Elevator control device

Abstract

An elevator operation device according to the present invention includes: an operation unit having a capacitance sensor; and a control unit that acquires a detection value obtained by the capacitance sensor and determines, on the basis of the detection value, whether the operation unit has been operated. The control unit calculates the amount of change in detection value per unit time in a period in which the detection value increases. In the case where the amount of change in detection value is smaller than a threshold amount of change, the control unit determines that an operation has been performed when the detection value reaches or exceeds a threshold detection value. In the case where the amount of change in detection value is larger than or equal to the threshold amount of change, the control unit determines that no operation has been performed even when the detection value reaches or exceeds the threshold detection value.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present disclosure relates to an elevator operation device including an operation unit having a capacitance sensor.

Background Art

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses a capacitive operation device. This capacitive operation device includes an operation plate, an electrode, a detection unit, a sudden change determination unit, and a contact determination unit. The operation plate forms an operation surface that is touched by the fingertip of an operator. The electrode is attached to the surface of the operation plate on the side opposite to the operation surface.

[0003] The detection unit acquires a detection value corresponding to the amount of change in the capacitance generated between the fingertip and the electrode. The sudden change determination unit determines whether a sudden change phenomenon of the change speed appears during a change period in which the change speed of the detection value is equal to or higher than a predetermined speed. The contact determination unit determines that a contact operation or a separation operation has been performed on the condition that a sudden change phenomenon is determined to have appeared.

[0004] If the fingertip is only brought close to the operation surface without touching the operation surface, or if the separation operation is stopped halfway, a sudden change phenomenon does not occur. Therefore, with this capacitive operation device, it is possible to accurately determine the presence or absence of a contact operation or a separation operation.

Prior Art Documents

Patent Documents

[0005]

Patent Document 1

Summary of the Invention

Problems to be Solved by the Invention

[0006] The capacitive operating device described above can also be applied to elevator operating devices. Elevator operating devices are operated by an unspecified number of people. Therefore, from a hygiene standpoint, such as infection control, it is desirable that elevator operating devices be operated without contact.

[0007] However, in capacitive touchscreen devices that can be operated without contact, the detection threshold is set lower compared to capacitive touchscreen devices that require contact operation. As a result, false detections are more likely to occur due to external disturbances such as shocks and vibrations. Furthermore, when a capacitive touchscreen device is operated without contact, the sudden changes described above do not occur. Therefore, there has been a challenge in accurately determining whether an operation is non-contact.

[0008] This disclosure was made to solve the problems described above, and aims to provide an elevator operating device that can accurately determine contactless operation. [Means for solving the problem]

[0009] The elevator operating device according to this disclosure comprises an operating unit having a capacitance sensor, and a control unit that acquires a detected value from the capacitance sensor and determines whether or not the operating unit has been operated based on the detected value. The control unit calculates the amount of change in the detected value per unit of time during a period in which the detected value increases, and determines that the operation has been performed when the detected value becomes equal to or greater than the threshold detected value if the amount of change in the detected value is less than the threshold change, and determines that the operation has not been performed when the detected value becomes equal to or greater than the threshold detected value if the amount of change in the detected value is equal to or greater than the threshold change. [Effects of the Invention]

[0010] According to this disclosure, contactless operations can be accurately detected. [Brief explanation of the drawing]

[0011] [Figure 1]This is a cross-sectional view showing the schematic configuration of an elevator operating device according to Embodiment 1. [Figure 2] This graph shows an example of the time change of detected values ​​when the control unit is operated without contact in the elevator control device according to Embodiment 1. [Figure 3] This graph shows an example of the time change of detected values ​​when an impact is applied to the control unit in the elevator control device according to Embodiment 1. [Figure 4] This flowchart shows an example of the flow of the operation determination process executed in the control unit of the elevator operation device according to Embodiment 1. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0012] Embodiment 1. An elevator operating device according to Embodiment 1 will now be described. Figure 1 is a cross-sectional view showing the schematic configuration of the elevator operating device according to this embodiment. The upper part of Figure 1 represents the operator side, that is, the side closer to the operator. The lower part of Figure 1 represents the opposite side of the operator, that is, the side further away from the operator. The elevator operating device of this embodiment is a mutually capacitive type capacitive touchless button. The elevator operating device of this embodiment can be used, for example, as a call registration button installed on the elevator landing, or as an operating button installed in the elevator car.

