Elevator system

Abstract

Provided is an elevator system that is able to prevent congestion of a landing at a through floor. This elevator system comprises: an elevator car provided with two doorways; a first car door provided in one doorway of the two doorways; a second car door provided in the other doorway of the two doorways; and a control device for controlling the opening / closing operations of the first car door and the second car door. When it is determined that a first landing corresponding to the first car door at a through floor is more congested than a second landing corresponding to the second car door at the through floor, the control device sets the second car door as the car door to open first at the through floor.

Description

elevator system

[0001] The present disclosure relates to elevator systems.

[0002] Patent Document 1 discloses an elevator system. In this elevator system, a car is provided with two entrances. A passenger in the car operates a control panel inside the car to decide which of the two entrances will open at a connecting floor. When the car arrives at a connecting floor, an indicator light inside the car can indicate which of the two entrances the car door will open.

[0003] Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2000-255925

[0004] However, in the elevator system described in Patent Document 1, passengers operate the control panel without knowing which entrance / exit of the landing is crowded. As a result, on the connecting floor, the entrance / exit corresponding to the crowded landing may open. In this case, the landing may become even more crowded.

[0005] The present disclosure has been made to solve the above-mentioned problems, and an object of the present disclosure is to provide an elevator system that can prevent congestion at landings on connecting floors.

[0006] An elevator system according to the present disclosure includes a car with two entrances, a first car door provided at one of the two entrances, a second car door provided at the other of the two entrances, and a control device that controls the opening and closing operations of the first car door and the second car door. When it is determined that a first landing corresponding to the first car door on a connecting floor is more crowded than a second landing corresponding to the second car door on the connecting floor, the control device determines that the second car door will be the car door that will open first on the connecting floor.

[0007] According to the present disclosure, on a connecting floor, the second car door corresponding to a second landing different from the first landing determined to be crowded opens first, thereby preventing the landings on the connecting floor from becoming crowded.

[0008] Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a building in which an elevator system according to embodiment 1 is installed. Fig. 2 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of the elevator system according to embodiment 1 when a car is parked at a through floor. Fig. 3 is a block diagram of the elevator system according to embodiment 1. Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of an example of a building to which the elevator system according to embodiment 1 is applied. Fig. 5 is a flowchart for explaining an overview of a part of the operation of the elevator system according to embodiment 1. Fig. 6 is a hardware configuration diagram of a control device for the elevator system according to embodiment 1.

[0009] The embodiments of the present disclosure will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings. In each drawing, the same or corresponding parts are designated by the same reference numerals. Duplicate descriptions of these parts will be appropriately simplified or omitted.

[0010] Embodiment 1. Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram of a building provided with an elevator system in embodiment 1. Fig. 2 is a horizontal cross-sectional view of the elevator system in embodiment 1 when a car is parked at a connecting floor.

[0011] In the elevator system 1 of Fig. 1, a hoistway 2 passes through each floor of a building 3. In this embodiment, a machine room-less elevator system 1 is shown.

[0012] The car 4 is provided inside the hoistway 2. The car 4 can be raised and lowered inside the hoistway 2 by a hoisting machine (not shown). The car 4 is a car with a two-way entrance / exit system. In a car 4 with a two-way entrance / exit system, entrances are provided on two sides; specifically, the car 4 is provided with two car doors, a front car door 5a and a rear car door 5b.

[0013] The front car door 5a corresponds to one of the entrances and is provided on one side of the car 4. The front car door 5a includes a front door panel 6a and a front drive machine 7a. The front door panel 6a is provided at one of the entrances of the car 4 so as to be able to open and close. The front drive machine 7a is a motor. The front drive machine 7a opens or closes the front door panel 6a based on a control command.

[0014] The rear car door 5b corresponds to the other entrance that is different from the one entrance, and is provided on a side surface of the car 4 that is different from the front car door 5a. For example, the rear car door 5b is provided on the side surface opposite to the one side surface. The rear car door 5b includes a rear door panel 6b and a rear drive mechanism 7b. The rear door panel 6b is provided at the other entrance of the car 4 so as to be able to open and close. The rear drive mechanism 7b is a motor. The rear drive mechanism 7b opens or closes the rear door panel 6b based on a control command.

