TWI533100B - Elevator control system and method for automated guided vehicle - Google Patents

Description

Automatic guided vehicle elevator control system and method

The present invention is an elevator control system and method, and more particularly to a control system and method for providing cross-floor operation using an automated elevator to automatically guide a vehicle.

Due to the limited land acquisition and the difficulty of rebuilding existing buildings, it is inevitable to use them across the floor in production or management. Therefore, it is derived from how to move goods up and down between floors, especially when unmanned by automatic guided vehicles. When the equipment is operated by the existing passenger and cargo elevators, it is obviously difficult to encounter.

At present, the operation of transporting goods across the floor, in addition to installing the freight elevator that can only carry goods, is mostly carried out by the accompanying personnel to operate the truck and press the elevator button, but there are still problems such as difficulty in operation, pressing and automation. If you change the control loop and function of the existing elevator, there are doubts about violation of safety regulations and loss of original warranty.

Therefore, if the vehicle can be automatically guided to carry goods on each floor, it will be a fundamental solution to use the existing elevator without modifying its internal circuit, and to enter and exit different floors without the need for the operator to operate and press. The above problems or difficult solutions.

The invention discloses an elevator control device for automatically guiding a vehicle, At least one elevator end device, the device further comprising: a wireless communication module for transmitting and receiving wireless signals; a sensing module for sensing opening and closing of the elevator door; and an actuation module for guiding the contacts of the elevator button; The controller is electrically connected to the wireless communication module, the sensing module and the actuation module, and at least includes a memory and a processing unit, the memory stores a signal and an instruction, and the processing unit reads the signal and the instruction After the execution of an elevator control process.

The invention further discloses an elevator control method for automatically guiding a vehicle, which is applied to an elevator end device, comprising a departure flow, the process further comprising the steps of: receiving an elevator use request, the request including at least one arrival floor; pressing One of the elevators is up and down and released; sensing whether the elevator door is open, if so, pressing the up and down button and holding it, if otherwise, responding to the sensing; sending an incoming signal and a pressing signal, the pressing signal including the arrival Floor; determine whether an incoming completion signal has been received, and if so, release the up and down buttons, if not, continue to press.

1‧‧‧Elevator Control System

10‧‧‧Elevator end device

110‧‧‧ Controller

120‧‧‧Wireless communication module

130‧‧‧Sensor module

140‧‧‧Activity Module

150‧‧‧ display module

20‧‧‧Vehicle end device

210‧‧‧ Controller

220‧‧‧Wireless communication module

230‧‧‧Sense Module

240‧‧‧Drive Module

30‧‧‧ host device

EB‧‧‧ elevator up and down buttons

Figure 1 is a block diagram of an elevator end device of an elevator control system of the present invention.

Figure 2 is a block diagram of the vehicle end device of the elevator control system of the present invention.

Figure 3 is a diagram showing the operation of the elevator control system of the elevator control system of the present invention.

Figure 4 is a flow chart of the elevator end device of the elevator control method of the present invention.

Fig. 5 is a flow chart showing the operation of the vehicle end device of the elevator control method of the present invention.

Figure 6 is a flow chart showing the arrival of the elevator end device of the elevator control method of the present invention.

Figure 7 is a single flow chart of one of the elevator end devices of the elevator control method of the present invention.

Figure 8 is a flow chart showing another single item of the elevator end device of the elevator control method of the present invention.

In order to make the content of the present invention more obvious and obvious, several embodiments are described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings, but the number, arrangement, number, and designation of the components in the embodiments are merely for convenience of explanation, not It is used to limit the invention.

The invention relates to an elevator control system and method, which is applied, for example, to an automatic guided vehicle (AGV) to enter and exit an upper and lower existing elevator control system and method, and an automatic guided vehicle, also known as an unmanned transport vehicle, is an optical Electromagnetic or wireless signals are used as guided unmanned vehicles. They are used to carry goods to and from the designated locations on the plane, and are commonly used in automated production or property management.

