Touch-Sensitive Destination Call Interface for Elevator Systems
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional elevator systems require extensive keying activity for selecting floors, leading to slow and error-prone destination calls, especially when dealing with three-digit floor numbers, and are not well-suited for small displays, making them inefficient and user-unfriendly.
Innovation Solution
A method using a touch-sensitive display to present pre-defined departure and destination floor pairs, allowing users to select both floors with a single touch, with automatic signal sending to the elevator control system, and recording these pairs in memory for quick recall and updating based on recent calls.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional decimal numeric keypad is used for floor selection, then the device can be simple in structure, but the selection process becomes slow and requires extensive keying activity
Solution Approach 1:
The system pre-calculates and stores optimal elevator assignments for different floor combinations before the user needs to make a selection. When a user inputs their destination floor, the control system immediately retrieves the pre-determined optimal elevator from memory, eliminating the need for real-time calculation and significantly reducing the time required for destination call processing.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention combines the floor selection function and elevator allocation function into a single integrated process. Instead of requiring separate operations for selecting floors and assigning elevators, the system merges these functions so that a single floor input automatically triggers both the selection and optimal elevator assignment, reducing the number of user actions required.
2Adaptability or versatility
If multiple icons and pushbuttons are presented for floor selection, then complete floor coverage is achieved, but the device complexity increases and is not suitable for small displays
Solution Approach 1:
The system transitions from a two-dimensional grid of individual floor buttons to a one-dimensional numeric input approach. Instead of displaying buttons for each floor level, users simply input the destination floor number, which the system then processes to determine the optimal elevator. This dimensional change dramatically reduces the number of display elements required while maintaining full floor coverage capability.
Solution Approach 2:
The invention uses virtual representation of floor selection through numeric input rather than physical or visual buttons for each floor. The numeric keypad or input field serves as a simplified interface that copies the essential function of floor selection without requiring a separate control element for each floor level, thus reducing device complexity.
3Measurement precision
If sequential floor number entry is required, then precise floor selection is possible, but error occurrence increases and correction slows down the process
Solution Approach 1:
The system incorporates immediate visual feedback on the display that confirms the user's floor selection as they type. The display shows the selected floor number and the corresponding optimal elevator assignment in real-time, allowing users to verify their input before final submission. This feedback mechanism prevents errors by making the selection visible and allows for easy correction if the wrong floor is entered.
Solution Approach 2:
The system prepares and displays the optimal elevator assignment in advance of the user's final confirmation. Before the user commits to their destination call, the system calculates and shows which elevator will be assigned based on their selected floor, allowing users to verify both their floor selection and the resulting elevator assignment before finalizing the call, thus preventing errors.
Data Source
AI summary
A method for giving a destination call to the control system of an elevator system is provided, in which method one or more predetermined departure floor-destination floor pairs are presented on the touch-sensitive display of a destination call-giving device having a touch-sensitive display, in which each pair identifies for the user one predetermined departure floor and one predetermined destination floor, and the departure floor-destination floor pair selected by the user is determined on the basis of a touch detected with the touch-sensitive display, and a destination call signal is sent to the control system of the elevator system, which signal identifies the departure floor and the destination floor of the departure floor-destination floor pair selected by the user. A call-giving device, an elevator system and a computer program product are provided to implement the aforementioned method.