[0015] A plurality of landings 8 are provided on each floor of the building 3. Each of the plurality of landings 8 faces the hoistway 2. A through floor is set in the elevator system 1. A through floor is a floor where the car 4 can be accessed from either of two entrances / exits of the car 4. On the through floor, a front landing 8a and a rear landing 8b of the plurality of landings 8 are provided. The front landing 8a is a landing corresponding to one entrance / exit of the car 4. The rear landing 8b is a landing corresponding to the other entrance / exit of the car 4.

[0016] The multiple landing doors 9 are provided at the entrances and exits of the multiple landings 8, respectively. On the through floor, a front landing door 9a and a rear landing door 9b of the multiple landing doors 9 are provided. The front landing door 9a is provided at the entrance and exit of the front landing 8a. The rear landing door 9b is provided at the entrance and exit of the rear landing 8b.

[0017] The plurality of hall operating panels 10 are provided on the sides of the hall doors 9 at each of the plurality of halls 8. The hall operating panels 10 accept hall call inputs from users. On the through floor, a front hall operating panel 10a and a rear hall operating panel 10b of the plurality of hall operating panels 10 are provided at the front hall 8a and the rear hall 8b, respectively.

[0018] The elevator system 1 is provided with a front landing camera 11a and a rear landing camera 11b. The front landing camera 11a is provided at the front landing 8a. For example, the front landing camera 11a is provided above the front landing door 9a. The front landing camera 11a is capable of capturing images of the front landing 8a. The rear landing camera 11b is provided at the rear landing 8b. For example, the rear landing camera 11b is provided above the rear landing door 9b. The rear landing camera 11b is capable of capturing images of the rear landing 8b.

[0019] The front platform alarm 12a is provided at the front platform 8a. For example, the front platform alarm 12a is a speaker. The rear platform alarm 12b is provided at the rear platform 8b. For example, the rear platform alarm 12b is a speaker. The car alarm 13 is provided inside the car 4. For example, the car alarm 13 is a speaker. Note that at least one of the front platform alarm 12a, the rear platform alarm 12b, and the car alarm 13 may be a device that notifies users of information using not only sound but also light, etc. In this case, at least one of the front platform alarm 12a, the rear platform alarm 12b, and the car alarm 13 may include not only a speaker but also an indicator light, a character display panel, etc.

[0020] The control device 14 is provided inside the hoistway 2 as a control panel. The control device 14 can control the entire elevator system 1. Specifically, the control device 14 controls the operation of the car 4. The control device 14 controls the opening and closing operation of the front car door 5a or the rear car door 5b by sending a control command to the front drive machine 7a or the rear drive machine 7b. In particular, when the car 4 stops at a connecting floor, the control device 14 determines which of the front car door 5a or the rear car door 5b will open first at the connecting floor, using the image captured by the front hall camera 11a and the image captured by the rear hall camera 11b.

[0021] 2, the car 4 is provided with a car operation panel 15. The car operation panel 15 receives input of destination floors from passengers of the car 4.

[0022] Although not shown, on the connecting floor, the front landing door 9a receives a force from the front driving machine 7a and opens together with the front door panel 6a. On the connecting floor, the rear landing door 9b receives a force from the rear driving machine 7b and opens together with the rear door panel 6b.

[0023] Next, the control device 14 will be described with reference to Fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a block diagram of the elevator system according to the first embodiment.

[0024] As shown in FIG. 3 , the control device 14 includes an operation control unit 16 , a determination unit 17 , a door control unit 18 , and a notification unit 19 .

[0025] The operation control unit 16 controls the operation of the car 4 .

[0026] The determination unit 17 acquires information on images captured by the front hall camera 11a and the rear hall camera 11b. The determination unit 17 calculates a front congestion degree, which is the congestion degree of the front hall 8a, using the image that shows the front hall 8a. The determination unit 17 calculates a rear congestion degree, which is the congestion degree of the rear hall 8b, using the image that shows the rear hall 8b. The congestion degree is a measure of how crowded the hall 8 is, and is an index value that indicates the density of people present at the hall 8.

