CN116829485A - Elevator shaft access and safety system - Google Patents

Abstract

An elevator shaft access and safety system for managing each worker's safe access to the elevator shaft provides: Worker Vital Sign Tags (WVST) that can be attached to worker-wearable personal protective equipment (PPE) for measurement Vital signs of workers; Access and Occupancy Microcontroller (AOM), which controls elevator gates and detects elevator shaft occupancy; Distributed Authentication Controller (DAC), which is used for WVST authentication; and a centralized management platform ( CMP), which is used to manage the system. When a worker requests access to the elevator shaft, the AOM opens the elevator gate after the WVST detects that the worker is appropriately wearing PPE via measuring vital signs and after the DAC determines that the worker is one authorized to access the elevator shaft. Therefore ensure that workers are authorized to access the elevator shaft and are appropriately protected before entering the elevator shaft.

Description

Elevator shaft access and safety system

Cross-references to related applications

This application claims priority from the Hong Kong Standard Patent Application with application number 22021024171.1, filed on January 22, 2021, the disclosure content of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

abbreviation

AOM access and occupancy microcontroller

BLE Bluetooth Low Energy

CMP centralized management platform

DAC Distributed Authentication Controller

GUI graphical user interface

ID identifier

IO input/output

IoT Internet of Things

LED light emitting diode

LoRaWAN Long Range Wide Area Network

NB-IoT Narrowband Internet of Things

PPE personal protective equipment

PRMA random phase multiple access

RSSI Received Signal Strength Indicator

WAP wireless access point

WiFi wireless fidelity

WVST Worker Vital Signs Label

UI user interface

Technical field

The present disclosure relates to a system for managing construction worker access to an elevator shaft of a building for safety reasons.

Background technique

Many construction projects involve elevator installation. Carrying out construction work in elevator shafts is considered a high-risk task. Common hazards include worker falls and falling objects. These hazards can result in serious injury or even death. To reduce risk, temporary gates are often installed at the opening or entrance to the elevator shaft. These gates are usually secured with padlocks. If implemented and managed properly, this security arrangement can reduce risk. However, it is often difficult for site management to track each elevator gate efficiently and effectively. This shortcoming is particularly prominent for multi-story buildings. For example, a 50-story building with six elevators under construction has more than 300 gates to manage. In fact, many gates may be opened or unlocked without notice or at the convenience of workers. Risks remain.

Additionally, there is a high risk of an unauthorized person entering an elevator shaft because he or she may not have adequate training to work in an elevator shaft environment. For the sake of occupational safety, only trained workers should be allowed to work in elevator shafts. However, site management has little control over who has access to which elevator shaft, other than a physical key or a common combination lock.

In addition to security, another issue is the inefficiency of managing and assigning the physical keys used by workers to open elevator shaft gates. Usually, the keys to the elevator shaft gates are centrally managed by dedicated staff assigned by on-site management. It is time-consuming and error-prone for keyholders to maintain paper records and manually distribute and collect keys from workers entering and exiting elevator shaft gates. The problem of lost keys and unreturned keys also hinders the efficiency of construction operations in elevator shafts to a great extent.

In addition, on-site management cannot see the occupancy of the elevator shaft and the status of workers. This disadvantage can become a critical issue since elevator shafts are enclosed areas. In the event of an accident, it can be difficult to locate an injured worker and understand his or her medical condition.

There is a need for an elevator shaft access and safety system that can effectively and efficiently manage workers while accessing the elevator shaft using various regulations to ensure worker safety, such as detecting if any worker is experiencing an emergency.

Contents of the invention

The present disclosure provides an elevator shaft access and safety system for at least managing workers' safe access to one or more elevator shafts via one or more controllable elevator gates.

The system includes one or more WVSTs, one or more AOMs, and one or more DACs. The one or more WVSTs are used for worker identification and vital sign measurement. A single WVST can be attached to the corresponding worker-worn PPE. Additionally, a single WVST is configured to measure one or more vital signs of a corresponding worker to thereby generate vital sign data. Individual WVSTs are also assigned an ID that identifies the corresponding worker. The one or more AOMs are used to control at least access to one or more elevator shafts. A single AOM is configured to control corresponding elevator gates installed at corresponding elevator shafts. A single AOM and a single WVST may wirelessly communicate with each other when the distance between the single AOM and the single WVST is within a predetermined maximum communication range. The one or more DACs are used to authenticate the one or more WVSTs according to at least one or more corresponding IDs of the one or more WVSTs. A single AOM may communicate with a preselected DAC selected from the one or more DACs. In particular, the single AOM is further configured to, when the corresponding worker requests access to the corresponding elevator shaft, after the single WVST detects that the corresponding worker is appropriately protected via measuring said one or more vital signs and after the pre-selected DAC confirms that the corresponding worker is authorized to access The worker in the corresponding elevator shaft then opens the corresponding elevator gate to allow the corresponding worker to enter.

Preferably, the system is arranged to ensure that the corresponding worker is a worker authorized to access the corresponding elevator shaft and is appropriately protected before entering the corresponding elevator shaft. The single WVST is further configured to determine a first result of whether the respective worker is appropriately wearing the PPE by determining the presence or absence of a vital sign measurement failure via measuring the one or more vital signs. When a single AOM and a single WVST can communicate wirelessly with each other and when a pre-selected DAC can communicate with a single AOM, the ID and the first result can be obtained by the single AOM from the single WVST, and the ID can also be obtained by the pre-selected DAC. DAC is obtained from the single AOM. The pre-selected DAC is configured to determine a second result of whether a corresponding worker is authorized to enter a corresponding elevator shaft based on at least the ID, and is configured to send the second result to a single AOM. In particular, the single AOM is further configured to, when a corresponding worker requests entry to the corresponding elevator shaft, open the corresponding elevator gate only if one or more accessibility conditions are met, the first of the one or more accessibility conditions being met. The accessibility condition is that both the first result and the second result are positive. Therefore ensure that the corresponding worker is a worker authorized to access the corresponding elevator shaft and is properly protected before entering the corresponding elevator shaft.

