Elevator guiding system and elevator guiding method

Abstract

To provide an elevator guide for reducing psychological stress applied to a user.SOLUTION: The system receives an inquiry about an optimal elevator in a building in which a plurality of elevators including one or a plurality of elevators are installed from a mobile terminal of a user, and specifies an elevator expected to have the shortest time to get on the elevator on a departure floor or the shortest time to arrive at a destination floor of the user based on at least one of data representing an operation status of each elevator, data representing a position of the user, data representing a position of the elevator, and data representing data of the number of waiting people on the departure floor. The system provides an answer including guidance of the specified elevator to the mobile terminal.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 1

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates generally to elevator guidance. [Background technology]

[0002] An example of a lift is an elevator. A technique for guiding users to an elevator is known, for example, as disclosed in Patent Document 1. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2019-1614 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0004] An example of a building with multiple elevators installed at different locations is a commercial building. Elevators closer to the entrance of a commercial building are usually busier than elevators further away from the entrance. For this reason, even if multiple elevators are installed in parallel near the entrance, if those elevators arrive at the same or nearly so simultaneously, passengers often have to wait a long time.

[0005] Furthermore, even if one of the multiple elevators arrives first, if passengers who were already waiting at the landing board that elevator, it will exceed its capacity, and other passengers will be unable to board it and will have to wait for the next elevator to arrive. In other words, the waiting time for those other passengers may be even longer.

[0006] On the other hand, elevators located far from the entrance of a commercial building (for example, at the back of the building) may be relatively empty, but if multiple customers using the building happen to decide that it is faster to use the elevator farther from the entrance, they may still be forced to wait even though they have traveled to the far elevator where they expected it to be empty, which, combined with the effort of traveling, can cause significant psychological stress. [Means for solving the problem]

[0007] The system accepts a query from a user's mobile device regarding the optimal elevator in a building where multiple elevators, including one or more elevators, are installed, and identifies the elevator at the departure floor that is expected to provide the shortest time to board the elevator or the shortest time to arrive at the user's destination floor, based on at least one of data representing the operating status of each elevator, data representing the user's location, data representing the elevator location, and data representing the number of people waiting at the departure floor. The system provides a response including information about the identified elevator to the mobile device. [Effects of the Invention]

[0008] According to the present invention, elevator guidance that reduces psychological stress on users can be realized. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0009] [Figure 1] 1 shows an example of the overall configuration of a system according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] 1 shows an example flow of processing related to an automatic inquiry and guidance in response to the inquiry. [Figure 3] 1 illustrates an example process flow for a manual query and guidance in response to the query. [Figure 4] 1 illustrates an example process flow for receiving a query and generating an answer in response to the query. [Figure 5] 1 shows an example of the configuration of a reception device and an operation prediction system. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0010] In the following description, an "interface apparatus" may refer to one or more interface devices, which may be at least one of the following: One or more I / O (Input / Output) interface devices. The I / O (Input / Output) interface devices are interface devices for at least one of the I / O device and a remote display computer. The I / O interface device for the display computer may be a communications interface device. The at least one I / O device may be a user interface device, for example, either an input device such as a keyboard and a pointing device, or an output device such as a display device. One or more communication interface devices. The one or more communication interface devices may be one or more homogeneous communication interface devices (e.g., one or more NICs (Network Interface Cards)) or two or more heterogeneous communication interface devices (e.g., an NIC and an HBA (Host Bus Adapter)).

[0011] In the following description, "memory" refers to one or more memory devices, typically a primary storage device. At least one of the memory devices may be a volatile memory device or a non-volatile memory device.

[0012] In the following description, a "persistent storage device" may refer to one or more persistent storage devices, which are an example of one or more storage devices. A persistent storage device may typically be a non-volatile storage device (e.g., an auxiliary storage device), and specifically may be, for example, a hard disk drive (HDD), a solid state drive (SSD), a non-volatile memory express (NVME) drive, or a storage class memory (SCM).

[0013] In the following description, the term "storage device" may refer to at least one of memory and persistent storage device.