[0027] The determination unit 17 compares the front congestion degree with the rear congestion degree to determine which of the front landing 8a and the rear landing 8b is more crowded. Specifically, if the front congestion degree is greater than the rear congestion degree, the determination unit 17 determines that the front landing 8a is more crowded than the rear landing 8b. If the rear congestion degree is greater than the front congestion degree, the determination unit 17 determines that the rear landing 8b is more crowded than the front landing 8a.

[0028] The door control unit 18 controls the opening and closing operations of the front car door 5 a and the rear car door 5 b. When the car 4 arrives at a connecting floor, the door control unit 18 determines, using the determination result of the determination unit 17, which of the front car door 5 a and the rear car door 5 b will open first.

[0029] Specifically, when the determination unit 17 determines that the front landing 8a is more crowded than the rear landing 8b, the door control unit 18 determines that the rear car door 5b, which is the car door corresponding to the less crowded landing, is the second car door to be opened first.When the determination unit 17 determines that the rear landing 8b is more crowded than the front landing 8a, the door control unit 18 determines that the front car door 5a is the second car door to be opened first.

[0030] After car 4 arrives at the through floor and stops there, door control unit 18 opens the second car door that was determined to be opened first. Door control unit 18 keeps the first car door, either front car door 5 a or rear car door 5 b, closed, which is not the second car door that was determined to be opened first.

[0031] When car 4 is on a through floor and has received a hall call from the first hall operating panel of the first hall corresponding to the first car door, door control unit 18 opens the first car door after the waiting time has elapsed since opening the second car door. When opening the first car door, door control unit 18 may keep the second car door open or may close the second car door.

[0032] The notification unit 19 controls the content of notifications from the front landing alarm 12 a, the rear landing alarm 12 b, and the car alarm 13.

[0033] Next, an example of the congestion degree calculated by the elevator system 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 4. Fig. 4 is a schematic diagram of an example of a building to which the elevator system according to the first embodiment is applied. In Fig. 4, the control device 14 is not shown.

[0034] As shown in Figure 4, in this example, the elevator system 1 is installed to connect a platform floor 3X and a ticket gate floor 3Y of a building 3 that is a station. The platform floor 3X is a through floor. The ticket gate floor 3Y is not a through floor. On the platform floor 3X, the number of people around the entrance / exit of the main hall 8a and the entrance / exit of the rear hall 8b changes dynamically depending on events such as the arrival and departure of trains. If stairs are installed near the main hall 8a, immediately after a train arrives, the area around the entrance / exit of the main hall 8a may become temporarily crowded with people trying to descend the stairs.

[0035] In the control device 14, an area used to calculate the congestion degree is set for each landing 8. The front area Ea indicated by a dashed dotted line is an area corresponding to the front landing 8a. The front area Ea is set to an arbitrary range including the entrance / exit of the front landing 8a. The rear area Eb indicated by a dashed dotted line is an area corresponding to the rear landing 8b. The rear area Eb is set to an arbitrary range including the entrance / exit of the rear landing 8b.

[0036] The front hall camera 11a captures an image of an area including the front area Ea. The control device 14 uses the image captured by the front hall camera 11a to calculate the number of people present within the front area Ea as the front congestion degree of the front hall 8a. The control device 14 calculates a number including not only people stationary within the front area Ea but also people moving within the front area Ea. Therefore, the front congestion degree includes not only the influence of people stationary near the entrance / exit of the front hall 8a to board the car 4, but also the influence of people waiting for a train near the front hall 8a and people moving around the front hall 8a. Note that the control device 14 may calculate the total area of ​​the image that is not the ground in the front area Ea as the front congestion degree.

[0037] The rear hall camera 11b captures an image of an area including the rear hall area Eb. The control device 14 uses the image captured by the rear hall camera 11b to calculate the number of people present within the rear hall area Eb as the rear hall congestion degree of the rear hall 8b. The control device 14 calculates a number including not only people stationary within the rear hall area Eb but also people moving within the rear hall area Eb. Therefore, the rear hall congestion degree includes not only the influence of people stationary near the entrance / exit of the rear hall 8b to board the car 4, but also the influence of people waiting for a train near the rear hall 8b and people moving around the rear hall 8b. Note that the control device 14 may calculate the total area of ​​the image in the rear hall area Eb that is not the ground as the rear hall congestion degree.