The elevator control system 1 of the present invention provides an automatic guiding vehicle for accessing the upper and lower passenger and cargo elevators without the need of an operator, mainly including the elevator end device 10, the vehicle end device 20 and the selective host end device 30, and the elevator. For the structure of the end device 10, see FIG. 1, the example includes a controller 110, a wireless communication module 120, a sensing module 130, an actuation module 140, and an optional display module 150. The elevator end device 10 is an example. It is disposed on one side of the existing elevator button EB, or is covered inside, and is connected to the inside of the device 10 (not shown) by the normally open contact (NO) of the upper and lower buttons EB, if it is covered Then provide the same upper and lower buttons to provide other users to press, so the circuit inside the elevator has not been changed, and can still run up and down according to the original function.

The wireless communication module 120 of the elevator end device 10 is configured to send and receive wireless signals of other elevator end devices 10, the vehicle end device 20 and the host end device 30. For example, an open specification may be adopted for design and maintenance, but the invention may not be limited. When the installation space permits, the wireless communication module 120 can also be changed to a wired communication module.

The sensing module 130 of the elevator end device 10 is used for sensing the opening and closing of the elevator door. For example, an electromagnetic, optical sensor or a limit switch can be used, or the existing feeling can be utilized. The detector, the installation position can be considered inside, outside or the elevator shaft of the elevator, but does not limit the invention.

The actuation module 140 of the elevator end device 10 is exemplified by an electromagnetically driven actuator, switch or relay for adsorbing the normally open contact of the upper and lower buttons EB to conduct the circuit, and the conduction time can be divided into two. The length is equivalent to the long press and short press elevator button EB. The display module 150 is exemplified by various bulbs, tubes or screens for displaying the state of use of the elevator and the device 10. The module 150 is a selective device and can be considered to be free of installation.

The controller 110 of the elevator end device 10 is electrically connected to other modules, and mainly includes a memory and a processing unit (not shown) for permanently or temporarily storing various control signals and programs and executing the control. The signal is mainly from the wireless communication module 120 and the sensing module 130, and the program is composed of a series of control commands, which are permanently stored in the memory after being written, and the processing unit reads the control commands and controls. After the signal, a predetermined control flow is executed on the elevator.

FIG. 2 is a structural diagram of the vehicle control device 20 installed in the automatic guided vehicle of the present invention, which mainly includes a controller 210, a wireless communication module 220, a sensing module 230 and a driving module 240, wherein The wireless communication module 220 mainly transmits and receives the wireless signal of the elevator end device 10, and optionally includes the signal of the host end device 30. In addition to controlling the entry and exit of the elevator, the wireless communication module 220 can also receive the host end device when the goods are carried on a single floor. 30 task instructions given; the module 220 can be a wireless communication module of the vehicle.

The sensing module 230 of the vehicle end device 20 is mainly used for sensing the opening and closing of the elevator door to facilitate access to the elevator, for example, including a plurality of electromagnetic or optical sensors, or using an existing sensor or sensor. Location can be considered in front of and behind the vehicle With all around. Automated Guided Vehicles Existing sensors or sensors are typically used to sense or sense a travel route or stop position.

The driving module 240 of the vehicle end device 20 is mainly used to drive an electric motor or an engine of the vehicle to advance, stop or retreat the vehicle. The module 240 can be an existing driving module.

The controller 210 of the vehicle end device 20 is electrically connected to other modules, and mainly includes a memory and a processing unit (not shown) for permanently or temporarily storing various control signals and programs and executing the control. The signal is mainly from the wireless communication module 220 and the sensing module 230, and the program is composed of a series of control commands, which are permanently stored in the memory after being written, and the processing unit reads the control commands and controls. After the signal, a predetermined control flow is performed on the vehicle, and the process can be integrated into the existing carrying task, that is, when the vehicle reaches a certain location, the control flow is initiated to enter and exit the elevator.

3 is a schematic view showing the joint operation of the elevator end device 10, the vehicle end device 20 and the host end device 30 of the elevator control system 1 of the present invention on different floors. The figure shows an elevator end device 10 installed above an elevator. On one side of the button EB, there may be a plurality of automatically guided vehicles equipped with the vehicle end device 20 on one floor to travel to a specific location for loading and unloading goods, and the travel route and stop position may be by metal wires, optical identification, radio frequency tags or super The setting of the sonic radar and the like is completed; the above numbers are merely for convenience of explanation and cannot limit the present invention.

