Elevator control system, robot management method, and robot

Abstract

Even when moving a robot between floors in an elevator having a plurality of banks, the bias in the congestion situation between the banks is always kept small. 【Solution means】In an elevator having a plurality of banks, when the use of the elevator is requested by a robot, a request for providing congestion information of each bank is made to the group management control device of each bank to obtain the congestion information of all the banks. Further, based on the congestion information, a bank to be used by the robot is selected as a use bank from among all those banks, and then the robot is commanded to move to the use bank. After that, when the robot arrives at the use bank, a request for allocating a landing call for the robot is made to the group management control device of the use bank.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to a control technology for moving a robot between floors using an elevator.

Background Art

[0002] In recent years, robots have been increasingly used for various tasks in buildings (such as cleaning, monitoring, transportation, etc.) (see, for example, Patent Document 1). Along with this, the use of elevators for the inter-floor movement of robots in buildings has been increasing, and the number of cases where both users and robots use the elevator has been increasing.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0003]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0004] On the other hand, robots take more time to board and alight compared to users. For this reason, when a robot uses an elevator, there is a problem that congestion occurs in that elevator, or if the elevator is already congested, the congestion situation in that elevator deteriorates.

[0005] In recent years, with the increase in the size of buildings, elevators with multiple banks have been frequently installed in buildings. In such elevators, congestion is likely to occur in the bank used by the robot, or if the bank is already congested, the congestion situation in that bank is likely to deteriorate. For this reason, if the robot needs to move between floors, and it is assumed that the robot moves between floors using the bank closest to the robot's position at that time, a large bias in the congestion situation may occur between the banks, and there is a risk that the overall transportation efficiency of the elevator will be significantly reduced.

[0006] Therefore, an object of the present invention is to always keep the bias of the congestion situation between banks small even when moving a robot between floors in an elevator having a plurality of banks.

Means for Solving the Problems

[0007] The control system according to the present invention is a control system applicable to an elevator having a plurality of banks, and has the following configuration (Aspect 1). The control system includes a group management control device provided corresponding to each of the plurality of banks, and a robot management device that moves a robot between floors using the elevator. When a request to use the elevator is received from the robot, the robot management device requests each bank's group management control device to provide congestion information. When there is a request to provide congestion information from the robot management device, each bank's group management control device returns the congestion information of its own bank to the robot management device. When replies of congestion information are received from all the bank group management control devices, the robot management device selects, based on the congestion information, a bank to be used by the robot from among all those banks as the use bank, and then commands the robot to move to the use bank. After the robot arrives at the use bank, the robot management device requests the group management control device of the use bank to allocate a landing call for the robot.

[0008] According to the above Aspect 1, every time the robot needs to move between floors, the robot can be made to use the least congested bank among the plurality of banks available at that time.

[0009] The control system according to the above-described aspect 1 may have the following configuration (Aspect 2). When a request for providing congestion information is received from the robot management device, the group management control device of each bank calculates the congestion level according to the count obtained by counting the number of landing call allocations in that bank as the congestion information of its own bank. At this time, if the allocation of a landing call for a robot other than the above robot is being made in the bank and that is being counted, the count for one allocation may be weighted and counted so that the count is greater than 1.

[0010] According to the above aspect 2, in the bank used by the robot, the fact that the robot has been used can be greatly reflected in the congestion level of the bank by weighting the count for that robot. As a result, the influence exerted by the robot on the congestion situation of each bank can be reflected in the congestion information of that bank.

[0011] The control system according to the above-described aspect 1 may have the following configuration (Aspect 3). When a request for allocation is received from the robot management device, the group management control device of the used bank may temporarily make one of the cars belonging to its own bank a robot-only car and allocate a landing call for the robot to that robot-only car. Thereafter, when a request for providing congestion information is further received from the robot management device during the period when one of the cars belonging to its own bank is made a robot-only car, the congestion level may be calculated by dividing the count obtained by counting the number of landing call allocations in its own bank by the number of cars in that bank excluding the robot-only car, and that congestion level may be used as the congestion information of that bank.

[0012] According to the above-described aspect 3, in the bank used by the robot, by reducing the number of baskets that become the denominator when calculating the congestion level by the number of robot-exclusive baskets, the fact that the robot has used it can be greatly reflected in the congestion level of the bank. As a result, the influence exerted by the robot on the congestion situation of each bank can be reflected in the congestion information of that bank.

[0013] The robot management method according to the present invention is a robot management method for moving a robot between floors using an elevator, and has the following configuration (Aspect 4). Here, the elevator is provided with a plurality of banks, and a group management control device is installed corresponding to each of the plurality of banks one by one. In the robot management method, when a request to use the elevator is received from the robot, a request for providing the congestion information of each bank is made to the group management control device of each bank to obtain the congestion information of all the banks. Further, based on the congestion information, a bank to be used by the robot is selected as the use bank from among all the banks, and then the robot is instructed to move to the use bank. After that, when the robot arrives at the use bank, a request for allocating a landing call for the robot is made to the group management control device of the use bank.

