Group management control device

Abstract

To move a user to a floor of a landing door even when an abnormality occurs in the landing door while suppressing a decrease in operation efficiency. [Solution] According to an embodiment, a group management control device is provided that controls multiple elevators. The group management control device includes a call management means, a storage means, and an allocation control means. The call management means manages call information transmitted from a destination floor registration device, including information on destination floors and departure floors. The storage means stores information on the abnormal elevator corresponding to the hall door where an abnormality has occurred, and information on the abnormal floor where the hall door is located. The allocation control means assigns an elevator other than the abnormal elevator corresponding to the hall door on the abnormal floor to first call information in which the destination floor is an abnormal floor, and assigns one of the multiple elevators to second call information in which the destination floor and departure floor are not abnormal floors.

Description

[Technical Field]

[0001] An embodiment of the present invention relates to a group management control device. [Background technology]

[0002] In an elevator, if an abnormality occurs, such as a malfunction of the landing door or a moving object such as a robot stopping in front of the landing door, passengers will not be able to get off at that floor. For this reason, for example, in a group-controlled elevator that controls multiple elevators, if a passenger riding in a certain elevator registers a floor where the landing door of that elevator has an abnormality as their destination floor, a system is being considered that directs that elevator to the floor nearest to the destination floor. In this case, the passenger must get off at the nearest floor and then transfer to another elevator.

[0003] In this way, in the above system, trains end up stopping at floors that the user does not intend, which reduces convenience for users and decreases the operating efficiency of each train. [Prior art documents] [Patent documents]

[0004] [Patent Document 1] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 5-139634 [Patent Document 2] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 5-330755 Summary of the Invention [Problem to be solved by the invention]

[0005] Therefore, the problem that the present invention aims to solve is to provide a group management control device that can move users to the floor of a landing door even if an abnormality occurs in the landing door, while suppressing a decrease in operation efficiency. [Means for solving the problem]

[0006] According to an embodiment, there is provided a group management control device that controls a plurality of elevators. The group management control device includes a call management means, a storage means, and an allocation control means. The call management means manages call information transmitted from a destination floor registration device, including information on destination floors and departure floors. The storage means stores information on an abnormal elevator corresponding to a landing door where an abnormality has occurred, and information on an abnormal floor where the landing door is located. The allocation control means assigns an elevator other than the abnormal elevator corresponding to the landing door located on the abnormal floor to first call information in which the destination floor is the abnormal floor, and assigns one of the plurality of elevators to second call information in which the destination floor and departure floor are not the abnormal floors. [Brief explanation of the drawings]

[0007] [Figure 1] FIG. 1 is a diagram illustrating an example of the configuration of a group management control device according to an embodiment. [Figure 2] FIG. 2 is a diagram for explaining a specific example of the processing of the allocation control unit in the group management control device according to the embodiment. [Figure 3] FIG. 3 is a diagram for explaining a specific example of the processing of the allocation control unit in the group management control device according to the embodiment. [Figure 4] FIG. 4 is a flowchart showing an example of allocation processing executed by the allocation control unit of the group management control device according to the embodiment. [Figure 5] FIG. 5 is a diagram for explaining a specific example of the process of the allocation control unit in the second modified example of the embodiment. [Figure 6] FIG. 6 is a diagram for explaining a specific example of the process of the allocation control unit in the third modified example of the embodiment. DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION

[0008] Each embodiment will be described below with reference to the drawings. Note that the disclosure is merely an example, and the invention is not limited to the contents described in the following embodiments. Modifications that a person skilled in the art can easily make are naturally included within the scope of the disclosure. For clearer explanations, the size, shape, etc. of each part may be changed from the actual embodiment and shown schematically in the drawings. Corresponding elements in multiple drawings may be given the same reference numerals, and detailed descriptions may be omitted.

[0009] FIG. 1 is a diagram showing an example of the configuration of a group management control device 20 according to this embodiment. The group management control device 20 performs group management of a plurality of elevators. Note that the term "elevator" here basically refers to a "cab." The example in FIG. 1 shows a configuration in which three elevators (cabs 12a, 12b, and 12c) designated as A, B, and C are group-managed, but a configuration in which more elevators are group-managed may also be used.

[0010] In the figure, 11a, 11b, and 11c indicate elevator control devices (also called car control devices). The elevator control device 11a controls the operation of the car 12a. Specifically, the elevator control device 11a controls a motor (hoist) (not shown) for raising and lowering the car 12a, and controls the opening and closing of doors. The same applies to the elevator control device 11b for the car 12b and the elevator control device 11c for the car 12c. These elevator control devices 11a, 11b, and 11c are composed of computers equipped with a CPU, ROM, RAM, etc. Furthermore, the elevator control devices 11a, 11b, and 11c notify the group management control device 20 of the current positions of the cars 12a, 12b, and 12c, the status of door opening and closing, etc.