[0013] As shown in Figure 1, the elevator operating device includes an operating unit 10, a lighting unit 30, and a control unit 40.

[0014] The operating unit 10 has a button ring portion 11, a button cap portion 12, and a capacitance sensor 15. The button ring portion 11 is made of, for example, a transparent insulating resin. The button ring portion 11 is fitted into an opening 21 formed in the faceplate 20. The faceplate 20 is made of metal. The faceplate 20 is maintained at ground potential.

[0015] The button cap portion 12 is located inside the button ring portion 11. Both the button cap portion 12 and the button ring portion 11 are exposed to the operator through the opening 21 of the faceplate 20. The button cap portion 12 has an insulating cap 13 and a conductive cap 14. The insulating cap 13 is made of, for example, a transparent insulating resin. The conductive cap 14 is provided on the operator-facing side of the insulating cap 13. The conductive cap 14 is made of, for example, an opaque metal. The conductive cap 14 is electrically insulated from the faceplate 20 by the button ring portion 11. The conductive cap 14 has a cutout (not shown). When viewed from the operator's side, the cutout has the shape of a symbol, number, etc.

[0016] The capacitance sensor 15 has a pair of sensor electrodes: a transmitting electrode 16 and a receiving electrode 17. The transmitting electrode 16 and the receiving electrode 17 are arranged in parallel to each other on the non-operator side of the insulating cap 13. The transmitting electrode 16 and the receiving electrode 17 are formed of, for example, a transparent conductive film. Each of the transmitting electrode 16 and the receiving electrode 17 is positioned opposite the conductive cap 14 with the insulating cap 13 in between. As a result, each of the transmitting electrode 16 and the receiving electrode 17 is capacitively coupled to the conductive cap 14.

[0017] When the operator's finger 22 is brought close to the conductive cap 14, a capacitance is formed between the finger 22 and the conductive cap 14, and the capacitance of the capacitance sensor 15 changes. In response to the change in capacitance of the capacitance sensor 15, the capacitance sensor 15 outputs a detected value. This detected value increases, for example, as the finger 22 gets closer to the conductive cap 14.

[0018] The lighting unit 30 has a diffusion plate 31 and a plurality of light sources 32. The diffusion plate 31 is disposed between the plurality of light sources 32, the transmission electrode 16, and the reception electrode 17. Each light source 32 is, for example, an LED (Light-Emitting Diode). When the light source 32 emits light, the light from the light source 32 is diffused by the diffusion plate 31, passes through the transmission electrode 16 or the reception electrode 17 and the insulating cap 13, and is emitted to the operator side through the cutout portion of the conductive cap 14. Thereby, when viewed from the operator side, the operation unit 10 lights up in the shape of symbols, numbers, etc.

[0019] The control unit 40 has a microcomputer including a CPU (Central Processing Unit), a ROM (Read Only Memory), a RAM (Random Access Memory), etc. The control unit 40 is configured to acquire the detection value of the capacitance sensor 15 at every fixed sampling period, and determine whether an operation of the operation unit 10 has been performed based on the acquired detection value. Further, when it is determined that an operation of the operation unit 10 has been performed, the control unit 40 is configured to perform necessary registration processing and control the light emission state of the light source 32.

[0020] Next, the time change of the detection value of the capacitance sensor 15 will be described. FIG. 2 is a graph showing an example of the time change of the detection value when the operation unit is non-contact-operated in the elevator operation device according to the present embodiment. The horizontal axis in FIG. 2 represents time, that is, the number of samplings. The vertical axis in FIG. 2 represents the detection value of the capacitance sensor 15. The detection value of the capacitance sensor 15 is acquired by the control unit 40 at every sampling period. The acquired detection value is stored in the RAM of the control unit 40 for a certain period.

