Elevator flood response system

Abstract

An elevator flood response system is disclosed. The elevator flood response system comprises: a drive unit for moving an elevator car along a shaft; a flood detection sensor mounted on the outer lower side of the elevator car to detect flooding in the lower part of the elevator car; an inflatable buoyancy device mounted on the outer lower side of the elevator car that is compressed and then expands to provide buoyancy to the elevator car; a motion detection sensor for detecting the movement of the elevator car; an emergency power supply unit installed on the upper side of the elevator car to supply emergency power; and a monitoring device installed on the upper side of the elevator car to emergency control the elevator car in the event of flooding in the building, and to control the elevator car to move using the inflatable buoyancy device if the elevator car does not move.

Description

Technology Field

[0001] The present invention relates to an elevator flood response system. Background Technology

[0002] The average annual precipitation in South Korea from 1991 to 2020 was 1,306.3 mm, with summer precipitation accounting for 710.9 mm, or 54% of the total. Consequently, as damage caused by flooding increased in urban areas, the Act on Measures to Prevent Flood Damage in Urban River Basins was enacted in September 2023, and flood damage prevention and response have become important factors for buildings and residential facilities.

[0003] Starting with the Gangnam district in the 1970s, the Seoul Metropolitan Government expanded housing and urban infrastructure. However, urban development was carried out in undeveloped low-lying areas without adequate flooding measures, resulting in direct damage from flooding that persists to this day. Most buildings are constructed with impermeable surfaces such as concrete and asphalt, preventing precipitation from seeping into the ground or flowing into rivers, thus hindering proper drainage throughout the city. Since the affected areas are located in low-lying areas lower than the rivers, water levels often rise above the capacity of the rivers and drainage facilities, leading to persistent river flooding and the inundation of building basements and parking lots. Consequently, people become isolated in these areas, resulting in ongoing loss of life.

[0004] Meanwhile, modern elevators are installed in most buildings due to the trend of urban high-rise development and are being utilized for various purposes rather than simply as a means of vertical movement. As elevators are the most frequently used structures within a building, the elevator industry has recently been improving safety and convenience by introducing various functions of the Fourth Industrial Revolution era, including IoT.

[0005] However, existing elevator systems lack measures for users isolated on the lowest floor due to flooding. Prior art literature

[0006] Korean Patent Publication No. 10-1582466 (December 29, 2015) The problem to be solved

[0007] The present invention is intended to provide an elevator flood response system that emergency controls an elevator in the event of flooding on the lowest floor of a building and controls the elevator to move using a buoyancy device when the elevator is not moving. means of solving the problem

[0008] According to one aspect of the present invention, an elevator flood response system is disclosed.

[0009] An elevator flood response system according to an embodiment of the present invention comprises: a driving device for moving an elevator car along a shaft; a flood detection sensor mounted on the outer lower side of the elevator car to detect flooding in the lower part of the elevator car; an inflatable buoyancy device mounted on the outer lower side of the elevator car that is compressed and then expands to provide buoyancy to the elevator car; a movement detection sensor for detecting the movement of the elevator car; an emergency power supply device installed on the upper side of the elevator car to supply emergency power; and a monitoring device installed on the upper side of the elevator car to emergency control the elevator car in the event of flooding in a building, and to control the elevator car to move using the inflatable buoyancy device when the elevator car does not move.

[0010] When the monitoring device detects flooding in the lower part of the elevator car, it controls the drive device to move the elevator car to the top of the elevator shaft.

[0011] When the above monitoring device detects that the elevator car is not moving by the movement detection sensor, it activates the inflatable buoyancy device.

[0012] The monitoring device supplies emergency power from the emergency power device to the drive device, thereby controlling the motor of the drive device to idle in the direction in which the elevator car rises.

[0013] The above-described inflatable buoyancy device includes a compressed buoyancy body, a compressed gas cylinder, and an injector that injects gas stored in the compressed gas cylinder into the compressed buoyancy body to inflate the compressed buoyancy body.