[0014] Furthermore, in the following description, a "processor" may refer to one or more processor devices. The at least one processor device may typically be a microprocessor device such as a CPU (Central Processing Unit), but may also be another type of processor device such as a GPU (Graphics Processing Unit). The at least one processor device may be a single-core or multi-core. The at least one processor device may also be a processor core. The at least one processor device may also be a processor device in a broader sense, such as a circuit that is a collection of gate arrays written in a hardware description language that performs some or all of the processing (for example, an FPGA (Field-Programmable Gate Array), a CPLD (Complex Programmable Logic Device), or an ASIC (Application Specific Integrated Circuit)).

[0015] In the following description, data (information) that produces an output in response to an input may be described using expressions such as "xxx database." However, this data (information) may be data of any structure, or may be a learning model such as a neural network, genetic algorithm, or random forest that produces an output in response to an input. Therefore, "xxx database" may be referred to as "xxx data." In the following description, one database may be divided into two or more databases, or all or part of two or more databases may be one database.

[0016] Furthermore, in the following description, processing may be described using a function (e.g., "yyy unit") as the subject, but the function may be realized by one or more computer programs being executed by a processor. When a function is realized by a program being executed by a processor, the specified processing is performed using a storage device and / or an interface device, etc., as appropriate, and therefore the function may be at least a part of the processor. Processing described using a function as the subject may be processing performed by a processor or a device having that processor. The description of each function is an example, and multiple functions may be combined into one function, or one function may be divided into multiple functions.

[0017] Hereinafter, the embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings.

[0018] FIG. 1 shows an example of the overall configuration of a system according to an embodiment.

[0019] The site 100 includes a building (e.g., a commercial building) with multiple floors, and the building includes multiple elevators. At least one floor of the building (e.g., a floor where the building entrance is located) has one or more elevators installed at each of multiple different locations. The multiple locations include, for example, a first location (e.g., a location near the building entrance) and a second location (e.g., the back of the building) away from the first location. One or more first elevators are installed at the first location, and one or more second elevators are installed at the second location. Both the first and second elevators may be elevators 102, or the first elevator may be elevator 102 and the second elevator may be an escalator (not shown). In this embodiment, multiple elevators 102 are installed at one or more locations, and an escalator (not shown) is installed at one or more locations different from the elevators 102.

[0020] Each elevator 102 has, for example, the following configuration: A camera (hereinafter, referred to as an in-car camera 104) is provided in the car of the elevator 102. Furthermore, one or more cameras (hereinafter, referred to as one or more hall cameras 105) are provided in a hall including the floor's landing area for each floor where the car of the elevator 102 may stop. Furthermore, a monitoring device 103 is provided. The monitoring device 103 communicates with a remote monitoring center 130 via a remote monitoring network 120 (e.g., a dedicated network). For example, the monitoring device 103 may transmit data of video images captured by the in-car camera 104 and video images captured by the hall camera 105, as well as data related to the operation and / or running of the elevator 102, to the remote monitoring center 130. Furthermore, the monitoring device 103 may receive data from the remote monitoring center 130 and display information represented by the received data on a monitor in the car of the elevator 102 or on monitors installed at one or more landing areas. The elevator 102 may be equipped with one or more sensors, and data measured by each sensor may be transmitted to the remote monitoring center 130 via the monitoring device 103 .

[0021] The area referred to as "on-site" typically refers to the area within the building where the elevator is installed, but may also include an area outside the building (for example, near the building entrance). The on-site 100 includes a user's smartphone 101. The smartphone 101 is an example of a mobile terminal, and communicates with the remote monitoring center 130 via a communication network 110 (for example, the Internet).

[0022] A remote monitoring center 130 is constructed. The remote monitoring center 130 includes a reception device 131, a communication device 132, an operation data collection device 133, a report receiving device 135, a remote monitoring system 136, and an operation prediction system 134. The remote monitoring center 130 also stores data such as an abnormality management database 137, a remote monitoring master database 138, and an operation status database 139. Each of the devices 131, 132, 133, and 135 and each of the systems 134 and 136 may be a computer such as a calculator. Two or more elements of the devices 131 to 133 and 135 and the systems 134 and 136 may be realized on the same platform (for example, a physical computer system), or each element may be realized on a different platform.