[0014] The robot according to the present invention is a robot capable of moving between floors using an elevator, and has the following configuration (Aspect 5). Here, the elevator is provided with a plurality of banks, and a group management control device is installed corresponding to each of the plurality of banks one by one. When the robot uses the elevator, it makes a request for providing the congestion information of each bank to the group management control device of each bank to obtain the congestion information of all the banks. Further, based on the congestion information, a bank to be used is selected as the use bank from among all the banks, and then the robot moves to the use bank. After that, when the robot arrives at the use bank, a request for allocating a landing call for itself is made to the group management control device of the use bank.

Advantages of the Invention

[0015] According to the present invention, even when a robot is moved between floors in an elevator having a plurality of banks, it becomes possible to always keep the bias of the congestion state between the banks small.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0016]

Figure 1

Figure 2

Figure 3

Figure 4

Figure 5

Figure 6

Figure 7

Figure 8

Modes for Carrying Out the Invention

[0017] [1] Embodiment [1-1] Overall Configuration of Elevator FIG. 1 is a conceptual diagram showing the overall configuration of an elevator according to an embodiment. The elevator of this embodiment includes a plurality of banks, and each bank is provided with a destination floor registration device 1 installed at the landing of each floor, a plurality of cars G, and a group management control device 2 that centrally manages the cars G. In the example of FIG. 1, two banks are provided, and these banks are distinguished by the alphabets "A" and "B". And such an elevator is used not only by users but also by robots H that perform various operations (cleaning, monitoring, transportation, etc.) in the building where the elevator is installed.

[0018] In this embodiment, the robot H is centrally managed by a robot management device 3. Further, under the control of this robot management device 3, the robot H can move between floors using the elevator. And in order to keep the overall transportation efficiency of the elevator high even when the robot H is moved between floors using the elevator in this way, a control system is constructed by the group management control device 2 and the robot management device 3 provided corresponding one by one to a plurality of banks (two banks "A" and "B" in the example of FIG. 1) so that the bias of the congestion situation between the banks can always be kept small. Hereinafter, the configuration of each part will be specifically described.

[0019] <Destination floor registration device> The destination floor registration device 1 of each bank is a device for a user to register the destination floor Fd in that bank. When the user registers the destination floor Fd at the destination floor registration device 1 of each bank, the destination floor Fd is transmitted to the group management control device 2 of that bank. As a result, the allocation of the landing call X for the user (allocation to the car G) is requested to the group management control device 2 (allocation request from the user). At this time, in order to make the group management control device 2 recognize which device the destination floor registration device 1 at which the destination floor Fd is registered is, the device information Pd for identifying the destination floor registration device 1 from other devices is also transmitted to the group management control device 2.

[0020] <Group management control device> In this embodiment, the request for allocating the landing call X is made not only from the users at the landing of each bank but also from the robot management device 3 to the group management control device 2 as will be described later. Then, when there is a request for allocation from either a user at the landing or the robot management device 3, the group management control device 2 of each bank extracts allocation candidates from the cars G belonging to its own bank, and allocates the landing call X to one of the allocation candidates (if there are multiple candidates, one of the candidates) (allocation process. See Fig. 6). The details of this allocation process will be described later.

[0021] Also, the group management control device 2 of each bank causes each car G belonging to its own bank to execute a response operation to the landing call X allocated to that car through the elevator control device (response process).

[0022] Furthermore, in this embodiment, the group management control device 2 of each bank grasps the congestion status of the bank based on the accumulated information it holds (including information indicating the operation status and usage status of each car G within its own bank), and can return congestion information Pj indicating that status in response to a request for provision from the robot management device 3 (see step S101 in Fig. 4) (reply process). At this time, the group management control device 2 of each bank counts the number of allocated landing calls X in its own bank, calculates the congestion level Yj according to the obtained count number Mx, and can use the congestion level Yj as the congestion information Pj of the bank. Here, the landing call X to be counted may be one that has actually been allocated to any car G at that time (specifically, the landing call X recorded in the landing call management data Dx1 or Dx2 to be described later), or one that has been allocated within a predetermined period (for example, the most recent 5 minutes, etc.) (including the responded landing call X). More specifically, the group management control device 2 of each bank can calculate the congestion level Yj by dividing the count number Mx by the number of cars G in its bank (the number of cars Ng), and use the congestion level Yj as the congestion information Pj of the bank.

[0023] As a specific configuration, the group management control device 2 for each bank includes a storage unit 21 and a control unit 22 (see FIG. 1).

[0024] The storage unit 21 is a part composed of storage devices such as ROM and RAM. In the storage unit 21, information necessary for the control process performed by the group management control device 2 for each bank is stored. In this embodiment, as such information, device management data Dp and landing call management data Dx are stored in the storage unit 21. Further, the landing call management data Dx includes user landing call management data Dx1 and landing call management data Dx2 for the robot H (not shown in FIG. 1).