[0014] The above emergency power supply is an uninterruptible power supply (UPS). Effects of the invention

[0015] An elevator flood response system according to an embodiment of the present invention can emergency control the elevator when the lowest floor of a building is flooded, and can control the elevator to move using a buoyancy device when the elevator does not move. Brief explanation of the drawing

[0016] FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating the configuration of an elevator flood response system according to an embodiment of the present invention. FIG. 2 is a flowchart schematically illustrating the operation method of a monitoring device of an elevator flood response system according to an embodiment of the present invention of FIG. 1. Specific details for implementing the invention

[0017] As used in this specification, singular expressions include plural expressions unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. In this specification, terms such as "composed" or "comprising" should not be interpreted as necessarily including all of the various components or steps described in the specification, and should be interpreted as meaning that some of the components or steps may be excluded, or that additional components or steps may be included. Furthermore, terms such as "...part," "module," etc., as used in the specification refer to a unit that processes at least one function or operation, which may be implemented in hardware or software, or a combination of hardware and software.

[0018] Hereinafter, various embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the attached drawings.

[0019] FIG. 1 is a diagram schematically illustrating the configuration of an elevator flood response system according to an embodiment of the present invention.

[0020] Referring to FIG. 1, an elevator flood response system according to an embodiment of the present invention may be configured to include a driving device (100), a flood detection sensor (200), an inflatable buoyancy device (300), a movement detection sensor (400), an emergency power supply device (500), and a monitoring device (600).

[0021] The driving device (100) moves the elevator car (10) along the elevator shaft according to the input command signal using a preset algorithm.

[0022] A flood detection sensor (200) is mounted on the outer lower side of the elevator car (10) to detect flooding in the lower part of the elevator car (10).

[0023] For example, when water flows into the building while the elevator car (10) is stopped at the lowest floor of the building, the flood detection sensor (200) can detect that water rises from the bottom of the elevator shaft to the bottom of the elevator car (10) and floods.

[0024] An inflatable buoyancy device (300) is mounted on the lower outer side of the elevator car (10) and is normally compressed, but in an emergency, it expands under the control of a monitoring device (600) to be described later, thereby providing buoyancy to the elevator car (10).

[0025] Thus, the inflatable buoyancy device (300) rises along the elevator shaft by water rising into the lower part of the elevator car (10), thereby allowing the elevator car (10) to rise along the elevator shaft.

[0026] For example, the inflatable buoyancy device (300) may be configured to include a compressed buoyancy body, a compressed gas cylinder, and an injector that injects gas stored in the compressed gas cylinder into the compressed buoyancy body to inflate the compressed buoyancy body.

[0027] The movement detection sensor (400) detects the movement of the elevator car (10).

[0028] For example, the motion detection sensor (400) may include an acceleration sensor, a gyroscope sensor, etc., and can detect the movement of the elevator car (10) as it rises or falls along the elevator shaft.

[0029] The emergency power supply device (500) is installed on the upper part of the elevator car (10) and supplies emergency power to the driving device (100) through the monitoring device (600) to be described later.

[0030] For example, the emergency power supply (500) may be an uninterruptible power supply (UPS). Here, the uninterruptible power supply may be constantly charged to maintain the battery in a fully charged state.

[0031] A monitoring device (600) is installed on the upper part of the elevator car (10) to emergency control the elevator car (10) in the event of flooding of the building, and if the elevator car (10) does not move, it controls the elevator car (10) to move using an inflatable buoyancy device (300).

[0032] First, when the monitoring device (600) detects flooding in the lower part of the elevator car (10) by the flood detection sensor (200), the driving device (100) controls the elevator car (10) to move to the top of the elevator shaft.

[0033] If the supply of external power is interrupted due to flooding, the external power cannot be supplied to the drive unit (100), so the elevator car (10) cannot move to the top of the elevator shaft and stops. Also, as water continues to flow into the building, the water level in the elevator shaft may continue to rise.

[0034] At this time, the elevator car (10) may be detected to be in a stopped state and unable to move through the movement detection sensor (400).

[0035] That is, the monitoring device (600) controls the elevator car (10) to move to the top of the elevator shaft, but if the movement detection sensor (400) detects that the elevator car (10) is not moving, the inflatable buoyancy device (300) is activated.

[0036] For example, the monitoring device (600) can control the inflatable buoyancy device (300) so that the injector injects gas stored in the compressed gas cylinder into the compressed buoyancy body to inflate the compressed buoyancy body.

[0037] Next, the monitoring device (600) supplies emergency power from the emergency power device (500) to the driving device (100) to control the motor of the driving device (100) to idle in the direction in which the elevator car (10) rises.