[0011] The cars 12a to 12c are driven by a motor (hoist) to move up and down in the elevator shaft. Floor buttons are installed in the car rooms of the cars 12a to 12c so that passengers can register their destination floors, but it is also possible to adopt a configuration in which floor buttons are not installed in the car rooms.

[0012] The destination floor registration device 13 is a device for users to register a destination floor before getting on the elevators 12a, 12b, and 12c. Examples of systems using the destination floor registration device 13 are a smartphone call system and a DCS.

[0013] The "smartphone call system" is a system that uses a mobile terminal 13a carried by each user as a destination floor registration device 13. The mobile terminal 13a is, for example, a smartphone, and has call registration application software pre-installed. This call registration application software was developed by an elevator-related company and can be freely downloaded from a website that depends on the OS (Operating System) of the mobile terminal 13a. The user enters call information, including information on the destination floor and departure floor, on the call registration screen of this application software. Thereafter, when the user arrives at the elevator hall, the call information is transmitted to the group management control device 20. In the following explanation, transmitting call information to the group management control device 20 may also be referred to as "registering call information."

[0014] "DCS" is a system that uses a hall destination floor registration device (HDC) 13b installed at the hall of each floor as the destination floor registration device 13. A user operates the hall destination floor registration device 13b at the hall to register call information including information on the departure floor (more specifically, the floor on which the user operates the hall destination floor registration device 13b) and the destination floor. Note that the call information transmitted from the destination floor registration device 13 may be transmitted to the group management control device 20 via the elevator control devices 11a to 11c.

[0015] Note that this embodiment may be configured so that call information can be registered by at least one of the systems using the destination floor registration device 13. In the following description, it is assumed that call information can be registered by both the smartphone call system and the DCS.

[0016] In addition to the above-mentioned landing destination floor registration device 13b, a door abnormality detection device 14 is provided at the landing of each floor. The door abnormality detection device 14 detects an abnormality in the landing door at the landing of each floor.

[0017] An "abnormality in a landing door" is, for example, a state in which the door cannot be opened or closed due to a malfunction. For example, the door abnormality detection device 14 determines that a malfunction has occurred when the load applied when the landing door is opened or closed is greater than normal. Alternatively, the door abnormality detection device 14 detects that a foreign object is stuck in the sill groove, that the landing door is not operating normally, or the like, by analyzing and processing an image of the landing door taken by a camera installed at the landing.

[0018] Note that the "hall door abnormality" may include a state in which a moving object or the like stops at an entrance / exit and passengers cannot get on the car. In this case, the door abnormality detection device 14 detects the hall door abnormality when it detects that a moving object has stopped or fallen over near the entrance / exit of the hall door, for example, based on an image of the vicinity of the entrance / exit taken by a camera installed at the hall.

[0019] Furthermore, the "landing door abnormality" may include a state in which it is unclear whether a malfunction has occurred. The "state in which it is unclear whether a malfunction has occurred" is, for example, a state in which, in a case where a door is equipped with a function for automatically restoring the door in the event of a disaster, the door has automatically recovered but a detailed inspection by an inspector is required. In such a case, the door abnormality detection device 14 determines that an abnormality has occurred in the landing door until the detailed inspection by the inspector is completed and safety is confirmed.

[0020] When an abnormality is found in a landing door, the door abnormality detection device 14 transmits information about the floor on which the landing door is located and information about the car (car number) corresponding to the landing door to the group management control device 20. Note that the information transmitted from the door abnormality detection device 14 may be transmitted to the group management control device 20 via the elevator control devices 11a to 11c. Furthermore, the method of detecting an abnormality in a landing door is not limited to the door abnormality detection device 14 installed on each floor, and any method may be used. For example, when an abnormality is found by an inspector who periodically inspects landing doors, information about the floor on which the landing door is located and information about the car (car number) corresponding to the landing door may be transmitted from a terminal of the inspector, etc.

[0021] The group management control device 20 is a device for group management control of the operation of each elevator car, and is configured by a computer including a CPU, ROM, RAM, etc., similar to the elevator control devices 11a to 11c.

[0022] The group management control device 20 has a call management section 21, a storage section 22, and an allocation control section 23. These processing sections are actually realized by software or a combination of software and hardware.

[0023] The call management unit 21 manages the call information transmitted from the destination floor registration device 13 and information on the car (assigned car) to which the call information is assigned. As described above, the call information includes information on the destination floor and the departure floor.

