where an elevator is installed. The robot 3 is connected to the group management control device 1 and the empty space detection device 2 so that they can communicate with each other. When the robot 3 travels between floors using the car 11, it transmits a signal to the group management control device 1 to use the elevator.

[0022] A "signal for using an elevator" is, for example, a signal sent by a robot 3 to the group management control device 1 when the robot 3 gets on the elevator car 11, and is a signal (hereinafter referred to as a robot call) that includes the departure floor, the destination floor, and the destination direction determined from the departure floor and the destination floor.

[0023] In addition, while waiting at a platform at a specified floor, the robot 3 measures the area of ​​the platform floor occupied by the waiting passengers waiting at the platform (hereinafter referred to as the area occupied by the waiting passengers), and determines whether the waiting passengers and the robot 3 itself can board the elevator 11 moving toward the specified floor.

[0024] FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing an example of the configuration of the robot 3. The robot 3 includes a control unit 31, a communication device 32, an occupied area measurement unit 33, a memory unit 34, a boarding permission determination unit 35, a guidance unit 36, an operation unit 37, a drive unit 38, and the like.

[0025] The control unit 31 is made up of a CPU, and by running a predetermined program, works in conjunction with the elevator to control the elevator to move autonomously within the building it is installed in. The communication device 32 communicates wirelessly with the group management control device 1 and the vacant space detection device 2.

[0026] The occupied area measurement unit 33 measures the occupied area of ​​waiting passengers waiting at the platform. The occupied area measurement unit 33 includes at least one of a laser range finder, an ultrasonic distance sensor, a dual camera, and a LIDAR (Laser Imaging Detection and Ranging). The method for measuring the occupied area of ​​waiting passengers will be described later. The robot 3 can move while avoiding obstacles using the various sensors included in the occupied area measurement unit 33, and can board the elevator car 11.

[0027] The memory unit 34 stores in advance not only a predetermined program executed by the control unit 31, but also information indicating the size of the robot 3 (more specifically, the area of ​​the landing floor or car floor that the robot 3 occupies when it is at the landing or in the car, hereinafter referred to as the occupied area of ​​the robot 3), map information indicating a map of the interior of the building where the robot 3 moves, and the like.

[0028] The boarding possibility determination unit 35 determines whether or not the waiting passenger and the robot 3 itself can board the car 11 based on the empty space information of the car 11 detected by the empty space detection device 2, the occupied area of ​​the waiting passenger measured by the occupied area measurement unit 33, and the occupied area of ​​the robot 3 stored in the memory unit 34. The method for determining whether or not the waiting passenger and the robot 3 itself can board the car 11 will be described later.

[0029] The guidance unit 36 ​​is, for example, a speaker capable of outputting audio, and provides audio guidance to guide waiting customers. Alternatively, the guidance unit 36 ​​is a display capable of displaying various data, and provides visual guidance to guide waiting customers. The operation unit 37 is, for example, an input interface used by a maintenance worker when inputting various data. The drive unit 38 includes a motor for driving wheels installed on the bottom of the robot 3, etc.

[0030] Next, the operation of this system will be described. FIG. 3A is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the elevator system according to this embodiment.

[0031] First, when the robot 3 arrives at the landing of a specified floor, it transmits a landing waiting notification to the group management control device 1 (step S1). The landing waiting notification is a notification to inform the elevator side that the robot 3 has arrived at the landing of a specified floor and is waiting at the landing. When the robot 3 uses the elevator, the landing waiting notification includes information indicating the destination floor of the robot 3.

[0032] When the group management control device 1 receives the hall waiting notification from the robot 3, it determines whether the robot 3 will use the elevator (step S2). If the hall waiting notification received from the robot 3 includes information indicating the destination floor of the robot 3, the group management control device 1 determines that the robot 3 will use the elevator (the robot 3 will get on the elevator). On the other hand, if the hall waiting notification received from the robot 3 does not include information indicating the destination floor of the robot 3, the group management control device 1 determines that the robot 3 will not use the elevator (the robot 3 will not get on the elevator).

