Mechanical parking system and its power control method

Abstract

Reduce the amount of electricity used in mechanical parking systems. [Solution] The mechanical parking system 10 includes a plurality of pallets 36 for storing vehicles, an opening / closing gate 40 that restricts entry into the system 10, a plurality of heaters 44 for snow melting, a power receiving unit 12 connected to a primary power supply 50, a device drive unit 16 for driving the pallets 36 and the opening / closing gate 40, a heater operating unit 20 for operating the plurality of heaters 44, and a power switching unit 24 for selectively switching the power supply destination from the power receiving unit 12 between the device drive unit 16 and the heater operating unit 20. As a result, power is supplied to only one of the device drive unit 16 or the heater operating unit 20 by the power switching unit 24, so that the driving of devices such as the pallets 36 and the operation of the plurality of heaters 44 do not occur simultaneously. Therefore, the amount of power used simultaneously by the entire mechanical parking system 10 can be reduced.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] The present invention relates to a mechanical parking apparatus including a plurality of pallets, an opening / closing gate, and a plurality of heaters, and a power control method for the mechanical parking apparatus. [Background Art]

[0002] Mechanical parking apparatuses used in regions that experience snowfall in winter are provided with a plurality of snow-melting heaters on pallets that store vehicles and surrounding parts thereof as a countermeasure against snow accumulation and freezing. These heaters are operated as needed, such as during snowfall, to remove snow from and around the pallets. For example, Patent Document 1 discloses providing an anti-freezing device using heating wires in components of a mechanical parking apparatus such as pallets and step surfaces. [Prior Art Literature] [Patent Literature]

[0003] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Unexamined Patent Application Publication No. 2010-121409 [Summary of the Invention] [Problem to be Solved by the Invention]

[0004] Here, in conventional mechanical parking apparatuses as described above, power for driving the apparatus such as the pallets and power for operating the heaters are normally drawn in separately, whereby the apparatus and the heaters operate independently. For this reason, it is necessary for the entire parking apparatus to account for the power required when driving the apparatus and operating the heaters simultaneously, which tends to increase the contracted power capacity with the electric power company, leading to higher costs. The present invention has been made in view of the above problem, and an object of the present invention is to reduce the maximum amount of power used in a mechanical parking apparatus. Additionally, the present invention aims to contribute, to some extent, to saving the power supply capacity of electric power companies. [Means for solving the problem]

[0005] (Modes of the invention) The following embodiments of the invention are illustrative of the configuration of the present invention and are described in separate sections to facilitate understanding of the diverse configurations of the present invention. Each section does not limit the technical scope of the present invention. Therefore, while taking into consideration the best mode for carrying out the invention, the technical scope of the present invention may also include modifications, deletions, or additions of other components of each section.

[0006] (1) A mechanical parking system comprising a plurality of pallets for storing vehicles, an opening and closing gate for restricting entry into the system, and a plurality of heaters for snow melting, the mechanical parking system comprising: a power receiving unit connected to a primary power source; a device drive unit for driving the plurality of pallets and the opening and closing gate; a heater operating unit for operating the plurality of heaters; and a power switching unit connected to the power receiving unit, the device drive unit and the heater operating unit, for selectively switching the destination of the power supply from the power receiving unit between the device drive unit and the heater operating unit.

[0007] The mechanical parking system described in this section is primarily intended for use in areas with snowfall and includes multiple pallets for storing vehicles, an opening / closing gate to restrict entry into the parking system, multiple heaters for snow melting, a power receiving unit, a device drive unit, a heater operating unit, and a power switching unit. The multiple pallets may be configured to move up and down in conjunction with each other in groups of several vertically connected pallets, or each pallet may move independently. The opening / closing gate is located on the front side of the mechanical parking system when the vehicle exit direction is forward, and is opened and closed as needed, such as when vehicles are entering or leaving the parking system. The multiple heaters are attached to the pallets and their surrounding components to prevent snow accumulation and freezing on and around the pallets, and are usually attached to the uppermost pallet and its surrounding components where snow accumulation is expected.

[0008] The power receiving unit is connected to the primary power supply from a substation or the like, and is the source of power used for the entire mechanical parking system. The device drive unit is for driving multiple pallets and opening / closing gates, for example, by driving pallets to be moved or opening / closing gates to be opened in response to operations by the user of the mechanical parking system. The heater operation unit is for operating multiple heaters, for example, by operating all heaters for the required time, such as during snowfall. The power switching unit is for selectively switching the destination of power supplied from the power receiving unit between the device drive unit and the heater operation unit, and for this purpose, it is connected to the power receiving unit, the device drive unit and the heater operation unit so that power can be transferred between them.