[0025] Here, the device management data Dp for each bank is a database for managing a plurality of pieces of information related to the destination floor registration device 1 in the bank by associating them with each other for each destination floor registration device 1 in the bank (see FIG. 2(A)). The landing call management data Dx1 for each bank is data for managing the landing call X of the user assigned in the bank and information related thereto (see FIG. 2(B)). The landing call management data Dx2 for each bank is data for managing the landing call X of the robot H assigned in the bank and information related thereto (see FIG. 2(C)). Specifically, it is as follows.

[0026] FIG. 2(A) is a conceptual diagram illustrating the device management data Dp used in this embodiment. In the device management data Dp for each bank, for each destination floor registration device 1 in the bank, the device information Pd and the installation floor Fs of the destination floor registration device 1 are recorded in a state where they are associated with each other.

[0027] Thereby, when the group management control device 2 for each bank receives the device information Pd together with the destination floor Fd from each destination floor registration device 1 in its own bank, it becomes possible to specify the installation floor Fs of the destination floor registration device 1 (the destination floor registration device 1 where the user registered the destination floor Fd) from the device information Pd. And in this embodiment, the installation floor Fs of the destination floor registration device 1 is used as the departure floor Fc (boarding floor) of the user who registered the destination floor Fd in the destination floor registration device 1.

[0028] FIG. 2(B) is a conceptual diagram illustrating the landing call management data Dx1 for users used in this embodiment. In the landing call management data Dx1 for each bank, each time a landing call X for a user is assigned at the bank, the departure floor Fc and the destination floor Fd indicated by the landing call X, and the destination information Py, are recorded in a state where they are associated with each other. Here, the destination information Py records the car information Pg of the car G that is the destination. And each landing call X for a user is deleted when a series of information about that landing call X is deleted from the landing call management data Dx1 when it has finished its role.

[0029] FIG. 2(C) is a conceptual diagram illustrating the landing call management data Dx2 for the robot H used in this embodiment. In the landing call management data Dx2 for each bank, each time a landing call X for the robot H is assigned at the bank, the robot information Ph of the robot H, the departure floor Fc and the destination floor Fd indicated by the landing call X, and the destination information Py, are recorded in a state where they are associated with each other. Here, the destination information Py records the car information Pg of the car G that is the destination. And each landing call X for the robot H is deleted when a series of information about that landing call X is deleted from the landing call management data Dx2 when it has finished its role.

[0030] The control unit 22 is a part responsible for executing the control processes (including allocation process, response process, and reply process) performed by the group management control device 2. Specifically, the control unit 22 is composed of processing devices such as a CPU or an MPU, and realizes the execution of the control processes it is responsible for in software by executing a control program installed in the group management control device 2. Note that this control program may be stored in a portable storage medium (e.g., flash memory, etc.) in a readable state before being installed in the group management control device 2 of each bank, or may be stored in a downloadable state in another server or the like. Also, the control processes performed by the group management control device 2 of each bank are not limited to being realized in software by program execution, and may be realized in hardware by a processing circuit (control unit 22) constructed in the group management control device 2.

[0031] <Robot management device> In this embodiment, when any robot H needs to move between floors, it transmits a usage request signal Sx for requesting the use of the elevator to the robot management device 3. At this time, in order to enable the robot management device 3 to recognize which robot H is the source of the usage request signal Sx, the robot H attaches robot information Ph for enabling identification with other robots H to the usage request signal Sx as additional information.

[0032] When the robot management device 3 receives a usage request signal Sx from any robot H, it executes the following bank selection process (see FIG. 4). Hereinafter, the robot H that has transmitted the usage request signal Sx will be referred to as the "target robot Hk".

[0033] First, the robot management device 3 requests the group management control device 2 of each bank to provide the congestion information Pj of that bank. After that, when the robot management device 3 receives replies of the congestion information Pj from the group management control devices 2 of all banks, based on the congestion information Pj, it selects, as the use bank Zk, the bank to be used by the target robot Hk from among all those banks, and then commands the target robot Hk to move to the landing of the use bank Zk. Note that the details of the bank selection process will be described later.

[0034] In response to the command from the robot management device 3, the target robot Hk moves to the landing of the use bank Zk, and when it arrives at the landing of the use bank Zk, it transmits the destination floor Fx to the robot management device 3. At this time, in order for the robot management device 3 to recognize which robot H the transmission source of the destination floor Fx is, the target robot Hk also transmits its own robot information Ph to the robot management device 3.

[0035] When the robot management device 3 receives the destination floor Fx and the robot information Ph from the target robot Hk, it requests the group management control device 2 of the use bank Zk (the bank commanded as the destination for the target robot Hk) to allocate the landing call X for the target robot Hk (allocation request process. See Fig. 5). Note that the details of the allocation request process will be described later.

[0036] Specifically, the robot management device 3 includes a storage unit 31 and a control unit 32 (see Fig. 1).

[0037] The storage unit 31 is a part composed of storage devices such as ROM and RAM, and information necessary for the control processing performed by the robot management device 3 is stored in the storage unit 31. In this embodiment, as such information, robot management data Dq and allocation request management data Dr are stored in the storage unit 31.