Preferably, the system further includes one or more WAPs and a CMP. The one or more WAPs may connect to the Internet to communicate wirelessly with and provide Internet connectivity to the one or more DACs. The CMP is implemented through a computing server connectable to the Internet and can communicate with the one or more DACs via the one or more WAPs to manage the one or more DACs and provide users to site administrators interface. The CMP is configured to periodically update the pre-selected DACs with a list of valid IDs indicating specific workers who are authorized to enter the corresponding elevator shaft.

Other aspects of the invention are also disclosed, as illustrated in the examples below.

Description of the drawings

1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a topological arrangement of an elevator shaft access and safety system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.

Figure 2 depicts a series of WVST, AOM, DAC, WAP and CMP in the system to further illustrate the structural and operational details of the system.

Figure 3 depicts a practical implementation of PPE wearable by workers for personal protection, where the PPE is integrated with a WVST and implemented as a safety helmet.

Those skilled in the art will understand that elements in the figures are illustrated for simplicity and clarity and have not necessarily been drawn to scale.

Detailed ways

The terms “comprising,” “having,” “including,” and “containing” shall be construed herein as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning “including but not limited to”), Unless otherwise indicated.

As used herein, a device or person being "authenticated" means that the device or person has been verified to be authentic or valid such that the device or person is permitted or authorized to perform a certain predefined task. "Authenticating" a device or person means the act of verifying that said device or person is authenticated.

As used herein, "personal protective equipment" or PPE is wearable equipment, gear, or clothing designed to protect the wearer's body from harm. Examples of PPE include protective clothing, safety helmets, goggles, respirators, wearable shields, protective footwear, etc.

As used herein, "vital signs" are medical signs selected from a plurality of the most important medical signs indicating the status of vital (life-sustaining) functions of the human body. These multiple, most important medical signs are often used to help assess a person's overall physical health, provide clues to possible disease, and show progress in recovery. Examples of vital signs include body temperature, blood pressure, pulse (heart rate), and respiratory rate (breathing rate). It should be noted that normal ranges for a person's vital signs vary with age, weight, gender, and overall health. One skilled in the art can consult published vital sign tables to identify normal ranges of vital sign values.

As used herein, unless otherwise specified, "cloud" or "computing cloud" is to be construed in the sense of cloud computing or synonymously distributed computing over a network.

As used herein, "server" is interpreted in a computing sense. That is, the server is a computing server. "Computer" is used interchangeably with server. A server or computer is typically equipped with one or more computing processors for executing program instructions and one or more storage devices for storing data. Servers can be stand-alone computing servers (i.e. physical servers), distributed servers in the cloud, or virtual servers used to process client instructions. For example, the one or more storage devices may be a hard disk or solid state disk drive.

As used herein, a "mobile computing device" is a portable electronic device that has computing capabilities and is configured for use by a human user. For example, the mobile computing device may be a smartphone or a handheld tablet computer.

This article discloses an elevator shaft access and safety system. The system is used to manage at least the safe access of workers, typically construction workers, to one or more elevator shafts via one or more controllable elevator gates. The system may advantageously be used to assist a site manager in monitoring a construction site having the one or more elevator shafts.

The disclosed system is scalable and easily extendable, and can be implemented in a variety of application scenarios. The system can be implemented in buildings under construction, where the building has a single elevator shaft to be installed with one elevator, or a single elevator shaft is large enough to accommodate multiple elevators therein. The system can also be implemented in buildings under construction with multiple elevator shafts, where each elevator shaft is to be installed with one or more elevators. Furthermore, the system can be implemented on multiple buildings at large construction sites, such as residential complexes. It is also possible that the system is implemented in existing buildings under a renovation project where the original outdated elevators are removed and new ones are installed.

The disclosed system is illustrated with the aid of FIG. 1 , which depicts a schematic diagram illustrating a topological arrangement of an exemplary hoistway access and safety system 100 . System 100 at least manages worker access to one or more elevator shafts through one or more elevator gates. System 100 may also be extended to manage and respond to security-related events identified by system 100. System 100 includes one or more WVSTs 110, one or more AOMs 120, and one or more DACs 130. The number of WVSTs, AOMs and DACs is changeable in order to adapt the system 100 to different practical application scenarios, thus making the system 100 scalable.

One or more WVST 110 are used for worker identification and worker vital sign measurement. A single WVST can be attached to the corresponding worker-worn PPE. Functionally, a single WVST is configured to measure one or more vital signs of a corresponding worker to thereby generate vital sign data. A single WVST further processes the vital sign data to determine whether the corresponding worker is wearing PPE appropriately in order to detect whether the corresponding worker is properly protected. Additionally, individual WVSTs are assigned an ID that identifies the corresponding worker.

One or more AOMs 120 are used to control access to at least one or more elevator shafts. Specifically, an AOM is used to control an elevator gate. That is, a single AOM is configured to control corresponding elevator gates installed at corresponding elevator shafts. A single AOM and a single WVST may wirelessly communicate with each other when the distance between the single AOM and the single WVST is within a predetermined maximum communication range. In the system 100, it is intended that a safety check be performed to determine whether the corresponding worker is allowed to enter the corresponding elevator shaft when the corresponding worker approaches the corresponding elevator gate. Therefore, the transceivers of a single WVST and a single AOM are often configured to support only short-range communications.