[0033] If it is determined that the robot 3 will not use the elevator (No in step S2), the process of step S31, which will be described later, is executed (see FIG. 7).

[0034] On the other hand, if it is determined that the robot 3 will use the elevator (Yes in step S2), the group management control device 1 determines whether there is a hall call registered at the hall of a specified floor that is in the direction of the robot 3's destination floor (step S3).

[0035] If a hall call for the same destination direction as the destination direction of the robot 3 specified based on the specified floor and destination floor indicated in the hall waiting notification received from the robot 3 is registered at the hall of the specified floor, the group management control device 1 determines that there is a hall call for the destination floor direction of the robot 3. On the other hand, if a hall call for the same destination direction as the destination direction of the robot 3 specified based on the specified floor and destination floor indicated in the hall waiting notification received from the robot 3 is not registered at the hall of the specified floor, the group management control device 1 determines that there is no hall call for the destination floor direction of the robot 3.

[0036] If it is determined that there is no hall call in the direction of the destination floor of the robot 3 (No in step S3), the process of step S51 described later is executed (see FIG. 8).

[0037] If it is determined that there is a hall call in the direction of the destination floor of the robot 3 (Yes in step S3), the group management control device 1 instructs the vacant space detection device 2 corresponding to the elevator 11 to which the hall call is assigned (i.e., the elevator moving in the direction of the destination floor of the robot 3, hereinafter referred to as the target elevator) to detect vacant space information and to transmit the detected vacant space information to the robot 3.

[0038] The empty space detection device 2 installed in the target car analyzes the image taken by the in-car camera 12 in accordance with instructions from the group management control device 1 and detects empty space information indicating the area of ​​the car floor that is not occupied by passengers riding in the target car (step S4).

[0039] The empty space detection device 2 transmits the empty space information detected in step S4 to the robot 3 (step S5). Upon receiving the empty space information from the empty space detection device 2, the occupied area measurement unit 33 of the robot 3 uses various sensors to measure the occupied area of ​​waiting passengers waiting at the landing on a predetermined floor (step S6).

[0040] The boarding possibility determination unit 35 of the robot 3 compares the area of ​​the car floor indicated by the received available space information with the measured occupied area of ​​the waiting passengers (step S7). Based on the result of comparing the area of ​​the car floor indicated by the received available space information with the measured occupied area of ​​the waiting passengers, the boarding possibility determination unit 35 determines whether all the waiting passengers can fit into the target car (step S8).

[0041] If the area of ​​the car floor indicated by the received available space information is larger than the measured occupied area of ​​the waiting passengers, the boarding eligibility determination unit 35 determines that all waiting passengers can fit into the target car. On the other hand, if the area of ​​the car floor indicated by the received available space information is equal to or smaller than the measured occupied area of ​​the waiting passengers, the boarding eligibility determination unit 35 determines that the waiting passengers cannot fit into the target car.

[0042] If it is determined that all waiting passengers can fit into the target car (Yes in step S8), the process of step S17, which will be described later, is executed (see FIG. 3B).

[0043] On the other hand, if it is determined that the waiting passengers cannot fit into the target car (No in step S8), the guidance unit 36 ​​of the robot 3 will inform the waiting passengers which car the target car is (i.e., which car the upcoming car is), and will also inform them that not all passengers can fit into the target car (step S9).

[0044] Next, the robot 3 sends a new hall call (hereinafter referred to as an additional call) corresponding to the specified floor to the group management control device 1 in order to call a car 11 to the specified floor for the waiting passengers who were unable to board (step S10).

[0045] In addition, in order to call a car 11 for only the robot 3 to board, separate from the car 11 for waiting passengers who were unable to board, the robot 3 sets the specified floor as the departure floor and sends a robot call to the group management control device 1 with the destination floor included in the hall waiting notification set as the destination floor (step S11).

[0046] When the target car arrives at the designated floor (step S12), some of the waiting passengers (specifically, the number of waiting passengers who can board the target car) board the target car. Note that waiting passengers who are unable to board the target car continue to wait at the boarding area of ​​the designated floor.