[0024] The memory unit 22 stores information about the landing door where an abnormality has occurred. The information about the landing door where an abnormality has occurred includes information about the car (car number) corresponding to the landing door and information about the floor where the landing door is located. Hereinafter, the car corresponding to the landing door where an abnormality has occurred will be referred to as the "abnormal car number," and the floor where the landing door is located will be referred to as the "abnormal floor." Specifically, for example, if an abnormality has occurred in the landing door of car number C on the third floor, the abnormal car number corresponding to the landing door will be "car number C," and the abnormal floor where the landing door is located will be the "third floor."

[0025] When new call information is registered (transmitted), the allocation control unit 23 allocates the call information to one of vehicle A, vehicle B, and vehicle C through a predetermined allocation evaluation process. The allocation evaluation process is a process of selecting, for example, vehicle A, vehicle B, and vehicle C that can respond to the newly registered call information most quickly, based on the call information allocated to vehicle A, vehicle B, and vehicle C and the current locations of vehicle A, vehicle B, and vehicle C.

[0026] Here, if the destination floor included in the call information is an abnormal floor where the landing door where the abnormality occurred is located, the allocation control unit 23 allocates to the call information a car other than the abnormal car corresponding to the landing door where the abnormality occurred. Also, if the departure floor included in the call information is an abnormal floor, the allocation control unit 23 allocates to the call information a car other than the abnormal car corresponding to the landing door where the abnormality occurred. Furthermore, if the destination floor and departure floor included in the call information are not abnormal floors, the allocation control unit 23 allocates one of car A, car B, and car C to the call information. Hereinafter, the car allocated to the call information will also be referred to as the "allocated car."

[0027] A specific example of the processing of the allocation control unit 23 will be described below with reference to Figures 2 and 3. Figures 2 and 3 show a case where a building has four floors in total and multiple elevators (elevators A, B, and C) are controlled by the group management control device 20.

[0028] In Figures 2 and 3, 1a, 2a, 3a, 4a, 1b, 2b, 3b, 4b, 1c, 2c, 3c, and 4c indicate landing doors. Landing doors 1a, 2a, 3a, and 4a are landing doors for Locomotive A. Landing doors 1b, 2b, 3b, and 4b are landing doors for Locomotive B. Landing doors 1c, 2c, 3c, and 4c are landing doors for Locomotive C. Landing doors 1a, 1b, and 1c are landing doors on the first floor. Landing doors 2a, 2b, and 2c are landing doors on the second floor. Landing doors 3a, 3b, and 3c are landing doors on the third floor. Landing doors 4a, 4b, and 4c are landing doors on the fourth floor. In addition, "abnormal landing door" in the figures is a landing door where an abnormality has occurred. A "normal landing door" is a normal landing door in which no abnormality has occurred.

[0029] First, a case will be described where an abnormality occurs in the landing door 3c of elevator C on the third floor, as shown in Fig. 2. In this case, the memory unit 22 stores information on "Elevator C" as the abnormal elevator corresponding to the landing door 3c, and "Floor 3" as the abnormal floor on which the landing door 3c is located.

[0030] Here, assume that user U registers call information that includes floor 1 as the departure floor and floor 3 (the abnormal floor where hall door 3c is located) as the destination floor. Because an abnormality has occurred at hall door 3c of car C on the third floor, if the call information is assigned to car C, the user will not be able to get off at the destination floor (floor 3). On the other hand, no abnormality has occurred at hall door 3a of car A or hall door 3b of car B on the third floor. Therefore, the call information is assigned to car A or car B.

[0031] Assume that another user has registered call information that includes floor 3 (the abnormal floor where hall door 3c is located) as the departure floor and floor 1 as the destination floor. Since an abnormality has occurred at hall door 3c of car C on the third floor, if the call information is assigned to car C, the user will not be able to board from the departure floor (floor 3). On the other hand, as described above, no abnormality has occurred at hall door 3a of car A or hall door 3b of car B on the third floor. Therefore, the call information will be assigned to car A or car B.

[0032] Also, assume that user U has registered call information that includes floor 1 as the departure floor and floor 4 as the destination floor. No abnormalities have occurred at landing door 1a of car A, landing door 1b of car B, and landing door 1c of car C on the first floor. Also, no abnormalities have occurred at landing door 4a of car A, landing door 4b of car B, and landing door 4c of car C on the fourth floor. Therefore, the call information is assigned to either car A, car B, or car C.