[0009] With the above configuration, the power supplied via the power receiving unit is supplied to either the device drive unit or the heater operation unit by the power switching unit, so the driving of devices such as pallets and opening / closing gates and the operation of multiple heaters do not occur simultaneously. Therefore, there is no need to consider the power consumption when they are performed simultaneously; it is sufficient to consider whichever of the device driving and heater operation consumes more power. As a result, the total amount of power used simultaneously by the entire mechanical parking system is reduced compared to conventional mechanical parking systems, and the contracted power amount with the power company is reduced. Consequently, costs are suppressed, and the load on the power company's substations is also reduced. Furthermore, unlike conventional configurations, there is no need to draw power separately for driving devices such as pallets and for operating the heaters, thus reducing the number of power connection points.

[0010] (2) The mechanical parking device further comprising, in item (1) above, a control unit for controlling the entire device and a snowfall detection unit for detecting snowfall, wherein the power switching unit supplies power to the device drive unit based on a drive command for the plurality of pallets or the opening and closing gate from the control unit, and supplies power to the heater operating unit based on the detection result of the snowfall detection unit, and switches the power supply destination to the device drive unit when it receives the drive command from the control unit while supplying power to the heater operating unit. The mechanical parking system described in this section further includes a control unit and a snowfall detection unit. The control unit controls the entire mechanical parking system, and such control includes issuing drive commands for pallets and opening / closing gates in response to user operations. The snowfall detection unit detects snowfall around the installation location of the mechanical parking system and transmits the detection results to, for example, the control unit or power switching unit.

[0011] The power switching unit operates as follows to switch the destination of power supplied from the power receiving unit between the device drive unit and the heater operating unit. Specifically, the power switching unit supplies power to the device drive unit based on drive commands for multiple pallets or opening / closing gates received from the control unit, and at this time, the power supply to the heater operating unit is cut off. The power switching unit also supplies power to the heater operating unit based on detection results received from the snowfall detection unit, or commands from the control unit based on the detection results from the snowfall detection unit, and at this time, the power supply to the device drive unit is cut off. Furthermore, if the power switching unit receives a drive command for a pallet or opening / closing gate from the control unit while supplying power to the heater operating unit, it switches the power supply destination from the heater operating unit to the device drive unit. In this way, the power supply destination is switched alternately between the device drive unit and the heater operating unit, and power is supplied to the device drive unit with priority over the heater operating unit, so that the operation of the device related to vehicle entry and exit is executed at the timing desired by the user. This will reduce electricity consumption without compromising the convenience of the mechanical parking system.

[0012] (3) In the above item (1), the power switching unit receives three-phase AC power from the power receiving unit and supplies it to the device drive unit or the heater operating unit, the plurality of heaters are connected to three separate systems so that the power load is distributed as equally as possible, and the heater operating unit supplies three-phase AC power by delta connecting the three systems. The mechanical parking system described in this section receives three-phase AC power from a power receiving unit connected to the primary power supply to a power switching unit, and this three-phase AC power received from the power receiving unit is then supplied from the power switching unit to the device drive unit or heater operating unit. In addition, the multiple heaters are connected to three separate systems so that the power load during operation is distributed as equally as possible. That is, the power supply to operate the multiple heaters is divided into three systems, and the power load in each system is made as equal as possible to the others across the three systems.

[0013] The heater operating unit then delta-connects the three power supply lines and supplies three-phase AC power received from the power switching unit to them. As a result, even though three-phase AC power, which is generally used in the device drive unit, is used, each of the three lines is supplied with single-phase AC power converted from three-phase AC power via the delta connection. Therefore, even if each heater requires single-phase AC power, it will operate without problems. Moreover, because the three-phase AC power is converted to three single-phase AC power lines, approximately √3 times more power can be obtained for the same ampere frame compared to receiving single-phase AC power, improving the efficiency of power consumption. Consequently, the amount of power used simultaneously by the entire mechanical parking system, the contracted power amount, costs, and the load on substations, etc., are further reduced.

[0014] (4) A power control method for a mechanical parking system equipped with a plurality of pallets for storing vehicles, an opening and closing gate for restricting entry into the system, and a plurality of heaters for snow melting, wherein a power receiving unit is connected to a primary power supply, a power switching unit is connected to the power receiving unit, a device drive unit for driving the plurality of pallets and the opening and closing gate, and a heater operating unit for operating the plurality of heaters, and the power switching unit selectively switches the destination of the power supply from the power receiving unit between the device drive unit and the heater operating unit. (5) A power control method for a mechanical parking system, wherein the power switching unit supplies power to the device drive unit based on drive commands for the plurality of pallets or the opening and closing gates from the control unit that controls the entire mechanical parking system, and supplies power to the heater operating unit based on the detection result of the snowfall detection unit that detects snowfall, and when the drive command is received from the control unit while power is being supplied to the heater operating unit, the power supply destination is switched to the device drive unit.

