Information provision device, information provision method, and information provision program

Abstract

This invention provides an information-providing device, an information-providing method, and an information-providing program that can demonstrate the effectiveness of introducing a resonance avoidance function in elevators. [Solution] The information providing device 12 is applied to elevator 1 that avoids resonance when an earthquake occurs in building 2 by moving the car 6 to an evacuation floor. The estimation unit 15 estimates the class representing the magnitude of earthquake shaking in building 2 based on information on the natural period of building 2 and information on the class representing the magnitude of shaking for each period included in the earthquake information distributed from the distribution organization 18. The generation unit 16 generates confirmation information based on the class estimated for building 2 by the estimation unit 15. The confirmation information includes the rate of property damage due to earthquakes of that class when the car 6 is in a non-evacuation area that does not include an evacuation floor, and when the car 6 is in an evacuation area that includes an evacuation floor. The presentation unit 17 presents the generated confirmation information in response to a request from a pre-set viewer.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an information providing apparatus, an information providing method, and an information providing program.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses an example of an elevator control system. When a long-period earthquake occurs, the control system evacuates the car to a predetermined evacuation floor that is not affected by the long-period earthquake such as resonance by means of restricted operation.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] In the control system of Patent Document 1, the function of avoiding resonance when an earthquake occurs by moving the car to the evacuation floor, such as restricted operation, may be selected by the elevator administrator or the like as to whether or not to introduce it into the elevator. Here, when an earthquake occurs in an elevator in which the function of moving to the evacuation floor is introduced, there may be no material damage as a result. At this time, the effect of introducing the resonance avoidance function, such as whether or not the material damage was avoided by moving the car to the evacuation floor, is not shown to the elevator administrator or the like. Therefore, the elevator administrator or the like cannot obtain a basis for judgment as to whether or not to continue applying the resonance avoidance function.

[0005] The present disclosure relates to the solution of such problems. The present disclosure provides an information providing apparatus, an information providing method, and an information providing program that can show the effect of introducing the resonance avoidance function in an elevator.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0006] The information providing device relating to this disclosure is an information providing device applied to an elevator installed in a building that avoids resonance when an earthquake occurs in the building by moving the car to a predetermined evacuation floor, and comprises: a receiving unit that receives earthquake information of the earthquake distributed from a distribution organization when an earthquake occurs; an estimation unit that estimates a class representing the magnitude of earthquake shaking in the building based on information of the building's natural period included in building information stored in advance for the building, and class information representing the magnitude of shaking for each period included in the earthquake information received by the receiving unit; a generating unit that generates confirmation information including the rate of property damage due to earthquake of that class when the car is in a predetermined non-evacuation range that does not include the evacuation floor, and the rate of property damage due to earthquake of that class when the car is in a predetermined evacuation range that includes the evacuation floor, based on the class estimated for the building by the estimation unit; and a presentation unit that presents the confirmation information generated by the generating unit in response to a request from a predetermined viewer.

[0007] The information provision method relating to this disclosure is a method applied to an elevator that avoids resonance in the building when an earthquake occurs by moving the elevator car to a pre-set evacuation floor provided in the building, and the information provision device performs the following: receive earthquake information of the earthquake distributed from a distribution organization when an earthquake occurs; estimate a class representing the magnitude of earthquake shaking in the building based on information of the building's natural period included in building information stored in advance for the building, and class information representing the magnitude of shaking for each period included in the earthquake information received from the distribution organization; generate confirmation information based on the estimated class for the building, including the rate of property damage due to earthquake of that class when the elevator car is in a pre-set non-evacuation area that does not include the evacuation floor, and the rate of property damage due to earthquake of that class when the elevator car is in a pre-set evacuation area that includes the evacuation floor; and present the generated confirmation information in response to a request from a pre-set viewer.

[0008] The information provision program relating to this disclosure is applied to an elevator installed in a building that avoids resonance when an earthquake occurs in the building by moving the elevator car to a pre-set evacuation floor. The information provision device is configured to perform the following actions: receive earthquake information distributed from a distribution organization when an earthquake occurs; estimate a class representing the magnitude of earthquake shaking in the building based on information about the building's natural period included in the building information stored in advance for the building, and class information representing the magnitude of shaking for each period included in the earthquake information received from the distribution organization; generate confirmation information based on the estimated class for the building, including the rate of property damage due to earthquake of that class when the elevator car is in a pre-set non-evacuation area that does not include the evacuation floor, and the rate of property damage due to earthquake of that class when the elevator car is in a pre-set evacuation area that includes the evacuation floor; and present the generated confirmation information in response to a request from a pre-set viewer. [Effects of the Invention]

