JP2005162435A - Elevator monitoring device - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an elevator monitoring device capable of making a talk with a monitor center even during transmission of the image data generated by photographing inside an elevator car and/or reception of the control data from the monitor center. <P>SOLUTION: The elevator monitoring device is equipped with an interphone 4 installed in each elevator car 2, a camera 5 to photograph inside the car 2 and emit the generated image data, an operating condition sensing part 8 to sense the operating condition of the car 2 and output the sensing data, a monitoring data output part 15 to select or mix the image data and the sensing data and output as the monitoring data, a data mix/separation processing part 16 to mix the voice signal produced by the interphone 4 with the monitoring data and output as the elevator information, and a transmission/reception processing part 17 to transmit the elevator information to the monitor center A2 via a wireless communication line and receive the voice signal from the monitor center A2. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2005,JPO&NCIPI

Description

  The present invention relates to an elevator monitoring apparatus, and more specifically, can make a call with a monitoring center from within an elevator car via a communication line, and can transmit image data taken inside the elevator car to the monitoring center. The present invention relates to an improved elevator monitoring device.

Various remote monitoring services have been provided for elevator devices. For example,
(1) When a failure occurs in the elevator system, the monitoring center is automatically notified.
(2) When a person is trapped in the elevator car, it is automatically notified to the outside of the elevator car.
(3) A call is made with the monitoring center via an intercom installed in the elevator car.
(4) In addition, information related to the elevator apparatus is transmitted to the monitoring center.

In addition to such a remote monitoring service for elevator devices, recently, the following value-added services are being provided.
(5) By detecting the state of confinement in the elevator car and when confinement occurs, the state of the elevator car can be determined by transmitting an audio signal from the intercom and image data from a camera for photographing the inside of the elevator car. Inform the monitoring center. As a result, the monitoring center can confirm the situation of the user in the elevator car, for example, whether a person has fallen down due to illness or the like, or foreign objects are not caught in the elevator door.

(6) Control data for controlling the drive of the elevator car is received from the monitoring center, and drive control of the elevator car is performed based on the control data. Thereby, since the elevator car can be remotely operated in the monitoring center, the confinement state can be eliminated and the user can be rescued quickly.
(7) The surveillance center confirms the rescue of the user by voice.
(8) In the monitoring center, when an abnormality such as a failure or confinement occurs in the elevator apparatus, an engineer is dispatched to investigate the cause of the failure and perform a recovery operation.

  When a person is trapped in an elevator car, in order to know the user's situation in detail, it is necessary to simultaneously transmit / receive audio signals and transmit captured image data. That is, it is desirable to photograph the interior of the elevator car with a camera while making a call with an interphone. Moreover, in order to rescue a user quickly while confirming a user's condition, it is necessary to perform transmission / reception of an audio signal and reception of control data from a monitoring center at the same time. That is, it is desirable to remotely operate the elevator car while making a call using an interphone.

A conventional elevator monitoring apparatus realizes voice communication and data communication by selectively switching between transmission / reception of audio signals, transmission of image data, and reception of control data (for example, Patent Document 1). For this reason, voice communication cannot be performed while image data is being transmitted or control data is being received, and the telephone call with the monitoring center is interrupted, making the user uneasy. In addition, data communication cannot be performed during transmission / reception of audio signals, and transmission of image data and reception of control data are interrupted, so it is impossible to confirm the details in the elevator car or to rescue the user quickly. There was also a problem.
Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 5-81584

  As described above, the conventional elevator monitoring apparatus has a problem that voice communication cannot be performed while image data is transmitted or control data is received, and a call with the monitoring center is interrupted. Further, there is a problem that data communication cannot be performed while transmission / reception of audio signals is being performed, and transmission of image data and reception of control data are interrupted.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above circumstances, and an object thereof is to provide an elevator monitoring apparatus that can perform voice communication while data communication is performed. In particular, it is an object of the present invention to provide an elevator monitoring device that can make a call with a monitoring center even during transmission of image data obtained by photographing the inside of the elevator car and reception of control data from the monitoring center.

  An elevator monitoring apparatus according to the present invention converts sound in an elevator car into an electrical signal, generates a sound signal, and also inputs and outputs sound data from the sound signal, sound input / output means for generating sound from the sound signal, and image data. Imaging means for outputting, operating state detecting means for detecting the operating state of the elevator car and outputting detection data, monitoring data output means for selecting or mixing the image data and the detection data, and outputting as monitoring data, The voice signal generated by the voice input / output means and the monitoring data are mixed and output as elevator information, and the elevator information is transmitted to the monitoring center via a communication line, and the monitoring center outputs voice. It is comprised by the transmission / reception means which receives a signal.