[0023] The reception device 131 may be a device that provides services related to support for using the elevator 102. The reception device 131 receives requests and inquiries related to the use of the elevator 102 from an application (for example, a web browser or a dedicated application) executed on the smartphone 101. The reception device 131 transfers the requests and inquiries to the operation prediction system 134, or performs processing in response to the requests and inquiries and transmits data as the results of the processing to the operation prediction system 134.

[0024] Remote monitoring of the elevator 102 may be performed, for example, as follows. That is, when a monitoring device 103 connected to the elevator 102 detects an abnormality in the elevator 102, a notification receiving device 135 receives a notification of the abnormality from the monitoring device 103 via the remote monitoring network 120. The notification receiving device 135 forwards the received notification to the remote monitoring system 136. The remote monitoring system 136 identifies the ID of the elevator 102 in which the abnormality occurred and the details of the abnormality from the notification, and records the identified ID and details in the abnormality management database 137. In such remote monitoring, the ID of the elevator 102 and the items to be monitored are provided. It is also necessary to manage the method of accessing the monitoring device 103 connected to the elevator 102. For this reason, a combination of the ID of the elevator 102 (e.g., a serial number) and the ID of the monitoring device 103 is recorded in the remote monitoring master database 138. The remote monitoring master database 138 also stores data such as which monitoring items of the elevator 102 the monitoring device 103, which can be identified using the ID, is monitoring for abnormalities. The operation prediction system 134 obtains data relating to the connection to the monitoring device 103 (for example, the ID of the monitoring device 103) from the remote monitoring master database 138, passes the data to the operation data collection device 133, and the communication device 132 uses the data to communicate with the monitoring device 103. In this way, the operation prediction system 134 obtains operation data of the elevator 102 to be remotely monitored from the monitoring device 103 via the remote monitoring network 120, the communication device 132, and the operation data collection device 133, and stores the obtained operation data in the operation status database 139. The remote monitoring master database 138 may include data indicating the position of each elevator.

[0025] The operation prediction system 134 acquires operation data from the monitoring device 103 connected to the elevator 102 and stores it in an operation status database 139, and can predict elevator usage status in the near future from the stored data.

[0026] For example, the operation status database 139 may include data indicating the number of people who have boarded the elevator 102 and the number of people who have alighted from the elevator 102 for each combination of day of the week and time period. Attribute data such as whether the day of the week is a public holiday or a weekday may also be included for each day of the week. The operation status database 139 may also include data for each hall, such as the floor on which the hall is located, the location of the hall, and the number of people waiting (the number of people waiting at the hall) for each combination of day of the week and time period. The number of people who have boarded and alighted from the elevator 102 is determined based on images captured by the in-car camera 104 and the hall camera 105 and / or measurement data from sensors installed in the car, etc. The operation prediction system 134 can identify, from the operation status database 139, the number of users waiting in the elevator hall at each landing, the number of users (number of passengers) already in the elevator 102 car, the status of the elevator 102 (for example, the current position of the car and call status), and statistics on the number of people getting on and off the elevator 102 at each landing.

[0027] When an operation prediction of the elevator 102 is required in response to a request from a user of the elevator 102 (a request from the smartphone 101), the operation prediction system 134 identifies the past operation record of the elevator 102 from the operation status database 139 based on information on the date and time when the request from the user occurred (for example, day of the week, time period, public holiday / weekday).The operation prediction system 134 predicts the number of people waiting at each landing and the number of people getting on and off the elevator 102 at each landing based on the past operation record, and provides data based on the results of the prediction.

[0028] The above is the overall configuration of the system according to this embodiment. Note that, for example, the configuration of the reception device 131 and the operation prediction system 134 may be the configuration illustrated in FIG.

[0029] That is, the reception device 131 may have an interface device 501, a storage device 502, and a processor 503 connected to them. The interface device 501 communicates with the operation prediction system 134 and with the smartphone 101 via the communication network 110. The storage device 502 stores programs and data sent and received during communication. The processor 503 executes the programs to realize functions such as a service providing unit 512. The service providing unit 512 provides services including responses to requests and inquiries from the smartphone 101.