[0038] Here, the robot management data Dq is a database for managing, for each robot H, a plurality of pieces of information related to the robot H in association with each other (see FIG. 3(A)). The allocation request management data Dr is data for managing information on allocation requests (allocation requests for the robot H) made by the robot management device 3 (see FIG. 3(B)). Specifically, it is as follows.

[0039] FIG. 3(A) is a conceptual diagram illustrating the robot management data Dq used in the present embodiment. In the robot management data Dq, for each robot H, the robot information Ph and the boarding floor Ft, and the destination when the robot H moves between floors, are recorded in a state associated with each other. Here, the boarding floor Ft associated with each robot H is the floor where the robot H is arranged, and is updated each time the robot H moves between floors. Further, in the destination associated with each robot H, the destination floor Fx transmitted by the robot H for moving between floors is recorded, and the destination floor Fx is deleted from the destination when the disembarkation of the robot H on that floor is completed.

[0040] Thereby, when the robot management device 3 receives the robot information Ph together with the destination floor Fx from each robot H, it becomes possible to specify the boarding floor Ft of the robot H from the robot information Ph. And in the present embodiment, the boarding floor Ft of the robot H is used as the departure floor Fc when the robot H moves between floors using the elevator car G. Further, the robot management device 3 can determine that the robot H is in the middle of moving between floors by referring to the destination associated with the robot information Ph of each robot H when the destination floor Fx is recorded in the destination, while on the other hand, when the destination floor Fx is not recorded in the destination, it can be determined that the robot H is deployed on the boarding floor Ft.

[0041] Fig. 3(B) is a conceptual diagram illustrating the allocation request management data Dr used in the present embodiment. In the allocation request management data Dr, for each robot H that has requested the use of the elevator (the robot H that has transmitted the use request signal Sx), the robot information Ph of the robot H, the bank selection information Pz, the departure floor Fc and the destination floor Fd, and the allocation destination information Py are recorded in a state where they are associated with each other. Here, in the bank selection information Pz, when the use bank Zk is selected for the robot H, bank information (in this embodiment, bank name "A" or "B") for identifying the use bank Zk from other banks is recorded. In the departure floor Fc and the destination floor Fd, when an allocation request for the robot H is made to the group management control device 2, the departure floor Fc and the destination floor Fd transmitted in the allocation request are recorded. In the allocation destination information Py, when the allocation is actually made at the bank to which the allocation request is sent, the car information Pg of the car G that has become the allocation destination is recorded.

[0042] And in the present embodiment, the recording location of a series of information for each allocation request (the recording location in the allocation request management data Dr) is created in the allocation request management data Dr so that various information can be input later in association with the robot information Ph of the robot H when the robot management device 3 receives the use request signal Sx from the robot H. In the example of Fig. 3(B), for the target robot Hk whose robot information Ph is "H-01", a state where various information has been recorded in all the recording locations is shown, and for the target robot Hk whose robot information Ph is "H-**", a state immediately after the recording location is created in step S100 (a state where no input has been made yet) is shown. Thereafter, a series of information for each allocation request is deleted from the allocation request management data Dr when the car G (the car G that has become the allocation destination) for the target floor Fx of the robot H for which the allocation request is made arrives.

[0043] The control unit 32 is a part responsible for executing the control processes (including bank selection process and allocation request process) performed by the robot management device 3. Specifically, the control unit 32 is composed of processing devices such as a CPU and an MPU, and realizes the execution of the control processes it is responsible for in software by executing the control program installed in the robot management device 3. Incidentally, this control program may be stored in a portable storage medium (for example, a flash memory, etc.) in a readable state before being installed in the robot management device 3, or may be stored in a state that can be downloaded to another server or the like. Also, the control processes performed by the robot management device 3 are not limited to being realized in software by program execution, and may be realized in hardware by a processing circuit (control unit 32) constructed in the robot management device 3.

[0044] [1-2] Control Processes Executed by the Elevator [1-2-1] Bank Selection Process Performed by the Robot Management Device Figure 4 is a flowchart showing the bank selection process executed in this embodiment. This bank selection process is started each time the robot management device 3 receives a usage request signal Sx from any robot H.

[0045] When the bank selection process is started, the robot management device 3 first creates, in the allocation request management data Dr in a state associated with the robot information Ph, a recording location for various information (bank selection information Pz, departure floor Fc, destination floor Fd, allocation destination information Py) about the robot H specified by that information (hereinafter, this robot H is referred to as "target robot Hk") so that the information can be input later (step S100. Refer to Fig. 3(B)). In the example of Fig. 3(B), the state (not yet input) immediately after the recording location is created in step S100 for the target robot Hk whose robot information Ph is "H-**" is shown.

[0046] After that, the robot management device 3 requests the group management control device 2 of each bank to provide the congestion information Pj of the bank (step S101). When there is a request for providing the congestion information Pj from the robot management device 3, the group management control device 2 of each bank calculates the congestion level Yj of the bank at that time as the congestion information Pj of its own bank and returns it to the robot management device 3.

