Elevator Control Device for Maximizing Serviceable Floors
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Solution Overview
Problem
The existing elevator control systems for bi-directional cars in a common shaft restrict operation areas, leading to increased braking distances and a decrease in serviceability, especially at high speeds, resulting in a substantial number of floors that cars cannot reach.
Innovation Solution
An elevator control device that sets a maximum travel area for emergency stops based on running speed and direction for each car, and adjusts running speeds to maximize serviceable floors without entering the occupied area of another car, thereby preventing collisions and optimizing serviceability.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If a restriction section is set to avoid interference between cars, then collision avoidance is improved, but the number of serviceable floors decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies dynamics by making the occupied area variable rather than fixed. The control device dynamically adjusts the occupied area based on real-time conditions including running speed, running direction, and call registration status. This allows the restriction section to expand or contract as needed, preventing collisions while minimizing the impact on serviceable floors when collision risk is low.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the parameter of occupied area size based on operating conditions. When running speed increases, the occupied area expands to account for longer braking distances. When call registration status changes or direction reverses, the occupied area is recalculated. This parameter adaptation resolves the contradiction by adjusting safety margins only when necessary.
2Speed
If running speed is increased to improve efficiency, then productivity is improved, but braking distance increases leading to larger restriction sections
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts the occupied area based on the current running speed. When a car operates at higher speeds, the occupied area automatically expands to accommodate the increased braking distance. This dynamic adjustment allows high-speed operation without permanently restricting other cars, as the expanded occupied area is temporary and condition-dependent.
Solution Approach 2:
The patent changes the occupied area parameter in response to running speed changes. The control device calculates the occupied area as a function of speed, direction, and call status, allowing the system to optimize for speed while maintaining safety margins proportional to the actual braking requirements at each speed level.
3Reliability
If a fixed restriction section is used to prevent collisions, then safety is improved, but operation flexibility decreases
Solution Approach 1:
The patent replaces fixed restriction sections with dynamic occupied area calculations that adapt to real-time operating conditions. The control device continuously updates the occupied area based on current speed, direction, and call registration status, allowing the system to maintain safety while adapting to varying operational requirements such as different service patterns and traffic conditions.
Solution Approach 2:
The system changes multiple parameters simultaneously - occupied area size, running speed limits, and directional constraints - based on call registration status and operational context. This allows the restriction section to be flexible and adaptive rather than rigid, maintaining collision prevention while accommodating diverse operational scenarios.
Data Source
AI summary
An elevator controller that enables enhancement in serviceability, avoids a collision between multiple cars that ascend/descend inside a common shaft, and suppresses increase in the number of floors a car cannot reach. The elevator controller includes: multiple cars arranged inside a common shaft such that each car can ascend/descend independently; an occupied area setting mechanism setting, for each of the multiple cars, a maximum area of a travel section necessary for the car to make an emergency stop as an occupied area for the car based on a running speed, a running direction, and a call registration status; and a running speed setting mechanism setting a running speed of a car so a number of floors the car can service is maximized within a range in which the car can make an emergency stop without entering an occupied area set by the occupied area setting mechanism for the other car.