[0047] The guidance unit 36 ​​of the robot 3 guides the waiting passenger who was unable to board the target car which car 11 corresponds to the additional call registered in step S10 (i.e., guides which car is the next car to arrive) (step S13). When the car 11 corresponding to the additional call arrives at the predetermined floor (step S14), the waiting passenger who was unable to board the target car boards the car 11.

[0048] Furthermore, when the robot-dedicated car 11 corresponding to the robot call registered in step S11 arrives at the specified floor (step S15), the robot 3 boards the car 11 (step S16), and the series of operations here ends.

[0049] Here, the case where the robot 3 gets into the robot-dedicated car 11 corresponding to the robot call registered in step S11 has been described, but the present invention is not limited to this, and the robot 3 may get into the car 11 corresponding to the additional call registered in step S10. In this case, the process of step S11 described above, specifically, the process of transmitting the robot call to the group management control device 1, can be omitted.

[0050] Next, an example of the operation of the elevator system according to this embodiment will be described with reference to Fig. 3B. Fig. 3B is a flowchart showing the process after Yes in step S8 in Fig. 3A.

[0051] In step S8 shown in Figure 3A, if it is determined that all waiting passengers can fit in the car (Yes in step S8), the guidance unit 36 ​​of the robot 3 will inform the waiting passengers that they can all fit in the target car and will also inform them of the car number of the target car (step S17).

[0052] Next, the boarding permission determination unit 35 of the robot 3 compares the area of ​​the car floor indicated by the available space information of the target car with the sum of the occupied area of ​​the waiting passengers and the occupied area of ​​the robot 3 (step S18).

[0053] The boarding eligibility determination unit 35 of the robot 3 determines whether the robot 3 can board the target car based on the results of comparing the area of ​​the car floor indicated by the available space information of the target car with the sum of the occupied area of ​​the waiting passengers and the occupied area of ​​the robot 3 (step S19).

[0054] If the area of ​​the car floor indicated by the available space information of the target car is larger than the sum of the occupied area of ​​the waiting passenger and the occupied area of ​​the robot 3, the boarding permission determination unit 35 determines that the robot 3 can board the target car after the waiting passenger boards the target car. On the other hand, if the area of ​​the car floor indicated by the available space information of the assigned car is equal to or smaller than the sum of the occupied area of ​​the waiting passenger and the occupied area of ​​the robot 3, the boarding permission determination unit 35 determines that the robot 3 cannot board the target car.

[0055] If it is determined that the robot 3 can board the target car (Yes in step S19), when the target car arrives at the specified floor (step S20), the robot 3 boards the target car together with the waiting passenger and registers a robot call to move to the destination floor included in the hall waiting notification (step S21), and the series of operations here is completed.

[0056] On the other hand, if it is determined that the robot 3 cannot board the target car (No in step S19), the robot 3 sets the specified floor as the departure floor in order to call a car 11 for only the robot 3 to board, and sends a robot call to the group management control device 1 with the destination floor included in the hall waiting notification set as the destination floor (step S22).

[0057] When the target car arrives at the specified floor (step S23), the waiting passenger gets into the target car. The robot 3 does not get into the target car, but waits at the platform of the specified floor. After that, when the robot-dedicated car 11 corresponding to the robot call registered in step S22 arrives at the specified floor (step S24), the robot 3 gets into the car 11 (step S25), and the series of operations here is completed.

[0058] FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating the free space information. The empty space information is information in which passengers riding in the car 11 are mapped onto a two-dimensional space that mimics the floor surface of the car 11. According to such empty space information, it is possible to calculate the area of ​​the car floor occupied by passengers and the area of ​​the car floor not occupied by passengers. Therefore, the empty space information can be defined as information indicating the area of ​​the car floor not occupied by passengers.

