CN116829485A - Elevator shaft access and safety system - Google Patents

Abstract

A hoistway access and security system for managing the safe access of each worker to a hoistway provides: a Worker Vital Sign Tag (WVST) attachable to Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) wearable by a worker for measuring vital signs of the worker; an Access and Occupancy Microcontroller (AOM) for controlling the elevator gate and detecting occupancy of the elevator hoistway; a Distributed Authentication Controller (DAC) for WVST authentication; and a Centralized Management Platform (CMP) for managing the system. When a worker requests access to the elevator hoistway, the AOM opens the elevator gate after the WVST detects via measurement of vital signs that the worker is properly wearing PPE and after the DAC determines that the worker is a worker authorized to access the elevator hoistway. Thus ensuring that the worker is a worker authorized to access the hoistway and is properly protected before entering the hoistway.

Description

Elevator shaft access and safety system

Cross Reference to Related Applications

The present application claims priority from the chinese hong Kong Standard patent application, application number 22021024171.1, filed on 1 month 22 of 2021, the disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference in its entirety.

Abbreviations

AOM access and occupancy microcontroller

BLE low-power consumption Bluetooth

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 remote 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 workman vital sign label

UI user interface

Technical Field

The present disclosure relates to a system for managing access to an elevator hoistway of a building by construction workers for safety concerns.

Background

Many construction projects involve elevator installation. Performing construction work in an elevator hoistway is considered a high risk task. Common hazards include worker falls and object falls. These hazards may lead to serious injury or even death. To reduce the risk, temporary gates are often installed at the opening or entrance of the elevator hoistway. These gates are typically secured with a padlock. Such a security arrangement may reduce risk if implemented and managed properly. However, field management is often difficult to efficiently and effectively track each elevator gate. This disadvantage is particularly pronounced for multi-story buildings. For example, a 50-story building with six elevators being constructed has more than 300 gates to manage. In fact, many gates may open or unlock without notification or at the convenience of a worker. The risk still exists.

Furthermore, there is a high risk of unauthorized persons entering the elevator hoistway, as he or she may not be sufficiently trained to work in the elevator hoistway environment. For occupational safety, only trained workers should be allowed to work in the elevator shaft. However, apart from physical keys or ordinary coded locks, field management has little control over who can enter which hoistway.

In addition to security, another problem is inefficiency in managing and assigning physical keys for workers to open hoistway doors. Typically, the keys of the hoistway doors are centrally managed by dedicated staff assigned by field management. The maintenance of paper records by key holders and manual distribution and collection of keys to and from workers in hoistway doors is time consuming and prone to error. The problems of lost keys and unreturned keys also largely hinder the efficiency of construction operations in the elevator hoistway.

In addition, the occupancy of the elevator shaft and the status of the workers are not visible by the field management. This disadvantage can be a critical issue because the elevator hoistway is a closed area. In the event of an accident, it may be difficult to locate an injured worker and understand his or her health condition.

There is a need for a hoistway access and safety system that can effectively and efficiently manage workers using various regulations when accessing a hoistway to ensure the safety of the workers, such as detecting whether any workers are experiencing an emergency condition.

Disclosure of Invention

The present disclosure provides a hoistway access and security system for at least managing worker safe access to one or more hoistways 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 may be attached to a PPE wearable by the respective worker. In addition, a single WVST is configured to measure one or more vital signs of a respective worker to thereby generate vital sign data. A single WVST is also assigned an ID for identifying the corresponding worker. The one or more AOMs are configured to control at least access to one or more elevator shafts. A single AOM is configured to control a corresponding elevator gate installed at a corresponding hoistway. The single AOM and the single WVST may communicate wirelessly with each other when a distance between the single AOM and the single WVST is within a predetermined maximum communication range. The one or more DACs are to authenticate the one or more WVSTs based at least on their respective one or more IDs. A single AOM may be in communication with a preselected DAC selected from the one or more DACs. In particular, the single AOM is further configured to open the corresponding elevator gate to allow access of the corresponding worker after the single WVST detects that the corresponding worker is properly protected via measuring the one or more vital signs and after the pre-selection DAC confirms that the corresponding worker is a worker authorized to access the corresponding elevator hoistway when the corresponding worker requests access to the corresponding elevator hoistway.