  That is, the audio signal and monitoring data obtained by selecting or mixing image data and detection data are mixed and transmitted as elevator information to the monitoring center, and the audio signal is received from the monitoring center. For this reason, voice communication can be performed while data communication of monitoring data is being performed. In particular, image data taken inside the elevator car and detection data of the elevator car operating state are mixed with the audio signal and transmitted as monitoring data, so a call is made with the monitoring center even when these data are being transmitted. be able to.

  In addition to the above-described configuration, the elevator monitoring apparatus according to the present invention is configured such that the monitoring data output means selects or mixes data output as monitoring data based on a data request transmitted by the monitoring center. . According to such a configuration, since the monitoring data is selected or mixed according to the data request transmitted from the monitoring center, either one or both of the image data and the detection data are transmitted according to the request of the monitoring center. can do. That is, the monitoring center can acquire one or both of the image data obtained by photographing the inside of the elevator car and the detection data of the operation state of the elevator car from the elevator monitoring device as necessary.

  The elevator monitoring apparatus according to the present invention is configured such that when the operation state detection means detects an operation abnormality of the elevator car, the transmission / reception means starts a transmission operation to the monitoring center. According to such a configuration, when an operation abnormality is detected, a transmission operation is started. Therefore, when an operation abnormality occurs in the elevator car such as an elevator apparatus failure or confinement, the monitoring center is automatically notified. Can do.

  Further, the elevator monitoring apparatus according to the present invention provides a center information including a drive control means for performing drive control of an elevator car, a voice signal received by the transmission / reception means and control data for the drive control, and the voice signal and control data. And a data separation means for separating the data, and the drive control means is configured to perform drive control based on the control data. That is, the audio signal and the control data received as the center information are separated into the audio signal and the control data, and the elevator car is controlled based on the control data. For this reason, the monitoring center can remotely control the elevator car as necessary even during voice communication by transmitting control data together with a voice signal as center information to the elevator monitoring apparatus.

  The elevator monitoring apparatus according to the present invention includes an audio compression unit that compresses an audio signal generated by the audio input / output unit, and the data mixing unit is configured to mix the compressed audio signal with monitoring data. The According to such a configuration, since the audio signal is compressed and the compressed audio signal is mixed with the monitoring data, the amount of data transmitted as elevator information can be reduced. Therefore, even if the communication speed is low and the frequency band is not guaranteed, for example, a data communication line, the audio signal and the monitoring data can be transmitted.

  The elevator monitoring apparatus according to the present invention is configured such that when a call is started via the voice input / output unit, the transmission / reception unit starts transmission of elevator information. According to such a configuration, since transmission of elevator information is started after the start of a call with the monitoring center, when a person is trapped in the elevator car, the monitoring data is not stored after the call state with the user is established. You can send. Therefore, the user's anxiety can be quickly removed.

  According to the elevator monitoring apparatus of the present invention, the audio signal and the monitoring data are mixed and transmitted to the monitoring center as elevator information, and the audio signal is received from the monitoring center, so that data communication of the monitoring data is performed. Voice communication can be performed while In particular, image data taken inside the elevator car and detection data of the elevator car operating state are mixed with the audio signal and transmitted as monitoring data, so a call is made with the monitoring center even when these data are being transmitted. be able to.

  In addition, since the center information received from the monitoring center is separated into voice signals and control data, and the elevator car is controlled based on this control data, a call is made with the monitoring center even when control data is being received. In addition, the elevator car can be remotely operated as necessary even during a call.

Embodiment 1 FIG. FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration example of a monitoring system including an elevator monitoring apparatus according to Embodiment 1 of the present invention. This monitoring system includes a plurality of elevator monitoring devices 1 that monitor the elevator car 2, a base station A1 that is connected to the elevator monitoring device 1 via a wireless communication line such as a data communication line, and a communication line that connects the base station A1. And a monitoring center A2 that performs voice communication and data communication with each elevator monitoring apparatus 1.

  The elevator monitoring apparatus 1 includes a D / A conversion unit 9, a decompression processing unit 10, an A / D conversion unit 11, a compression processing unit 12, communication interfaces 13 and 14, a monitoring data output unit 15, a data mixing / separation processing unit 16, and transmission / reception. The processing unit 17 is configured. The intercom 4, the camera 5, and the recorder 6 are installed in the elevator car 2 for carrying people and the like, and the drive control unit 7 and the operation state detection unit 8 are used in the elevator control panel 3 for controlling the elevator car 2. It is provided in the inside.