[0030] The operation prediction system 134 may include an interface device 551, a storage device 552, and a processor 553 connected thereto. The interface device 551 communicates with the reception device 131, the operation data collection device 133, and an external storage device 580. The above-mentioned databases 137 to 139 are stored in the external storage device 580. The external storage device 580 need not be provided, and the databases 137 to 139 may be stored in the storage device 552. The storage device 552 stores programs and data sent and received during communication. Functions such as a guidance processing unit 572 are realized by the processor 553 executing the programs. The guidance processing unit 572 performs processing related to guidance to users. This processing includes the above-mentioned prediction.

[0031] An example of the processing performed in this embodiment will be described below.

[0032] FIG. 2 shows an example flow of processing for automatic query and guidance in response to the query.

[0033] When the smartphone 101 enters a predetermined wireless communication area, the smartphone 101 (for example, a predetermined app) automatically generates an inquiry for the optimal elevator and transmits the generated inquiry to the reception device 131 of the remote monitoring center 130 (S201). The inquiry is input to the operation prediction system 134 via the reception device 131. The "predetermined wireless communication area" may be an area in which a wireless communication device (not shown) installed inside or outside the building can communicate. The wireless communication may be short-range wireless communication such as Bluetooth (registered trademark). The "optimal elevator" may be an elevator that is expected to take the shortest time from the start of movement at the time of generating or transmitting the inquiry to arriving at the destination floor.

[0034] In response to the inquiry sent in S201, the smartphone 101 (for example, a predetermined application) receives a response regarding the optimal elevator from the operation prediction system 134 via the reception device 131 (S202). The smartphone 101 displays the received response (guidance) on the display of the smartphone 101. The user moves to the optimal elevator indicated by the response (S203).

[0035] FIG. 3 shows an example flow of a process for manual query and guidance in response to that query.

[0036] The smartphone 101 (for example, a predetermined app) generates a call for the elevator 102 in response to an operation from a user (S301). For example, this "predetermined app" and the reception device 131 (service providing unit 512) remotely receive a hall call for the elevator 102 designated by the user, thereby improving the usability of the elevator 102. The predetermined app may receive a hall call request from the user along with the designation of the destination floor and departure floor, and generate a hall call with the destination floor and departure floor designated.

[0037] The smartphone 101 (for example, a predetermined application) generates an inquiry for the optimal elevator, and transmits this inquiry and the call generated in S301 to the reception device 131 of the remote monitoring center 130 (S302). As described above, the "optimal elevator" is an elevator that is expected to take the shortest time from the start of movement at the time of generating or transmitting the inquiry until arriving at the destination floor.

[0038] In response to the inquiry sent in S302, the smartphone 101 (for example, a predetermined application) receives a response regarding the optimal elevator from the operation prediction system 134 via the reception device 131 (S303). The smartphone 101 displays the received response (guidance) on the display of the smartphone 101. The user moves to the optimal elevator indicated by the response (S304).

[0039] As described above, in this embodiment, it is possible to call an elevator 102 using the smartphone 101. As a typical example, in response to a call from the smartphone 101, a car of an elevator 102 designated by a user from among elevators pre-registered in the remote monitoring center 130 (e.g., the reception device 131) stops at the floor desired by the user, opens its doors, and allows the user to enter the car. In this embodiment, the car of the elevator 102 that is optimal for the user can be dispatched in response to a remote call from the user in cooperation with elevators 102 located elsewhere in the same building as the pre-registered elevator 102. Specifically, for example, the reception device 131 (service providing unit 512) may instruct, in response to a remote call from the user, via the monitoring device 103 of the elevator 102, to dispatch the car of the elevator 102, which is the elevator indicated by a response from the operation prediction system 134, to the user's destination floor. By simply generating a call on the smartphone 101, the user can receive guidance on the elevator that will take them to the destination floor most quickly.

[0040] 4 shows an example flow of processing related to receiving an inquiry and generating a response to the inquiry. Note that the processing performed by the operation prediction system 134 described with reference to FIG. 4 is typically performed by the guidance processing unit 572 of the operation prediction system 134.

[0041] The operation prediction system 134 receives the inquiry sent in S201 or S302 from the smartphone 101 via the reception device 131 (S401).

[0042] The operation prediction system 134 determines whether a stroller or wheelchair is being used (S402). The determination in S402 may be made by referring to the remote monitoring master database 138 to determine whether the use of a stroller or wheelchair has been pre-registered, or by determining whether the use of a stroller or wheelchair is associated with an inquiry from a user.