[0033] Next, a case will be described in which an abnormality occurs not only in the landing door 3c of the C-th floor but also in the landing door 4b of the B-th floor, as shown in Fig. 3. In this case, the memory unit 22 stores "C-th floor" as the abnormal car corresponding to the landing door 3c and "3rd floor" as the abnormal floor where the landing door 3c is located, and also stores "B-th floor" as the abnormal car corresponding to the landing door 4b and "4th floor" as the abnormal floor where the landing door 4b is located.

[0034] Here, assume that user U has registered call information that includes floor 1 as the departure floor and floor 4 (the abnormal floor where hall door 4b is located) as the destination floor. Because an abnormality has occurred at hall door 4b of vehicle B on the fourth floor, if the call information is assigned to vehicle B, the user will not be able to get off at the destination floor (fourth floor). On the other hand, no abnormality has occurred at hall door 4a of vehicle A or hall door 4c of vehicle C on the fourth floor. Therefore, the call information will be assigned to vehicle A or vehicle C.

[0035] Also, assume that another user has registered call information that includes floor 4 (an abnormal floor where hall door 4b is located) as the departure floor and floor 1 as the destination floor. Because an abnormality has occurred at hall door 4b of car B on the fourth floor, if the call information is assigned to car B, the user will not be able to board from the departure floor (fourth floor). On the other hand, as described above, no abnormality has occurred at hall door 4a of car A or hall door 4c of car C on the fourth floor. Therefore, the call information will be assigned to car A or car C.

[0036] Furthermore, assume that user U has registered call information that includes floor 1 as the departure floor and floor 2 as the destination floor. No abnormalities have occurred at landing door 1a of car A, landing door 1b of car B, and landing door 1c of car C on the first floor. Also, no abnormalities have occurred at landing door 2a of car A, landing door 2b of car B, and landing door 2c of car C on the second floor. Therefore, the call information is assigned to either car A, car B, or car C.

[0037] Assume that another user has registered call information that includes floor 3 (an abnormal floor with hall door 3c) as the departure floor and floor 4 (an abnormal floor with hall door 4b) as the destination floor. Because an abnormality has occurred in hall door 3c of car C on the third floor, if the call information is assigned to car C, the user will not be able to board at the departure floor (floor 3). Also, because an abnormality has occurred in hall door 4b of car B on the fourth floor, if the call information is assigned to car B, the user will not be able to disembark at the destination floor (floor 4). Meanwhile, hall door 3a of car A on the third floor and hall door 4a of car A on the fourth floor are both normal. Therefore, the call information is assigned to car A.

[0038] 4 is a flowchart showing an example of allocation processing executed by the allocation control unit 23 of the group management control device 20 according to this embodiment. Note that the following description will be given assuming that an abnormality has occurred in the landing door 4b of car B on the fourth floor and the landing door 3c of car C on the third floor.

[0039] When new call information is registered, the allocation control unit 23 determines whether the departure floor included in the new call information is the same as the information on the abnormal floor (here, the third or fourth floor) stored in the storage unit 22 (step S11). In other words, the allocation control unit 23 determines whether the new call information is call information in which the departure floor is set as an abnormal floor. Note that, when information on multiple abnormal floors is stored in the storage unit 22, the allocation control unit 23 determines whether the departure floor included in the new call information is the same as any of the information on the multiple abnormal floors.

[0040] If the departure floor included in the new call information is the same as the information on the abnormal floor stored in the storage unit 22 (YES in step S11), the allocation control unit 23 selects, as allocation candidates (step S12), a car other than the abnormal car (the abnormal car at the departure floor) corresponding to the hall door where the abnormality occurred at the departure floor. For example, if the departure floor of the new call is the third floor, cars other than C corresponding to hall door 3c (i.e., cars A and B) are selected as allocation candidates.

[0041] On the other hand, if the departure floor included in the call information differs from the information on the abnormal floor stored in the memory unit 22 (NO in step S11), the allocation control unit 23 selects all cars (car A, car B, and car C) as candidates for allocation (step S13). When an allocation candidate is selected in step S12 or step S13, the allocation control unit 23 determines whether or not the destination floor included in the new call information is the same as the information on the abnormal floor (here, the third or fourth floor) stored in the memory unit 22 (step S14). In other words, the allocation control unit 23 determines whether or not the new call information is call information in which the destination floor is set as an abnormal floor. Note that, if information on multiple abnormal floors is stored in the memory unit 22, the allocation control unit 23 determines whether or not the destination floor included in the new call information is the same as any of the information on the multiple abnormal floors.