[0015] (6) A power control method for a mechanical parking device, wherein the power switching unit receives three-phase AC power from the power receiving unit and supplies it to the device drive unit or the heater operating unit, the plurality of heaters are connected to three systems so that the power load is distributed as equally as possible, and the heater operating unit delta connects the three systems to supply three-phase AC power. Furthermore, the power control methods for mechanical parking systems described in items (4) to (6) are each executed by the mechanical parking systems described in items (1) to (3) above, thereby producing the same effect as the mechanical parking systems described in items (1) to (3) above. [Effects of the Invention]

[0016] As the present invention is configured in this way, it is possible to reduce the maximum amount of power used in a mechanical parking system and to improve the efficiency of power consumption. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0017] [Figure 1] This is a schematic block diagram showing an example of the configuration of a mechanical parking device according to an embodiment of the present invention. [Figure 2] Figure 1 shows a schematic plan view and front view illustrating an example of the structure of a mechanical parking system. [Figure 3] Figure 1 is a schematic side view showing an example of the structure of a mechanical parking system. [Figure 4] This is a schematic plan view showing a single pallet and the heaters installed around it. [Figure 5]It is a table showing the load and allocation of heaters shown in Fig. 4. [Figure 6] It is a table showing the load distribution of heaters divided into 3 systems. [Figure 7] It is a schematic circuit diagram showing an example of the circuit configuration of a delta-connected heater. [Figure 8] It is a flow chart showing an example of the procedure of the power control method for a mechanical parking apparatus according to an embodiment of the present invention. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0018] Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. Throughout the drawings, the same or corresponding parts are denoted by the same reference numerals. Detailed descriptions of parts that are the same as or corresponding to those in the prior art will be omitted. Fig. 1 shows an example of the configuration of a mechanical parking apparatus 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, and Figs. 2 and 3 show an example of the specific structure of the mechanical parking apparatus 10. The mechanical parking apparatus 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention is installed, for example, in an apartment complex or the like in a snowy region.

[0019] The mechanical parking apparatus 10 shown in Figs. 2 and 3 is a so-called pit-type parking apparatus that uses pits 54 formed underground, and in the illustrated embodiment, it has a 2-block structure in which two pits 54 are formed. The mechanical parking apparatus 10 includes, in each pit 54, a plurality of (three in the illustrated embodiment) pallets 36 connected vertically via a plurality of support columns 58. These plurality of pallets 36 are for storing vehicles, and are configured to move up and down in a connected state between a lowest position where the uppermost pallet 36 is at the same height as the ground and a highest position where the lowermost pallet 36 is at the same height as the ground. In each pit 54, such a plurality of pallets 36 are arranged in one to a plurality of rows (three rows in the illustrated embodiment) in the left-right direction in Fig. 2.

[0020] A gate 40 (see Figure 1) is installed at the front of the mechanical parking system 10 in the direction of vehicle exit (left side in Figure 3) to restrict entry into the parking system 10. In this embodiment, a gate 40 is installed for each row of pallets 36 arranged in the left-right direction in Figure 2, with three gates 40 installed in each block. These multiple gates 40 are normally positioned to protrude above the ground, preventing entry into the mechanical parking system 10, and each gate 40 is independently retracted into the pit 54 only when vehicles are entering or leaving the parking system. Note that the support column indicated by reference numeral 60 in Figure 3 is not for supporting the gates 40, but rather to close the gaps between the gates 40 when they are not retracted, and is used as a place to install sensors, control panels, etc.

[0021] Furthermore, the mechanical parking system 10 is equipped with multiple heaters 44, as shown in Figures 2(a) and 3. These heaters 44 are for snow melting and are installed as a measure to prevent snow accumulation and freezing on and around the pallets 36. For this reason, the multiple heaters 44 are installed as a measure to prevent snow accumulation in the area where it is expected, as can be seen in the plan view of the mechanical parking system 10 shown in Figure 2(a). Specifically, the multiple heaters 44 are attached to the surface or back surface of each uppermost pallet 36, which is located at approximately the same height as the ground when each pallet 36 is in the stored position, as well as to the beams (walking decks) between adjacent pallets 36, and to the front and rear members of the pallets 36. Consequently, when the number of pallets 36 increases or decreases in the planar direction of the mechanical parking system 10 (up and down and left and right directions in Figure 2(a)), the number of heaters 44 also increases or decreases accordingly, and the power consumption increases or decreases in accordance with the number of heaters 44. Each of the heaters 44 may be, for example, a ribbon heater or a cable heater, and they may be covered with a cover or the like for protection and heat retention. The heaters 44 in this embodiment are driven by single-phase AC power.

[0022] As shown in Figures 1 to 3, the mechanical parking device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention includes, in addition to the above-mentioned multiple pallets 36, multiple opening and closing gates 40, and multiple heaters 44, a power receiving unit 12, a device drive unit 16, a heater operating unit 20, a power switching unit 24, a control unit 28, and a snowfall detection unit 32. The power receiving unit 12 is connected to a primary power supply 50 supplied with power from a power company, and three-phase AC power is supplied from the primary power supply 50. This power receiving unit 12 is the source of power used by the mechanical parking device 10.