[0043] If the determination result of S402 is false (S402: None), the operation prediction system 134 predicts the elevator 102 whose car will arrive earliest at the departure floor of the user (S403). For example, the operation prediction system 134 may refer to the operation status database 139 and predict the elevator 102 whose car will arrive earliest at the departure floor of the user by using data representing the operation status of each elevator 102 (e.g., for each elevator 102, the car position, the car movement direction, the scheduled stopping floor identified from the car call or the hall call, etc.) and a statistical model or a machine learning model. Note that in S403, the arrival order of multiple elevators 102 including the earliest arriving elevator 102 and the arrival time at the departure floor for each of the multiple elevators 102 may be predicted.

[0044] For the elevator 102 predicted in S403, the operation prediction system 134 determines whether the number of passengers waiting in the hall where the passenger's departure floor is located is greater than a reference number (S404). The "reference number" in this paragraph may be a value determined based on the value obtained by subtracting the predicted number of passengers in the car when the car arrives at the departure floor from the car's capacity. In other words, the determination in S404 may be a determination of whether the number of passengers waiting in the elevator hall to travel from the departure floor to the destination floor can board the elevator 102 that arrives earliest. The "predicted number of passengers in the car when the car arrives at the departure floor" may be obtained by inputting data (data identified from the operation status database 139) indicating the scheduled stopping floor identified from the car call or hall call for the elevator 102 and the day of the week and time period when the elevator 102 will be used by the passenger into a statistical model or a machine learning model. The "statistical model" may be statistical data on the number of passengers boarding and / or alighting on each floor for each combination of day of the week and time period. The machine learning model may be any model such as a neural network model.

[0045] If the determination result of S404 is false (S404: below standard), the operation prediction system 134 selects the elevator 102 predicted in S403 to arrive at the departure floor earliest (S405). On the other hand, if the determination result of S404 is true (S404: above standard), the operation prediction system 134 selects the elevator 102 predicted to arrive next at the departure floor (S405). The prediction of the next arriving elevator 102 may be performed in S403 or in S405.

[0046] The operation prediction system 134 determines whether the travel time to the destination floor is shorter by escalator than by the elevator 102 selected in S405 or S406 (S407). If the determination result in S407 is true (S407: shorter than elevator), the operation prediction system 134 generates a response guiding the user to the escalator as the most suitable elevator and transmits the response to the smartphone 101 via the reception device 131 (S408). On the other hand, if the determination result in S407 is false (S407: greater than or equal to elevator), the operation prediction system 134 generates a response guiding the user to the elevator 102 selected in S405 or S406 as the most suitable elevator and transmits the response to the smartphone 101 via the reception device 131 (S409).

[0047] According to S403 to S406, the elevator 102 with the shortest waiting time (or the second shortest waiting time) is predicted. However, even if the elevator 102 with the shortest waiting time is used, if there are waits at all the elevators 102, it may be possible to reach the destination floor in a shorter time by traveling by escalator. For example, escalators can ensure a certain amount of traffic except in situations where many users use escalators at the same time, such as at a station. However, if the user needs to skip several floors to reach the destination floor, the escalator takes longer than the elevator. However, if the additional travel time for the elevator is shorter than the combined travel time for using the elevator, it is expected that traveling by escalator will result in a shorter travel time.

[0048] Therefore, in this embodiment, the operation prediction system provides guidance on whether to use the elevator 102 or the escalator within the same building. Whether to use the elevator 102 or the escalator is determined based on the results of a comparison of travel times obtained using the following calculation formula: Escalator travel time = (travel time per floor x number of floors traveled) + travel time to the escalator stand Elevator travel time = Waiting time for the elevator selected in S405 or S406 + (travel time per floor x number of floors traveled) + travel time to the elevator hall

[0049] Here, since it is difficult to accurately estimate the "travel time per floor" of the elevator 102 due to the existence of floors where the elevator stops and floors where the elevator passes through, a rough estimate of the travel time is calculated using statistical data on the number of people using the floors in the past. This statistical data is calculated using the data (operation status database 139) used to predict the waiting time for the elevator and a predetermined algorithm.