[0047] After step S101, the robot management device 3 determines whether replies of the congestion information Pj have been received from the group management control devices 2 of all the banks (step S102). Also, the robot management device 3 repeatedly executes step S102 until it can be determined in step S102 that "replies have been received (Yes)". Then, when the robot management device 3 can be determined in step S102 that "replies have been received (Yes)", based on the congestion information Pj of all the banks that have been replied, it selects the bank to be used by the target robot Hk as the use bank Zk from among all those banks (step S103). As an example, the robot management device 3 can select, as the use bank Zk, the one with the smallest congestion level Yj which is the congestion information Pj from among all the banks.

[0048] In step S103, further, the robot management device 3 records the bank information of the selected use bank Zk in the allocation request management data Dr as the bank selection information Pz for the target robot Hk (see Fig. 3(B)).

[0049] After step S103, the robot management device 3 commands the target robot Hk to move to the boarding area of the use bank Zk selected in step S103 (step S104). After that, the robot management device 3 terminates the bank selection process.

[0050] As a result, the target robot Hk will start moving to the boarding area of the utilization bank Zk in response to the command from the robot management device 3. After that, when the target robot Hk arrives at the boarding area of the utilization bank Zk, it transmits the destination floor Fx to the robot management device 3. At this time, in order for the robot management device 3 to recognize which robot H is the source of the transmission of the destination floor Fx, the robot information Ph of itself is also transmitted to the robot management device 3.

[0051] According to such bank selection processing, every time an inter-floor movement of the robot H is required, the robot H (here, the target robot Hk) can be made to use the most vacant bank among the plurality of banks available at that time.

[0052] [1-2-2] Assignment request process performed by the robot management device FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing the assignment request process executed in the present embodiment. This assignment request process is started every time the robot management device 3 receives the destination floor Fx and the robot information Ph from any robot H. In the assignment request process, the information (including the destination floor Fx and the robot information Ph) received by the robot management device 3 at that time will be collectively referred to as "received information Pr1".

[0053] When the assignment request process is started, the robot management device 3 records the destination floor Fx in the received information Pr1 as the destination for the robot H specified by the robot information Ph in the received information Pr1 (hereinafter, this robot H is referred to as "target robot Hk") in the robot management data Dq (step S201. See FIG. 3(A)). In the example of FIG. 3(A), for the target robot Hk whose robot information Ph is "H-01", the destination floor Fx, which is the "7th floor", is recorded as the destination, and for the target robot Hk whose robot information Ph is "H-**", the destination floor Fx, which is the "5th floor", is shown as being recorded as the destination. As a result, the robot management device 3 can grasp which robot H is in the middle of an inter-floor movement and, furthermore, the destination of that robot H.

[0054] Furthermore, the robot management device 3 extracts the boarding floor Ft associated with the robot information Ph from the robot management data Dq using the robot information Ph in the received information Pr1 (step S202). Also, the robot management device 3 extracts the bank selection information Pz (bank information of the used bank Zk) associated with the robot information Ph from the allocation request management data Dr using the robot information Ph in the received information Pr1.

[0055] After step S202, the robot management device 3 requests the group management control device 2 of the used bank Zk specified by the bank selection information Pz to allocate the landing call X for the target robot Hk, with the boarding floor Ft of the target robot Hk as the departure floor Fc and the destination floor Fx of the target robot Hk as the arrival floor Fd (step S203). Specifically, the robot management device 3 transmits the boarding floor Ft and the destination floor Fx of the target robot Hk as the departure floor Fc and the arrival floor Fd of the target robot Hk, respectively, together with the robot information Ph of the target robot Hk to the group management control device 2 of the used bank Zk.

[0056] In step S203, the robot management device 3 further records the departure floor Fc and the arrival floor Fd of the target robot Hk transmitted to the group management control device 2 in the allocation request management data Dr (see Fig. 3(B)). Then, the robot management device 3 terminates the allocation request process.

[0057] [1-2-3] Allocation process performed by the group management control device Fig. 6 is a flowchart showing the allocation process executed in this embodiment. This allocation process starts when an allocation request for the landing call X is made to the group management control device 2 of the used bank Zk from the destination floor registration device 1 or the robot management device 3.

[0058] Hereinafter, the information received by the group management control device 2 each time there is an allocation request will be collectively referred to as "received information Pr2". Specifically, when this received information Pr2 is a request from the destination floor registration device 1 (an allocation request for the landing call X for the user), it is a set of information including the destination floor Fd and the device information Pd. When the allocation request is a request from the robot management device 3 (an allocation request for the landing call X for the robot H), it is a set of information including the departure floor Fc, the destination floor Fd, and the robot information Ph.

[0059] When the allocation process is started, the group management control device 2 determines which of the device information Pd and the robot information Ph is included in the received information Pr2 in order to determine whether the received allocation request is from the destination floor registration device 1 or the robot management device 3 (step S300).

[0060] If the group management control device 2 determines in step S300 that the "device information Pd" is included, based on this determination, it can be determined that the received allocation request is from the destination floor registration device 1. In this case, the group management control device 2 extracts the installation floor Fs associated with the device information Pd in the received information Pr2 using the device management data Dp, and sets it as the departure floor Fc of the user. Then, the group management control device 2 executes the allocation to the car G that is a candidate for allocation, regarding the departure floor Fc and the destination floor Fd (the destination floor Fd of the user) indicated by the landing call X of the allocated user as one landing call X (step S310).