[0023] The device drive unit 16 is for driving multiple pallets 36 and multiple opening / closing gates 40. Specifically, as will be described later, the device drive unit 16 operates each pallet 36 and each opening / closing gate 40 by supplying power from the power switching unit 24 to the motors that actually drive each pallet 36 and each opening / closing gate 40 as needed. Normally, when driving a pallet 36 or an opening / closing gate 40, the device drive unit 16 supplies power to only one motor at a time. Therefore, even if the number of pallets 36 and opening / closing gates 40 increases or decreases, the power consumption when they operate does not change. The motors for driving the pallets 36 and opening / closing gates 40 are normally driven by three-phase AC power. Note that the power receiving unit 12 and the device drive unit 16 are not shown in Figures 2 and 3.

[0024] The heater operating unit 20 is for operating multiple heaters 44. Specifically, as will be described later, it operates multiple heaters 44 by supplying power from the power switching unit 24 to the multiple heaters 44 as needed. For this reason, the heater operating unit 20 is connected to all the heaters 44 to be controlled, and the specific connection status will be described later. Normally, the heater operating unit 20 controls all the heaters 44 connected to it to be turned ON / OFF simultaneously. The heater operating unit 20 is also illustrated in Figures 2(b) and 3.

[0025] The power switching unit 24 selectively switches the destination of the power (three-phase AC power) supplied from the power receiving unit 12 between the device drive unit 16 and the heater operating unit 20. That is, the power switching unit 24 cuts off the power supply to the heater operating unit 20 when power is being supplied to the device drive unit 16, and cuts off the power supply to the device drive unit 16 when power is being supplied to the heater operating unit 20. For this reason, the power switching unit 24 is connected to receive power from the power receiving unit 12 and is also connected to supply power to the device drive unit 16 and the heater operating unit 20. Furthermore, as will be described in detail later, in this embodiment the power switching unit 24 switches the power supply destination under the control of the control unit 28. Note that the power switching unit 24 is not shown in Figures 2 and 3.

[0026] The control unit 28 controls the entire mechanical parking system 10, and as part of this, it issues drive commands for the pallet 36 and the opening / closing gate 40 based on detection results received from the snowfall detection unit 32 and user operations, and also controls the switching of power supply destinations from the power switching unit 24 as described above. Figures 2(a) and 3 show a part of the control unit 28 (control panel). The snowfall detection unit 32 is for detecting snowfall around the mechanical parking system 10, and for this purpose, it is installed in any location where snowfall can be easily detected. Figures 2(a) and 3 show an example of the installation location of the snowfall detection unit 32. The detection results from the snowfall detection unit 32 are transmitted to the control unit 28 and other units.

[0027] Furthermore, as in the embodiment shown in Figure 2, if the mechanical parking system 10 is divided into multiple blocks, the configuration obtained by removing, for example, the snowfall detection unit 32 from the configuration in Figure 1 may be added in addition to the configuration in Figure 1, depending on the number of blocks. In such a configuration, for example, control units 28 are distributed to control each block, and the operation of the entire mechanical parking system 10 is controlled by communication between the control units 28 of different blocks. Alternatively, a single heater operating unit 20 may control multiple heaters 44 of multiple blocks at once.

[0028] Next, the connection state of the multiple heaters 44 in the mechanical parking device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. In this embodiment, the multiple heaters 44 are connected in three separate systems so that the power load is distributed as equally as possible. For example, Figure 4 shows a simplified illustration of a single pallet 36 and the heaters 44 installed around it, here illustrated with both reference numerals and indicator symbols. That is, as shown in the table in Figure 5, the heater 44 on the left side of the pallet 36 is indicated by indicator symbol PL, the heater 44 on the central high section of the pallet 36 is indicated by indicator symbol PC, and the heater 44 on the right side of the pallet 36 is indicated by indicator symbol PR. Furthermore, regarding the area around the pallet 36, the heater 44 on the left side of the pedestrian deck is indicated by indicator symbol DL, the heater 44 on the right side of the pedestrian deck is indicated by indicator symbol DR, the heater 44 on the front corner angle is indicated by indicator symbol CF, and the heater 44 on the rear corner angle is indicated by indicator symbol CR.

[0029] Each of the heaters 44 described above has a load (power consumption) corresponding to its length and size, as shown in Figure 5, for example. Specifically, the load of heater PL is 845W, the load of heater PC is 728W, the load of heater PR is 845W, the load of heater DL is 728W, the load of heater DR is 728W, the load of heater CF is 364W, and the load of heater CR is 364W. These heaters 44 are then allocated to three systems R1 to R3 so that the power load is distributed as equally as possible. Figure 6 shows the heaters 44 for each of the allocated systems R1 to R3, along with their total load and load distribution ratio.

[0030] Specifically, system R1 is allocated heaters PL and DL, with a total load of 1,573W; system R2 is allocated heaters PC, CF, and CR, with a total load of 1,456W; and system R3 is allocated heaters PR and DR, with a total load of 1,573W. Checking the load distribution ratio calculated from these total loads, we find that system R1 has a load distribution ratio of 34%, system R2 has a load distribution ratio of 32%, and system R3 has a load distribution ratio of 34%, indicating that the power load is roughly divided into three equal parts. Note that in Figure 4, the allocation destination of each heater 44 to systems R1-R3 is indicated by a rectangle, and the allocation destination system is also listed in the rightmost column of the table in Figure 5.