[0050] The operation prediction system 134 compares the calculated travel time of the elevator 102 with the calculated travel time of the escalator, and generates a response that guides the user through the elevator with the shorter travel time. Note that if the travel time to the destination floor is the same for the elevator 102 and the escalator, whether to guide the user through the elevator 102 or the escalator may be selected by the user or may be selected according to a pre-registered policy (for example, a policy that always or randomly selects the elevator 102).

[0051] If the determination result in S402 is true (S402: Yes), the operation prediction system 134 refers to the operating status database 139 and predicts the possibility of securing space for a stroller or wheelchair based on the number of passengers in each elevator 102 and the floors on which the elevator is scheduled to stop (S410). In S410, the operation prediction system 134 predicts an elevator 102 that can secure space for a stroller or wheelchair in the car at the user's departure floor based on, for example, floor-by-floor alighting statistical data for each combination of day of the week and time period and the number of passengers currently on board.

[0052] The operation prediction system 134 instructs the monitoring device 103 of an elevator 102 for which space can be secured to switch the operation of that elevator 102 to space securing operation. In response to this instruction, the monitoring device 103 switches the operation of that elevator 102 to space securing operation. "Space securing operation" may be operation in which the elevator passes through floors where the call (stop floor) button in the car has not been pressed until the departure floor so that no new passengers can board, or alternatively or in addition, may be operation in which the floor area secured for strollers or wheelchairs is notified to passengers (for example, by illuminating it with an LED or the like). Note that an "elevator for which space can be secured" may be an elevator for which the difference between the number of passengers the car can accommodate and the number of passengers in the car is equal to or greater than a certain number.

[0053] The operation prediction system 134 selects an elevator 102 for which space can be reserved (S412), generates a response recommending the elevator 102 as the optimal elevator, and transmits the response to the smartphone 101 via the reception device 131 (S409). Note that the response may include information indicating the predicted arrival time of the "elevator for which space can be reserved" at the departure floor.

[0054] The above is an example of the process for receiving an inquiry and generating a response to the inquiry.

[0055] The user's "departure floor" and / or "destination floor" may be specified by a remote call or inquiry (for example, a floor where the smartphone 101 is detected to be in a specified wireless communication area, or a floor entered by the user), or may be a floor entered in advance by the user and registered together with the user ID in the remote monitoring master database 138, or may be a floor estimated using a statistical model or machine learning model and data in the operation status database 139.

[0056] The user's location at the start of movement may also be estimated, and the location may be a predetermined location within a predetermined wireless communication area, a location identified from location data indicating the current location of smartphone 101, or a user location pre-registered in remote monitoring master database 138. The travel time to elevator 102 or escalator may be the travel time from the user's location at the start of movement to elevator 102 or escalator. In addition, if there are escalators at multiple different locations within a building, the escalator for which the travel time is calculated may be the escalator closest to the user's location at the start of movement.

[0057] Although one embodiment has been described above, this is merely an example for explaining the present invention, and the scope of the present invention is not limited to this embodiment. The present invention can be implemented in various other forms.

[0058] The above description can be summarized as follows: The following summary may include supplementary explanations and explanations of modifications of the above description.

[0059] A building with multiple floors is equipped with multiple elevators, including one or more elevators. The elevator guidance system (e.g., a computer system including the reception device 131 and the operation prediction system 134) has a service providing unit (e.g., the service providing unit 512) and a guidance processing unit (e.g., the guidance processing unit 572). The service providing unit receives an inquiry about the optimal elevator in the building from a user's mobile terminal (e.g., the smartphone 101). The guidance processing unit identifies the elevator at the departure floor that is expected to provide the shortest time to board the elevator or the shortest time to arrive at the destination floor, based on at least one of the following data: operation status data (e.g., data obtained from operation status database 139) including data indicating the car position, car movement direction, number of passengers, and scheduled stopping floor for each of one or more elevators; data indicating the position of each of the multiple elevators (e.g., data obtained from remote monitoring master database 138); data indicating the user's position at the user's departure floor (e.g., location data pre-registered in remote monitoring master database 138 or location data of smartphone 101); data indicating the number of people waiting at the departure floor for each of one or more elevators (e.g., data indicating the number of people waiting identified by analyzing images captured by each elevator's hall camera); and data indicating the user's departure floor and destination floor. The guidance processing unit generates a response including guidance for the identified elevator. The service providing unit provides the response to the mobile terminal as a response to the inquiry.