Preferably, the system ensures that the respective worker is a worker authorized to access the corresponding hoistway and is properly protected before entering the corresponding hoistway by the following arrangement. The single WVST is further configured to determine a first outcome of whether the PPE was 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. When a single AOM and a single WVST can communicate wirelessly with each other and when a preselected DAC can communicate with a single AOM, an ID and a first result can be obtained by the single AOM from the single WVST and the ID can also be obtained by the preselected DAC from the single AOM. The preselection DAC is 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 to send the second result to the single AOM. In particular, 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 affirmative for both the first result and the second result. Thus ensuring that the respective worker is a worker authorized to access the corresponding hoistway and is properly protected before entering the corresponding hoistway.

Preferably, the system further comprises one or more WAPs and a CMP. The one or more WAPs may be connected to the internet to wirelessly communicate with and provide internet connectivity to the one or more DACs. The CMP is implemented by 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 a user interface to a site administrator. The CMP is configured to periodically update the preselected DAC with a list of valid IDs indicating the particular workers authorized to enter the corresponding elevator hoistway.

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

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a schematic diagram illustrating a topological arrangement of a hoistway access and security system according to an exemplary embodiment of the present disclosure.

Fig. 2 depicts a series of WVST, AOM, DAC, WAP and CMP in the system for further explanation of the structural and operational details of the system.

Fig. 3 depicts a practical implementation of a PPE for personal protection that is wearable by a worker, wherein the PPE is integrated with WVST and implemented as a safety helmet.

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

Detailed Description

The terms "comprising," "having," "including," and "containing" are to be construed as open-ended terms (i.e., meaning "including, but not limited to,") unless otherwise noted herein.

As used herein, a device or person being "authenticated" means that the device or person has been verified as authentic or valid such that the device or person is permitted or authorized to perform some predefined task. "authenticating" a device or person means an act of verifying whether the device or person is authenticated.

As used herein, a "personal protective equipment" or PPE is a wearable device, equipment, or garment designed to protect the body of a wearer from injury. Examples of PPEs include protective apparel, safety helmets, goggles, gas masks, wearable shields, protective shoes, and the like.

As used herein, a "vital sign" is a medical sign selected from a plurality of most important medical signs that are indicative of the state of a vital (life-sustaining) function of a human body. The plurality of most important medical signs are commonly used to help assess the overall physical health of the human body, provide clues to possible diseases, and show the progress of rehabilitation. Examples of vital signs include body temperature, blood pressure, pulse (heart rate) and respiration rate (respiration rate). It should be noted that the normal range of values for a person's vital signs varies with age, weight, sex and overall health. Those skilled in the art can review published vital sign tables to identify normal ranges of vital sign values.

As used herein, unless specified otherwise, a "cloud" or "computing cloud" is interpreted in the sense of cloud computing or distributed computing over synonymous networks.

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

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

Disclosed herein is an elevator hoistway access and safety system. The system is used for at least a manager (typically a construction worker) to safely access one or more elevator shafts via one or more controllable elevator gates. The system can be advantageously used to assist a field manager in monitoring a construction site having the one or more elevator shafts.

The disclosed system is scalable and easily scalable, and can be implemented in a variety of application scenarios. The system may be implemented in a building being constructed where the building has a single hoistway to be fitted with one elevator or where the single hoistway is large enough to accommodate multiple elevators therein. The system can also be implemented in a building being constructed with multiple elevator shafts, where each shaft is to be installed with one or more elevators. In addition, the system may be implemented on multiple buildings at a large construction site (e.g., residential area). It is also possible that the system is implemented in an existing building under the retrofit project of dismantling an old and old elevator and installing a new elevator.

By way of example of the disclosed system of fig. 1, fig. 1 depicts a schematic diagram illustrating a topological arrangement of an exemplary hoistway access and security system 100. The system 100 manages at least a worker accessing one or more elevator shafts through one or more elevator doors. The system 100 may also be extended to manage and respond to security related events identified by the system 100. The 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 may be varied to adapt the system 100 to different practical application scenarios, thus making the system 100 scalable.