[0009] The information provision device, information provision method, or information provision program relating to this disclosure can demonstrate the effectiveness of introducing a resonance avoidance function in elevators. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0010] [Figure 1] This diagram shows the configuration of the elevator according to Embodiment 1. [Figure 2] This figure shows an example of performance information stored in the storage unit of the information providing device according to Embodiment 1. [Figure 3] This figure shows an example of confirmation information that the information providing device according to Embodiment 1 presents to a viewing device. [Figure 4] This flowchart shows an example of the operation of the information providing device according to Embodiment 1. [Figure 5] This is a hardware configuration diagram of the main parts of the information providing device according to Embodiment 1. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0011] The embodiments for implementing this disclosure will be described with reference to the attached drawings. In each drawing, the same or corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals, and redundant explanations are simplified or omitted as appropriate. However, the scope of this disclosure is not limited to the following embodiments, and any modification of any component of the embodiments or omission of any component of the embodiments is possible without departing from the spirit of this disclosure.

[0012] Embodiment 1. Figure 1 is a diagram showing the configuration of elevator 1 according to Embodiment 1.

[0013] Elevator 1 is installed in a building 2 having multiple floors. In building 2, a hoistway 3 is provided, which is a space spanning multiple floors. Elevator 1 comprises a hoisting machine 4, a main rope 5, a car 6, a counterweight 7, and a control panel 8.

[0014] The hoisting machine 4 comprises a motor that generates driving force and a sheave that rotates by the driving force generated by the motor. The hoisting machine 4 is located, for example, above or below the hoistway 3. Alternatively, if a machine room is provided above the hoistway 3, for example, the hoisting machine 4 may be located in the machine room.

[0015] The main rope 5 is a rope that supports the loads of the elevator car 6 and the counterweight 7 in the hoistway 3. The main rope 5 is wound around the sheave of the hoisting machine 4. The main rope 5 supports the load of the elevator car 6 on one side of the sheave of the hoisting machine 4. The main rope 5 supports the load of the counterweight 7 on the other side of the sheave of the hoisting machine 4.

[0016] The elevator car 6 is a device that transports users between multiple floors by traveling vertically in the hoistway 3. The counterweight 7 is a device that balances the loads on both sides of the sheave of the hoisting machine 4 with the elevator car 6. The elevator car 6 and the counterweight 7 travel in opposite directions in the hoistway 3 by the driving force generated by the motor of the hoisting machine 4.

[0017] The control panel 8 is a device that controls the operation of the elevator 1. The operation of the elevator 1 includes, for example, registering a call to the car 6 and the movement of the car 6 in the hoistway 3. The control panel 8 is located, for example, at the top or bottom of the hoistway 3. Alternatively, if a machine room is provided, for example, above the hoistway 3, the control panel 8 may be located in the machine room. The control panel 8 registers a call to the car 6 based on user operations, etc. In normal operation, the control panel 8 moves the car 6 to the departure floor and destination floor of the registered call in response to the call.

[0018] Here, the length of the main rope 5 stretched from the sheave of the hoisting machine 4 to the car 6 or counterweight 7 varies depending on the position of the car 6. The natural period of the main rope 5 also varies depending on the length of the main rope 5 stretched. Therefore, the natural period at which resonance can occur in the main rope 5 varies depending on the position of the car 6. In addition, the elevator 1 is provided with a control cable 9 connecting the car 6 and the control panel 8. The effective length of the control cable 9 for vibrations also varies depending on the position of the car 6, so the natural period of the control cable 9 also varies depending on the position of the car 6. Furthermore, the elevator 1 is provided with cable-like equipment not shown, such as a compensation rope to compensate for the uneven load on the sheave of the hoisting machine 4 caused by the weight of the main rope 5 due to the position of the car 6, and a governor rope connected to a governor that suppresses excessive speed of the car 6. The natural periods of other cable-like equipment in the elevator 1, such as the compensation rope and governor rope, also vary depending on the position of the car 6.

[0019] In this example, an elevator 1 is equipped with a resonance avoidance function. The resonance avoidance function is applied to the elevator 1 by, for example, an optional contract between the administrator of the elevator 1 and a maintenance company of the elevator 1. That is, whether to apply the resonance avoidance function to the elevator 1 is selected by the administrator of the elevator 1 or the like. When an earthquake is not occurring, the control panel 8 of the elevator 1 equipped with the resonance avoidance function moves the car 6 with no registered calls to the evacuation floor and makes it wait. The evacuation floor is a floor preset so as to avoid resonance between the earthquake sway in the building 2 and the cable-like devices of the elevator 1 such as the main rope 5. The evacuation floor is preset so that the natural periods of some or all of the cable-like devices of the elevator 1 such as the main rope 5, the control cable 9, the compensating rope, and the governor rope do not match the natural period of the building 2. A plurality of evacuation floors may be set in the building 2. The control panel 8 of the elevator 1 may move the car 6 with no registered calls to the evacuation floor and make it wait, limited to a preset time period when the usage frequency of the elevator 1 is low, such as at night.