[0021] As shown in FIG. 2, in a state where no operation is being performed on the operation unit 10, the detected value of the capacitance sensor 15 is generally maintained at the reference value. When a non-contact operation of the operation unit 10 is performed by bringing the operator's finger closer to the conductive cap 14, the detected value of the capacitance sensor 15 increases from the reference value to be equal to or greater than the threshold detection value Cth. Hereinafter, the period during which the detected value increases from the reference value to be equal to or greater than the threshold detection value Cth may be referred to as the increasing period.

[0022] Thereafter, when the non-contact operation ends by moving the operator's finger away from the conductive cap 14, the detected value decreases to less than the threshold detection value Cth. Although not shown in FIG. 2, when the operator's finger is moved sufficiently away from the conductive cap 14, the detected value generally returns to the reference value.

[0023] In the control unit 40, the amount of change in the detected value per unit time ΔC during the increasing period, that is, the slope of the detected value during the increasing period, is calculated. The amount of change in the detected value per unit time ΔC during the increasing period is calculated based on, for example, the detected value at a specific number of samplings corresponding to the time t1. The time t1 can be adjusted as appropriate. The calculated amount of change in the detected value ΔC is stored in the RAM of the control unit 40 for a certain period.

[0024] FIG. 3 is a graph showing an example of the time change of the detected value when an impact is applied to the operation unit in the elevator operation device according to the present embodiment. The horizontal axis and the vertical axis in FIG. 2 are the same as the horizontal axis and the vertical axis in FIG. 3.

[0025] The capacitance sensor 15 of the elevator operation device is often arranged directly below the operation unit 10 having a switch, a button, etc. For this reason, when an impact or vibration is applied to the operation unit 10, the relative positional relationship between the transmission electrode 16, the reception electrode 17, and the conductive cap 14 may shift. When the relative positional relationship between the transmission electrode 16, the reception electrode 17, and the conductive cap 14 shifts, the detected value of the capacitance sensor 15 changes.

[0026] In the example shown in Figure 3, when an impact is applied to the operating unit 10, the detected value of the capacitance sensor 15 increases from the reference value to above the threshold detection value Cth after a period of increase. The increase period in Figure 3 is shorter than the increase period in Figure 2. In other words, the amount of change in the detected value per unit time ΔC when the detected value changes due to the influence of external disturbances such as impact is greater than the amount of change in the detected value per unit time ΔC when the detected value changes due to non-contact operation of the operating unit 10.

[0027] If the detection value of the capacitance sensor 15 changes due to a shift in the relative positional relationship between the transmitting electrode 16, the receiving electrode 17, and the conductive cap 14, the detection value of the capacitance sensor 15 will not return to the original reference value even if the operator's finger is moved away from the conductive cap 14. In the example shown in Figure 3, the detection value remains above the threshold detection value Cth for a period of time greater than or equal to the threshold time Tth. In this state, it becomes difficult to accurately determine the operation of the operating unit 10, and malfunctions are more likely to occur.

[0028] Figure 4 is a flowchart showing an example of the flow of the operation determination process performed in the control unit of the elevator operating device according to this embodiment. This operation determination process is repeatedly performed, for example, each time the control unit 40 acquires the detected value of the capacitance sensor 15.

[0029] In step S1 of Figure 4, the control unit 40 determines whether the detected value of the capacitance sensor 15 is greater than or equal to the threshold detection value Cth. If the detected value is greater than or equal to the threshold detection value Cth, the control unit 40 proceeds to step S2. If the detected value is less than the threshold detection value Cth, the control unit 40 terminates its processing.

[0030] In step S2, the control unit 40 determines whether the time during which the detected value is maintained at or above the threshold detection value Cth is equal to or greater than the threshold time Tth. If the time during which the detected value is maintained at or above the threshold detection value Cth is equal to or greater than the threshold time Tth, the control unit 40 proceeds to step S3. If the time during which the detected value is maintained at or above the threshold detection value Cth is less than the threshold time Tth, the control unit 40 terminates its processing.