[0042] If the destination floor included in the new call information and the information on the abnormal floor stored in the storage unit 22 are the same (YES in step S14), the allocation control unit 23 determines an allocation car to be allocated to the new call information from among the cars included in the allocation candidates other than the abnormal car (the abnormal car at the destination floor) corresponding to the landing door where the abnormality has occurred at the destination floor (step S15). Specifically, for example, if all cars have been selected as allocation candidates in step S13 and the destination floor of the new call information is the fourth floor, the allocation control unit 23 determines, as the allocation car, one of cars A, B, and C other than car B corresponding to landing door 4b (i.e., car A or car C). Also, in step S12, if cars A and B have been selected as candidates for allocation and the destination floor of the new call is the fourth floor, the allocation control unit 23 determines that car A, other than car B that corresponds to the landing door 4b, is the car to be allocated.

[0043] On the other hand, if the destination floor included in the new call information differs from the abnormal floor information stored in the storage unit 22 (NO in step S14), the allocation control unit 23 determines an assigned car from all cars included in the allocation candidates (step S16). For example, if all cars were selected as allocation candidates in step S13 and the destination floor of the new call information is the second floor, that is, if neither the departure floor nor the destination floor is an abnormal floor, the allocation control unit 23 determines one of all cars (car A, car B, and car C) as the assigned car. Also, for example, if car A and car B were selected as allocation candidates in step S12 and the destination floor of the new call is the second floor, the allocation control unit 23 determines car A or car B as the assigned car.

[0044] Generally, if the destination floor registered for a certain car is an abnormal floor, one possible method is to stop the car at the floor nearest to the abnormal floor. However, this requires passengers to get off the car and transfer to another car.

[0045] In contrast, in this embodiment, when a call is made with information indicating that the destination floor is an abnormal floor, a car other than the abnormal car corresponding to the landing door at the abnormal floor is assigned to the call, allowing passengers to travel directly to the floor where the abnormal landing door is located without getting off at an intermediate floor.

[0046] In group management control, it is also possible to consider a method in which a car with a hall door malfunction is not assigned to new call information. However, if one of several cars stops responding, operational efficiency will drop significantly.

[0047] In contrast, in this embodiment, any of the cars, including the abnormal car, is assigned to call information for which the destination floor and departure floor are not abnormal. In other words, even if an abnormal car has an abnormality in the landing door at one of the floors, it will respond to call information for which the destination floor and departure floor are not abnormal. This makes it possible to prevent a decrease in operation efficiency.

[0048] (First Modification) Next, a first modification of this embodiment will be described. An abnormal elevator with an abnormal landing door on one of the floors cannot respond to call information that specifies the abnormal floor where the landing door is located as the destination or departure floor. As a result, the number of call information that can be assigned to the abnormal elevator is smaller than that of other elevators. This may result in call information concentrating on elevators other than the abnormal elevator, which may result in uneven allocation of call information. Furthermore, if call information is concentrated on elevators other than the abnormal elevator, passengers who have registered call information that specifies the abnormal floor as the destination or departure floor will have to wait longer.

[0049] Therefore, in the first modified example, the abnormal elevator is preferentially assigned to call information that specifies a floor at which the abnormal elevator can respond as the destination floor or departure floor.

[0050] Specifically, the allocation control unit 23 preferentially allocates an abnormal car to call information whose destination floor and departure floor are not abnormal floors. For example, when the allocation control unit 23 performs allocation evaluation processing to select a car that can respond most quickly to newly registered call information, the allocation control unit 23 makes it easier to allocate the abnormal car compared to other cars by calculating a shorter predicted arrival time for the abnormal car. For example, when an abnormality has occurred on the landing door of a certain abnormal car at floor M out of the total number of floors N, the allocation control unit 23 multiplies the predicted arrival time of the abnormal car by (NM) / N.

[0051] Furthermore, the allocation control unit 23 preferentially allocates to call information in which the destination floor is an abnormal floor an elevator in which no abnormality has occurred at the landing door of the abnormal floor set for the destination floor, but an abnormality has occurred at the landing door of another floor (an elevator corresponding to a landing door in which an abnormality has occurred at a floor other than the abnormal floor set for the destination floor). Hereinafter, an elevator in which no abnormality has occurred at the landing door of the abnormal floor set for the destination floor, but an abnormality has occurred at the landing door of another floor, will be referred to as "another abnormal elevator."

[0052] For example, when the allocation control unit 23 performs allocation evaluation processing to select a car that can respond most quickly to newly registered call information, the other abnormal car is made easier to allocate compared to other cars by shortening the predicted arrival time of the other abnormal car. More specifically, for example, when an abnormality has occurred on M' floors out of the total number N of floors with respect to the landing door of a certain other abnormal car, the allocation control unit 23 shortens the predicted arrival time of the other abnormal car by multiplying the predicted arrival time of the other abnormal car by (NM') / N.