[0031] Figure 7 shows the connection status of the multiple heaters 44 allocated to three systems R1 to R3 as described above. As shown in the figure, the multiple heaters 44 divided into three systems R1 to R3 are connected to the three-phase AC power supply line (R phase, S phase, T phase) in a delta connection configuration. As a result, single-phase AC power converted from three-phase AC power is supplied to each of the systems R1 to R3. Such a connection is realized in the supply path of three-phase AC power from the heater operating unit 20 to the multiple heaters 44. Note that in Figures 4 to 7, for the sake of explanation, only one pallet 36 and the heaters 44 installed around it are shown. However, in the mechanical parking device 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention, at least all heaters 44 included in each block are allocated to three systems R1 to R3 so as to equalize the power load as much as possible, as described above, and these three systems R1 to R3 are delta connected.

[0032] It should be noted that the mechanical parking device 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention is not limited to the configuration shown in Figures 1 to 7, and can take various forms depending on the situation. For example, the device drive unit 16, heater operating unit 20, power switching unit 24, control unit 28, and snowfall detection unit 32 are shown separately as functional units for the sake of explanation, and when actually constructing them, they may be configured as any number of devices. Also, the number of pallets 36, the number and mounting position of heaters 44, the number of opening and closing gates 40, the number of blocks, etc., may differ from the configuration shown. Furthermore, the mechanical parking device 10 is not limited to a pit-type parking device, and may be a parking device that includes pallets 36 that move horizontally and vertically.

[0033] Next, following the flow chart shown in Figure 8, a power control method for a mechanical parking system according to an embodiment of the present invention, which is performed in the mechanical parking system 10 described above, will be explained. For the configuration of the mechanical parking system 10, please refer to Figures 1 to 7 as appropriate. Note that the flow chart shown in Figure 8 is an example of a procedure for explaining the power control method for a mechanical parking system according to an embodiment of the present invention. Therefore, the power control method for a mechanical parking system is not limited to these flow charts, and depending on the configuration and circumstances of the mechanical parking system 10, some of the steps shown in Figure 8 may be deleted, changed, or added as appropriate, or the order of some of the steps may be changed.

[0034] S10 (Device Drive Command Determination): The power switching unit 24 determines whether the device drive command for the pallet 36 or the opening / closing gate 40 from the control unit 28 is ON. That is, when a user of the mechanical parking device 10 performs a call operation for the pallet 36 via the control panel or the like, the control unit 28 receives this and sends a device drive command to the power switching unit 24, so the unit determines whether or not it has received that command. If it is determined that the device drive command is ON (YES), the process proceeds to S20; if it is determined that the device drive command is not ON (NO), the process proceeds to S40.

[0035] S20 (Power cutoff to heater operating unit): If the device drive command is turned ON in S10 while power is being supplied to the heater operating unit 20 by the power switching unit 24, the power supply to the heater operating unit 20 is cut off. S30 (Power supply to the device drive unit): The power switching unit 24 supplies power (three-phase AC power) to the device drive unit 16. The device drive unit 16 then supplies power to the motor that drives the pallet 36 or opening / closing gate 40 that the power switching unit 24 has received from the control unit 28 to drive according to the device drive command. As a result, the pallet 36 or opening / closing gate 40 related to the device drive command is activated, so the control unit 28 turns off the previously issued device drive command and, if necessary, issues a new device drive command to drive the next pallet 36 or opening / closing gate 40 to be driven. Then, the process returns to S10.

[0036] S40 (Snowfall Determination): The control unit 28 determines whether or not it is snowing around the mechanical parking device 10 based on the detection results from the snowfall detection unit 32. This determination is performed continuously. If the control unit 28 receives a signal from the snowfall detection unit 32 indicating that snowfall is being detected, it determines that it is snowing around the mechanical parking device 10 (YES) and proceeds to S50. On the other hand, if the control unit 28 does not receive a signal from the snowfall detection unit 32 indicating that snowfall is being detected, it determines that it is not snowing around the mechanical parking device 10 (NO) and returns to S10. S50 (Snow melting command ON): The control unit 28 turns on the snow melting command. This snow melting command remains ON while snowfall is detected by the snowfall detection unit 32, and may also remain ON for a certain period of time immediately after the snowfall detection unit 32 stops detecting snowfall. Therefore, the control unit 28 turns off the snow melting command immediately after the snowfall detection unit 32 stops detecting snowfall, or after a certain period of time has elapsed thereafter. Such snow melting commands are received by the power switching unit 24.