[0061] Furthermore, in step S310, the group management control device 2 records in the landing call management data Dx1 for the user in a state where the departure floor Fc and the destination floor Fd indicated by the landing call X of the allocated user and the car information Pg of the allocated car G are associated with each other (see Fig. 2(B)). Then, the group management control device 2 ends the allocation process.

[0062] On the other hand, when the group management control device 2 determines in step S300 that "robot information Ph" is included, based on this determination, it can be determined that the received allocation request is a request from the robot management device 3. In this case, the group management control device 2 uses the departure floor Fc and the destination floor Fd in the received information Pr2 as a single landing call X, and executes the allocation to the car G that is a candidate for allocation (step S320).

[0063] Furthermore, in step S320, the group management control device 2 records in the landing call management data Dx2 for the robot H the robot information Ph of the robot H to which the allocation has been made (the robot information Ph in the received information Pr2), the departure floor Fc and the destination floor Fd indicated by the landing call X of the robot H at that time, and the car information Pg of the car G that is the allocation destination, in a state where they are associated with each other (see Fig. 2(C)).

[0064] After step S320, the group management control device 2 returns the car information Pg of the car G that is the allocation destination in step S320 to the robot management device 3 together with the robot information Ph in the received information Pr2 (step S321). Then, the group management control device 2 ends the allocation process.

[0065] When the robot management device 3 receives the car information Pg and the robot information Ph from the group management control device 2, it records the car information Pg as the allocation destination information Py for the robot H specified by the robot information Ph in the allocation request management data Dr (see Fig. 3(B)). Thereby, the robot management device 3 can grasp which car G in which bank the robot H moving between floors will use to move to the destination floor Fx. And when the robot H gets off at the destination floor Fx, the robot management device 3 updates the boarding floor Ft recorded in the robot management data Dq for the robot H to the same floor as the destination floor Fx (the getting-off floor at that time) recorded as the moving destination, and further deletes the destination floor Fx from the moving destination.

[0066] According to the control process of the above-described embodiment, every time the inter-floor movement of the robot H becomes necessary, the robot H (here, the target robot Hk) can be made to use the least occupied bank among the plurality of banks available at that time. Therefore, even when moving the robot H between floors in an elevator equipped with a plurality of banks, the bias in the congestion situation between the banks can always be kept small, and as a result, the transport efficiency of the entire elevator can be maintained at a high level. Also, it can be expected that the robot H will arrive at the destination floor Fx earlier.

[0067] [2] Modification Example [2-1] First Modification Example In the above-described embodiment, when each robot H transmits the utilization request signal Sx to the robot management device 3, as additional information, the destination floor Fx to be moved to may be included in the utilization request signal Sx together with the robot information Ph. In this case, the robot management device 3 can execute the following processes as the bank selection process and the allocation request process.

[0068] FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing the bank selection process executed in the first modification example. In this bank selection process, first, the robot management device 3 uses the robot information Ph and the destination floor Fx, which are the additional information of the received utilization request signal Sx, and records the destination floor Fx in the robot management data Dq as the destination for the robot H specified by the robot information Ph (hereinafter, this robot H is referred to as the "target robot Hk") (step S110. See FIG. 3(A)).

[0069] Also, the robot management device 3 creates, in the allocation request management data Dr, a recording location for various information (bank selection information Pz, departure floor Fc, destination floor Fd, allocation destination information Py) about the target robot Hk in the same manner as step S100 in FIG. 4 (step S111. See FIG. 3(B)).

[0070] Furthermore, the robot management device 3 extracts the boarding floor Ft associated with the robot information Ph from the robot management data Dq using the robot information Ph (step S112). Then, the robot management device 3 records this boarding floor Ft and the destination floor Fx in the allocation request management data Dr as the departure floor Fc and the destination floor Fd for the target robot Hk.

[0071] After that, the robot management device 3 executes the process from step S101 in the same manner as the bank selection process in FIG. 4.

[0072] As a result, the target robot Hk starts moving to the boarding area of the usage bank Zk in response to a command from the robot management device 3. And in this modified example, when the target robot Hk arrives at the boarding area of the usage bank Zk, it sends an arrival signal to the robot management device 3 to notify this. At this time, in order for the robot management device 3 to recognize which robot H the transmission source of the destination floor Fx is, the target robot Hk includes its own robot information Ph in the arrival signal as additional information.

[0073] FIG. 8 is a flowchart showing the allocation request process executed in the first modified example. This allocation request process is started each time the robot management device 3 receives an arrival signal from any robot H.

[0074] When the allocation request process is started, the robot management device 3 extracts the bank selection information Pz (bank information of the usage bank Zk), the departure floor Fc, and the destination floor Fd associated with the robot information Ph from the allocation request management data Dr using the robot information Ph which is the additional information of the arrival signal (step S211).