[0053] Although the allocation of call information in which the destination floor is an abnormal floor has been described here, the allocation of call information in which the departure floor is an abnormal floor may also be preferentially allocated to a locomotive in which no abnormality has occurred at the landing door of the abnormal floor set at the departure floor, but an abnormality has occurred at the landing door of another floor (a locomotive corresponding to a landing door in which an abnormality has occurred at a floor other than the abnormal floor set at the departure floor).

[0054] A specific example of the first modified example will be described below with reference again to Figure 3. Figure 3 shows a case where, as described above, an abnormality has occurred in the landing door 3c of Locomotive C on the third floor, as well as in the landing door 4b of Locomotive B on the fourth floor.

[0055] Here, it is assumed that user U has registered call information that includes floor 1 as the departure floor and floor 2 as the destination floor. In this case, the call information is preferentially assigned to car C on the third floor, where an abnormality has occurred in hall door 3c, or car B on the fourth floor, where an abnormality has occurred in hall door 4b, rather than car A, where no abnormality has occurred in the hall doors on any floor.

[0056] Also, assume that user U has registered call information that includes the first floor as the departure floor and the third floor (the abnormal floor where hall door 3c is located) as the destination floor. In this case, the call information is preferentially assigned to car B on the fourth floor, where an abnormality has occurred in hall door 4b, rather than car A, where no abnormality has occurred in the hall doors at any floor.

[0057] Similarly, assume that user U has registered call information that includes the first floor as the departure floor and the fourth floor (the abnormal floor where hall door 4b is located) as the destination floor. In this case, the call information is preferentially assigned to car C on the third floor, where an abnormality has occurred in hall door 3c, rather than car A, where no abnormality has occurred in the hall doors on any floor.

[0058] Similarly, if the departure floor is an abnormal floor, other abnormal elevators are given priority in responding. Specifically, for example, assume that a user registers call information that includes floor 3 (an abnormal floor with hall door 3c) as the departure floor and floor 1 as the destination floor. In this case, the call information is preferentially assigned to elevator B, which has an abnormality in hall door 4b on floor 4, rather than elevator A, which has no abnormality in the hall doors on any floor.

[0059] As described above, according to the first modification, by preferentially allocating new call information to abnormal elevators with a small number of floors that can respond, it is possible to prevent call information from concentrating on elevators other than the abnormal elevators. Furthermore, according to the first modification, it is possible to reduce the number of call information allocated to elevators other than the abnormal elevators that can respond to call information for all floors (e.g., elevator A in the example of FIG. 3). This makes it possible to have elevators other than the abnormal elevators respond relatively quickly, particularly when call information is registered for floors where both the destination floor and the departure floor are abnormal. As a result, it is possible to reduce the waiting time of users who have registered call information for floors where both the destination floor and the departure floor are abnormal.

[0060] (Second Modification) Next, a second modified example will be described. The number of elevators that can respond to call information in which the destination floor or departure floor is an abnormal floor is reduced by the number of hall doors that have an abnormality at that abnormal floor. Also, if multiple abnormal floors are stored, the number of elevators that can respond to call information in which both the destination floor and the departure floor are abnormal is reduced by the number of abnormal elevators. Therefore, there is a possibility that passengers who have registered call information in which at least one of the destination floor and the departure floor is an abnormal floor will have to wait longer. Hereinafter, call information in which at least one of the destination floor and the departure floor is an abnormal floor will also be referred to as "call information including an abnormal floor."

[0061] Therefore, in the second modified example, a car assigned to call information including an abnormal floor is directed to the departure floor as soon as possible. Specifically, the allocation control unit 23 does not assign newly registered call information to a car assigned to call information including an abnormal floor until the car assigned to the call information arrives at the departure floor, unless there is no other car available for assignment other than the car assigned to the call information.

[0062] A specific example of the processing of the allocation control unit 23 in the second modified example will be described below with reference to Fig. 5. Similar to Figs. 2 and 3, Fig. 5 shows a case where a plurality of elevators (elevators A, B, and C) are controlled by the group management control device 20 in a building with four floors in total. Reference numerals 12a, 12b, and 12c in the figure are cars. Here, the case is shown where car 12a of elevator A is on the first floor, car 12b of elevator B is on the third floor, and car 12c of elevator C is on the first floor. The case is also shown where an abnormality has occurred in hall door 4b of elevator B and hall door 3c of elevator C, both of which are on the fourth floor.