  The interphone 4 is a voice input / output means for making a call with a person in the elevator car 2, and a speaker 4 a that generates voice from the voice signal, and a microphone 4 b that converts the voice into an electrical signal and generates a voice signal. Consists of. The audio signal generated by the microphone 4 b is sequentially digitized by the A / D converter 11, and the data amount is compressed by the compression processor 12. The audio signal after the compression processing is output to the data mixing / separation processing unit 16. On the other hand, the audio signal output from the data mixing / separation processing unit 16 is subjected to decompression processing in the decompression processing unit 10, and is sequentially converted to analog by the D / A conversion unit 9, and then output to the speaker 4a.

  The camera 5 is an imaging means for photographing the inside of the elevator car 2, and converts visible light reflected by the subject into an electrical signal to generate image data as digital data. The generated image data is sequentially output to the recorder 6 and transmitted to the communication interface 13.

  The drive control unit 7 performs drive control of the elevator car 2 and controls the vertical movement of the elevator car 2 and the opening and closing of the elevator door. Further, when the control data is input from the data mixing / separation processing unit 16 via the communication interface 14, the drive control unit 7 performs drive control based on the control data. Control data is generated in the monitoring center A2 for remotely operating the elevator car 2. Thereby, monitoring center A2 can remotely operate the elevator car 2 as needed. For example, an elevator door can be opened to rescue a trapped person.

  The operation state detection unit 8 detects the operation state of the elevator car 2 based on the control signal output from the drive control unit 7. This detection result is sequentially transmitted to the communication interface 14 as detection data. In addition, when the operation state detection unit 8 detects an operation abnormality of the elevator car 2 such as a failure or confinement, the operation state detection unit 8 generates a detection signal for starting a transmission operation to the monitoring center A2, and the generated detection signal is transmitted via the communication interface 14. To the transmission / reception processing unit 17.

  The monitoring data output unit 15 selects or mixes image data and detection data, and outputs them as monitoring data. That is, either or both of image data input from the recorder 6 via the communication interface 13 and detection data input from the operation state detection unit 8 via the communication interface 14 are selected, and these data are selected. Is output to the data mixing / separation processing unit 16 as monitoring data. The selection or mixing of the monitoring data is performed based on a data request transmitted from the monitoring center A2 and input from the data mixing / separation processing unit 16. The data request is generated in the monitoring center A2 in order to select or mix data output as monitoring data. Thereby, monitoring center A2 can select monitoring data as needed, or can change a mixture ratio.

  The data mixing / separation processing unit 16 mixes the compressed audio signal and the monitoring data, and also separates the center information transmitted from the monitoring center A2 and input from the transmission / reception processing unit 17 into the audio signal, control data, and switching request. doing. The audio signal and the monitoring data are mixed by time division multiplexing, and the mixed data is sequentially output to the transmission / reception processing unit 17 as elevator information. Further, the separation of the center information is performed by separating the time-division multiplexed data, the separated audio signal is sequentially output to the decompression processing unit 10, and the control data is driven and controlled via the communication interface 14. The data are sequentially output to the unit 7. Further, the switching request after separation is output to the data switching selection unit 15. The center information includes an audio signal, control data, and a switching request, and is generated in the monitoring center A2.

  The transmission / reception processing unit 17 is a wireless communication unit for communicating with the base station A1 via a wireless communication line, and transmits the elevator information from the data mixing / separation processing unit 16 to the monitoring center A2, and the monitoring center. The center information from A2 is received and output to the data mixing / separation processing unit 16. If the time interval in the above-described time division is sufficiently small, the delay of the audio signal due to the mixing / separation can be suppressed to an extent that is not a concern in practice. As a result, data communication can be performed at the same time while making a call in real time between the intercom 4 and the monitoring center A2 in the elevator car 2.

  In addition, when a detection signal is input from the operation state detection unit 8 via the communication interface 14, the transmission / reception processing unit 17 starts a transmission operation to the monitoring center A2. When a call is started via the intercom 4, transmission of elevator information is started. That is, after the communication line with the base station A1 is captured and the connection with the monitoring center A2 is established, the elevator information is transmitted. Thereby, when an operation abnormality occurs in the elevator car 2 such as failure or confinement, it can be automatically notified to the monitoring center A2. In addition, when a person is confined in the elevator car 2, monitoring data is transmitted after establishing a call state with the user, so that the user's anxiety can be quickly removed.