It should be noted that a single AOM is allowed to communicate with one or more detectable WVSTs in one or more WVSTs 110 when the single detectable WVST is within a predetermined maximum communication range from the single AOM. It can be seen that the number of WVSTs communicating with each AOM changes dynamically. As an example, Figure 1 depicts AOMs 121, 122, and 123 communicating with WVSTs 111a to 111d, 112a to 112c, and 113a to 113e, respectively. If a worker carrying WVST 112a leaves AOM 122 and approaches AOM 121 such that the distance between WVST 112a and AOM 121 becomes less than the predetermined maximum communication range at some point but the distance between WVST 112a and AOM 122 exceeds the predetermined maximum communication range, WVST 112a then switches communications from AOM 122 to AOM 121.

One or more DACs 130 are used to authenticate one or more WVSTs 110 based on at least one or more corresponding IDs of the one or more WVSTs 110 . In system 100, one AOM is intended to communicate with one DAC, and a DAC can communicate with a single AOM or multiple AOMs. For example, AOM 121 is arranged to communicate only with DAC 131 and not with DAC 132 , while DAC 131 may communicate with each of AOM 121 to AOM 123 . As can be seen, a single AOM may communicate with a pre-selected DAC selected from one or more DACs 130 . The pre-selected DAC is configured to determine whether the corresponding worker is authorized to access the corresponding elevator shaft.

Advantageously, the single AOM is further configured such that when a corresponding worker requests entry to the corresponding elevator shaft, after (1) the single WVST detects that the corresponding worker is appropriately protected via measurement of one or more vital signs and after (2) the pre-selected DAC confirms that the corresponding worker The worker who is authorized to access the corresponding elevator shaft then opens the corresponding elevator gate to allow the corresponding worker to enter. By such an arrangement, access to the corresponding elevator shaft is prohibited by unauthorized persons or persons whose bodies lack adequate protection.

Further details that are preferably implemented in the system 100 to prohibit unauthorized persons and persons who are not properly protected from entering corresponding elevator shafts are provided below. In processing the vital sign data, the single WVST is further configured to determine a first result of whether the corresponding worker is appropriately wearing the PPE by determining the presence or absence of a vital sign measurement failure via measuring one or more vital signs. When a single WVST can communicate wirelessly with a single AOM, the ID and first result can be obtained by the single AOM from the single WVST. Since the single AOM and the preselected DAC are communicable, the ID can be obtained from the single AOM by the preselected DAC. The pre-selected DAC is configured to determine a second result of whether the corresponding worker is authorized to enter the corresponding elevator shaft based on at least the ID. After obtaining the second result, the preselected DAC sends the second result to a single AOM. The individual AOM is further configured to open the corresponding elevator gate only if one or more accessibility conditions are met when the corresponding worker requests access to the corresponding elevator shaft. Among the one or more accessibility conditions, a first accessibility condition is that both the first result and the second result are affirmative. It therefore provides the advantage of ensuring that the respective worker is a worker authorized to access the corresponding elevator shaft and is appropriately protected before entering the corresponding elevator shaft.

While the foregoing advantages are achievable with one or more WVSTs 110, one or more AOMs 120, and one or more DACs 130, additional elements of the system 100 enable further advantages with respect to access control and security management. Preferably and advantageously, system 100 further includes one or more WAPs 140 and a CMP 150. One or more WAPs 140 may be connected to the Internet 190 for wirelessly communicating with and providing Internet connectivity to one or more DACs 130 . Accordingly, one or more WAPs 140 form a wireless communication network to communicate with one or more DACs 130 . An Internet-connected CMP 150 may communicate with one or more DACs 130 via the Internet 190 and one or more WAPs 140 . CMP 150 is used to manage system 100 and to provide a user interface to site administrators.

2 is a schematic diagram depicting the structure of WVST 111a, AOM 121, DAC 131, WAP 141, and CMP 150 and signal flows therebetween to further illustrate one or more WVSTs 110, one or more AOMs 120, Details of one or more DACs 130, one or more WAPs 140, and CMP 150 and interactions between them. WVST 111a, AOM 121, DAC 131, and WAP 141 represent a single WVST, a single AOM, a preselected DAC, and a single WAP respectively.

The WVST 111a is further illustrated with the aid of Figure 3, which depicts a practical implementation of the PPE 310 integrated with the WVST 111a. In WVST 111a, one or more vital sign sensors 211 are used to measure one or more vital signs of corresponding workers in order to generate vital sign data. In certain embodiments, the one or more vital signs include body temperature and heart rate. These two vital signs are commonly used to assess the physical health of the respective worker. Correspondingly, the one or more vital sign sensors 211 include a body temperature sensor 311 for measuring body temperature, and a heart rate sensor 312 for measuring heartbeat rate. Vital sign data includes readings of body temperature and heart rate.

In Figure 3, PPE 310 is a safety helmet. WVST 111a is configured and adapted to be attached to said safety helmet. Preferably, one or more vital sign sensors 211 are installed at a forehead location so as to be in contact with the forehead skin of the respective worker. The proximity of the body temperature sensor 311 and the heart rate sensor 312 facilitates vital sign measurement. Preferably, the measurement data from the body temperature sensor 311 is processed using signal conditioning to remove noise. In one embodiment of heart rate sensor 312, real-time sampling of light reflected from blood flowing under the skin can be used to reveal the heart rate. Preferably, signal conditioning is applied to remove noise from the heart rate sensor measurement data, thereby improving the accuracy of the obtained heart rate.