[0063] Here, when a user U registers call information including the fourth floor (an abnormal floor where the landing door 4b is located) as the departure floor and the second floor as the destination floor, the allocation control unit 23 allocates a car other than car B corresponding to the landing door 4b to the call information. Here, it is assumed that the allocation control unit 23 allocates car A to the call information.

[0064] In this case, even if new call information is registered that includes the second or third floor as the departure floor, the allocation control unit 23 allocates the new call information to a car other than car A, unless there is no car other than car A that can be allocated. As a result, car A will go directly from its current location to the fourth floor (departure floor) where user U is waiting, unless the second or third floor is registered as the destination floor.

[0065] Note that, although the case where an abnormal floor is set as the departure floor has been described here, the same applies when the destination floor is an abnormal floor. That is, for example, when another user registers call information that includes floor 1 as the departure floor and floor 3 (an abnormal floor where hall door 3c is located) as the destination floor, allocation control unit 23 allocates a car other than car C that corresponds to hall door 3c to the call information. Here, it is assumed that allocation control unit 23 allocates car B to the call information.

[0066] In this case, even if new call information is registered that includes the second floor as the departure floor, the allocation control unit 23 allocates the new call information to a car other than car B, unless there is no car other than car B that can be allocated. As a result, car B will go directly from its current location to the first floor (departure floor) where user U is waiting, unless the second floor is registered as the destination floor.

[0067] The same applies to the case where abnormal floors are set as the destination floor and the departure floor. That is, for example, if another user registers call information including floor 3 (an abnormal floor where hall door 3c is located) as the departure floor and floor 4 (an abnormal floor where hall door 4b is located) as the destination floor, the allocation control unit 23 assigns car A to the call information. In this case, even if new call information including floor 2 as the departure floor is registered, the allocation control unit 23 assigns the new call information to a car other than car A, unless there is no car other than car A that can be assigned. As a result, car A will go directly from its current location to floor 4 (the departure floor) where user U is waiting, unless floor 2 is registered as the destination floor.

[0068] As described above, according to the second modification, a car assigned with call information including an abnormal floor can arrive at the departure floor included in the call information earlier by not responding to new call information. This reduces the waiting time of passengers who have registered call information in which at least one of the destination floor and departure floor is an abnormal floor.

[0069] (Third Modification) Next, a third modified example will be described. The group management control device 20 according to the third modified example has a function of setting a plurality of zones (distributed waiting zones) for distributing and waiting the cars 12a to 12c of each car. The distributed waiting zones are made up of at least one floor.

[0070] Distributed waiting is a control that keeps each car waiting, with at least one car waiting in each zone, when, for example, call information is not registered.

[0071] For example, consider a five-story building where the first floor is designated as "Zone 1," the second and third floors as "Zone 2," and the fourth and fifth floors as "Zone 3." When the car of vehicle A finishes its service on the second floor in Zone 2, it will wait there if there are no other cars waiting in Zone 2. If there are other cars waiting in Zone 2, the car of vehicle A will move to a location where there are no other cars waiting, such as the first floor in Zone 1, and wait there. By distributing the cars waiting in this way, calls from each floor can be responded to quickly.

[0072] In the third variant, in the group management control device 20 having the distributed standby function as described above, when an elevator car is made to wait in a zone including an abnormal floor where an abnormality exists in a landing door, the allocation control unit 23 makes elevators other than the elevator corresponding to the landing door (the abnormal elevator) wait at the abnormal floor, and makes elevators corresponding to the landing door (the abnormal elevator) wait at floors other than the abnormal floor.

[0073] A specific example of the processing of the allocation control unit in the third modified example will be described below with reference to FIG. 6. FIG. 6 shows a case where multiple elevators (elevators A, B, and C) are controlled by the group management control device 20 in a five-story building. Reference numerals 12a, 12b, and 12c in the figure represent elevator cars. Reference numerals 5a, 5b, and 5c in the figure represent landing doors on the fifth floor. Landing door 5a is the landing door for elevator A. Landing door 5b is the landing door for elevator B. Landing door 5c is the landing door for elevator C. The first floor is set as the "first zone," the second and third floors as the "second zone," and the fourth and fifth floors as the "third zone." The second zone includes the floor where landing door 3c of elevator C, where an abnormality has occurred, is located (the abnormal floor). The number of decentralized waiting zones and the number of floors within a zone are set arbitrarily taking into consideration the number of cars, the number of floors in the building, traffic demand, etc., and are not limited to the example of FIG. 6.

[0074] In the third modified example, for example, if the vacant zone when vehicle B finishes its operation service is zone 2, allocation control unit 23 causes vehicle B to wait on floor 3 (abnormal floor where hall door 3c is located) instead of floor 2. Similarly, although not shown, if the vacant zone when vehicle A finishes its operation service is zone 2, allocation control unit 23 also causes vehicle A to wait on floor 3.