[0075] After step S211, the robot management device 3 transmits, as a request for allocating the landing call X for the robot H (robot H that has sent an arrival signal) specified by the robot information Ph, the departure floor Fc and the destination floor Fd extracted in step S211, together with the robot information Ph, to the group management control device 2 of the usage bank Zk (step S212). Thereafter, the robot management device 3 ends the allocation request process.

[0076] [2-2] Second Modification In the first modification described above, when the robot management device 3 requests the provision of the congestion information Pj in step S101 of FIG. 7, it may transmit the moving direction Kh of the target robot Hk (the direction from the departure floor Fc (=boarding floor Ft) to the destination floor Fd (=destination floor Fx)) to the group management control device 2 of each bank. Then, when each group management control device 2 of the bank receives the moving direction Kh of the target robot Hk together with the request for providing the congestion information Pj from the robot management device 3, it extracts only those of the landing calls X in its own bank whose moving direction Kx (the direction from the departure floor Fc to the destination floor Fd) matches the moving direction Kh of the target robot Hk, counts the allocation number, and may calculate the congestion level Yj using the count number Mx obtained thereby.

[0077] Here, in each bank, even when the allocation number of the landing call X in that bank is large and congested, if there is a bias in the allocation number depending on the moving direction Kx (upward and downward), it may happen that the direction among the moving directions Kx that matches the moving direction Kh of the target robot Hk is vacant. According to the second modification, in such a case, it becomes possible to select the least congested bank in consideration of the moving direction Kh of the target robot Hk.

[0078] [2-3] Third Modification In the above-described embodiment, first modification example, or second modification example, when the group management control device 2 of each bank calculates the congestion degree Yj according to the count number Mx obtained by counting the allocation number of the landing call X in that bank as the congestion information Pj of its own bank, if an allocation of the landing call X for a robot H different from the target robot Hk is being made in that bank and it is to be counted, the counting may be performed with weighting so that the count number Mx for one allocation becomes greater than 1. As an example, the group management control device 2 can weight the count number Mx for the robot H using the value obtained by converting the size of the robot H into the number of users.

[0079] According to the third modification example, in the bank used by the robot H, the fact that the robot H has been used can be greatly reflected in the congestion degree Yj of that bank by weighting the count number Mx for the robot H. As a result, the influence exerted by the robot H on the congestion situation of each bank can be reflected in the congestion information Pj of that bank.

[0080] [2-4] Fourth Modification Example In the above-described embodiment, first modification example, or second modification example, when there is an allocation request for the robot H from the robot management device 3, the group management control device 2 of each bank may temporarily make one of the carriages G belonging to its own bank a robot-only carriage and perform an allocation of the landing call X for the robot H to that robot-only carriage.

[0081] Also, when there is a request for providing the congestion information Pj from the robot management device 3, the group management control device 2 of each bank may calculate the congestion degree Yj (=Mx / Ng) by dividing the count number Mx obtained by counting the allocation number of the landing call X in its own bank at that time by the number of carriages G (carriage number Ng) in that bank, and then use that congestion degree Yj as the congestion information Pj of that bank.

[0082] In such a configuration, during the period when any one of the cars G belonging to its own bank is a robot - exclusive car, if there is a request for providing congestion information Pj from the robot management device 3, the count number Mx obtained by counting the allocation number of landing calls X in its own bank at that time is divided by the number of cars Ng obtained by excluding the robot - exclusive car from the cars G in that bank to calculate the congestion level Yj. Then, the congestion level Yj can be used as the congestion information Pj of the bank.

[0083] According to the fourth modification example, in the bank used by the robot H, by reducing the number of cars Ng that becomes the denominator when calculating the congestion level Yj by the number of robot - exclusive cars, the fact that the robot H has been used can be greatly reflected in the congestion level Yj of the bank. As a result, the influence exerted by the robot H on the congestion situation of each bank can be reflected in the congestion information Pj of that bank.

[0084] [2 - 5]Fifth modification example The control systems of the above - mentioned embodiment and the first modification example are both elevators in which destination - direction buttons are installed at the landings on each floor of each bank. When a user presses a destination - direction button on any floor in any bank, the request for allocating a landing call X for the user can also be applied to the group management control device 2 of the bank where the button is pressed. In this case, the group management control device 2 of each bank can obtain the average value of the landing - call generation intervals on each floor of its own bank, and the largest one among them can be used as the congestion information Pj of the bank. Here, the landing - call generation interval is the time from when the car G arrives at that floor and the destination - direction button goes out until the destination - direction button is pressed and lights up again on the next time at that floor. Also, the group management control device 2 of each bank can obtain the above - mentioned average value for the landing - call generation intervals that appear within a predetermined period (for example, the most recent 5 minutes) on each floor of its own bank.

[0085] Alternatively, regardless of the method by which the request for allocating the landing call X for the user is made (request method from the destination floor registration device 1, request method from the destination direction button), the group management control device 2 of each bank calculates the average value per car for the load in the car G that has occurred within a predetermined period (for example, the most recent 5 minutes) for all cars G belonging to its own bank, and this average value may be used as the congestion information Pj of the bank.

