Elevator Occupancy Detection for Robot Tailgating Prevention
Find Innovative SolutionsGenerate Solutions
Solution Overview
Problem
Elevator control systems in facilities are vulnerable to autonomous mobile machine tailgating, allowing unauthorized individuals to gain access to restricted areas by following authorized robots or drones.
Innovation Solution
An elevator control system that includes sensors and processors to detect the presence of individuals in elevators with autonomous mobile machines, performing tailgate prevention operations to prevent unauthorized access by ensuring the individual exits at a different floor or authenticates before allowing the mobile machine to access restricted floors.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Reliability
If autonomous mobile machines are allowed to use elevator control systems to access restricted areas, then productivity and security functions are improved, but vulnerability to tailgating attacks increases
Solution Approach 1:
The elevator control system continuously monitors elevator car occupancy and communicates this information to the autonomous mobile machine. When the elevator arrives at the restricted floor, the system provides feedback about whether the autonomous machine is alone in the elevator car. Based on this feedback, the system either permits or denies access to the restricted floor, preventing tailgating attacks by unauthorized individuals who may have followed the autonomous machine into the elevator.
Solution Approach 2:
The system performs preliminary verification of elevator occupancy status before granting access to the restricted floor. The elevator control system checks whether the autonomous mobile machine is the sole occupant of the elevator car before allowing the elevator doors to open at the restricted floor. This preliminary action prevents tailgating by ensuring that no unauthorized individuals are present to follow the autonomous machine through the access gate.
2Ease of operation
If traditional elevator control systems are used without modifications, then ease of operation is maintained, but security against tailgating is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The autonomous mobile machine autonomously monitors the elevator occupancy status and makes its own access decisions. The machine receives occupancy information from the elevator control system and independently determines whether to proceed with accessing the restricted floor or to wait for the elevator to empty. This self-service approach maintains ease of operation while enhancing security, as the autonomous machine itself is responsible for preventing tailgating.
Data Source
AI summary
Systems and methods for protecting autonomous mobile machine tailgating may include an elevator control system that receives, from an autonomous mobile machine, an request signal requesting access by the autonomous mobile machine to a restricted floor of a facility. The elevator control system may also determine a presence of an individual in an elevator with the autonomous mobile machine. The elevator control system may perform a tailgate prevention operation to prevent an unauthorized access of the individual to the restricted floor by following the autonomous mobile machine. The elevator control system may also provide access for the autonomous mobile machine to exit the elevator at the restricted floor, in response to the tailgate prevention operation being performed.