[0020] In the elevator 1, a remote monitoring device 10 is provided. The remote monitoring device 10 may be an internal device included in the elevator 1 or an external device of the elevator 1. The remote monitoring device 10 is a device for remotely monitoring the state of the elevator 1. The remote monitoring device 10 is arranged, for example, in the building 2 where the elevator 1 is installed. The remote monitoring device 10 is connected to the devices of the elevator 1 such as the control panel 8 so as to be able to acquire information on the state of the elevator 1. The remote monitoring device 10 is connected to the communication network 11 so as to be able to communicate information collected from the elevator 1. The communication network 11 includes, for example, a wide-area network such as the Internet or a telephone line network, or a local network such as a LAN (Local Area Network). The remote monitoring device 10 has a function of transmitting a warning to the outside through the communication network 11 or the like when an abnormality such as a failure occurs in the elevator 1.

[0021] An information providing device 12 is applied to the elevator 1. The information providing device 12 is a device that provides information on the elevator 1 to the administrator of the elevator 1 or the like. The information providing device 12 is managed, for example, by a maintenance company of the elevator 1 or the like. The information providing device 12 is a computer constituted by, for example, one or a plurality of server computers or the like. Here, a computer system composed of a plurality of devices that operate in cooperation with each other may be simply referred to as a computer. The information providing device 12 may be arranged at a remote location of the building 2 to which the elevator 1 is applied. The information providing device 12 is connected to a communication network 11 so as to be able to communicate information with an external device. Part or all of the functions of the information providing device 12 may be implemented in a virtual machine on a cloud service, or may be implemented by processing or storage resources on a cloud service. Part or all of the functions of the information providing device 12 may be mounted on a device of the elevator 1 such as a control panel 8. The information providing device 12 includes a storage unit 13, a reception unit 14, an estimation unit 15, a generation unit 16, and a presentation unit 17.

[0022] The storage unit 13 is a part that mounts a function of storing information. The storage unit 13 stores, for example, building information of the building 2 to which the elevator 1 is applied. The building information includes, for example, an identifier of the building 2, an identifier of the elevator 1 provided in the building 2, information on the position of the building 2, the natural period of vibration of the building 2, the presence or absence of application of a resonance avoidance function to the elevator 1 provided in the building 2, and information such as evacuation floors of the building 2. The storage unit 13 stores, for example, performance information such as the presence or absence of physical damage to the devices of the elevator 1. Here, the physical damage to the devices of the elevator 1 includes, for example, damage to the devices of the elevator 1 caused by the shaking of an earthquake. The physical damage to the devices of the elevator 1 may occur, for example, to the devices inside the elevator after lifting due to the main rope 5 being displaced greatly by the shaking and getting caught. The performance information includes information such as the performance of physical damage caused by past earthquakes. The performance information includes information such as the performance of physical damage caused by past tests.

[0023] The receiving unit 14 is a part equipped with the function of receiving earthquake information of an earthquake that is distributed from a distribution organization 18 when an earthquake occurs. The distribution organization 18 is an external organization to the information providing device 12 that distributes earthquake information, for example, through a communication network 11. The distribution organization 18 includes, for example, public organizations such as the Japan Meteorological Agency, or other organizations such as businesses. The earthquake information is, for example, a rapid report that distributes information about an earthquake when an earthquake occurs. The earthquake information is, for example, an earthquake early warning distributed by the Japan Meteorological Agency. The earthquake information includes, for example, information such as the location of the epicenter and the intensity of the earthquake. The earthquake information includes long-period ground motion data. Long-period ground motion includes, for example, ground motion with a period of about 1 to 8 seconds. The long-period ground motion data includes, for example, class information that represents the magnitude of the shaking for long-period ground motion. Here, a higher class represents a larger shaking. The long-period ground motion data may also include class information for each period.

[0024] The estimation unit 15 is a part equipped with a function to estimate the class representing the magnitude of earthquake shaking in building 2. The estimation unit 15 estimates the class in building 2 based, for example, on information about the natural period of building 2 included in the building information pre-stored by the memory unit 13, and information about the class for each period included in the earthquake information received by the receiving unit 14. The estimation unit 15, for example, refers to the class of the natural period of building 2 from the class for each period in the long-period ground motion data of the earthquake information, and takes the referred class as the estimated class result for building 2. The estimation unit 15 may also estimate the class for building 2 by other methods.