It should be noted that the proper wearing of the safety helmet should be reflected in the heart rate sensor 312 obtaining a normal degree and the body temperature sensor 311 producing a reading in which the body temperature exceeds 35°C. In certain embodiments, if the vital sign data indicates that the body temperature is less than 35°C and the heart rate is zero or undetectable, it is determined that a first resultant vital sign measurement has occurred for determining whether the corresponding worker is appropriately wearing the PPE. fail. Regardless of whether the PPE is a safety helmet or not, this criterion can be applied to determine the presence or absence of vital sign measurement failure.

As mentioned above, one or more vital signs are measured by one or more vital sign sensors 211. A single vital sign sensor used to measure a specific vital sign captures or senses a raw signal and then processes the raw signal to produce a reading of the vital sign being measured. Vital signs are detectable only if the desired component of the original signal has sufficiently high power. Consider an example in which the body temperature sensor 311 is implemented by an infrared sensor for generating an infrared power distribution as a raw signal. The desired component of the original signal is part of the infrared power distribution over a specific wavelength region where objects with a temperature of, for example, 35°C to 40°C emit a large amount of infrared rays. If the aforementioned part of the infrared power distribution has low power, body temperature will not be detected. Improperly wearing a safety helmet or PPE also causes the desired component to have low power, making vital signs undetectable. It should be noted that in the case where a vital sign is undetectable, the corresponding reading of the vital sign (ie, the corresponding vital sign data) is considered invalid.

In certain embodiments, a vital sign measurement failure is determined to have occurred if at least one of the one or more vital signs is determined to be undetectable. An individual vital sign is determined to be undetectable based on a raw signal sensed by a corresponding vital sign sensor used to measure the individual vital sign. The number of undetectable vital signs used to determine that a vital sign measurement failure has occurred depends on the stringency of the security policy. In the most stringent scenario, just one undetectable vital sign is enough to cause a vital sign measurement failure, indicating that the PPE is not being worn appropriately. It should be noted that undetectability of a single vital sign indicates that the corresponding vital sign data is invalid. It can be seen that if at least one of the vital sign data is invalid, it can also be determined that a vital sign measurement failure has occurred.

In certain embodiments, a vital sign is determined to have occurred if all one or more vital signs are determined to be undetectable based on one or more raw signals sensed by one or more vital sign sensors 211 Measurement failed.

In addition to mounting the WVST 111a to a safety helmet, other wearable forms in which the WVST 111a can be mounted include chest straps and headgear.

For safety reasons, appropriate workers need to be alerted in the event of improper wearing of PPE.

Similarly, in the event that a worker is overheated or has an abnormal heart rate, the appropriate workers and construction site safety officers should be alerted. Preferably, the WVST 111a is further configured to detect the occurrence of body overheating or abnormal heart rate based on vital sign data (eg, vital sign data measured by the body temperature sensor 311 or the heart rate sensor 312). Said detected occurrence triggers a security-related event. In response to the occurrence of a safety-related event, WVST 111a alerts the appropriate workers and notifies the AOM 121 of the safety-related event for emergency handling.

In addition to vital sign measurements, WVST 111a may include one or more other sensors 212 for promoting worker safety.

Heat stress is a condition that workers’ bodies suffer from overheating. The risk of developing a heat stress condition can be assessed based on body temperature, surrounding relative humidity, and ambient temperature. In the event a heat stress condition is detected, appropriate workers and construction site safety officers should be alerted. In certain embodiments, the one or more other sensors 212 include a humidity sensor and an ambient temperature sensor for sensing the relative humidity and ambient temperature, respectively, of the respective worker's surrounding environment. The WVST 111a is further configured to determine the occurrence of heat stress experienced by a corresponding worker based on body temperature, heart rate, relative humidity, and ambient temperature. Said detected occurrence triggers a security-related event. In response to the occurrence of a safety-related event, WVST 111a alerts the appropriate workers and notifies the AOM 121 of the safety-related event for emergency handling.

Worker falls are a major risk to occupational safety. In the event of a fall, early rescue operations are crucial. In some embodiments, one or more other sensors 212 include a 3-axis accelerometer 313 for detecting falls of respective workers. The WVST 111a is further configured to detect the occurrence of a sudden fall of a corresponding worker, whereby the detected occurrence causes a safety related event. In response to the occurrence of a safety-related event, WVST 111a alerts the appropriate workers and notifies the AOM 121 of the safety-related event for emergency handling.

Preferably, WVST 111a further includes one or more UI devices 213 for interacting with respective workers. One or more UI devices 213 may include emergency alerts for generating audio warnings to corresponding workers. The emergency alert may be activated when WVST 111a detects a security-related event.

In the WVST 111a, a computing processor 217 is included and is used to perform signal processing tasks and control the WVST 111a.

As mentioned above, the AOM 121 and the WVST 111a may wirelessly communicate with each other when the AOM 121 and the WVST 111a are separated by a distance within a predetermined maximum communication range. WVST 111a further includes a WVST transceiver 214 for communicating with AOM 121 and also for communicating with any of the one or more AOMs 120. It should be noted that for safety reasons, most typically, the AOM 121 commands the corresponding elevator gate to open or close only when the corresponding worker is located near or even in front of the corresponding elevator gate. In addition, for ease of installation, the AOM 121 is usually located near the corresponding elevator gate. It can be seen that only the predetermined maximum communication range needs to be set to short range. Preferably, WVST transceiver 214 is implemented utilizing one or more short-range radio protocols. Each protocol can be selected from the Bluetooth BLE specification, Zigbee specification and Z-Wave specification. Therefore, the predetermined maximum communication range is usually less than 30m.

In some embodiments, WVST transceiver 214 is configured to periodically broadcast advertising signals to enable AOM 121 or any of one or more AOMs 120 to discover and pair with WVST 111a. Optionally, advertising messages carried in advertising signals are encrypted to enhance wireless security against eavesdropping, etc. Advertisement messages may be decrypted by each of one or more AOMs 120. This may be accomplished, for example, if one or more WVSTs 110 and one or more AOMs 120 share the same encryption key.