[0038] Next, a part of the operation performed in the elevator system 1 will be described with reference to Fig. 5. Fig. 5 is a flowchart for outlining a part of the operation of the elevator system according to the first embodiment.

[0039] In the flowchart of Figure 5, a case will be described in which the front landing 8a is more crowded than the rear landing 8b. The crowded front landing 8a is also referred to as the first landing. The front car door 5a corresponding to the first landing is also referred to as the first car door. The uncrowded rear landing 8b is also referred to as the second landing. The rear car door 5b corresponding to the second landing is also referred to as the second car door.

[0040] In step S1, the operation control unit 16 determines whether or not car 4 will arrive at the through floor. Specifically, if the floor at which car 4 will next stop is a through floor, the operation control unit 16 determines that car 4 will arrive at the through floor. If the floor at which car 4 will next stop is not a through floor, the operation control unit 16 determines that car 4 will not arrive at the through floor.

[0041] If it is determined in step S1 that car 4 will not arrive at the through floor, the operation of step S1 is repeated.

[0042] If it is determined in step S1 that car 4 will arrive at the connecting floor, the operation of step S2 is performed. In step S2, the determination unit 17 acquires image information of the first hall from the front hall camera 11a, which is a first camera that images the first hall. The determination unit 17 acquires image information of the second hall from the rear hall camera 11b, which is a second camera that images the second hall. The determination unit 17 uses the acquired images to calculate a first congestion degree that is the congestion degree of the first hall and a second congestion degree that is the congestion degree of the second hall.

[0043] Then, in step S3, the determination unit 17 compares the first congestion degree with the second congestion degree and determines that the first congestion degree is greater. In this case, the determination unit 17 determines that the first landing is more crowded than the first landing. The door control unit 18 determines that the second car door will be the car door that opens first on the connecting floor.

[0044] Thereafter, in step S4, the notification unit 19 notifies the car alarm 13 that the rear car door 5b, which is the car door that opens first, will open at the connecting floor. The notification unit 19 notifies the front landing alarm 12a, which is a first landing alarm provided at the first landing, that the rear car door 5b will open at the connecting floor. The notification unit 19 notifies the rear landing alarm 12b, which is a second landing alarm provided at the second landing, that the rear car door 5b will open at the connecting floor.

[0045] Thereafter, in step S5, car 4 stops at the connecting floor. The door control unit 18 opens the second car door that was determined to be the car door that will open first. The door control unit 18 maintains the first car door closed.

[0046] Thereafter, in step S6, the operation control unit 16 determines whether or not a hall call is being made from the first hall. Specifically, the operation control unit 16 determines whether or not a hall call is being made from the front hall operating panel 10a, which is the first hall operating panel provided at the first hall. Note that instead of the operation control unit 16, the door control unit 18 may determine whether or not a hall call is being made from the first hall.

[0047] If it is determined in step S6 that no hall call has been made at hall 1, the operation of step S7 is performed. In step S7, after a specified time has elapsed, the door control unit 18 closes all car doors. The operation control unit 16 causes car 4 to depart from the connecting floor. The operation of the flowchart then ends.

[0048] If it is determined in step S6 that a hall call is being made at the first hall, the operation of step S8 is performed. In step S8, the door control unit 18 determines whether or not a specified waiting time has elapsed since the second car door opened.

[0049] If it is determined in step S8 that the waiting time has not elapsed, the operation of step S8 is repeated.

[0050] If it is determined in step S8 that the waiting time has elapsed, the operation of step S9 is performed. In step S9, the door control unit 18 opens a first car door that is different from the car door that was opened first. Thereafter, the operation of step S7 is performed. Thereafter, the operation of the flowchart is terminated.

[0051] Note that while waiting for the waiting time to elapse in step S8, the notification unit 19 may cause the first hall alarm to notify that the first car door will soon be opened.

