Elevator Coordination for Evacuation Transfer
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Solution Overview
Problem
High-rise buildings with sky lobbies face challenges during evacuations, as existing elevator systems are not optimized for efficient passenger transfer between elevator cars, leading to delays and inefficiencies in moving large numbers of people to safety during emergencies.
Innovation Solution
A method and control system that coordinate the operation of multiple elevator systems by dispatching a second elevator car to a transfer floor to receive passengers from a first elevator car, with features including projected arrival time synchronization, occupant counting, and notification instructions, ensuring efficient transfer and movement of passengers to safety floors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of moving object
If sky lobbies are used as intermediate transfer floors in high-rise buildings, then the building can serve more floors with multiple elevator systems, but evacuation efficiency deteriorates due to coordination challenges and delays in transferring passengers between elevator cars
Solution Approach 1:
The patent merges the control of multiple elevator systems into a unified coordination framework where elevator cars from different systems are integrated into a single evacuation queue. This allows seamless transfer of passengers between elevator cars at sky lobbies without requiring separate control systems, thereby reducing evacuation time while maintaining coverage of high-rise buildings
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary actions by pre-positioning elevator cars at sky lobbies and pre-coordinating transfer sequences before evacuations begin. Elevator cars are staged in advance and transfer protocols are established beforehand, eliminating delays that would occur during actual evacuation events
2Ease of operation
If multiple elevator systems operate independently with overlapping floor coverage, then each system can function autonomously, but passenger transfer efficiency deteriorates due to lack of coordination between systems
Solution Approach 1:
The control system achieves multi-functionality by enabling elevator cars from different independent systems to serve dual purposes: their original autonomous functions and coordinated evacuation functions. The same physical elevator infrastructure performs both independent operation and integrated evacuation, eliminating the need for separate dedicated evacuation elevators while maintaining system autonomy
3Productivity
If elevator cars are dispatched to transfer floors during normal operation, then regular passenger service is maintained, but evacuation readiness deteriorates due to uncertainty in arrival times and occupancy
Solution Approach 1:
The system dynamically adjusts elevator dispatching based on real-time conditions. During normal operation, elevators serve regular passengers autonomously. When evacuation is detected, the system dynamically reconfigures the queue priorities and dispatch sequences, allowing the same infrastructure to adapt between normal service and evacuation modes without requiring separate dedicated resources
Data Source
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AI summary
A method of operating a building elevator system including: controlling a first elevator system and a second elevator system, floor coverage of the first elevator system overlapping floor coverage of the second elevator system at a least one transfer floor; receiving an evacuation call from an evacuation floor; detecting when a first elevator car of the first elevator system is dispatched to the transfer floor; and dispatching a second elevator car of the second elevator system to the transfer floor.