Similarly, AOM 121 includes AOM transceiver 224 configured to communicate with WVST 111a and also with any of one or more WVSTs 110 . In effect, AOM transceiver 224 communicates with one or more detectable WVSTs (eg, WVSTs 111a through 111d as depicted in FIG. 1 ) of one or more WVSTs 110 , where a single detectable WVST Within the intended maximum communication range from the AOM 121.

Although the intended maximum communication range is typically less than 30m, sending all IDs of one or more detectable WVSTs to the DAC 131 for WVST authentication is onerous for both the AOM 121 and the DAC 131 . It is desirable to authenticate those detectable WVSTs that are in close proximity to the corresponding elevator gate (ie, close to the AOM 121). In some embodiments, the AOM 121 is further configured to estimate the distance between a single detectable WVST and the AOM 121 based on the received signal strength of a corresponding advertising signal transmitted from the single detectable WVST and received by the single AOM. distance. Using received signal strength to estimate the distance requires the system 100 to configure one or more WVSTs 110 to broadcast their respective advertising signals with the same transmit power. AOM 121 is further configured to forward the corresponding ID received from a single detectable WVST to DAC 131 for authentication only if the estimated distance is within a predetermined distance. The predetermined distance is chosen to avoid the burden of authenticating a single detectable WVST at DAC 131 if the corresponding worker carrying the single detectable WVST is not in close proximity to the corresponding elevator gate. For example, the predetermined distance may be set to 10m, 7m or 4m.

Since received signal strength is typically measured as RSSI, the AOM 121 can directly compare the RSSI to a specific RSSI threshold, rather than estimating the distance between a single detectable WVST and the AOM 121. This threshold corresponds to the received signal strength under the condition that a single detectable WVST is located at a predetermined distance from the AOM 121 . In some embodiments, AOM 121 is further configured to: (1) determine or obtain the RSSI of the corresponding advertising signal sent from a single detectable WVST and received by AOM 121, and (2) only if the RSSI is greater than Corresponding IDs received from a single detectable WVST are forwarded to the DAC 131 for authentication only when a predetermined RSSI threshold is selected to avoid the occurrence of a corresponding worker carrying a single detectable WVST who is not in close proximity to the corresponding elevator gate. case the burden of certifying a single detectable WVST at DAC 131.

To enhance wireless security, WVST 111a and AOM 121 are preferably configured such that communications between WVST 111a and AOM 121 are encrypted. Those skilled in the art will be able to determine appropriate cryptographic algorithms or protocols for communication.

In the AOM 121, a computing processor 227 is included and is used to perform computing tasks and control the AOM 121.

A plurality of peripheral devices 260 are used with the AOM 121 to assist the AOM 121 in performing various control and monitoring functions. Preferably, AOM 121 is configured to interconnect with a plurality of peripheral devices 260 .

The plurality of peripheral devices 260 includes one or more electric door locks 261 and one or more door sensors 262 . One or more electric door locks 261 may be controlled by the AOM 121 to lock or unlock the corresponding elevator door, thereby enabling the corresponding elevator door to be opened or closed for controlling access to the corresponding elevator shaft. One or more door sensors 262 are used to detect the open/closed status of corresponding elevator gates. Send the open/closed status of the corresponding elevator gate to AOM 121. In the event that one or more door sensors 262 detect that the corresponding elevator gate is open for a long time and the AOM 121 commands one or more electric door locks 261 to lock the corresponding elevator gate, a security-related event occurs and is detected by the AOM 121 Security-related events, triggering AOM 121 to respond.

In addition to controlling access to one or more elevator shafts, another use of one or more AOMs 120 is to monitor occupancy of one or more elevator shafts. In certain embodiments, the plurality of peripherals 260 further include one or more motion sensors 263 for detecting moving objects in the corresponding elevator shaft, thereby allowing the corresponding elevator shaft to be monitored and allowing its occupancy to be determined. In certain embodiments, the AOM 121 is further configured to detect the presence of a person in the corresponding elevator hoistway outside of the clock time for which entry is permitted based on measurements of the one or more motion sensors 263 and to respond to the presence of a person resulting from the detected person's presence. Respond to security-related incidents.

The AOM 121 is required to interact with the worker at least when the worker approaches the corresponding elevator gate and requests entry to the corresponding elevator shaft. Preferably, the plurality of peripheral devices 260 further includes one or more IO devices 269 for enabling the AOM 121 to interact with the respective workers. In certain embodiments, one or more IO devices 269 include a first lock release button 264 for causing the corresponding worker to request entry into the corresponding elevator shaft through the corresponding elevator gate, an audible alarm 265 for warning the corresponding worker, and One or more status indication LEDs 266 indicate one or more statuses corresponding to the elevator shaft. The one or more states may be related to the occupancy status of the elevator shaft, lighting conditions, air conditions, occurrence of safety-related events, etc.

Optionally, the one or more IO devices 269 further include a second lock release button 264 for opening the corresponding elevator gate when a particular worker in the corresponding elevator shaft wishes to exit the corresponding elevator shaft. The AOM 121 that can receive the ID corresponding to the WVST of the specific worker records the departure time of this worker.

Optionally, one or more peripheral devices 260 are IoT devices with Internet connectivity. For example, one or more electric door locks 261 are one or more smart door locks.

As mentioned above, the AOM 121 is typically located near the corresponding elevator gate. Therefore, AOM 121 is typically not far from multiple peripheral devices 260 . When connecting the AOM 121 to individual peripheral devices, twisted pair cable is the preferred choice due to its noise immunity and is generally inexpensive.