[0025] The generation unit 16 is the part equipped with the function of generating confirmation information. The confirmation information is information provided to the manager of elevator 1, etc., so that the effect of introducing the resonance avoidance function can be confirmed. The generation unit 16 generates confirmation information based on the class estimated by the estimation unit 15 for building 2. The generation unit 16 uses, for example, actual information stored in the memory unit 13 to generate the confirmation information. The confirmation information includes the rate of property damage due to earthquakes of that class when car 6 is in a preset non-evacuation range, and the rate of property damage due to earthquakes of that class when car 6 is in a preset evacuation range. Here, the non-evacuation range is a preset range of the hoistway 3 that does not include evacuation floors. The non-evacuation range includes, for example, resonant floors where resonance may occur between earthquake shaking in building 2 and cable-like equipment of elevator 1 such as the main rope 5. A resonant floor is, for example, a floor where, when the car 6 is on that floor, the natural period of some or all of the cable-like equipment of the elevator 1, such as the main rope 5, control cable 9, compensating rope, and governor rope, matches the natural period of the building 2. There may be multiple resonant floors in the building 2. The non-evacuation area may be, for example, a range of the hoistway 3 that includes the resonant floor but does not include floors adjacent to the resonant floor. Alternatively, the non-evacuation area may be, for example, a range of the hoistway 3 that includes the resonant floor and floors adjacent to the resonant floor. The evacuation area is a predetermined range of the hoistway 3 that includes the evacuation floor. The evacuation area may be, for example, a range of the hoistway 3 that includes the evacuation floor but does not include floors adjacent to the evacuation floor. Alternatively, the evacuation area may be, for example, a range of the hoistway 3 that includes the evacuation floor and floors adjacent to the evacuation floor. There may be areas in the elevator shaft 3 that are not included in either the non-evacuation area or the evacuation area, or any position within the elevator shaft 3 may be set to be included in either the non-evacuation area or the evacuation area. In this example, the non-evacuation area and the evacuation area do not overlap with each other. Information on the non-evacuation area and the evacuation area is included, for example, in building information stored in the memory unit 13. When generating confirmation information, the generation unit 16 may use information on the status of elevator 1 at the time of the earthquake. The generation unit 16 obtains information on the status of elevator 1 from, for example, the remote monitoring device 10.Information about the status of elevator 1 includes, for example, information such as the position of car 6.

[0026] The presentation unit 17 is a part equipped with the function of presenting the confirmation information generated by the generation unit 16 in response to a request from a pre-configured viewer. The viewer is, for example, the manager of elevator 1. The viewer is pre-registered with the information providing device 12. The viewer requests confirmation information from the information providing device 12, for example, through the viewing device 19 and the communication network 11. The viewing device 19 is, for example, a general-purpose information processing device such as a PC (Personal Computer). The presentation unit 17 functions, for example, as a web server. The presentation unit 17 returns the confirmation information as a response to the request from the viewing device 19, for example, by HTTP (HyperText Transfer Protocol) or other protocol. The viewing device 19 displays the confirmation information presented by the presentation unit 17. This allows the viewer to confirm the content of the confirmation information. The viewer's request for confirmation information may be made immediately after the occurrence of an earthquake, or it may be made collectively for multiple earthquakes that have occurred in the past when considering whether or not to continue applying the resonance avoidance function.

[0027] Figure 2 shows an example of performance information stored in the storage unit 13 of the information providing device 12 according to Embodiment 1.

[0028] The performance information is obtained by pre-aggregating the results of past tests and performance data from past earthquakes. The performance information includes aggregated results for each class in Building 2, for cases where the elevator car 6 is in the non-evacuation zone when shaking occurs in Building 2, and for cases where the elevator car 6 is in the evacuation zone when shaking occurs in Building 2. The aggregated results include the rate of property damage. The rate of property damage is, for example, the ratio of the number of cases in which property damage occurred to the number of earthquakes that occurred or tests that were conducted. The rate of property damage may also be aggregated for each piece of elevator 1 equipment, such as the main rope 5, control cable 9, compensating rope, and governor rope.

[0029] The performance information may include, for each class in Building 2, the response of Elevator 1 when the car 6 is in the non-evacuation zone while shaking is occurring in Building 2, and the response of Elevator 1 when the car 6 is in the evacuation zone while shaking is occurring in Building 2. The response of Elevator 1 may be calculated in advance based on the structure of Elevator 1 and Building 2, or it may be calculated in advance based on the results of past tests and performance from past earthquakes. The response of Elevator 1 may include, for example, the amplification of the shaking. The amplification of the shaking is a value that represents how much the shaking in cable-like equipment of Elevator 1, such as the main rope 5, is amplified when the shaking of the earthquake is used as input. The amplification of the shaking may be calculated for each piece of equipment of Elevator 1, such as the main rope 5, control cable 9, compensating rope, and governor rope.