[0059] FIG. 4 shows a case where a two-dimensional space simulating the floor surface of the car 11 is divided into a number of blocks, and the area occupied by the passengers of the car 11 is mapped onto each block. Note that in this case, one block is 10 cm 2 However, the shape and size of one block are not limited to this and may be set to any shape and size.

[0060] The example in FIG. 4 shows a case where five passengers P1 to P5 are riding in the elevator car 11. For example, the area occupied by passenger P1 is mapped in the upper right corner of the figure. According to this, the area of ​​the elevator car floor occupied by passenger P1 is 260 cm 2 Similarly, the area occupied by passenger P2 is mapped in the lower right corner of the figure. According to this, the area of ​​the car floor occupied by passenger P2 is 220 cm 2 Although a detailed explanation will be omitted here, the area of ​​the car floor occupied by passengers P3 to P5 can be calculated in a similar manner.

[0061] According to this, the area of ​​the car floor occupied by passengers P1 to P5 is 1140 cm 2 and the area of ​​the car floor not occupied by passengers P1 to P5 is 2060 cm 2(= "area of ​​car floor" - "area of ​​car floor occupied by passengers P1 to P5") is calculated. Note that, for example, areas such as the three white blocks at the bottom right of the figure, which are clearly determined to be inaccessible to waiting passengers or robot 3, may be regarded as areas occupied by passengers, rather than areas not occupied by passengers.

[0062] Fig. 5 is a diagram for explaining a method for measuring the occupied area of ​​a waiting customer. As shown in Fig. 5, the robot 3 scans the waiting customer by, for example, moving around the waiting customer and irradiating the waiting customer with a laser beam and detecting the light reflected from the laser beam. The data obtained by scanning the waiting customer is converted into three-dimensional point cloud data, and is output (generated) as 3D model data by undergoing mesh processing.

[0063] The robot 3 measures (calculates) the occupied area of ​​the waiting customer based on this 3D model data. Specifically, as shown in Figures 6(a) to 6(c), the robot 3 observes the 3D model of the waiting customer represented by the 3D model data from a bird's eye view, converts the 3D model observed from a bird's eye view into a 2D model, and calculates the occupied area of ​​the waiting customer. Note that since generating 3D model data and converting a 3D model into a 2D model can be realized by known techniques, further detailed explanation will be omitted here.

[0064] FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the elevator system according to this embodiment, and is a flowchart showing the processing after No in step S2 in FIG. 3A.

[0065] In step S2 shown in FIG. 3A, if it is determined that the robot 3 will not use the elevator (No in step S2), the group management control device 1 determines whether there is a hall call registered at the hall on a specified floor (step S31).

[0066] If it is determined that there is no hall call registered at the hall of the specified floor (No in step S31), the elevator system assumes that there are no waiting passengers at the hall of the specified floor, and ends the series of operations there, leaving the robot 3 waiting at the hall of the specified floor.

[0067] On the other hand, if it is determined that there is a hall call registered at a hall on a specified floor (Yes in step S31), the group management control device 1 instructs the vacant space detection device 2 corresponding to the elevator car 11 (target elevator) to which the hall call is assigned to detect vacant space information and transmit the detected vacant space information to the robot 3.

[0068] The empty space detection device 2 installed in the target car analyzes the image taken by the in-car camera 12 in accordance with instructions from the group management control device 1 and detects empty space information indicating the area of ​​the car floor that is not occupied by passengers riding in the target car (step S32).

[0069] The empty space detection device 2 transmits the empty space information detected in step S32 to the robot 3 (step S33). Upon receiving the empty space information from the empty space detection device 2, the occupied area measurement unit 33 of the robot 3 uses various sensors to measure the occupied area of ​​waiting passengers waiting at the landing on a predetermined floor (step S34).

[0070] The boarding possibility determination unit 35 of the robot 3 compares the area of ​​the car floor indicated by the received available space information with the measured occupied area of ​​the waiting passengers (step S35). Based on the result of comparing the area of ​​the car floor indicated by the received available space information with the measured occupied area of ​​the waiting passengers, the boarding possibility determination unit 35 determines whether all the waiting passengers can fit into the target car (step S36).