AOM 121 receives the ID of WVST 111a and forwards the received ID to DAC 131 for WVST authentication. DAC 131 includes a local database 231 that includes a list of valid IDs for WVST authentication. In practical situations, most commonly, the DAC 131 determines the second result of whether the corresponding worker is authorized to enter the corresponding elevator shaft based not only on the ID but also on one or more additional criteria. The one or more additional criteria vary from case to case and can be determined by a person skilled in the art based on the actual situation under consideration. The one or more additional criteria may include: a list of selected elevator gates through which the corresponding worker is allowed to pass; a list of one or more time periods during which the corresponding worker is allowed to access the corresponding elevator shaft; or a combination thereof. The aforementioned two lists may be stored in the local database 231 together with the valid ID list.

Similarly, a computing processor 237 is included in DAC 131 for performing various computing tasks including WVST authentication and for controlling DAC 131 .

AOM 121 and DAC 131 communicate with each other via communication link 172 . Link 172 may be wired or wireless. Link 172 is preferably implemented by wires or cables to allow the wires or cables to additionally provide power from DAC 131 to AOM 121 . In some embodiments, communication link 172 complies with the RS-485 standard and operates over twisted pair cables forming an RS-485 cable. The RS-485 standard utilizes differential signaling in communications, thereby enhancing noise immunity. RS-485 cable may advantageously be used to provide power to the AOM 121.

In addition to downstream communication with AOM 121 , DAC 131 also communicates upstream with CMP 150 via WAP 141 . DAC 131 includes DAC transceiver 234 for communicating with WAP 141.

WAP 141 may be configured to support wireless communications under one or more radio protocols. Examples of suitable radio protocols include WiFi specifications, LoRaWAN specifications, NB-IoT specifications, Sigfox specifications, RPMA specifications, and cellular mobile communications standards.

Often, buildings with corresponding elevator shafts are under construction, making wired communication infrastructure unavailable in the building. In some embodiments, WAP 141 is implemented with a short- or medium-range communication transceiver (such as a WiFi transceiver) for communicating with DAC 131 and a long-range communication transceiver for connecting to a mobile communication system that is in turn connected to the Internet 190 Wireless communication transceiver (such as 5G communication module). It should be noted that the WAP 141 may be required to be installed in a location where the building's mains power is not readily available, forcing the WAP 141 to be battery powered. Preferably, the short-range or medium-range communication transceivers of WAP 141 operate under a low-power communication protocol, such as the LoRaWAN protocol.

As mentioned above, CMP 150 is used to manage system 100 and provide user interface 255 to site administrators. In practice, CMP 150 is implemented via a computing server that can be connected to the Internet 190 . One use of CMP 150 is to periodically update DAC 131 with a list of valid IDs indicating specific workers who are authorized to enter the corresponding elevator shaft. The CMP 150 may also be required to periodically update: a list of selected elevator gates through which the corresponding worker is allowed to pass; and/or a list of one or more time periods during which the corresponding worker is allowed to access the corresponding elevator shaft. Preferably, CMP 150 includes a database 251 for storing worker information and access control information associated with each WVST.

In addition to managing access control for one or more elevator shafts, the CMP 150 performs other management tasks. Typically, the CMP 150 collects the status of one or more WVSTs 110, one or more AOMs 120, and one or more DACs 130 to facilitate site managers to track the latest information about the construction site. Additionally, CMP 150 is configured to respond to security-related events reported from AOM 121 via DAC 131 . For example, the CMP 150 alerts construction site safety officers every time a new safety-related incident occurs. When the CMP 150 is connected to the Internet 190, security officers can be quickly alerted by, for example, using an Internet-enabled mobile computing device to connect to the CMP 150 in real time.

In certain embodiments, a computing server implementing CMP 150 is programmed with: an access management module 252 for managing worker access to one or more elevator shafts; an event management module 253 for managing access from and respond to any security-related events reported by one or more AOMs 120; and a system configuration module 254 for managing the configuration of one or more WVSTs 110, one or more AOMs 120, and one or more DACs 130. Preferably and advantageously, the system configuration module is additionally used to manage the configuration of one or more WAPs 140. As construction operations proceed, reconfiguration of one or more WAPs 140 may be required from time to time, where relocating some WAPs and adding new DACs may occur.

A computing server may be a physical computer, or alternatively a distributed server in a computing cloud.

User interface 255 may be implemented through one or more physical IO devices (such as touch screens, GUI dashboards, etc.). Since the CMP 150 is Internet connected, the user interface 255 may also be implemented as a software module programmed to communicate with the remote user's IO device over the Internet 190 .

Additional implementation details of system 100 are set forth below.

Preferably, the WVST 111a is removably attached to the PPE such that when the original PPE becomes damaged or worn due to age, for example, the WVST 111a can be removed from the original PPE and reused into new PPE.

Among the one or more accessibility conditions used by the AOM 121 to determine whether the corresponding worker is allowed to enter the corresponding elevator shaft, the second accessibility condition may be that the corresponding elevator shaft is adequately illuminated. Advantageously, the plurality of peripheral devices 260 may further include a illuminance meter or light sensor installed in the corresponding elevator shaft near the corresponding elevator gate, or installed in the corresponding elevator shaft at a location not visible through the corresponding elevator gate.

System 100 may be configured such that various data sets related to occupational safety and generated by WVST 111a and AOM 121 for corresponding workers during visits to corresponding elevator shafts are transmitted to CMP 150 for recording. Preferably, one of the data sets is vital sign data. Other data sets may relate to the time of entry into the corresponding elevator shaft, the time of exit from the corresponding elevator shaft, the distance of the corresponding worker from the AOM 121 over time during the visit, etc. In some embodiments, WVST 111a is configured to send vital signs data to AOM 121 . AOM 121 and DAC 131 are configured to relay vital signs data to CMP 150. Vital sign data is stored in the CMP 150 for recording purposes.