[0030] Figure 3 shows an example of confirmation information presented to the viewing device 19 by the information providing device 12 according to Embodiment 1.

[0031] In this example, the confirmation information includes the content of the earthquake information distributed by the distribution agency 18. The confirmation information includes, for example, the observation point, observation time, seismic intensity, and class for each period of the earthquake that occurred. The confirmation information includes the natural period information of the target building 2. The confirmation information includes the class of the seismic motion in building 2, estimated based on the natural period and class for each period of building 2. In this example, the natural period of building 2 is in the 3-second range. At this time, in the class for each period, the information in the 3-second range that matches the natural period of building 2 is referenced, and the seismic motion in building 2 is estimated to be class 3. The confirmation information may include an emphasis effect to indicate the 3-second range information referenced at this time. In this example, the 3-second range information is emphasized by a dashed frame.

[0032] The verification information includes the probability of property damage occurring when the elevator car 6 is in the non-evacuation zone when an earthquake of the estimated magnitude occurs, and the probability of property damage occurring when the elevator car 6 is in the evacuation zone when an earthquake of the estimated magnitude occurs. The generation unit 16 refers to the aggregated results for the estimated magnitude 3 for building 2 in actual data such as the table shown in Figure 2. In this example, the generation unit 16 reads from the actual data that the probability of property damage is 80% when the elevator car 6 is in the non-evacuation zone when an earthquake of magnitude 3 occurs. The generation unit 16 also reads from the actual data that the probability of property damage is 60% when the elevator car 6 is in the evacuation zone when an earthquake of magnitude 3 occurs. The generation unit 16 generates the verification information to reflect the probability read.

[0033] The confirmation information may include information about the status of elevator 1 when an earthquake occurs in building 2. The time when the earthquake occurred in building 2 may be the time estimated by the estimation unit 15 based on, for example, the distance between the epicenter and the location of building 2 and the time the earthquake occurred, or it may be the time when an earthquake sensor (not shown) installed in building 2 detected the shaking. The confirmation information may include, for example, information about the location of car 6 when an earthquake occurred in building 2. The information about the location of car 6 is an example of information indicating whether or not car 6 was on an evacuation floor. The confirmation information may include information indicating whether or not the location of car 6 was on an evacuation floor. In this example, car 6 was waiting on the 4th floor, which is an evacuation floor, when the earthquake occurred in building 2. In this case, the confirmation information includes information indicating that the location of car 6 was on the 4th floor and that this floor is an evacuation floor.

[0034] Next, an example of the operation of the information providing device 12 will be explained using Figure 4. Figure 4 is a flowchart showing an example of the operation of the information providing device 12 according to Embodiment 1.

[0035] The receiving unit 14 receives earthquake information distributed from the distribution agency 18 (step S1). Subsequently, the estimation unit 15 estimates the earthquake intensity for building 2 based on the earthquake information received from the distribution agency 18 and building information stored in the memory unit 13 (step S2). Subsequently, the generation unit 16 generates confirmation information for building 2 and the earthquake that occurred (step S3). Subsequently, the presentation unit 17 receives a request from the viewing device 19 to view the confirmation information (step S4). Subsequently, the presentation unit 17 presents the confirmation information generated by the generation unit 16 to the viewing device 19 in response to the viewing request (step S5).

[0036] Furthermore, if another earthquake occurs between the generation and presentation of the confirmation information, the generation unit 16 may generate confirmation information for that other earthquake. The generated confirmation information may be associated with building 2 and stored in the storage unit 13. The presentation unit 17 may, in response to a viewing request, present multiple pieces of confirmation information for multiple earthquakes in building 2 to the viewing device 19 at once.

[0037] As described above, the information providing device 12 according to Embodiment 1 is applied to an elevator 1. The elevator 1 is installed in a building 2. The elevator 1 avoids resonance when an earthquake occurs in the building 2 by moving the car 6 to a pre-set evacuation floor. The information providing device 12 comprises a receiving unit 14, an estimation unit 15, a generation unit 16, and a presentation unit 17. The receiving unit 14 receives earthquake information of the earthquake distributed from the distribution organization 18 when an earthquake occurs. The estimation unit 15 estimates the class representing the magnitude of the earthquake shaking in the building 2 based on information about the natural period of the building 2 included in the building information stored in advance for the building 2, and information about the class representing the magnitude of shaking for each period included in the earthquake information received by the receiving unit 14. The generation unit 16 generates confirmation information based on the class estimated by the estimation unit 15 for the building 2. The confirmation information includes the rate of property damage caused by an earthquake of that class when the car 6 is in the non-evacuation area, and the rate of property damage caused by an earthquake of that class when the car 6 is in the evacuation area. The non-evacuation area is a pre-defined area that does not include the evacuation floor. The evacuation area is a pre-defined area that includes the evacuation floor. The presentation unit 17 presents the confirmation information generated by the generation unit 16 in response to a pre-defined request from a viewer.