[0052] If the rear landing 8b is more crowded than the front landing 8a, the crowded rear landing 8b is also referred to as the first landing. In this case, the uncrowded front landing 8a is also referred to as the second landing.

[0053] According to the first embodiment described above, in the elevator system 1, the car 4 is provided with two entrances and exits. The car 4 is provided with a front car door 5a and a rear car door 5b as a first car door and a second car door. The control device 14 determines which car door to open first on a connecting floor depending on the degree of congestion at the halls on the connecting floors. Therefore, the elevator system 1 can allow passengers in the car 4 to disembark from the hall that is less crowded. As a result, congestion at the halls on the connecting floors can be suppressed. Furthermore, passenger convenience can be improved.

[0054] In particular, to prevent the spread of infectious diseases transmitted through droplets, it is important to avoid crowded situations as much as possible. Passengers in car 4 can disembark at a less crowded platform on the connecting floor. As a result, the spread of infectious diseases can be prevented. Furthermore, when it is necessary to disperse the flow of people in a building, the flow of people disembarking from car 4 can be dispersed.

[0055] The elevator system 1 further includes a first camera, a front hall camera 11a, and a rear hall camera 11b, which are a first camera and a second camera. The control device 14 calculates a first congestion level for the first hall and a second congestion level for the second hall, and quantifies the degree of congestion. In particular, the control device 14 determines the number of people present in the first area as the first congestion level. In particular, the control device 14 determines the number of people present in the second area as the second congestion level. This allows the elevator system 1 to more accurately determine the degree of congestion at the first hall and the second hall.

[0056] 5, the operation of step S8 may be performed after the operation of step S5 without performing the operation of step S6. In this case, the door control unit 18 of the control device 14 may open the first car door after the waiting time has elapsed since the second car door was opened, regardless of whether a hall call has been made at the first landing. This allows a passenger waiting at the first landing to board car 4 without moving toward the second car door.

[0057] Furthermore, the control device 14 opens the first car door when the waiting time has elapsed while a hall call is being made from the first hall operating panel. Even in this case, a passenger waiting at the first hall can board car 4 without moving toward the second car door. Furthermore, it is possible to prevent the first car door from being opened even when there are no passengers waiting at the first hall. As a result, the operating efficiency of car 4 can be improved.

[0058] The elevator system 1 may also be of a type having a machine room.

[0059] The two entrances of the car 4 do not have to face each other. For example, one entrance of the car 4 may be provided on a side surface adjacent to the side surface of the car 4 on which the other entrance is provided.

[0060] In addition, the determination unit 17 and the door control unit 18 of the control device 14 may be provided in a door controller that integrally controls the front drive machine 7a and the rear drive machine 7b provided in the car 4. The door controller may further be provided with an alarm unit 19.

[0061] The front hall camera 11a and the rear hall camera 11b may capture a video that is a series of images instead of an image, and transmit information about the image to the control device 14. The determination unit 17 of the control device 14 may calculate the congestion level based on the information about the image.

[0062] Next, an example of hardware constituting the control device 14 will be described with reference to Fig. 6. Fig. 6 is a hardware configuration diagram of the control device of the elevator system according to the first embodiment.

[0063] Each function of the control device 14 may be realized by a processing circuit. For example, the processing circuit may include at least one processor 100 a and at least one memory 100 b. For example, the processing circuit may include at least one dedicated hardware 200.

[0064] When the processing circuit includes at least one processor 100a and at least one memory 100b, the functions of the control device 14 are implemented by software, firmware, or a combination of software and firmware. At least one of the software and firmware is written as a program. At least one of the software and firmware is stored in the at least one memory 100b. The at least one processor 100a implements the functions of the control device 14 by reading and executing the program stored in the at least one memory 100b. The at least one processor 100a is also referred to as a central processing unit, processing device, arithmetic unit, microprocessor, microcomputer, or DSP. For example, the at least one memory 100b may be a non-volatile or volatile semiconductor memory such as RAM, ROM, flash memory, EPROM, or EEPROM, a magnetic disk, a flexible disk, an optical disk, a compact disk, a minidisk, or a DVD.