[0037] S60 (Power cutoff to device drive unit): If the power switching unit 24 is supplying power to the device drive unit 16, the power supply to the device drive unit 16 is cut off. S70 (Power supply to heater operating unit): The power switching unit 24 supplies power (three-phase AC power) to the heater operating unit 20. The three-phase AC power supplied to the heater operating unit 20 is converted to single-phase AC power and distributed to each of the multiple heaters 44 connected in a delta connection, for example as shown in Figure 7. As a result, the multiple heaters 44 shown in Figures 2(a) and 3 operate.

[0038] S80 (Device drive command determination): Similar to S10 above, the power switching unit 24 determines whether the device drive command for the pallet 36 or the opening / closing gate 40 from the control unit 28 is ON or OFF. If it is determined that the device drive command is ON (YES), the process proceeds to S90; if it is determined that the device drive command is not ON (NO), the process proceeds to S120. S90 (Power cutoff to heater operating section): Similar to S20 above, the power switching unit 24 cuts off the power supply to the heater operating section 20. As a result, the multiple heaters 44 that were operating stop.

[0039] S100 (Power supply to the device drive unit): Similar to S30 above, the power switching unit 24 supplies power (three-phase AC power) to the device drive unit 16. This activates the pallet 36 or the opening / closing gate 40 related to the device drive command, but for details, please refer to S30 above. That is, even if multiple heaters 44 are operating according to the procedure in S70 above, if it is confirmed in S80 that the device drive command is ON, the power supply to the heater operating unit 20 is cut off in S90, and the pallet 36 or the opening / closing gate 40 is operated as a priority in this step. S105 (Device Drive Command Determination): The power switching unit 24 determines whether the device drive command for the pallet 36 or opening / closing gate 40 from the control unit 28 is OFF. That is, when power is supplied to the device drive unit 16 in S100, the pallet 36 or opening / closing gate 40 related to the device drive command is activated, and as a result, it is confirmed that the device drive command issued by the control unit 28 has turned OFF. Also, if there is a pallet 36 or opening / closing gate 40 to be driven next, the device drive command for that will be turned ON, so the determination in this step also includes checking whether there is a pallet 36 or opening / closing gate 40 to be driven next. If it is determined that the device drive command is OFF (YES), the process proceeds to S107, and if it is determined that the device drive command is not OFF (NO), the process returns to this step and waits until the device drive command is turned OFF.

[0040] S107 (Timer): The power switching unit 24 counts a predetermined time, and when the predetermined time has elapsed, the process proceeds to S108. S108 (Device Drive Command Determination): The power switching unit 24 determines whether the device drive command for the pallet 36 or the opening / closing gate 40 from the control unit 28 is OFF. That is, it checks whether the device drive command remains OFF after the predetermined time counted in S107 has elapsed since confirming that the device drive command was OFF in S105. If it is determined that the device drive command remains OFF (YES), the process proceeds to S110. If it is determined that the device drive command has been turned ON (NO), the process returns to S105 and waits until the device drive command is turned OFF. S110 (Snow Melting Command Determination): The power switching unit 24 determines whether the snow melting command from the control unit 28 is ON or OFF. If it is determined that the snow melting command is ON (YES), the system returns to S60; if it is determined that the snow melting command is OFF (NO), the system returns to S10. In other words, if the snow melting command is still ON, the power supply to the device drive unit 16 is cut off in S60, and the multiple heaters 44 are activated in S70. If the snow melting command has changed from ON to OFF, the system enters a standby state for the device drive command to be ON or for snowfall in S10 and S40. As a result of the processing from S105 to this step, the power supply to the heater operation unit 20 starts after a predetermined time has elapsed since the device drive command was turned OFF, thus preventing unnecessary power supply switching operations from occurring in between the operations of the mechanical parking device 10.

[0041] S120 (Snow Melting Command Determination): The power switching unit 24 determines whether the snow melting command from the control unit 28 is OFF or OFF. If it is determined that the snow melting command is OFF (YES), the process proceeds to S130; if it is determined that the snow melting command is ON (NO), the process returns to S80. In other words, if the snow melting command is still ON, the system remains in a standby state with the device drive command ON or the snow melting command OFF in S80 and this step, while the multiple heaters 44 are still operating. S130 (Power cutoff to heater operating unit): Similar to S20 above, the power switching unit 24 cuts off the power supply to the heater operating unit 20. As a result, the multiple heaters 44 that were operating stop. After that, the system returns to S10, and in S10 and S40, the device enters a standby state for ON device drive command or snowfall.

[0042] Now, according to the embodiment of the present invention having the above configuration, the following effects can be obtained. That is, the mechanical parking device 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention is mainly intended for use in areas with snowfall, and as shown in Figures 1 to 3, it includes a plurality of pallets 36 for storing vehicles, an opening and closing gate 40 for restricting entry into the parking device 10, a plurality of heaters 44 for snow melting, a power receiving unit 12, a device drive unit 16, a heater operating unit 20, and a power switching unit 24. The plurality of pallets 36 are configured to move up and down in conjunction with each other, as can be seen in Figure 3, for example, with several pallets 36 connected vertically. The opening and closing gate 40 is provided on the front side of the mechanical parking device 10 when the vehicle exit direction is forward, and is opened and closed as needed, such as when a vehicle is entering or leaving the parking device. Multiple heaters 44 are attached to the pallet 36 and its surrounding components to prevent snow accumulation and freezing on and around the pallet 36. Typically, they are attached to the uppermost pallet 36 and its surrounding components where snow accumulation is expected, as can be seen in Figures 2(a) and 3.