[0071] 3A, the boarding permission determination unit 35 determines that all waiting passengers can fit into the target car if the area of ​​the car floor indicated by the received available space information is larger than the measured occupied area of ​​the waiting passengers. On the other hand, the boarding permission determination unit 35 determines that all waiting passengers cannot fit into the target car if the area of ​​the car floor indicated by the received available space information is equal to or smaller than the measured occupied area of ​​the waiting passengers.

[0072] If it is determined that the waiting passengers cannot fit into the target car (No in step S36), the waiting passengers are informed which car the target car is (i.e., which car the upcoming car is), and are informed that not all passengers can fit into the target car (step S37).

[0073] Next, the robot 3 sends a new hall call (additional call) corresponding to the specified floor to the group management control device 1 in order to call a car 11 to the specified floor for the waiting passengers who were unable to board (step S38).

[0074] When the target car arrives at the designated floor (step S39), some of the waiting passengers (specifically, the number of waiting passengers who can board the target car) board the target car. Note that waiting passengers who are unable to board the target car continue to wait at the boarding area of ​​the designated floor.

[0075] The guidance unit 36 ​​of the robot 3 informs the waiting passenger who was unable to board the target car which car 11 corresponds to the additional call registered in step S38 (i.e., which car is the next car to arrive) (step S40). When the car 11 corresponding to the additional call arrives at the specified floor (step S41), the waiting passenger who was unable to board the target car boards the car 11. After the processing of step S41, the robot 3 goes into a standby state at the boarding area of ​​the specified floor, and the series of operations here ends.

[0076] On the other hand, if it is determined in step S36 that all waiting passengers can fit into the target car (Yes in step S36), the guidance unit 36 ​​of the robot 3 will inform the waiting passengers that they can all fit into the target car and will also inform them which car number the target car is (step S42).

[0077] When the target car arrives at the predetermined floor (step S43), the waiting passenger gets on the target car. After the processing of step S43, the robot 3 goes into a standby state at the landing of the predetermined floor, and the series of operations here ends.

[0078] FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the elevator system according to this embodiment, and is a flowchart showing the processing after No in step S3 in FIG. 3A.

[0079] In step S3 shown in FIG. 3A, if it is determined that there is no hall call in the direction of the destination floor of the robot 3 (No in step S3), the group management control device 1 registers a hall call in the direction of the destination floor of the robot 3 (step S51).

[0080] More specifically, the group management control device 1 selects, from among a plurality of cars, an optimal car for heading in the direction of the destination floor of the robot 3, and causes the selected car (target car) to respond to a predetermined floor. The group management control device 1 also instructs the vacant space detection device 2 corresponding to the target car to detect vacant space information and to transmit the detected vacant space information to the robot 3.

[0081] The empty space detection device 2 installed in the target car analyzes the image taken by the in-car camera 12 in accordance with instructions from the group management control device 1, and detects empty space information indicating the area of ​​the car floor that is not occupied by passengers riding in the target car (step S52).The empty space detection device 2 transmits the empty space information detected in step S52 to the robot 3 (step S53).

[0082] When the robot 3 receives the empty space information from the empty space detection device 2, the boarding permission determination unit 35 compares the area of ​​the car floor indicated by the received empty space information with the occupied area of ​​the robot 3 (step S54). Based on the result of comparing the area of ​​the car floor indicated by the received empty space information with the occupied area of ​​the robot 3, the boarding permission determination unit 35 determines whether the robot 3 can board the target car (step S55).

[0083] The boarding permission determination unit 35 determines that the robot 3 can board the target car if the area of ​​the car floor indicated by the received available space information is larger than the occupied area of ​​the robot 3. On the other hand, if the area of ​​the car floor indicated by the received available space information is equal to or smaller than the occupied area of ​​the robot 3, the boarding permission determination unit 35 determines that the robot 3 cannot board the target car.

[0084] If it is determined that the robot 3 can board the target car (Yes in step S55), when the target car arrives at the specified floor (step S56), the robot 3 boards the target car and registers a robot call to move to the destination floor included in the hall waiting notification (step S57), and the series of operations here is completed.