One or more WVSTs 110 are used for worker identification and vital sign measurement of workers. A single WVST may be attached to a PPE wearable by the respective worker. Functionally, a single WVST is configured to measure one or more vital signs of a respective worker to thereby generate vital sign data. The single WVST further processes the vital sign data to determine whether the respective worker is properly wearing PPE in order to detect whether the respective worker is properly protected. In addition, a single WVST is assigned an ID for identifying the corresponding worker.

One or more AOMs 120 are used to at least control access to one or more elevator shafts. In particular, one AOM is used to control one elevator gate. That is, a single AOM is configured to control a corresponding elevator gate installed at a corresponding hoistway. The single AOM and the single WVST may communicate wirelessly with each other when a distance between the single AOM and the single WVST is within a predetermined maximum communication range. In the system 100, a safety check is intended to be made to determine whether a respective worker is allowed to enter a corresponding hoistway as the respective worker approaches a corresponding elevator gate. Thus, a single WVST and single AOM transceiver is typically configured to support only short-range communications.

It should be noted that a single AOM is permitted to communicate with one or more of the one or more WVSTs 110 when the single detectable WVST is within a predetermined maximum communication range from the single AOM. It follows that the number of WVSTs in communication with each AOM dynamically varies. As an example, fig. 1 depicts AOMs 121, 122, and 123 in communication with WVSTs 111a through 111d, 112a through 112c, and 113a through 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 at some point becomes less than the predetermined maximum communication range but the distance between WVST 112a and AOM 122 exceeds the predetermined maximum communication range, WVST 112a switches communication from AOM 122 to AOM 121.

The one or more DACs 130 are configured to authenticate the one or more WVSTs 110 based at least on the respective one or more IDs of the one or more WVSTs 110. In system 100, it is intended that one AOM communicates with one DAC, while one DAC may 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, and DAC 131 may communicate with each of AOMs 121 through 123. It follows that a single AOM may communicate with a preselected DAC selected from one or more DACs 130. The preselection DAC is configured to determine whether the respective worker is authorized to access the corresponding hoistway.

Advantageously, the single AOM is further configured such that when a respective worker requests access to a corresponding elevator hoistway, the corresponding elevator gate is opened to allow access by the respective worker after (1) the single WVST detects that the respective worker is properly protected via measuring one or more vital signs and after (2) the preselection DAC confirms that the respective worker is a worker authorized to access the corresponding elevator hoistway. With such an arrangement, access to the corresponding elevator hoistway by unauthorized persons or persons lacking proper protection is prohibited.

Further details of the implementation preferably in system 100 to prohibit unauthorized persons and persons not properly protected from entering the corresponding elevator hoistway are provided below. In processing vital sign data, the single WVST is further configured to determine a first outcome of whether the PPE was properly worn by the respective worker by determining the presence or absence of vital sign measurement failure via measuring one or more vital signs. While a single WVST may communicate wirelessly with a single AOM, the ID and first result may be obtained by the single AOM from the single WVST. Since the single AOM and the preselected DAC are communicable, the ID is obtainable from the single AOM by the preselected DAC. The preselection DAC is configured to determine a second result of whether the respective worker is authorized to enter the corresponding hoistway based on at least the ID. After obtaining the second result, the preselection DAC sends the second result to the single AOM. 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. Among the one or more accessibility conditions, the 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 hoistway and is properly protected before entering the corresponding hoistway.

While the foregoing advantages may be realized by one or more WVSTs 110, one or more AOMs 120, and one or more DACs 130, additional elements of system 100 enable further advantages with respect to access control and security management. Preferably and advantageously, the system 100 further comprises 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. The 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 an in-situ manager.

Fig. 2 is a schematic diagram depicting the structure of WVST 111a, AOM 121, DAC 131, WAP 141 and CMP 150 and the signal flow between them for further illustrating the details of one or more WVST 110, one or more AOM 120, one or more DAC 130, one or more WAP 140 and CMP 150 and the 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.

Further illustrated by way of FIG. 3 is WVST 111a, FIG. 3 depicts an actual implementation of PPE 310 integrated with WVST 111 a. In WVST 111a, one or more vital sign sensors 211 are used to measure one or more vital signs of the respective worker 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 typically used to assess the physical health of the respective worker. Accordingly, the one or more vital signs sensors 211 include a body temperature sensor 311 for measuring body temperature, and a heart rate sensor 312 for measuring heart rate. Vital sign data includes readings of body temperature and readings of heart rate.