[0060] In this way, elevator guidance that reduces the psychological stress imposed on users can be realized. Using all of the operational status data, elevator location data, user location data, and waiting number data at the departure floor is expected to maximize the likelihood that the elevator guided to the user is optimal for the user. However, as described above, using at least one of these data sets can also provide elevator guidance that is expected to minimize the time it takes to board the elevator at the departure floor or the time it takes to arrive at the destination floor. The guidance included in the response may include at least one of the following: the location of the optimal elevator, the predicted time the user will arrive at that location (e.g., the time calculated from the user's location and the elevator location), the waiting time the user will have to board the elevator (e.g., the predicted waiting time at the landing), and the predicted time the user will arrive at the destination floor. The "departure floor" and "destination floor" may each be a floor specified in the elevator call from a mobile device or a floor that has been pre-registered. Furthermore, elevator calls or inquiries from mobile terminals may be accepted through template screens or chat screens that are provided by the system and displayed on the mobile terminals.

[0061] For example, the operation status data may be data obtained from a monitoring device (e.g., monitoring device 103) of each elevator, and a statistical model may be constructed or a machine learning model may be trained based on the time series of the operation status data (including, for example, data such as the day of the week and the time period).Using the statistical model or the trained machine learning model, the operation status in the near future (e.g., after a certain time has elapsed from the current time or a time specified by the user), the number of people waiting at each landing on each floor, etc. may be predicted.

[0062] The guidance processing unit may use a statistical model or machine learning model of the number of people getting off the elevator by floor for each time period to predict the number of people getting off at the departure floor based on the time period of use of the user, and may identify the expected elevator based on data representing the predicted number of people getting off at the departure floor for the time period of use. This reduces the possibility of the following event occurring, i.e., the possibility of having to wait to get on the elevator because there is no space to get on the arriving car when the intermediate floor is the departure floor, thereby reducing psychological stress.

[0063] The guidance processing unit may predict, based on the operation status data, which first elevator will arrive at the departure floor first, and for the first elevator, use a statistical model or machine learning model of the number of people alighting on elevators by floor for each time period to predict the number of people alighting on elevators at the departure floor based on the user's usage time period. This statistical model or machine learning model may be, for example, a model constructed using the past number of people alighting on elevators by floor for each time period (e.g., the number of people alighting compiled for each floor for each time period using past operation status data). The guidance processing unit may determine whether the user can board the first elevator based on data representing the predicted number of people alighting on elevators at the departure floor for the usage time period and data representing the number of people waiting at the landing at the departure floor for the first elevator. The determination of "whether or not the user can board the first elevator" may be based on the predicted number of passengers in the car upon arrival at the departure floor and the predicted number of disembarking passengers at the departure floor, and may be determined by determining whether or not all of the number of people waiting to move in the direction of movement toward the destination floor (for example, the number of people waiting predicted using a statistical model or machine learning model based on the number of people waiting at the landing at the departure floor of the first elevator) can board. If the result of this determination is true, the guidance processing unit may identify the first elevator as the expected elevator. This reduces the possibility that the user will be unable to board the first elevator even if it is announced, thereby reducing the user's psychological stress.

[0064] On the other hand, if the result of this determination is false, the guidance processing unit may specify the second elevator, which is the elevator predicted to arrive at the departure floor next earliest after the first elevator, as the expected elevator. This allows the user to be guided to an elevator that has a longer waiting time than the first elevator but a shorter waiting time overall and is less likely to be unable to board the elevator, thereby reducing the user's psychological stress.

[0065] The plurality of elevators may include an escalator. The guidance processing unit may identify the elevator with the shorter waiting time between the first elevator or the second elevator and the escalator based on the location of the first elevator or the second elevator, the location of the escalator, and the waiting time to board the first elevator or the second elevator, and may guide the user to the identified elevator. This allows the user to be guided to the escalator if the waiting time for the escalator is expected to be shorter, thereby reducing psychological stress on the user.