[0085] On the other hand, if it is determined that the robot 3 cannot board the target car (No in step S55), the robot 3 sets the specified floor as the departure floor in order to call a car 11 for only the robot 3 to board, and sends a robot call to the group management control device 1 with the destination floor included in the hall waiting notification set as the destination floor (step S58).

[0086] When the robot-dedicated car 11 corresponding to the robot call registered in step S58 arrives at the specified floor (step S59), the robot 3 boards the car 11 (step S60), and the series of processes here ends.

[0087] As described above, the elevator system according to this embodiment determines whether a waiting passenger can board the car 11 based on the available space information indicating the available space inside the car 11 moving toward a predetermined floor and the occupied area of ​​the waiting passenger waiting at the landing at the predetermined floor. Furthermore, when the robot 3 itself uses the elevator, the elevator system according to this embodiment determines whether the waiting passenger and the robot 3 can board the car 11 based on the available space information indicating the available space inside the car 11 moving toward a predetermined floor, the occupied area of ​​the waiting passenger waiting at the landing at the predetermined floor, and the occupied area of ​​the robot 3. This makes it possible to appropriately determine whether the waiting passenger and the robot 3 can board the car 11.

[0088] For example, one method for determining whether a waiting passenger can board a car is to compare the number of people who can board the car with the number of waiting passengers. However, with this method, for example, a general user and a wheelchair user are counted as one person (in other words, users with different occupancy areas are counted as one person), which can lead to cases where a waiting passenger is judged to be able to board the car but actually cannot, or where a waiting passenger is judged to be unable to board the car but actually can.

[0089] In contrast, the elevator system according to this embodiment determines whether or not passengers can board based on the occupied area rather than the number of people, and can therefore take into consideration, for example, differences between general users and wheelchair users, differences in physique, etc. This makes it possible to more accurately determine whether or not passengers can board, and reduces the occurrence of the above-mentioned cases.

[0090] Furthermore, as described above, the elevator system according to this embodiment determines whether a waiting passenger can board, whether the robot 3 can board, and whether the waiting passenger and the robot 3 can board, based on the occupied area of ​​the waiting passenger and the occupied area of ​​the robot 3. Furthermore, if the elevator system according to this embodiment determines that the waiting passenger cannot fit into the car 11, it registers an additional call for the waiting passenger and a robot call dedicated to the robot before the first car 11 (target car) arrives. Furthermore, if the elevator system according to this embodiment determines that the waiting passenger can fit into the car 11 but the robot 3 cannot board, it registers a robot call dedicated to the robot before the first car 11 (target car) arrives.

[0091] This means that even if a waiting passenger or robot 3 cannot board the target car, an additional call can be registered before the target car arrives, thereby reducing the waiting time of some waiting passengers and robots 3 who were unable to board the target car.

[0092] Furthermore, as described above, the elevator system of this embodiment determines whether waiting passengers can board, whether robot 3 can board, and whether both waiting passengers and robot 3 can board, and causes the waiting passengers and robot 3 to take action according to the results of the determination.

[0093] For example, if only the availability of waiting passengers is determined, a case may occur in which the robot cannot board the car even though it is determined that the passenger can board. Also, if only the availability of the robot is determined, a case may occur in which the waiting passenger cannot board the car even though it is determined that the passenger can board. In contrast, the elevator system according to this embodiment can determine whether the waiting passenger can board the car, whether the robot 3 can board the car, and whether the waiting passenger and the robot 3 can board the car, and can have the waiting passenger and the robot 3 take actions according to the results of these determinations, thereby preventing the occurrence of the above-mentioned cases.

[0094] Furthermore, in the elevator system according to this embodiment, the robot 3 measures the area occupied by passengers waiting at the landing, determines whether or not they can board the elevator car 11, and provides guidance to the passengers.