As mentioned above, a single AOM is usually installed near the corresponding elevator gate. In a building under construction with many floors, one DAC can be used to control multiple AOMs located on one floor. In this way, placing this DAC and multiple AOMs on the same floor allows cable routing between this DAC and multiple AOMs to be performed on the same floor, thereby providing convenience in cable routing. The required number of WAPs installed in a building to support wireless communication with all DACs in the building depends on the number of floors and the carrier frequency used in the WAPs. Radio signals with lower carrier frequencies are more penetrating in indoor radio propagation.

The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from the spirit or essential characteristics of the invention. Accordingly, this embodiment should be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the invention is indicated by the appended claims rather than the foregoing description, and all changes that come within the equivalent meaning and scope of the claims are therefore intended to be embraced therein.

Claims (31)

1. A hoistway access and security system for at least managing secure access to one or more hoistways by workers via one or more controllable elevator gates, the system comprising:

One or more Worker Vital Sign Tags (WVSTs) for identification and vital sign measurement of the worker, a single WVST attachable to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) wearable by the respective worker, the single WVST configured to measure one or more vital signs of the respective worker to thereby generate vital sign data, the single WVST assigned an Identifier (ID) for identifying the respective worker;

one or more Access and Occupancy Microcontrollers (AOMs) for controlling access to at least the one or more elevator shafts, a single AOM configured to control a corresponding elevator gate installed at a corresponding elevator shaft, the single AOM and the single WVST being in wireless communication with each other when a distance between the single AOM and the single WVST is within a predetermined maximum communication range; and

one or more Distributed Authentication Controllers (DACs) for authenticating the one or more WVSTs based at least on their respective one or more IDs, the single AOM being capable of communicating with a preselected DAC selected from the one or more DACs;

Wherein the single AOM is further configured to open a corresponding elevator gate to allow access by a respective worker after the single WVST detects that the respective worker is properly protected via measuring the one or more vital signs and after the pre-selection DAC confirms that the respective worker is a worker authorized to access the corresponding elevator hoistway when the respective worker requests access to the corresponding elevator hoistway.

2. The hoistway access and security system of claim 1, wherein:

the single WVST is further configured to determine a first outcome of whether the PPE is properly worn by the respective worker by determining the presence or absence of a vital sign measurement failure via measuring the one or more vital signs;

ID and first result are obtainable by the single AOM from the single WVST;

an ID is obtainable from the single AOM by the pre-selection DAC, the pre-selection DAC configured to determine a second result of whether the respective worker is authorized to enter the corresponding hoistway based on at least the ID, and configured to send the second result to the single AOM; and is also provided with

The single AOM is further configured to open the corresponding elevator gate only when one or more accessibility conditions are met when the corresponding worker requests access to the corresponding elevator hoistway, a first accessibility condition of the one or more accessibility conditions being that both the first result and the second result are affirmative, thereby ensuring that the corresponding worker is a worker authorized to access the corresponding elevator hoistway and is properly secured prior to entering the corresponding elevator hoistway.

3. The hoistway access and security system of claim 2, wherein:

the one or more vital signs include body temperature and heart rate; and is also provided with

The single WVST includes a body temperature sensor for measuring the body temperature, and a heart rate sensor for measuring the heart rate.

4. The hoistway access and safety system of claim 3, wherein if the vital sign data indicates that the body temperature is below 35 ℃ and the heart beat rate is undetectable, a vital sign measurement failure is determined to occur.

5. The hoistway access and security system of claim 3, wherein the single WVST is further configured to:

detecting the occurrence of physical overheating or abnormal heart rate from the vital sign data, whereby the detected occurrence triggers a safety-related event; and is also provided with

In response to the occurrence of the safety-related event, the respective worker is alerted and the single AOM is notified of the safety-related event for emergency treatment.

6. The hoistway access and security system of claim 3, wherein:

the single WVST further includes a humidity sensor and an ambient temperature sensor for sensing a relative humidity and an ambient temperature of the surroundings of the corresponding worker, respectively; and is also provided with

The single WVST is further configured to:

determining an occurrence of a thermal stress experienced by the respective worker from the body temperature, the heart beat rate, the relative humidity, and the ambient temperature, whereby the detected occurrence initiates a safety-related event; and is also provided with

In response to the occurrence of the safety-related event, the respective worker is alerted and the single AOM is notified of the safety-related event for emergency treatment.

7. The hoistway access and security system of claim 2, wherein if at least one of the one or more vital signs is determined to be undetectable, a vital sign measurement failure is determined to occur.

8. The hoistway access and security system of claim 2, wherein:

the single WVST includes one or more vital sign sensors for measuring the one or more vital signs of the respective worker; and is also provided with

If all of the one or more vital signs are determined to be undetected based on one or more raw signals sensed by the one or more vital sign sensors, a vital sign measurement failure is determined to occur.

9. The hoistway access and security system of claim 1, wherein:

The single WVST includes a 3-axis accelerometer for detecting a fall of a corresponding worker; and is also provided with

The single WVST is further configured to:

detecting the occurrence of a sudden fall of the respective worker, whereby the detected occurrence initiates a safety-related event; and is also provided with

In response to the occurrence of the safety-related event, the respective worker is alerted and the single AOM is notified of the safety-related event for emergency treatment.

10. The hoistway access and security system of claim 1, wherein the single WVST comprises a WVST transceiver for communicating with the single AOM, the WVST transceiver configured to periodically broadcast advertisement signals to enable the single AOM to discover and pair with the single WVST.