[0031] In step S3, the control unit 40 determines whether the amount of change in the detected value per unit time ΔC during the increase period is greater than or equal to the threshold change ΔCth. The amount of change in the detected value ΔC may be calculated during the increase period, or it may be calculated after the increase period has passed and the detected value has become greater than or equal to the threshold detected value Cth.

[0032] If the detected value change amount ΔC is less than the threshold change amount ΔCth, the control unit 40 proceeds to step S4. In step S4, the control unit 40 determines that the operation of the operation unit 10 has been performed. Subsequently, the control unit 40 performs the necessary registration process and controls the light emission state of the light source 32.

[0033] On the other hand, if the amount of change in the detected value ΔC in step S3 is greater than or equal to the threshold change amount ΔCth, the control unit 40 determines that the operation unit 10 has not been operated and terminates the process. In other words, even if the detected value of the capacitance sensor 15 satisfies the conditions for non-contact operation, if the amount of change in the detected value ΔC during the increase period is greater than or equal to the threshold change amount ΔCth, the control unit 40 determines that the detected value of the capacitance sensor 15 has changed due to a disturbance such as an impact.

[0034] Thus, in this embodiment, if the change in detected value ΔC is less than the threshold change ΔCth, it is determined that the operation of the operation unit 10 has been performed when the detected value becomes equal to or greater than the threshold detected value Cth, and the time during which the detected value remains equal to or greater than the threshold detected value Cth is equal to or greater than the threshold time Tth. On the other hand, if the change in detected value ΔC is equal to or greater than the threshold change ΔCth, it is determined that the operation of the operation unit 10 has not been performed even if the detected value becomes equal to or greater than the threshold detected value Cth, and the time during which the detected value remains equal to or greater than the threshold detected value Cth is equal to or greater than the threshold time Tth.

[0035] In this embodiment, the condition for determining that the operation unit 10 has been performed is that the detected value becomes equal to or greater than the threshold detection value Cth, and the time during which the detected value remains equal to or greater than the threshold time Tth is equal to or greater than the threshold time Tth. However, the condition for determining that the operation unit 10 has been performed may be that the detected value becomes equal to or greater than the threshold detection value Cth. In this case, the process in step S2 of Figure 4 can be omitted.

[0036] When elevator control devices are installed in semi-outdoor environments, disturbances caused by the installation environment may be more likely to occur. Therefore, at least one of the threshold time Tth and threshold change ΔCth may be adjustable. This allows the threshold time Tth and threshold change ΔCth to be set to appropriate values ​​depending on the installation environment of the elevator control device.

[0037] The change in detected value ΔC may be calculated using a value obtained by performing calculations on the detected value. Examples of calculations performed on the detected value include median filtering, major filtering, IIR (Infinite Impulse Response) filtering, and moving average processing.

[0038] As described above, the elevator operating device according to this embodiment comprises an operating unit 10 and a control unit 40. The operating unit 10 has a capacitance sensor 15. The control unit 40 acquires the detected value from the capacitance sensor 15 and determines whether or not the operating unit 10 has been operated based on the detected value.

[0039] The control unit 40 calculates the amount of change in the detected value per unit time during the increasing period in which the detected value increases. If the amount of change in the detected value is less than the threshold change amount ΔCth, the control unit 40 determines that an operation has been performed when the detected value becomes equal to or greater than the threshold detected value Cth. On the other hand, if the amount of change in the detected value is equal to or greater than the threshold change amount ΔCth, the control unit 40 determines that no operation has been performed even if the detected value becomes equal to or greater than the threshold detected value Cth.

[0040] The elevator control device may be subjected to impacts from the operator's contact operation of the control unit 10, passengers boarding and alighting from the elevator car, starting and stopping the elevator, and passengers colliding with the elevator car wall. When the detected value of the capacitance sensor 15 changes due to the influence of external disturbances such as impacts, the amount of change in the detected value per unit of time is larger compared to when the detected value changes due to non-contact operation of the control unit 10. Therefore, with the above configuration, it is possible to prevent the device from mistakenly determining that the control unit 10 has been operated when the detected value changes due to the influence of external disturbances. Thus, with the above configuration, non-contact operation can be accurately determined. As a result, an elevator control device with high robustness against external disturbances such as impacts can be obtained while maintaining high operability. Furthermore, since the above configuration does not require any changes to the hardware, it is possible to suppress increases in product cost and product size.