[0095] For example, if each device is provided separately, such as multiple sensors for measuring the area occupied by waiting passengers, a device that collects the measurement results from these sensors and determines whether or not passengers can board, and a display device that informs waiting passengers of the determination results from the device, synchronization and communication between each device is necessary. However, in the elevator system of this embodiment, all of these can be performed by a single robot 3, so there is no need for the synchronization and communication described above.

[0096] In this embodiment, whether a waiting passenger can board the car is determined based on the result of comparing the area of ​​the car floor not occupied by passengers in the car 11 with the area occupied by the waiting passengers, but whether a waiting passenger can board the car may also be determined based on, for example, whether the shape of the hall floor portion occupied by the waiting passengers can be fitted to the shape of the car floor portion not occupied by passengers in the car 11. Similarly, whether the robot 3 can board the car may also be determined based on whether the shape of the hall floor portion occupied by the robot 3 can be fitted to the shape of the car floor portion not occupied by passengers in the car 11.

[0097] Furthermore, if there is a change in the situation inside the elevator 11 moving toward the specified floor after it has been determined whether a waiting passenger waiting at a specified floor can board (for example, if the situation inside the elevator 11 changes due to a passenger getting on or off at an intermediate floor), the available space detection device 2 may again detect the available space information for the elevator 11, and the robot 3 may again determine whether the waiting passenger can board based on the available space information detected again.

[0098] Similarly, if there is a change in the situation inside the elevator 11 moving toward the specified floor after it has been determined whether the waiting passengers and robot 3 can board (for example, if the situation inside the elevator 11 changes due to a passenger getting on or off at an intermediate floor), the available space detection device 2 may again detect the available space information for the elevator 11, and the robot 3 may again determine whether the waiting passengers and robot 3 can board based on the available space information detected again.

[0099] In this embodiment, it is assumed that the priority of the waiting passenger is higher than that of the robot 3, and whether the waiting passenger can board is determined first, and then whether the robot 3 can board is determined. However, this is not limited to this, and depending on the type of robot 3, the priority of the robot 3 may be set higher than that of the waiting passenger, and whether the waiting passenger can board may be determined first, and then whether the robot 3 can board may be determined.

[0100] Furthermore, in this embodiment, it is assumed that there is one robot 3 waiting at a landing on a given floor, but there may be multiple robots 3 waiting at a landing on a given floor. In this case, a priority may be set for each robot 3. According to this, when multiple robots 3 are waiting at a landing, the robots 3 communicate with each other to confirm their priorities, and it is possible to perform an operation such as determining whether or not to allow the robots 3 to board the car 11 in order of priority, starting with the robot 3 with the highest priority.

[0101] In this embodiment, the case where the robot 3 determines whether waiting passengers and the robot 3 itself are allowed to board has been described, but the determination of whether or not to board may be made by, for example, the group management control device 1. Alternatively, the determination of whether or not to board may be made by the cloud server 4 shown in FIG.

[0102] In this case, the group management control device 1 or the cloud server 4 acquires available space information from the available space detection device 2 and acquires information indicating the occupied area of ​​the waiting passengers from the robot 3, and determines whether or not the waiting passengers and the robot 3 can board. If information indicating the size of the robot 3 is not pre-stored in the group management control device 1 or the cloud server 4, the group management control device 1 or the cloud server 4 further acquires information indicating the size of the robot 3 (i.e., information indicating the occupied area of ​​the robot 3), and determines whether or not the waiting passengers and the robot 3 can board.

[0103] According to the embodiment described above, it is possible to provide an elevator system that can appropriately determine whether a waiting passenger or a robot can board the elevator.