[0043] The power receiving unit 12 is connected to the primary power supply 50 supplied from a substation or the like, and is the source of power used for the entire mechanical parking system 10. The device drive unit 16 is for driving multiple pallets 36 and opening / closing gates 40, and for example, it drives the pallets 36 to be moved and the opening / closing gates 40 to be opened or closed in response to operations by the user of the mechanical parking system 10. The heater operating unit 20 is for operating multiple heaters 44, and normally operates all heaters 44 for the required time, for example, during snowfall. The power switching unit 24 is for selectively switching the destination of power supplied from the power receiving unit 12 between the device drive unit 16 and the heater operating unit 20, and for this purpose, the power receiving unit 12, the device drive unit 16 and the heater operating unit 20 are connected in a way that allows for the transfer of power.

[0044] With the above configuration, the power supplied via the power receiving unit 12 is supplied by the power switching unit 24 to either the device drive unit 16 or the heater operating unit 20, so that the driving of devices such as the pallet 36 and the opening / closing gate 40 and the operation of the multiple heaters 44 do not occur simultaneously. For this reason, it is not necessary to consider the power consumption when they occur simultaneously, and it is sufficient to consider whichever of the device driving and heater operation consumes more power. As a result, the total amount of power used simultaneously by the entire mechanical parking system 10 can be reduced compared to conventional mechanical parking systems, and the amount of power contracted with the power company can be reduced. Consequently, costs can be suppressed, and the load on the power company's substations can also be reduced. Furthermore, unlike conventional configurations, there is no need to draw power separately for driving devices such as the pallet 36 and for operating the heaters 44, so the number of power supply points can be reduced.

[0045] Furthermore, the mechanical parking device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention further includes a control unit 28 and a snowfall detection unit 32. The control unit 28 controls the entire mechanical parking device 10, and such control includes issuing drive commands for the pallet 36 and the opening / closing gate 40 in response to user operations, etc. The snowfall detection unit 32 detects snowfall around the installation location of the mechanical parking device 10 and transmits the detection result to, for example, the control unit 28 or the power switching unit 24. The power switching unit 24 operates as follows to switch the destination of the power supply from the power receiving unit 12 between the device drive unit 16 and the heater operating unit 20. That is, the power switching unit 24 supplies power to the device drive unit 16 (see S30 in Figure 8) based on the drive command for the pallet 36 or the opening / closing gate 40 received from the control unit 28 (see S10 in Figure 8), and at this time, the power supply to the heater operating unit 20 is cut off (see S20 in Figure 8).

[0046] Furthermore, the power switching unit 24 supplies power to the heater operating unit 20 (see S70 in Figure 8) based on detection results received from the snowfall detection unit 32 and commands from the control unit 28 that have received detection results from the snowfall detection unit 32 (see S50 in Figure 8), while cutting off the power supply to the device drive unit 16 (see S60 in Figure 8). Moreover, if the power switching unit 24 receives a drive command for the pallet 36 or the opening / closing gate 40 from the control unit 28 while supplying power to the heater operating unit 20 (see S80 in Figure 8), it switches the power supply destination from the heater operating unit 20 to the device drive unit 16 (see S90 and S100 in Figure 8). In this way, the power supply destination is switched alternately between the device drive unit 16 and the heater operating unit 20, and power is supplied to the device drive unit 16 with priority over the heater operating unit 20, allowing the operation of the device related to vehicle entry and exit to be performed at the timing desired by the user. This makes it possible to reduce power consumption without compromising the convenience of the mechanical parking system 10.

[0047] Furthermore, in the mechanical parking device 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention, three-phase AC power is supplied from the power receiving unit 12 connected to the primary power supply 50 to the power switching unit 24, and the three-phase AC power received from the power receiving unit 12 is supplied from the power switching unit 24 to the device drive unit 16 or the heater operating unit 20. In addition, the multiple heaters 44 are connected to three separate systems R1 to R3, as shown in Figure 7, for example, so that the power load during operation is distributed as equally as possible. That is, the power supply destinations for operating the multiple heaters 44 are divided into three systems R1 to R3, and as can be seen in Figure 6, the power load in each system is made as equal as possible among the three systems R1 to R3.