[0041] Furthermore, in the elevator operating device according to this embodiment, the control unit 40 determines that an operation has been performed when the amount of change in the detected value is less than the threshold change amount ΔCth, the detected value becomes equal to or greater than the threshold detected value Cth, and the time during which the detected value is maintained at or above the threshold detected value Cth is equal to or greater than the threshold time Tth. On the other hand, the control unit 40 determines that no operation has been performed when the amount of change in the detected value is equal to or greater than the threshold change amount ΔCth, the detected value becomes equal to or greater than the threshold detected value Cth, and the time during which the detected value is maintained at or above the threshold detected value Cth is equal to or greater than the threshold time Tth.

[0042] This configuration prevents misinterpretation of operation by the control unit 10 when the relative positional relationship of the electrodes shifts due to external disturbances. Therefore, this configuration allows for accurate detection of non-contact operations. As a result, an elevator control device with high robustness against external disturbances such as shocks is obtained while maintaining high operability. Furthermore, since this configuration does not require any changes to the hardware, cost increases can be kept to a minimum.

[0043] In the elevator control device according to this embodiment, the threshold time Tth is adjustable. With this configuration, the threshold time Tth can be set to an appropriate value depending on the installation environment of the elevator control device.

[0044] In the elevator control device according to this embodiment, the threshold change amount ΔCth is adjustable. With this configuration, the threshold change amount ΔCth can be set to an appropriate value depending on the installation environment of the elevator control device.

[0045] In the elevator operating device according to this embodiment, the amount of change in the detected value is calculated using a value obtained by performing calculations on the detected value. With this configuration, it is possible to eliminate specific changes in the detected value caused by external noise, and thus non-contact operation can be determined with even greater accuracy. [Explanation of symbols]

[0046] 10 Operating section, 11 Button ring section, 12 Button cap section, 13 Insulating cap, 14 Conductive cap, 15 Capacitive sensor, 16 Transmitting electrode, 17 Receiving electrode, 20 Faceplate, 21 Opening, 22 Finger, 30 Illumination section, 31 Diffuser plate, 32 Light source, 40 Control section, Cth Threshold detection value, Tth Threshold time, ΔC Change in detection value, ΔCth Threshold change.

Claims

1. An operating unit having a capacitive sensor, A control unit that acquires the detected value of the capacitance sensor and determines whether or not the operation of the operation unit has been performed based on the detected value, Equipped with, The control unit, The amount of change in the detected value per unit time during the period in which the detected value increases is calculated. If the amount of change in the detected value is less than the threshold change, it is determined that the operation has been performed when the detected value is equal to or greater than the threshold detected value. If the amount of change in the detected value is greater than or equal to the amount of change in the threshold, it is determined that the operation has not been performed even if the detected value is greater than or equal to the threshold detected value. The control unit calculates the amount of change in the detected value during the period in which the detected value increases to or above the threshold detected value.

2. An operating unit having a capacitive sensor, A control unit that acquires the detected value of the capacitance sensor and determines whether or not the operation of the operation unit has been performed based on the detected value, Equipped with, The control unit, The amount of change in the detected value per unit time during the period in which the detected value increases is calculated. If the amount of change in the detected value is less than the threshold change, the operation is determined to have been performed when the detected value becomes equal to or greater than the threshold detected value, and the time during which the detected value remains equal to or greater than the threshold time. If the amount of change in the detected value is greater than or equal to the threshold change, even if the detected value becomes greater than or equal to the threshold detected value and the time during which the detected value remains greater than or equal to the threshold detected value exceeds the threshold time, it is determined that the operation has not been performed. The control unit calculates the amount of change in the detected value during the period in which the detected value increases to or above the threshold detected value.

3. The elevator operating device according to claim 2, wherein the threshold time is adjustable.

4. The elevator operating device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the threshold change amount is adjustable.

5. The elevator operating device according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the amount of change in the detected value is calculated using a value obtained by performing calculation processing on the detected value.

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