11. The hoistway access and security system of claim 10, wherein advertisement messages carried in the advertisement signals are encrypted, the advertisement messages being decryptable by each of the one or more AOMs.

12. The hoistway access and security system of claim 10, wherein the WVST transceiver is implemented using one or more short range radio protocols selected from Bluetooth Low Energy (BLE) specifications, zigbee specifications, and Z-wave specifications.

13. The hoistway access and safety system of claim 1, wherein the single WVST is configured to attach to a safety helmet used as PPE.

14. The hoistway access and security system of claim 1, wherein the single AOM is configured to interconnect to a plurality of peripheral devices, the plurality of peripheral devices comprising:

one or more electric door locks controllable by the single AOM to lock or unlock a corresponding elevator door, thereby enabling the corresponding elevator door to be opened or closed for controlling access to the corresponding elevator hoistway; and

one or more door sensors for detecting an open/closed state of the corresponding elevator door.

15. The elevator access and security system of claim 14, wherein the plurality of peripheral devices further comprises one or more motion sensors for detecting moving objects in the corresponding elevator hoistway, thereby allowing the corresponding elevator hoistway to be monitored and its occupancy to be determined.

16. The hoistway access and security system of claim 15, wherein the single AOM is further configured to detect a presence of a person in the corresponding hoistway outside of a permitted access clock time based on measurements of the one or more motion sensors and to respond to a security related event caused by the detected presence of the person.

17. The hoistway access and security system of claim 14, wherein the plurality of peripheral devices further comprises one or more input/output (IO) devices for enabling the single AOM to interact with a respective worker.

18. The hoistway access and security system of claim 17, wherein the one or more IO devices comprise:

a lock release button for enabling a respective worker to request access to a corresponding hoistway through a corresponding elevator gate;

an audible alarm for alerting a respective worker; and

one or more status indicating Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) for indicating the status of the corresponding elevator hoistway.

19. The hoistway access and security system of claim 14, wherein at least one device of the plurality of peripheral devices is an internet of things (IoT) device.

20. The electrical hoistway access and security system of claim 10, wherein the single AOM comprises an AOM transceiver configured to communicate with one or more detectable WVSTs of the one or more WVSTs when a single detectable WVST is within a predetermined maximum communication range from the single AOM.

21. The hoistway access and security system of claim 20, wherein the single AOM is further configured to:

estimating a distance between a single detectable WVST and the single AOM from received signal strengths of corresponding advertisement signals transmitted from the single detectable WVST and received by the single AOM; and is also provided with

The corresponding ID received from the single detectable WVST is forwarded to a preselected DAC for authentication only if the estimated distance is within a predetermined distance selected to avoid the burden of authenticating the single detectable WVST at the preselected DAC if the corresponding worker carrying the single detectable WVST is not in close proximity to the corresponding elevator gate.

22. The hoistway access and security system of claim 20, wherein the single AOM is further configured to:

determining or obtaining a Received Signal Strength Indicator (RSSI) of a corresponding advertisement signal transmitted from a single detectable WVST and received by the single AOM; and is also provided with

The corresponding ID received from the single detectable WVST is forwarded to a preselected DAC for authentication only if the RSSI is greater than a predetermined RSSI threshold selected to avoid the burden of authenticating the single detectable WVST at the preselected DAC if the corresponding worker carrying the single detectable WVST is not in close proximity to the corresponding elevator gate.

23. The hoistway access and security system of claim 1, wherein the single WVST and the single AOM are configured such that communications between the single WVST and the single AOM are encrypted.

24. The hoistway access and security system of claim 1, wherein the pre-selection DAC is further configured to determine the second result based on one or more additional criteria other than ID, the one or more additional criteria comprising:

list of selected elevator gates that the respective worker is allowed to pass: or (b)

Allowing the respective worker to access a list of one or more time periods corresponding to the elevator hoistway.

25. The hoistway access and security system of any of claims 1-24, further comprising:

one or more Wireless Access Points (WAPs) connectable to the internet to wirelessly communicate with and provide internet connectivity to the one or more DACs.

26. The hoistway access and security system of claim 25, wherein a single WAP is configured to support wireless communications under one or more radio protocols selected from a WiFi specification, a remote wide area network (lorewan) specification, a narrowband internet of things (NB-IoT) specification, a Sigfox specification, a Random Phase Multiple Access (RPMA) specification, and a cellular mobile communications standard.

27. The hoistway access and security system of claim 25, further comprising:

a Centralized Management Platform (CMP) implemented by a computing server connectable to the internet, the CMP being capable of communicating with the one or more DACs via the one or more WAPs to manage the one or more DACs and to provide a user interface to a field manager, wherein the CMP is configured to periodically update the preselected DACs with a list of valid IDs, the list indicating specific workers authorized to enter the corresponding elevator hoistway.

28. The hoistway access and security system of claim 27, wherein:

the single WVST is configured to send vital sign data to the single AOM;

the single AOM and the preselected DAC are configured to relay the vital sign data to the CMP; and is also provided with

The CMP is configured to store the vital sign data for recording.

29. The hoistway access and security system of claim 27, wherein the computing server comprises a database for storing worker information and access control information associated with each WVST.

30. The hoistway access and security system of claim 27, wherein the computing server is programmed with:

An access management module for managing access by workers to the one or more elevator shafts;

an event management module for managing and responding to any security-related events reported from the one or more AOMs; and

a system configuration module for managing the configuration of the one or more WVSTs, the one or more AOMs, the one or more DACs, and the one or more WAPs.

31. The hoistway access and security system of claim 30, wherein the computing server is a distributed server in a computing cloud.