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

It should be noted that proper wear 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 of body temperature exceeding 35 ℃. In certain embodiments, if the vital sign data indicates that the body temperature is below 35 ℃ and the heart rate is zero or undetectable, it is determined that a first outcome of the vital sign measurement failure to determine whether the respective worker is properly wearing PPE occurred. Whether the PPE is a safety helmet or not, this criterion can be applied to determine the presence or absence of a 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 for measuring a particular vital sign captures or senses the raw signal and then processes the raw signal to produce a reading of the vital sign being measured. Vital signs are detectable only when the desired component of the original signal has a sufficiently high power. Consider an example in which 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 in which an object having a temperature of, for example, 35 ℃ to 40 ℃ emits a large amount of infrared. If the aforementioned portion of the infrared power distribution has low power, body temperature is undetectable. Improper wearing of the safety helmet or PPE also causes the desired component to have low power, thereby making vital signs undetectable. It should be noted that in the event that vital signs are not detected, the corresponding readings of the vital signs (i.e., the corresponding vital sign data) are deemed invalid.

In certain embodiments, 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. The individual vital signs are determined to be undetectable based on the raw signals sensed by the respective vital sign sensors for measuring the individual vital signs. The number of undetected vital signs used to determine the occurrence of a vital sign measurement failure depends on the severity of the security policy. In the most severe cases, only one undetected vital sign is sufficient to cause the vital sign measurement to fail, indicating that the PPE is not properly worn. It should be noted that the non-detectability of an individual vital sign indicates that the corresponding vital sign data is invalid. It follows 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, if all of the one or more vital signs are determined to be undetectable based on the one or more raw signals sensed by the one or more vital sign sensors 211, a vital sign measurement failure is determined to occur.

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

For safety, a corresponding worker needs to be alerted in the presence of improper wear of PPE.

Similarly, in the event that overheating of a worker or abnormal heart rate of a worker is detected, the corresponding worker and job site safety personnel should be alerted. Preferably, WVST 111a is further configured to detect the occurrence of body overheating or abnormal heart rate from vital sign data (such as vital sign data measured by body temperature sensor 311 or heart rate sensor 312). The detected occurrence initiates a safety-related event. In response to the occurrence of the safety-related event, WVST 111a alerts the corresponding worker and notifies AOM 121 of the safety-related event for emergency treatment.

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

Heat stress is a condition to which the worker's body is subjected due to overheating. The risk of having a heat stress condition can be assessed based on body temperature, ambient relative humidity, and ambient temperature. In case of detecting a heat stress condition, the corresponding workers and construction site safety officers should be reminded. 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 the ambient temperature, respectively, of the surrounding environment of the respective worker. WVST 111a is further configured to determine the occurrence of thermal stress experienced by the respective worker based on body temperature, heart rate, relative humidity, and ambient temperature. The detected occurrence initiates a safety-related event. In response to the occurrence of the safety-related event, WVST 111a alerts the corresponding worker and notifies AOM 121 of the safety-related event for emergency treatment.

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

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

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

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

In certain embodiments, WVST transceiver 214 is configured to periodically broadcast advertisement signals to enable AOM 121 or any of one or more AOMs 120 to discover and pair with WVST 111 a. Optionally, the advertisement message carried in the advertisement signal is encrypted to enhance wireless security against eavesdropping, etc. The advertisement message may be decrypted by each of the 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 an AOM transceiver 224 configured to communicate with WVST 111a and also communicate with any of one or more WVSTs 110. In effect, AOM transceiver 224 communicates with one or more detectable WVSTs (e.g., WVSTs 111a through 111d as depicted in FIG. 1) of one or more WVSTs 110, wherein a single detectable WVST is within a predetermined maximum communication range from AOM 121.