[0038] With this configuration, the administrator of elevator 1, who is registered as a viewer, can verify the effectiveness of the resonance avoidance function by using the generated confirmation information when an earthquake occurs and no property damage results. Here, the effectiveness of the resonance avoidance function is information that shows, for example, whether property damage was avoided by evacuating car 6, or whether property damage would not have occurred even if car 6 had not been evacuated. The information providing device 12 presents the administrator, etc., with information that allows for objective comparison of the incidence rate of property damage when car 6 is in the evacuation range and when it is not in the evacuation range, as the effectiveness of the resonance avoidance function. This allows the administrator of elevator 1, etc., to obtain objective information to decide whether or not to continue applying the resonance avoidance function.

[0039] Furthermore, the generation unit 16 generates confirmation information using the rate of property damage obtained by pre-aggregating the results of past tests and past earthquake events. With this configuration, the rate of property damage based on the actual equipment or test results is presented, allowing the manager of elevator 1 and others to obtain more objective information for deciding whether to continue applying the resonance avoidance function.

[0040] Furthermore, the generation unit 16 generates confirmation information that includes information indicating whether or not the elevator car 6 was on an evacuation floor when an earthquake occurred in building 2. Even in elevator 1, which is equipped with a resonance avoidance function, there may be cases where the elevator car 6 cannot move to an evacuation floor for reasons such as responding to a user's call. With the above configuration, the manager of elevator 1 can also confirm whether or not the elevator car 6 was actually on an evacuation floor, allowing them to make a more objective decision on whether or not to continue applying the resonance avoidance function.

[0041] Furthermore, the generation unit 16 may generate confirmation information that includes the rate of damage to each piece of equipment when the car 6 is in the non-evacuation area, and the rate of damage to each piece of equipment when the car 6 is in the evacuation area. For example, the confirmation information may individually present the rate of damage to the main rope 5, control cable 9, compensating rope, and governor rope for both the non-evacuation area and the evacuation area. With this configuration, the effect of introducing the resonance avoidance function can be understood for each piece of equipment in the elevator 1, so the manager of the elevator 1 can obtain more detailed information to decide whether to continue applying the resonance avoidance function.

[0042] Furthermore, the generation unit 16 may generate confirmation information including the amplification of the vibration of the elevator equipment when the car 6 is in the non-evacuation area, and the amplification of the vibration of the elevator equipment when the car 6 is in the evacuation area. With this configuration, the manager of the elevator 1 can compare the response to vibration as a potential risk of property damage, in addition to comparing the resulting rate of property damage when the car 6 is in the non-evacuation area and when it is in the evacuation area. This allows the manager of the elevator 1 to obtain more detailed information to decide whether to continue applying the resonance avoidance function.

[0043] Furthermore, the generation unit 16 may generate confirmation information including a typical time required for recovery when the elevator car 6 is in the non-evacuation area, and a typical time required for recovery when the elevator car 6 is in the evacuation area. The time required for recovery is pre-calculated based on, for example, the results of past tests or past earthquake results. The typical time required for recovery is, for example, the average, median, or mode of the time obtained by statistically processing the actual time required for recovery. With this configuration, the manager of elevator 1 can obtain more detailed information to make a decision regarding the continuation of applying the resonance avoidance function, including the impact on the operating rate of elevator 1.

[0044] Next, we will explain an example of the hardware configuration of the information provision device 12 using Figure 5. Figure 5 is a hardware configuration diagram of the main parts of the information providing device 12 according to Embodiment 1.

[0045] Each function of the information providing device 12 can be realized by a processing circuit. The processing circuit comprises at least one processor 100a and at least one memory 100b. The processing circuit may also include at least one dedicated hardware 200 together with the processor 100a and memory 100b, or as a substitute for them.

[0046] When the processing circuit includes a processor 100a and a memory 100b, each function of the information providing device 12 is realized by software, firmware, or a combination of software and firmware. At least one of the software and firmware is written as a program. This program is stored in the memory 100b. The processor 100a realizes each function of the information providing device 12 by reading and executing the program stored in the memory 100b. The program may also be a program package that includes multiple subprograms, modules, or libraries. The program is sometimes called a program product.