[0086] Also, in this modified example as well, when the robot management device 3 requests the provision of the congestion information Pj in step S101 of FIG. 7, it may transmit the moving direction Kh of the target robot Hk to the group management control device 2 of each bank. And when the group management control device 2 of each bank calculates the average value of the interval between the occurrences of landing calls on each floor of its own bank or calculates the average value per car for the load in the car G belonging to its own bank, it may calculate the average value considering only those whose moving direction matches the moving direction Kh of the target robot Hk.

[0087] [2-6] Sixth Modified Example In any of the above-described embodiments and modified examples, each robot H may be appropriately modified to execute the control processes (including the bank selection process and the allocation request process) performed by the robot management device 3 instead of the robot management device 3. In this case, each robot H communicates with the group management control device 2 of each bank without going through the robot management device 3. As a result, each robot H can use the elevator while autonomously cooperating with the group management control device 2 of each bank.

[0088] The descriptions of the above embodiments and modified examples should be considered illustrative in all respects and not restrictive. The scope of the present invention is indicated not by the above embodiments or modified examples, but by the claims. Furthermore, the scope of the present invention is intended to include all modifications within the meaning and scope equivalent to the claims.

[0089] Also, from the above-described embodiments and modifications, the object of the invention is not limited to the elevator control system, but may be individually extracted as control processing executed by the control system (including the corresponding control method), devices constituting the control system (such as the robot management device 3 and the group management control device 2), and further, control processing executed by each device (including the corresponding control method) and programs. Also, part or all of the configuration of the elevator to which the control system is applied may be extracted as the object of the invention.

Explanation of Signs

[0090] 1 Destination floor registration device 2 Group management control device 3 Robot management device G Car H Robot X Landing call 21, 31 Storage unit 22, 32 Control unit Dp Device management data Dq Robot management data Dr Assignment request management data Dx Landing call management data Fc Departure floor Fd Destination floor Fs Installation floor Ft Boarding floor Fx Target floor Hk Target robot Kh, Kx Moving direction Mx Count number Ng Number of cars Pd Device information Pg Car information Ph Robot information Pj Congestion information Py Assignment destination information Pz Bank selection information Sx Usage request signal Yj Degree of congestion Zk Usage bank Dx1, Dx2 Landing call management data Pr1, Pr2 Received information

Claims

1. A control system applicable to an elevator having a plurality of banks, a group management control device provided corresponding to each of the plurality of banks one by one, a robot management device for moving a robot between floors using the elevator, comprising: when the robot management device is requested to use the elevator by the robot, it requests each bank's group management control device to provide congestion information of that bank, when there is the above-mentioned provision request from the robot management device, each bank's group management control device returns the congestion information of its own bank to the robot management device, the robot management device when replies of the congestion information are received from all the banks' group management control devices, based on the congestion information, selects as a use bank the bank among all those banks to be used by the robot, and then commands the robot to move to the use bank, after that, when the robot arrives at the use bank, requests the group management control device of the use bank to allocate a landing call for the robot. A control system for an elevator.

2. When there is the above-mentioned provision request from the robot management device, each bank's group management control device calculates the congestion level according to the count obtained by counting the number of allocated landing calls in its own bank as the congestion information of its own bank, and when allocating a landing call for another robot different from the robot is being performed in the bank and it is counted, it counts with weighting so that the count number for one allocation is greater than 1. The elevator control system according to Claim 1.

3. The group management control device of the use bank when there is the above-mentioned allocation request from the robot management device, temporarily makes one of the cars belonging to its own bank a robot - dedicated car, and allocates a landing call for the robot to the robot - dedicated car. After that, during the period when any one of the cars belonging to its own bank is the dedicated robot car, if there is a further request for the above-mentioned provision from the robot management device, the count obtained by counting the number of landing calls assigned in its own bank is divided by the number of cars obtained by excluding the dedicated robot car from the cars in that bank to calculate the congestion degree, and then the congestion degree is used as the congestion information of the bank. The elevator control system according to claim 1.

4. A robot management method for moving a robot between floors using an elevator, The elevator is provided with a plurality of banks, and a group management control device is installed corresponding to each of the plurality of banks one by one, When a request to use the elevator is made from the robot, a request for providing the congestion information of each bank is made to the group management control device of each bank to obtain the congestion information of all the banks. Further, based on the congestion information, a bank to be used by the robot is selected as the use bank from all the banks, and then the robot is instructed to move to the use bank. After that, when the robot arrives at the use bank, a request for assigning a landing call for the robot is made to the group management control device of the use bank. A robot management method.

5. A robot capable of moving between floors using an elevator, The elevator is provided with a plurality of banks, and a group management control device is installed corresponding to each of the plurality of banks one by one, When using the elevator, a request for providing the congestion information of each bank is made to the group management control device of each bank to obtain the congestion information of all the banks. Further, based on the congestion information, a bank to be used is selected as the use bank from all the banks, and then the robot moves to the use bank. After that, when arriving at the use bank, a request for assigning a landing call for itself is made to the group management control device of the use bank. A robot.

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