Although the predetermined maximum communication range is typically less than 30m, sending all IDs of one or more detectable WVSTs to DAC 131 for WVST authentication is burdensome for both AOM 121 and DAC 131. It is desirable to authenticate those detectable WVSTs that are in close proximity to the corresponding elevator gate (i.e., near AOM 121). In certain embodiments, AOM 121 is further configured to estimate a distance between a single detectable WVST and AOM 121 based on a received signal strength of a corresponding advertisement signal transmitted from the single detectable WVST and received by the single AOM. By using the received signal strength to estimate the distance, the system 100 is required 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 the single detectable WVST to DAC 131 for authentication only if the estimated distance is within a predetermined distance. The predetermined distance is selected 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 the received signal strength is typically measured as RSSI, AOM 121 may directly compare the RSSI to a particular RSSI threshold instead of estimating the distance between a single detectable WVST and AOM 121. This threshold corresponds to the received signal strength, provided that the single detectable WVST is located at a predetermined distance from AOM 121. In certain embodiments, AOM 121 is further configured to: (1) Determining or obtaining the RSSI of the corresponding advertisement signal transmitted from the single detectable WVST and received by AOM 121, and (2) forwarding the corresponding ID received from the single detectable WVST to DAC 131 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 DAC 131 if the corresponding worker carrying the single detectable WVST is not in close proximity to the corresponding elevator gate.

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 the appropriate cryptographic algorithm or protocol for the communication.

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

A plurality of peripheral devices 260 are used with AOM 121 to assist 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 power locks 261 and one or more door sensors 262. One or more door locks 261 may be controlled by AOM 121 to lock or unlock a corresponding elevator gate, thereby enabling the corresponding elevator gate to be opened or closed for controlling access to a corresponding hoistway. One or more door sensors 262 are used to detect an open/closed state of a corresponding elevator door. The open/close state of the corresponding elevator gate is sent to the AOM 121. In the event that one or more door sensors 262 detect that the corresponding elevator door is open for a long period of time while AOM 121 commands one or more electric door locks 261 to lock the corresponding elevator door, a safety related event occurs and is detected by AOM 121, 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 peripheral devices 260 further includes one or more motion sensors 263 for detecting moving objects in the corresponding elevator hoistway, thereby allowing the corresponding elevator hoistway to be monitored and allowing its occupancy to be determined. In certain embodiments, AOM 121 is further configured to detect the presence of a person in a corresponding hoistway outside of the allowed access clock time based on measurements of one or more motion sensors 263 and to respond to a security-related event caused by the detected presence of a person.

AOM 121 is required to interact with a worker at least when the respective worker approaches the corresponding elevator gate and requests access to the corresponding hoistway. Preferably, plurality of peripheral devices 260 further includes one or more IO devices 269 for enabling AOM 121 to interact with respective workers. In certain embodiments, one or more IO devices 269 include a first lock release button 264 for causing a respective worker to request access to a respective hoistway through a respective elevator gate, an audible alarm 265 for alerting the respective worker, and one or more status indication LEDs 266 for indicating one or more status of the respective hoistway. The one or more conditions may be related to occupancy conditions of the elevator hoistway, 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 a corresponding elevator gate when a particular worker in the corresponding elevator hoistway wishes to leave the corresponding elevator hoistway. The AOM 121, which is capable of receiving the ID of the corresponding WVST of the aforementioned specific worker, records the departure time of this worker.

Optionally, the one or more peripheral devices 260 are IoT devices with internet connections. For example, the one or more electric locks 261 are one or more smart locks.

As mentioned above, AOM 121 is typically located near a corresponding elevator gate. Thus, AOM 121 is typically not remote from plurality of peripheral devices 260. In connecting AOM 121 with a single peripheral device, twisted pair cables are a preferred option because of noise immunity, while twisted pair cables are 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 certification. In actual situations, most commonly, DAC 131 determines a second outcome of whether the respective worker is authorized to enter the corresponding hoistway based not only on the ID but also on one or more additional criteria. The additional criterion or criteria vary from case to case and can be determined by one skilled in the art according to the actual situation under consideration. The one or more additional criteria may include: a list of selected elevator gates that the respective worker is allowed to pass through; allowing the respective worker to access a list of one or more time periods corresponding to the elevator hoistway; or a combination thereof. The foregoing two lists may be stored in the local database 231 along 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 a wire or cable so as to allow the wire or cable to additionally provide power from DAC 131 to AOM 121. In certain embodiments, communication link 172 conforms to the RS-485 standard and operates through twisted pair cables that form an RS-485 cable. The RS-485 standard utilizes differential signals in communications to enhance noise immunity. The RS-485 cable may be advantageously used to provide power to 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, lorewan specifications, NB-IoT specifications, sigfox specifications, RPMA specifications, and cellular mobile communication standards.