[0047] The processor 100a is also called a CPU (Central Processing Unit), processing unit, arithmetic unit, microprocessor, microcomputer, or DSP. The memory 100b is composed of non-volatile or volatile semiconductor memory such as RAM, ROM, flash memory, EPROM, or EEPROM.

[0048] If the processing circuit includes dedicated hardware 200, the processing circuit may be implemented as, for example, a single circuit, a composite circuit, a programmed processor, a parallel programmed processor, an ASIC, an FPGA, or a combination thereof.

[0049] Each function of the information providing device 12 can be implemented by a processing circuit. Alternatively, each function of the information providing device 12 can be implemented collectively by a processing circuit. For each function of the information providing device 12, some may be implemented by dedicated hardware 200, and others by software or firmware. In this way, the processing circuit implements each function of the information providing device 12 using dedicated hardware 200, software, firmware, or a combination thereof.

[0050] To summarize the above explanation, the possible configurations of the technology relating to this disclosure include the configurations listed below as appendices. (Note 1) This is an information provision device applied to elevators that avoid resonance in the event of an earthquake in a building by moving the elevator car to a predetermined evacuation floor provided within the building. A receiving unit that receives earthquake information about the earthquake distributed by a distribution agency when an earthquake occurs, An estimation unit estimates a class representing the magnitude of earthquake shaking in the building based on information about the building's natural period included in the building information stored in advance for the building, and information about the class representing the magnitude of shaking for each period included in the earthquake information received by the receiving unit. A generation unit generates confirmation information that includes, based on the class estimated by the estimation unit for the building, the probability of property damage due to an earthquake of that class when the elevator car is in a predetermined non-evacuation area that does not include the evacuation floor, and the probability of property damage due to an earthquake of that class when the elevator car is in a predetermined evacuation area that includes the evacuation floor. A presentation unit presents the confirmation information generated by the generation unit in response to a request from a pre-configured viewer, An information-providing device equipped with the following features. (Note 2) The generation unit generates the confirmation information using the rate of property damage obtained by pre-aggregating the results of tests conducted in the past and the results of past earthquakes. The information provision device described in Appendix 1. (Note 3) The generation unit generates the confirmation information, including information indicating whether or not the elevator car was on the evacuation floor when the earthquake tremors occurred in the building. The information-providing device described in Appendix 1 or Appendix 2. (Note 4) The generation unit generates the confirmation information, including the rate of damage to each piece of equipment when the cage is in the non-evacuation area, and the rate of damage to each piece of equipment when the cage is in the evacuation area. An information-providing device as described in any one of the items from Appendix 1 to Appendix 3. (Note 5) The generation unit generates the confirmation information, including the amplification of the vibration of the elevator equipment when the car is in the non-evacuation area, and the amplification of the vibration of the elevator equipment when the car is in the evacuation area. An information-providing device as described in any one of the items from Appendix 1 to Appendix 4. (Note 6) The generation unit generates the confirmation information, including a typical time required for recovery when the cage is in the non-evacuation area, and a typical time required for recovery when the cage is in the evacuation area. An information-providing device as described in any one of the items from Appendix 1 to Appendix 5. (Note 7) An information provision device applied to an elevator that avoids resonance in the event of an earthquake in a building by moving the elevator car to a predetermined evacuation floor located within the building, Receiving earthquake information about the earthquake distributed by a distribution agency when an earthquake occurs, Based on the building information stored in advance for the building, which includes information on the building's natural period, and the seismic information received from the distribution agency, which includes information on the seismic intensity for each period, the class representing the magnitude of the earthquake shaking in the building is estimated. Based on the estimated class for the aforementioned building, confirmation information is generated that includes the probability of property damage due to an earthquake of that class when the elevator car is in a predetermined non-evacuation area that does not include the evacuation floor, and the probability of property damage due to an earthquake of that class when the elevator car is in a predetermined evacuation area that includes the evacuation floor. The generated confirmation information is presented in response to a request from a pre-configured viewer, A method of providing information to carry out the task. (Note 8) An information provision device is applied to an elevator that avoids resonance in the event of an earthquake in a building by moving the elevator car to a predetermined evacuation floor located within the building. Receiving earthquake information about the earthquake distributed by a distribution agency when an earthquake occurs, Based on the building information stored in advance for the building, which includes information on the building's natural period, and the seismic information received from the distribution agency, which includes information on the seismic intensity for each period, the class representing the magnitude of the earthquake shaking in the building is estimated. Based on the estimated class for the aforementioned building, confirmation information is generated that includes the probability of property damage due to an earthquake of that class when the elevator car is in a predetermined non-evacuation area that does not include the evacuation floor, and the probability of property damage due to an earthquake of that class when the elevator car is in a predetermined evacuation area that includes the evacuation floor. The generated confirmation information is presented in response to a request from a pre-configured viewer, An information-providing program that initiates the execution of [something]. [Explanation of Symbols]