[0038] Through this, the motor of the driving device (100) is idled so that the wire connected between the elevator car (10) and the motor of the driving device (100) is not fixed by the motor of the stopped driving device (100), so that the elevator car (10) equipped with the inflatable buoyancy device (300) can rise along the elevator shaft without resistance by the water rising to the bottom of the elevator car (10).

[0039] FIG. 2 is a flowchart schematically illustrating the operation method of a monitoring device of an elevator flood response system according to an embodiment of the present invention of FIG. 1.

[0040] In step S210, the monitoring device (600) detects flooding in the lower part of the elevator car (10) through the flood detection sensor (200).

[0041] In step S220, the monitoring device (600) controls the drive device (100) to move the elevator car (10) to the top of the elevator shaft as flooding in the lower part of the elevator car (10) is detected.

[0042] In step S230, the monitoring device (600) determines whether the elevator car (10) is not moving through the movement detection sensor (400).

[0043] In step S240, if the monitoring device (600) detects that the elevator car (10) has not moved as a result of judgment, it activates the inflatable buoyancy device (300).

[0044] In step S250, the monitoring device (600) supplies emergency power from the emergency power device (500) to the drive device (100) to control the motor of the drive device (100) to idle in the direction in which the elevator car (10) rises.

[0045] Meanwhile, the components of the aforementioned embodiments can be easily identified from a process perspective. That is, each component can be identified as a separate process. Furthermore, the processes of the aforementioned embodiments can be easily identified from the perspective of the device components.

[0046] In addition, the technical details described above may be implemented in the form of program instructions that can be executed through various computer means and recorded on a computer-readable medium. The computer-readable medium may include program instructions, data files, data structures, etc., either individually or in combination. The program instructions recorded on the medium may be those specifically designed and configured for the embodiments, or they may be those known and available to those skilled in the art of computer software. Examples of computer-readable recording media include magnetic media such as hard disks, floppy disks, and magnetic tapes; optical recording media such as CD-ROMs and DVDs; magneto-optical media such as floptical disks; and hardware devices specifically configured to store and execute program instructions, such as ROM, RAM, and flash memory. Examples of program instructions include machine code, such as that generated by a compiler, as well as high-level language code that can be executed by a computer using an interpreter, etc. Hardware devices may be configured to operate as one or more software modules to perform the operations of the embodiments, and vice versa.

[0047] The embodiments of the present invention described above are disclosed for illustrative purposes only, and those skilled in the art with ordinary knowledge of the present invention may make various modifications, changes, and additions within the spirit and scope of the present invention, and such modifications, changes, and additions should be considered to fall within the scope of the following claims. Explanation of the symbols

[0048] 100: Driving device 200: Flood detection sensor 300: Inflatable buoyancy device 400: Motion detection sensor 500: Emergency power supply 600: Monitoring device

Claims

Claim 1 An elevator flood response system comprising: a drive device for moving an elevator car along a shaft; a flood detection sensor mounted on the outer lower side of the elevator car to detect flooding in the lower part of the elevator car; an inflatable buoyancy device mounted on the outer lower side of the elevator car that is compressed and then expands to provide buoyancy to the elevator car; a movement detection sensor for detecting the movement of the elevator car; an emergency power supply device installed on the upper part of the elevator car to supply emergency power; and a monitoring device installed on the upper part of the elevator car to emergency control the elevator car in the event of flooding in a building, and to control the elevator car to move using the inflatable buoyancy device when the elevator car does not move. Claim 2 An elevator flood response system according to claim 1, characterized in that when flooding is detected in the lower part of the elevator car, the monitoring device controls the driving device to move the elevator car to the top of the elevator shaft. Claim 3 An elevator flood response system according to paragraph 2, characterized in that the monitoring device activates the inflatable buoyancy device when the non-movement of the elevator car is detected by the movement detection sensor. Claim 4 An elevator flood response system according to paragraph 3, characterized in that the monitoring device supplies emergency power from the emergency power device to the driving device, thereby controlling the motor of the driving device to idle in the direction in which the elevator car rises. Claim 5 An elevator flood response system according to claim 1, wherein the inflatable buoyancy device comprises: a compressed buoyancy body; a compressed gas cylinder; and an injector that injects gas stored in the compressed gas cylinder into the compressed buoyancy body to expand the compressed buoyancy body. Claim 6 An elevator flood response system according to claim 1, characterized in that the emergency power supply is an uninterruptible power supply (UPS).

Images