Typically, buildings with corresponding elevator shafts are under construction, making the wired communication infrastructure unavailable in the building. In some embodiments, WAP 141 is implemented with a short-range or medium-range communication transceiver (e.g., a WiFi transceiver) for communicating with DAC 131 and a long-range wireless communication transceiver (e.g., a 5G communication module) for connecting to a mobile communication system (which in turn is connected to Internet 190). It should be noted that WAP 141 may be required to be installed at a location where mains power for the building is not readily available, thereby forcing WAP 141 to be battery powered. The short-range or medium-range communications transceiver of WAP 141 is preferably operated under a low-power communications protocol, such as the lorewan protocol.

As mentioned above, CMP 150 is used to manage system 100 and provide a user interface 255 to an in-situ manager. In practice, the CMP 150 is implemented by a computing server connectable to the internet 190. One use of CMP 150 is to periodically update DAC 131 with a list of valid IDs that indicates the particular workers authorized to enter the corresponding elevator hoistway. The CMP 150 may also be required to update periodically: a list of selected elevator gates that the respective worker is allowed to pass through; and/or allowing the respective worker to access a list of one or more time periods corresponding to the elevator hoistway. Preferably, the CMP 150 includes a database 251 for storing worker information and access control information associated with each WVST.

In addition to managing access control of one or more elevator shafts, CMP 150 performs other management tasks. Typically, the CMP 150 gathers the status of one or more WVSTs 110, one or more AOMs 120, and one or more DACs 130 in order for a site administrator to track up-to-date information about the job site. In addition, CMP 150 is configured to respond to security related events reported from AOM 121 through DAC 131. For example, the CMP 150 alerts the job site security personnel whenever a new security related event occurs. When the CMP 150 is connected to the internet 190, the security officer may be quickly alerted by connecting to the CMP 150 in real-time, for example, using an internet-enabled mobile computing device.

In some embodiments, the computing server for implementing CMP 150 is programmed with the following modules: an access management module 252 for managing worker access to one or more elevator shafts; an event management module 253 for managing and responding to any security related events reported from 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 the construction job proceeds, a reconfiguration of one or more WAPs 140 may be required from time to time, wherein it may occur to relocate some WAPs and add new DACs.

The computing servers may be physical computers or alternatively distributed servers in a computing cloud.

The user interface 255 may be implemented by one or more physical IO devices (e.g., touch screen, GUI dashboard, etc.). Since CMP 150 is Internet-connected, user interface 255 may also be implemented as a software module programmed to communicate with the IO devices of remote users over Internet 190.

Additional details of the implementation of system 100 are set forth below.

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

The second accessibility condition may be that the corresponding hoistway is sufficiently illuminated under one or more accessibility conditions used by AOM 121 to determine whether to allow the corresponding worker to enter the corresponding hoistway. Advantageously, the plurality of peripheral devices 260 may further include an illuminometer or light sensor mounted in the corresponding hoistway near the corresponding elevator hoistway or at a location not visible through the corresponding elevator hoistway.

The system 100 may be configured such that various data sets related to occupational safety and generated by WVST 111a and AOM 121 for respective workers during visit to a corresponding elevator hoistway 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 hoistway, the time of exit from the corresponding hoistway, the distance of the corresponding worker from AOM 121 over time during a visit, and so forth. In certain embodiments, WVST 111a is configured to send vital sign data to AOM 121.AOM 121 and DAC 131 are configured to relay vital sign data to CMP 150. Vital sign data is stored in the CMP 150 for recording.

As mentioned above, a single AOM is typically mounted near a corresponding elevator gate. In a building being constructed with many floors, one DAC may be used to control multiple AOMs located on one floor. In this way, the DAC and AOMs are placed on the same floor so that cabling between the DAC and AOMs is performed on the same floor, thereby providing cabling convenience. The number of WAPs required to be 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 transparent in indoor radio propagation.

The present invention may be embodied in other specific forms without departing from its spirit or essential characteristics. The present embodiments are, therefore, to be considered in all respects as illustrative and not restrictive. The scope of the invention is indicated by the appended claims rather than by the foregoing description, and all changes which come within the meaning and range of equivalency 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.