[0065] When the processing circuit includes at least one dedicated hardware 200, the processing circuit may be implemented, for example, as a single circuit, a composite circuit, a programmed processor, a parallel programmed processor, an ASIC, an FPGA, or a combination thereof. For example, each function of the control device 14 may be implemented individually by a processing circuit. For example, each function of the control device 14 may be implemented collectively by a processing circuit.

[0066] Some of the functions of the control device 14 may be implemented by dedicated hardware 200, and the remaining functions may be implemented by software or firmware. For example, the function of calculating the congestion level may be implemented by a processing circuit as the dedicated hardware 200, and functions other than the function of calculating the congestion level may be implemented by at least one processor 100a reading and executing a program stored in at least one memory 100b.

[0067] Thus, the processing circuitry implements the functions of the controller 14 in hardware 200, software, firmware, or a combination thereof.

[0068] As described above, the elevator system according to the present disclosure can be used in an elevator provided with two-way entrances and exits.

[0069] REFERENCE SIGNS LIST 1 elevator system, 2 hoistway, 3 building, 3X platform floor, 3Y ticket gate floor, 4 car, 5a front car door, 5b rear car door, 6a front door panel, 6b rear door panel, 7a front drive mechanism, 7b rear drive mechanism, 8 landing, 8a front landing, 8b rear landing, 9 landing door, 9a front landing door, 9b rear landing door, 10 landing operation panel, 10a front landing operation panel, 10b rear landing operation panel, 11a front landing camera, 11b rear landing camera, 12a front landing alarm, 12b rear landing alarm, 13 car alarm, 14 control device, 15 car operation panel, 16 operation control unit, 17 Determination unit, 18 door control unit, 19 alarm unit, 100a processor, 100b memory, 200 hardware, Ea front area, Eb rear area

Claims

1. A cage with two entrances, a first car door provided at one of the two entrances; a second car door provided at the other of the two entrances; a control device that controls an opening / closing operation of the first car door and the second car door; A first camera is provided at a first landing corresponding to the first car door on the through floor and captures an image of the first landing; A second camera is provided at a second landing corresponding to the second car door on the through floor and captures an image of the second landing; Equipped with The first camera captures an image of a range including a first area of ​​the first hall, The second camera captures an image of a range including a second area of ​​the second hall, The control device calculates a total area of ​​images that are not the ground in the first region as a first congestion degree of the first platform using information captured by the first camera, calculates a total area of ​​images that are not the ground in the second region as a second congestion degree of the second platform using information captured by the second camera, and determines which of the first platform and the second platform is more crowded by comparing the first congestion degree and the second congestion degree; When it is determined that the first landing is more crowded than the second landing, the control device determines the second car door to be the car door that will open first at the connecting floor.

2. A cage with two entrances, a first car door provided at one of the two entrances; a second car door provided at the other of the two entrances; a control device that controls an opening / closing operation of the first car door and the second car door; a first landing alarm that is provided at a first landing corresponding to the first car door on the through floor and that notifies information; Equipped with When it is determined that the first landing is busier than a second landing corresponding to the second car door on the through floor, the control device determines that the second car door will be the car door that will open first on the through floor, and the first landing alarm notifies that the second car door will open on the through floor.

3. A first camera provided at the first hall and configured to capture an image of the first hall; A second camera provided at the second landing and capturing an image of the second landing; Further comprising:

3. The elevator system according to claim 2, wherein the control device calculates a first congestion degree of the first hall using information captured by the first camera, calculates a second congestion degree of the second hall using information captured by the second camera, and determines which of the first hall and the second hall is more crowded by comparing the first congestion degree and the second congestion degree.

4. The first camera captures an image of a range including a first area of ​​the first hall, The second camera captures an image of a range including a second area of ​​the second hall, The elevator system according to claim 3 , wherein the control device calculates the number of people present in the first area as the first congestion degree, and calculates the number of people present in the second area as the second congestion degree.

5. 5. The elevator system according to claim 1, wherein the control device opens the first car door when a waiting time has elapsed after the second car door is opened at the connecting floor.

6. 5. The elevator system according to claim 1, wherein the control device opens the first car door when a waiting time has elapsed while a hall call is being made from the first hall after the second car door is opened at the through floor.