[0104] 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 embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included within the scope and spirit of the invention, as well as within the scope of the invention described in the claims and their equivalents. [Explanation of symbols]

[0105] 1...group management control device, 10...elevator control device, 11...car, 12...in-car camera, 2...vacant space detection device, 3...robot, 31...control unit, 32...communication device, 33...occupancy area measurement unit, 34...memory unit, 35...boarding eligibility determination unit, 36...guidance unit, 37...operation unit, 38...drive unit, 4...cloud server

Claims

1. a group management control device that controls the operation of a plurality of cars; a camera installed in each of the plurality of cars and capable of photographing the interior of the car; an empty space detection device that detects empty space information indicating an empty space in the elevator car based on the image captured by the camera; a robot communicably connected to the group management control device and the empty space detection device, The robot a measuring means for measuring an area of ​​the floor of the platform occupied by passengers waiting at the platform when the elevator has arrived at the platform at a predetermined floor and has received information about available space for a car moving toward the predetermined floor; and a determination means for determining whether the waiting passenger is able to board the elevator car moving toward the predetermined floor based on the received vacant space information and the area of ​​the landing floor occupied by the waiting passenger. Elevator system.

2. When the robot itself uses a car, the determination means determines whether the waiting passenger and the robot can board the car moving toward the predetermined floor based on the received vacant space information, the area of ​​the landing floor occupied by the waiting passenger, and the area of ​​the landing floor occupied by the robot.

10. The elevator system of claim 1.

3. The empty space information indicates an area of ​​the car floor that is not occupied by passengers riding in the car as the empty space in the car.

10. The elevator system of claim 1.

4. The determination means comparing the area of ​​the car floor not occupied by passengers indicated by the received vacant space information with the sum of the area of ​​the landing floor occupied by the waiting passengers and the area of ​​the landing floor occupied by the robot; If the area of ​​the car floor not occupied by the passenger is greater than the sum, it is determined that the waiting passenger and the robot can board the car moving toward the predetermined floor; If the area of ​​the car floor not occupied by the passenger is equal to or less than the sum, it is determined that the waiting passenger and the robot cannot board the car moving toward the predetermined floor.

3. The elevator system of claim 2.

5. The determination means comparing the area of ​​the car floor not occupied by the passenger with the area of ​​the landing floor occupied by the waiting passenger to determine whether or not the waiting passenger can fit in the car moving toward the predetermined floor, and then comparing the area of ​​the car floor not occupied by the passenger with the sum to further determine whether or not the robot can get on the car; 5. The elevator system of claim 4.

6. When the robot determines that the waiting passengers cannot fit into the elevator car moving toward the predetermined floor, the robot transmits a new hall call corresponding to the predetermined floor to the group management control device.

6. The elevator system of claim 5.

7. When the robot determines that it cannot board the elevator car moving toward the predetermined floor, the robot transmits a call dedicated to the robot to the group management control device.

7. The elevator system of claim 6.

8. The robot The waiting passenger is further provided with a guidance means for informing the waiting passenger of the result of the judgment by the judgment means and the car number of the car in which the waiting passenger is scheduled to board.

10. The elevator system of claim 1.

9. the group management control device, when the robot arrives at the hall of the predetermined floor and a hall call in the direction of the destination floor of the robot has not been registered at the predetermined floor, registers a hall call in the direction of the destination floor of the robot; 3. The elevator system of claim 2.

10. When the determination means receives new empty space information transmitted from the empty space detection device in response to a change in the situation inside the car moving toward the predetermined floor, the determination means determines again whether or not the waiting passenger is able to board the car moving toward the predetermined floor based on the received new empty space information and the area of ​​the landing floor occupied by the waiting passenger.

10. The elevator system of claim 1.

11. When the determination means receives new empty space information transmitted from the empty space detection device in response to a change in the situation inside the car moving toward the predetermined floor, the determination means determines again whether or not the waiting passenger and the robot can board the car moving toward the predetermined floor based on the received new empty space information, the area of ​​the landing floor occupied by the waiting passenger, and the area of ​​the landing floor occupied by the robot.

3. The elevator system of claim 2.

12. The determination means comparing the area of ​​the car floor not occupied by the passenger with the area of ​​the landing floor occupied by the robot to determine whether or not the robot can board the car moving toward the predetermined floor, and then comparing the area of ​​the car floor not occupied by the passenger with the sum to further determine whether or not the waiting passenger can board the car moving toward the predetermined floor; 5. The elevator system of claim 4.

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