The host device 30 of the present invention may be a servo host, installed at an appropriate location, and the elevator end device 10 and the vehicle end device 20 of each floor are wirelessly accessed through access points of each floor (not The figure is electrically connected and sends and receives signals or commands, and the signal includes at least the state of use of the elevator and the position of the vehicle. Etc., and the instruction includes at least an elevator usage schedule, etc., the manager can monitor the operation status of each device or adjust the work schedule by the host device 30; however, if the number of floors used is small and fixed, the elevator end devices of each floor 10 can be changed to Peer-to-peer Grouping to coordinate the schedule of elevator use, so that the host device 30 can be eliminated and the management can be simplified, as shown in FIG.

4 is a control flow chart of one of the elevator end devices 10 in the elevator control method of the present invention, in particular, an elevator departure flow, for example, when an automatic guided vehicle equipped with the vehicle end device 20 is in accordance with a pre-stored or received elevator use instruction, Upon reaching the pre-equivalent position of the elevator and stopping (not shown), the wireless communication module 220 will send a wireless signal requesting the use, the signal still includes the arrival floor, and the elevator terminal device 10 receives the signal from the wireless communication module 120. After (S110), if the current use state of the elevator is idle, the controller 110 activates the actuation module 140 to turn on the button contact and release (S120), that is, press the button contact to wait for the elevator to arrive, when the elevator arrives When the elevator door is sensed by the sensing module 130 (S130), the actuation module 140 turns on and holds the button contact, that is, the button is pressed to keep the elevator door open (S140), wirelessly. The communication module 120 sends an incoming signal (S150) to notify the vehicle to enter the elevator. At the same time, before or after the step S150, the wireless communication module 120 notifies the arriving floor by wireless or wired, direct or indirect. An elevator end device 10 performs a short pressure up and down button contact (S160). When the vehicle completes entering the elevator and stops, the wireless communication module 120 receives an incoming completion signal (S170) sent by the wireless communication module 220. The actuation module 140 is demagnetized to relieve the long pressure and cause the elevator to proceed to the arrival floor according to its own function.

The starting process shown in Figure 4 is based on the angle of the elevator end device 10 and the general operation mode of the elevator. If there are different operating modes, then The steps are self-adjusted or modified, but the invention cannot be limited. For example, in addition to the upper and lower buttons, the outer side of a certain type of elevator also includes a plurality of floor selection keys, so at the same time, before or after the above step S150, wireless The communication module 120 does not need to issue a pressing signal (S160) to change the selection button of the actuation module 140 to the floor.

Since the vehicle end device 20 of the present invention is installed on a general automatic guided vehicle, it can be expanded or modified by using its existing module, for example, the work instruction is recorded in the controller 210, and the elevator control method of the present invention is used. The operation flow of the vehicle end device 20 or the vehicle entering and leaving the elevator is as shown in FIG. 5, and referring to FIG. 4 at the same time, when a vehicle (equipped with the vehicle end device 20) is inductively contacted or contacted via the sensing module 230, When it stops at one of the preparatory positions in front of the elevator (S210), the wireless communication module 220 issues an elevator use request signal (S220) according to the command, and waits for the response of the wireless communication module 120 of the elevator end device 10, if the elevator is at this time If the status is idle, the incoming signal of the response will be received (S230), and the controller 210 starts the driving module 240 to advance to enter the elevator (S240), and then the sensing module 230 determines whether the elevator has been completed (S250). If the drive module 240 stops the vehicle (S260), the wireless communication module 220 sends an incoming completion signal (S270) to the wireless communication module 120, and then the vehicle is handed over to the designated arrival floor by the elevator. To When the elevator door is opened, the wireless communication module 220 receives an arrival signal sent by the wireless communication module 120 of the floor (S280), and the driving module 240 drives the vehicle to retreat (S290), and finally the sensing has been completed and retracted. The operation completion flow is completed by issuing a back completion signal (S2A0), and the wireless communication module 120 or the host device 30 is selectively notified to release the use state of the elevator, and the vehicle performs subsequent work tasks according to the instruction.

The operation flow shown in FIG. 5 is explained by the angle at which the vehicle end device 20 drives the vehicle in and out of the elevator, and the manager can easily arrange it in the existing one. In the work schedule, if the vehicle has a different equipment structure, the above steps are self-adjusted or modified, but the invention may not be limited.