[0048] The heater operating unit 20 then delta-connects the three power supply systems R1 to R3 as shown in Figure 7 and supplies three-phase AC power received from the power switching unit 24 to them. As a result, even though it uses the three-phase AC power generally used in the device drive unit 16, it is possible to supply single-phase AC power converted from three-phase AC power to each of the three systems R1 to R3 via delta connection, so that each heater 44 can operate without problems even if it requires single-phase AC power. Moreover, because it converts from three-phase AC power to single-phase AC power for the three systems R1 to R3, it is possible to obtain approximately √3 times the amount of power for the same ampere frame compared to receiving single-phase AC power, thereby improving the efficiency of power consumption. Consequently, it becomes possible to further reduce the amount of power used simultaneously by the entire mechanical parking system 10, the contracted power amount, costs, and the load on substations, etc.

[0049] Furthermore, the configuration of the mechanical parking device 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention described above is not limited to application to newly installed parking devices, but may also be applied to existing parking devices to the extent possible. On the other hand, the power control method for a mechanical parking device according to an embodiment of the present invention can be performed by the mechanical parking device 10 according to the embodiment of the present invention described above, thereby achieving the same effects as the mechanical parking device 10.

[0050] Here, we will briefly mention the contracted power when a mechanical parking device 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, configured as described above, is installed. The contracted power for the mechanical parking device 10 should be set to match the larger of the power supplied from the device drive unit 16 when driving the pallets 36 and the like, and the power supplied from the heater operation unit 20 when operating the multiple heaters 44. As mentioned above, as the number of pallets 36 increases, the number of heaters 44 also increases, and the power consumption increases accordingly. For this reason, in a relatively large mechanical parking device 10 with a large number of pallets 36, even if the multiple heaters 44 are delta-connected, it is expected that the operating power of the multiple heaters 44 will be greater than the power required to drive the pallets 36 and the like. In such cases, the power should be contracted to match the operating power of the multiple heaters 44. For example, the capacity of the motor used to drive the pallets 36 may be increased to match this contracted power, thereby increasing the speed at which the pallets 36 move. Also, if the operating power of the multiple heaters 44 clearly exceeds the driving power of the pallets 36 and the like, a configuration in which the multiple heaters 44 are not delta-connected is also conceivable. [Explanation of symbols]

[0051] 10: Mechanical parking system, 12: Power receiving unit, 16: Device drive unit, 20: Heater operating unit, 24: Power switching unit, 28: Control unit, 32: Snowfall detection unit, 36: Pallet, 40: Opening / closing gate, 44: Heater, 50: Primary side power supply, R1~R3: System

Claims

1. A mechanical parking system comprising multiple pallets for storing vehicles, opening and closing gates to restrict access to the inside of the system, and multiple heaters for snow melting, The power receiving unit connected to the primary power supply, The device drive unit for driving the plurality of pallets and the opening and closing gate, A heater operating unit for operating the aforementioned multiple heaters, A mechanical parking device characterized by including a power switching unit connected to the power receiving unit, the device drive unit, and the heater operating unit, which selectively switches the destination of the power supply from the power receiving unit between the device drive unit and the heater operating unit.

2. A control unit that controls the entire device, It further includes a snowfall detection unit that detects snowfall, The mechanical parking device according to claim 1, characterized in that the power switching unit supplies power to the device drive unit based on drive commands for the plurality of pallets or the opening / closing gate from the control unit, and supplies power to the heater operating unit based on the detection result of the snowfall detection unit, and when it receives the drive command from the control unit while supplying power to the heater operating unit, it switches the power supply destination to the device drive unit.

3. The power switching unit receives three-phase AC power from the power receiving unit and supplies it to the device drive unit or the heater operating unit. The aforementioned multiple heaters are connected to three separate systems so that the power load is distributed as equally as possible. The mechanical parking device according to claim 1, characterized in that the heater operating unit supplies three-phase AC power by delta-connecting the three systems.

4. A power control method for a mechanical parking system equipped with multiple pallets for storing vehicles, opening and closing gates to restrict access to the system, and multiple heaters for snow melting, Connect the power receiving unit to the primary power supply, A power switching unit is connected to the power receiving unit, the device drive unit for driving the plurality of pallets and the opening / closing gate, and the heater operating unit for operating the plurality of heaters. A power control method for a mechanical parking device, characterized in that the power switching unit selectively switches the destination of the power supply from the power receiving unit between the device drive unit and the heater operating unit.

5. The power switching unit supplies power to the device drive unit based on drive commands for the plurality of pallets or the opening / closing gate from the control unit that controls the entire mechanical parking system, and also supplies power to the heater operating unit based on the detection result of the snowfall detection unit that detects snowfall, and when the drive command is received from the control unit while power is being supplied to the heater operating unit, the power supply destination is switched to the device drive unit, characterized in that the power control method for a mechanical parking system according to claim 4.

6. The power switching unit receives three-phase AC power from the power receiving unit and supplies it to the device drive unit or the heater operating unit. The aforementioned multiple heaters are connected to three separate systems so that the power load is distributed as equally as possible. The power control method for a mechanical parking device according to claim 4, characterized in that the three systems are delta-connected by the heater operating unit and three-phase AC power is supplied.

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