[0051] 1 Elevator, 2 Building, 3 Hoistway, 4 Hoisting machine, 5 Main rope, 6 Car, 7 Counterweight, 8 Control panel, 9 Control cable, 10 Remote monitoring device, 11 Communication network, 12 Information provision device, 13 Storage unit, 14 Receiving unit, 15 Estimation unit, 16 Generation unit, 17 Presentation unit, 18 Distribution organization, 19 Viewing device, 100a Processor, 100b Memory, 200 Dedicated hardware

Claims

1. This is an information provision device applied to elevators that avoid resonance in the event of an earthquake in a building by moving the elevator car to a predetermined evacuation floor provided within the building. A receiving unit that receives earthquake information about the earthquake distributed by a distribution agency when an earthquake occurs, An estimation unit estimates a class representing the magnitude of earthquake shaking in the building based on information about the building's natural period included in the building information stored in advance for the building, and information about the class representing the magnitude of shaking for each period included in the earthquake information received by the receiving unit. A generation unit generates confirmation information that includes, based on the class estimated by the estimation unit for the building, the probability of property damage due to an earthquake of that class when the elevator car is in a predetermined non-evacuation area that does not include the evacuation floor, and the probability of property damage due to an earthquake of that class when the elevator car is in a predetermined evacuation area that includes the evacuation floor. A presentation unit presents the confirmation information generated by the generation unit in response to a request from a pre-configured viewer, An information-providing device equipped with the following features.

2. The generation unit generates the confirmation information using the rate of property damage obtained by pre-aggregating the results of tests conducted in the past and the results of past earthquakes. The information providing device according to claim 1.

3. The generation unit generates the confirmation information, including information indicating whether or not the elevator car was on the evacuation floor when the earthquake tremors occurred in the building. The information providing device according to claim 1 or claim 2.

4. The generation unit generates the confirmation information, including the rate of damage to each piece of equipment when the cage is in the non-evacuation area, and the rate of damage to each piece of equipment when the cage is in the evacuation area. The information providing device according to claim 1 or claim 2.

5. The generation unit generates the confirmation information, including the amplification of the vibration of the elevator equipment when the car is in the non-evacuation area, and the amplification of the vibration of the elevator equipment when the car is in the evacuation area. The information providing device according to claim 1 or claim 2.

6. The generation unit generates the confirmation information, including a typical time required for recovery when the cage is in the non-evacuation area, and a typical time required for recovery when the cage is in the evacuation area. The information providing device according to claim 1 or claim 2.

7. An information provision device applied to an elevator that avoids resonance in the event of an earthquake in a building by moving the elevator car to a predetermined evacuation floor located within the building, Receiving earthquake information about the earthquake distributed by a distribution agency when an earthquake occurs, Based on the building information stored in advance for the building, which includes information on the building's natural period, and the seismic information received from the distribution agency, which includes information on the seismic intensity for each period, the class representing the magnitude of the earthquake shaking in the building is estimated. Based on the estimated class for the aforementioned building, confirmation information is generated that includes the probability of property damage due to an earthquake of that class when the elevator car is in a predetermined non-evacuation area that does not include the evacuation floor, and the probability of property damage due to an earthquake of that class when the elevator car is in a predetermined evacuation area that includes the evacuation floor. The generated confirmation information is presented in response to a request from a pre-configured viewer, A method of providing information to carry out the task.

8. An information provision device is applied to an elevator that avoids resonance in the event of an earthquake in a building by moving the elevator car to a predetermined evacuation floor located within the building. Receiving earthquake information about the earthquake distributed by a distribution agency when an earthquake occurs, Based on the building information stored in advance for the building, which includes information on the building's natural period, and the seismic information received from the distribution agency, which includes information on the seismic intensity for each period, the class representing the magnitude of the earthquake shaking in the building is estimated. Based on the estimated class for the aforementioned building, confirmation information is generated that includes the probability of property damage due to an earthquake of that class when the elevator car is in a predetermined non-evacuation area that does not include the evacuation floor, and the probability of property damage due to an earthquake of that class when the elevator car is in a predetermined evacuation area that includes the evacuation floor. The generated confirmation information is presented in response to a request from a pre-configured viewer, An information-providing program that initiates the execution of [something].

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