Figure 6 is another control flow chart of the elevator end device 10 in the elevator control method of the present invention, in particular, the elevator arrival flow, please refer to Fig. 4 at the same time, for example, when the elevator end device 10 reaching the floor is wireless or wired, directly Or indirectly, when receiving the pressing signal of the departure floor elevator end device 10 (S310), the controller 110 causes the actuation module 140 to short press the up and down button EB and wait for the elevator to arrive (S320), when the elevator arrives and the elevator When the door module detects that the sensing module 130 is turned on (S330), the controller 110 causes the actuation module 140 to press the up and down buttons EB to keep the elevator door open (S340), and the wireless communication module 120 sends out a The arrival signal (S350) notifies the vehicle in the elevator to exit the elevator. When the vehicle completes the exit of the elevator, the wireless communication module 120 receives a back-off completion signal (S360) sent by the vehicle end device 20, and the actuation module 140 The control flow is completed by releasing the long-pressing operation of the up-and-down button EB (S370), and at the same time, the elevator end device 10 or the host-end device 30 of the other floor can be selectively notified to release the use state of the elevator.

The foregoing description of the flowcharts of FIGS. 4 to 6 illustrates an embodiment in which the elevator end device 10 and the vehicle end device 20 use an elevator for carrying goods across the floor in the elevator control method of the present invention, since the elevator may be used together with other personnel. Therefore, for safety, before the vehicle end device 20 or the vehicle enters and exits the elevator, the sensing module 230 not only senses the position of the route, but also senses that the surrounding characters avoid collision, but may also have a recovery function after the collision to continue the unfinished work. Task or action.

In order to make the cargo carrying more efficient, the elevator end device 10 of the present invention can increase the response to the elevator end device 10 or the host device 30 of the other floor to request the current elevator use state before the starting flow as shown in FIG. schedule Or preferential use, see Figure 7, so before receiving the use request in step S110, the elevator end device 10 will continuously request and wait for the response of the current elevator use state (S410), if the elevator is idle, start receiving the use request The signal is executed or the work schedule that has been temporarily stored (S420), and the priority schedule can be adjusted by ignoring the opening of the elevator door and continuing to wait.

Since the present invention does not substantially modify the elevator function, the example of obtaining the elevator use state can be determined by whether the elevator up/down button EB is pressed (S510), see Fig. 8, if it is pressed, whether it is a person or a device, the elevator end The device 10 will send a signal for use in the elevator to the device 10 or the host device 30 of other floors (S520), so that the controllers 110 of all the elevator devices 10 can temporarily store or update the same status signal at any time. If an elevator end device 10 performs step S110 as shown in FIG. 4, it is no longer necessary to request the other device 10 or the host device 30 to respond to the use status, and directly refer to the temporary storage signal.

The elevator end device 10 of the elevator control system 1 of the present invention is disposed outside the elevator and one side of the up and down button EB as described in the above embodiment, and an auxiliary device can be added next to the elevator floor selection button (not shown). The auxiliary device also pulls out the floor selection button in the elevator and the button contact of the elevator door to open and close for the long and short pressing action. Therefore, when the step S160 is performed in step 4, the auxiliary device can receive the pressing signal. The pressing button of the floor is required to reach the floor, and the elevator end device 10 reaching the floor can ignore the pressing action, as in step S320 of FIG. 6; the structure of the auxiliary device includes at least the controller, the wireless communication module and the actuating module. group.

The elevator control system and method of the present invention mainly uses the elevator end device 10 disposed on each floor and the vehicle end device 20 disposed on most of the automatic guided vehicles to jointly execute the goods across the floor on the existing passenger and cargo elevators. Carrying work, and There is no need to modify the existing functions of the elevator, and optionally add the host end device 30 to coordinate the work and actions of the above two devices 10/20, so that the goods or patients can be more fully automated and more efficient, suitable for production, Widely used in places such as property management or medical treatment.

The present invention has been disclosed as the above, but it is not intended to limit the present invention. Any additions, deletions, and modifications may be made by any person, but are still considered to be still within the scope of the present invention. Inside.