[0075] Furthermore, if the vacant zone when vehicle C (the abnormal vehicle corresponding to hall door 3c) finishes its service is the second zone, the allocation control unit 23 causes vehicle C to wait on the second floor where vehicle C can respond.

[0076] In this way, in the third modification, when a car that can respond to an abnormal floor is made to wait in a zone that includes the abnormal floor, the car is made to wait at the abnormal floor first. This allows the cars that have been placed on standby in a distributed manner to quickly respond to the call information when call information is registered that includes the abnormal floor as the departure floor.

[0077] Note that the abnormal elevator corresponding to the landing door where an abnormality has occurred may not be made to wait in the distributed waiting zone including the abnormal floor where the landing door is located. Specifically, for example, in the example of FIG. 6, elevator C may not be made to wait in the second zone including the abnormal floor where elevator door 3c is located. That is, either elevator A or elevator B may be made to wait at the abnormal floor (the third floor in the example of FIG. 6), and elevator C may be made to wait in the first or third zone. In this case, when elevator C that has finished its operation service is made to wait, if the only available zone is the second zone, the allocation control unit 23 moves elevator A or elevator B to the second zone and then makes elevator C wait in the first or third zone that has become available as a result of the movement. This allows the departure floor to respond to the call information for the abnormal floor more quickly than when elevator C is made to wait at a floor other than the abnormal floor in the second zone.

[0078] Furthermore, the present embodiment may be applied by combining all or part of the first, second, and third modified examples described above.

[0079] According to at least one of the embodiments described above, it is possible to provide a group management control device that can move users to the floor of a landing door even if an abnormality occurs in the landing door, while suppressing a decrease in operation efficiency.

[0080] Although several embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included within the scope and spirit of the invention, as well as within the scope of the invention described in the claims and their equivalents. [Explanation of symbols]

[0081] 1a to 1c, 2a to 2c, 3a to 3c, 4a to 4c, 5a to 5c...landing door, 11a to 11c...elevator control device, 13...destination floor registration device, 13a...mobile terminal, 13b...landing destination floor registration device, 14...door abnormality detection device, 20...group management control device, 21...call management unit, 22...memory unit, 23...allocation control unit.

Claims

1. A group management control device that controls a plurality of cars, a call management means for managing call information including information on destination floors and departure floors transmitted from the destination floor registration device; a storage means for storing information on an abnormal elevator corresponding to the landing door where an abnormality has occurred and information on the abnormal floor where the landing door is located; an allocation control means for allocating a car other than the abnormal car corresponding to the landing door at the abnormal floor to first call information in which the destination floor is the abnormal floor, and for allocating any of the plurality of cars to second call information in which the destination floor and departure floor are not the abnormal floors; A group management control device comprising:

2. The allocation control means preferentially allocates the abnormal machine to the second call information. The group management control device according to claim 1.

3. The allocation control means preferentially allocates, to the first call information, a car corresponding to a landing door where an abnormality has occurred at a floor other than the abnormal floor. The group management control device according to claim 1.

4. When determining a car to be assigned to the second call information based on the predicted arrival time of each car, the allocation control means sets the predicted arrival time of the abnormal car to be shorter than the predicted arrival time of cars other than the abnormal car. The group management control device according to claim 2.

5. When determining a car to be assigned to the first call information based on the predicted arrival time of each car, the allocation control means sets the predicted arrival time of a car corresponding to a landing door where an abnormality has occurred at a floor other than the abnormal floor so that the predicted arrival time of the car is shorter than that of the cars other than the abnormal floor. The group management control device according to claim 3.

6. The allocation control means A car assigned to call information in which at least one of the destination floor and the departure floor is the abnormal floor will not be assigned to newly registered call information until the car assigned to the call information arrives at the departure floor included in the call information. The group management control device according to claim 1.

7. The allocation control means If the call information is not registered, at least one of the plurality of cars is placed on standby in each of a plurality of zones including at least one floor, When a car other than the abnormal car is made to wait in a zone among the plurality of zones that includes the abnormal floor, the car is made to wait on the abnormal floor. The group management control device according to claim 1.

8. The landing door where the abnormality has occurred includes at least one of a landing door where a malfunction has occurred and a landing door where a mobile object has stopped at an entrance / exit. The group management control device according to claim 1.

9. The landing door where the abnormality has occurred includes a landing door where it is unclear whether or not a malfunction has occurred. The group management control device according to claim 1.

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