[0066] The guidance processor may determine whether the inquiry is associated with a user traveling with a stroller or wheelchair. If the determination result is true, the guidance processor may identify, from the operation status data, an elevator in which the number of passengers is below a certain number relative to the car's capacity and thus space for a stroller or wheelchair can be reserved within the car, and cause the elevator to perform a space reservation operation to reserve space for the stroller or wheelchair. This reduces psychological stress for users traveling with a stroller or wheelchair. Note that the space reservation operation may involve driving the elevator through floors other than the designated stopping floor until the departure floor, and / or indicating the reserved area for the stroller or wheelchair within the car (for example, by illuminating the reserved area with an LED or the like). This increases the likelihood that space for a stroller or wheelchair will be reserved when the elevator arrives at the departure floor, thereby reducing psychological stress for users traveling with a stroller or wheelchair. [Explanation of symbols]

[0067] 101...smartphone, 102...elevator, 131...reception device, 134...operation prediction system

Claims

1. a service providing unit that receives an inquiry from a user's mobile terminal about an optimal elevator in a building having multiple floors and multiple elevators including one or multiple elevators installed; a guidance processing unit that identifies an elevator that is expected to provide the shortest time to board the elevator at the departure floor or the shortest time to arrive at the destination floor, based on at least one of operational status data including data indicating the car position, car movement direction, number of passengers, and scheduled stopping floor for each of the one or more elevators, data indicating the position of each of the plurality of elevators, data indicating the user's position at the departure floor for the user, and data indicating the number of people waiting at the departure floor for each of the one or more elevators, and data indicating the departure floor and destination floor for the user; Equipped with the guidance processing unit generates a response including guidance for the identified elevator; the service providing unit provides the answer to the mobile terminal as a response to the inquiry; Elevator guidance system.

2. The guidance processing unit Using a statistical model or machine learning model of the number of people getting off the elevator by floor for each time period, predict the number of people getting off at the departure floor based on the time period of use of the user; Identifying the expected elevator based on data representing the number of people expected to disembark at the departure floor for the usage time period. The elevator guide system according to claim 1 .

3. The guidance processing unit predicting a first elevator that will arrive at the departure floor earliest based on the operation status data; For the first elevator, predicting the number of people who will get off at the departure floor based on the time period of use of the user using a statistical model or a machine learning model of the number of people getting off at the elevator by floor for each time period; determining whether the user can board the first elevator based on data representing the predicted number of people getting off at the departure floor for the usage time period and data representing the number of people waiting at the landing of the first elevator at the departure floor; If the result of the determination is true, identifying the first elevator as the expected elevator. The elevator guide system according to claim 2 .

4. The guidance processing unit If the result of the determination is false, a second elevator that is predicted to arrive at the departure floor next earliest after the first elevator is identified as the expected elevator. The elevator guide system according to claim 3 .

5. the plurality of elevators include escalators; the guidance processing unit identifies the elevator with the shorter waiting time between the first elevator or the second elevator and the escalator based on the position of the first elevator or the second elevator, the position of the escalator, and the waiting time until boarding the first elevator or the second elevator; 5. An elevator guide system according to claim 3 or 4.

6. The guidance processing unit determining whether the user traveling with a stroller or a wheelchair is associated with the query; If the result of the determination is true, the system identifies elevators that can secure space for the stroller or wheelchair in the car because the number of passengers is equal to or less than a certain number relative to the capacity of the car from the operating status data, and causes the elevator to perform a space securing operation that secures space for the stroller or wheelchair. The elevator guide system according to claim 1 .

7. The space securing operation is a operation that passes through floors other than the designated stopping floor in the car until the departure floor, and / or a operation that indicates the secured range of the stroller or the wheelchair in the car. The elevator guide system according to claim 6.

8. Accepting an inquiry from a user's mobile terminal about an optimal elevator in a building having multiple floors and in which multiple elevators including one or more elevators are installed; Identifying an elevator that is expected to provide the shortest time to board the elevator at the departure floor or the shortest time to arrive at the destination floor based on at least one of operational status data including data representing the car position, car movement direction, number of passengers, and scheduled stopping floor for each of the one or more elevators, data representing the position of each of the plurality of elevators, data representing the user's position at the departure floor for the user, and data representing the number of people waiting at the departure floor for each of the one or more elevators, and data representing the user's departure floor and destination floor; generating a response including guidance for the identified elevator; providing the answer to the mobile terminal in response to the query; An elevator guidance method that uses a computer.

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