10‧‧‧Elevator end device

20‧‧‧Vehicle end device

30‧‧‧ host device

EB‧‧‧ elevator up and down buttons

Claims (9)

An elevator control system for automatically guiding a vehicle includes at least one elevator end device, the elevator end device comprising: a wireless communication module for transmitting and receiving a wireless signal; and a sensing module for sensing opening and closing of an elevator door And a controller for electrically connecting the wireless communication module, the sensing module and the actuation module, at least comprising a memory and a processing; a unit, the memory stores a control signal and a control command, the processing unit reads the control signal and the control command, and then executes an elevator control process; wherein the elevator control process of the elevator device includes a departure process, and the departure The process is controlled by the controller according to a usage request received by the wireless communication module, an incoming completion signal, and a sensing signal of the sensing module, and the time for the actuation module to turn on the contact is controlled, and The wireless communication module sends a press signal and an incoming signal; wherein the elevator control process of the elevator end device includes an arrival process, and the arrival process is performed by the controller The wireless communication module receives one of the pressing signal and a back-completion signal, and one of the sensing modules senses the signal, controls the time when the actuation module turns on the contact, and causes the wireless communication module to issue a Arrival signal. The system of claim 1, wherein the sensing module of the elevator end device is one selected from the group consisting of an electromagnetic sensor, an optical sensor and a limit switch. The system of claim 1, wherein the actuation module of the elevator end device is one selected from the group consisting of an actuator, a switch, and a relay. The system of claim 1, further comprising a display module for displaying an elevator and the use state of the elevator end device. An elevator control system for automatically guiding a vehicle includes a vehicle end device mounted on a vehicle, the vehicle end device comprising: a wireless communication module for transmitting and receiving a wireless signal; and a sensing module for sensing a Opening and closing of the elevator door; a driving module for driving the vehicle forward and backward; and a controller electrically connecting the wireless communication module, the sensing module and the driving module, at least comprising a memory and a processing unit, the memory stores a control signal and a control command, and the processing unit reads the control signal and the control command to execute an action flow; wherein the action flow of the device is performed by the controller according to the wireless communication The module receives one of the incoming signal and an arrival signal, and one of the sensing modules, controls the activation of the driving device, and causes the wireless communication module to send an incoming completion signal and a backward completion signal. An elevator control system for automatically guiding a vehicle, comprising at least one elevator end device according to claim 1 of the patent application, at least one of the vehicle end device and a host end device according to claim 5, wherein The host device is connected to the elevator end device and the vehicle end device in a wireless manner to transmit and receive At least one elevator usage state, a signal according to the vehicle travel position and an elevator usage schedule and instructions are included. An elevator control system for automatically guiding a vehicle, comprising: at least one of the elevator end devices of claim 1 and at least one of the vehicle end devices of claim 5, wherein the elevator end device is The vehicle end device is coupled in a peer-to-peer manner to coordinate elevator usage schedules. An elevator control method for automatically guiding a vehicle, applied to an elevator end device, comprising a departure flow, the departure flow comprising the steps of: receiving an elevator use request, the elevator use request includes at least one arrival floor; pressing one of the elevators Pressing the up and down buttons and releasing them; sensing whether the elevator door is open, if so, pressing the up and down buttons and holding them, if otherwise, responding to the sensing; sending an incoming signal and a pressing signal, the pressing signal corresponding to the arriving floor And determining whether an incoming completion signal has been received, and if so, releasing the up and down button, if otherwise pressing the up and down button; wherein the departure process further includes determining whether to receive an elevator in use signal before receiving the elevator use request If otherwise, start receiving the elevator usage request or execute a schedule, if yes, repeat the decision. An elevator control method for automatically guiding a vehicle is applied to an elevator end device, including an arrival process, and the arrival process includes the following steps: Receiving a pressing signal, the pressing signal includes at least one arrival floor; pressing one of the up and down buttons of the elevator on the arrival floor and releasing; sensing whether one of the elevator doors is opened, and if so, pressing the up and down buttons And to maintain, if otherwise, to respond to the sensing; to send an arrival signal; and to determine whether a back-off completion signal has been received, and if so, to release the up and down button, if otherwise continue to press; wherein the arrival process is after receiving the pressing signal It also includes issuing an elevator use signal.