  Steps S101 to S113 in FIG. 2 are flowcharts illustrating an example of a monitoring operation in the elevator monitoring apparatus in FIG. First, when the operation state detection unit 8 detects an operation abnormality of the elevator car 2, the operation state detection unit 8 outputs a detection signal to the transmission / reception processing unit 17 (step S101). Based on this detection signal, the transmission / reception processor 17 starts a transmission operation to the monitoring center A2 (step S102). When the connection with the monitoring center A2 is established and voice communication is started, the transmission / reception processing unit 17 starts transmission of elevator information (steps S103 and S104).

  Next, if there is a request for detection data from the monitoring center A2 as a data request from the monitoring center A2, the monitoring data output unit 15 switches the monitoring data to the detection data, and acquires the necessary detection data from the operation state detection unit 8 (step S105). , S111). The acquired detection data is output to the transmission / reception processing unit 17 via the data mixing / separation processing unit 16 and transmitted to the monitoring center A2.

  Moreover, if there is a request for image data as a data request from the monitoring center A2, the monitoring data output unit 15 switches the monitoring data to the image data and acquires the image data from the recorder 6 (steps S106 and S112). The acquired image data is output to the transmission / reception processing unit 17 via the data mixing / separation processing unit 16 and transmitted to the monitoring center A2.

  Further, when the control data is received from the monitoring center A2, the communication interface 14 transmits the control data to the drive control unit 7 (steps S107 and S113). In the drive control part 7, drive control of the elevator car 2 is performed based on this control data.

  Next, when receiving a line disconnection request from the monitoring center A2, the transmission / reception processing unit 17 ends the voice call, disconnects the communication line, and ends this monitoring process (steps S108 to S110).

  According to the present embodiment, the audio signal and the monitoring data are mixed and transmitted as the elevator information to the monitoring center A2, and the center information including the audio signal and the control data is received from the monitoring center A2. Voice communication can be performed while data communication is being performed. In particular, image data taken inside the elevator car 2 and detection data of the operation state of the elevator car 2 are mixed with the audio signal as monitoring data and transmitted. Therefore, even if these data are being transmitted, the monitoring center A2 You can make a call. Further, even when the elevator car 2 is being remotely operated by the control data, a call can be performed. Therefore, it is not necessary to disconnect the voice communication for data communication, so that it is possible to prevent the user trapped in the elevator car 2 from feeling uneasy. In a conventional elevator monitoring device, in order to prevent a call from being interrupted for data communication, image data is first transmitted after a transmission operation, and then voice communication is started by switching to voice communication after transmission of the image data is completed. I was supposed to be. For this reason, it took a great deal of time to start the call. In contrast, in the present embodiment, since the telephone call is started immediately after the outgoing call operation, it is not necessary to wait for a period until the image data has been transmitted, and convenience can be improved.

  On the other hand, the monitoring center A2 can acquire monitoring data from the elevator monitoring device 1 as necessary even during a call, and can remotely operate the elevator car 2 during a call.

  In addition, since the monitoring data is selected or mixed according to the data request transmitted by the monitoring center A2, either one or both of the image data and the detection data can be transmitted in response to the request of the monitoring center A2. . That is, the monitoring center A2 can acquire either one or both of the image data and the detection data from the elevator monitoring apparatus 1 as necessary.

  In addition, since the audio signal is compressed and the compressed audio signal is mixed with the monitoring data, the amount of data to be transmitted as elevator information can be reduced. Therefore, the voice signal and the monitoring data can be transmitted even with a wireless communication line whose communication speed is low and the frequency band is not guaranteed. For example, an inexpensive communication line dedicated to data communication provided by a wireless communication carrier such as a mobile phone having a communication speed of 10 to several tens kbps can be used.

It is the block diagram which showed one structural example of the monitoring system containing the elevator monitoring apparatus by Embodiment 1 of this invention. It is the flowchart which showed an example of the monitoring operation | movement in the elevator monitoring apparatus of FIG.

Explanation of symbols

1 elevator monitoring device, 2 elevator car, 3 elevator control panel,
4 Interphone, 4a Speaker, 4b Microphone, 5 Camera, 6 Recorder,
7 drive control unit, 8 operation state detection unit, 9 D / A conversion unit, 10 thawing processing unit,
11 A / D conversion unit, 12 compression processing unit, 13, 14 communication interface,
15 monitoring data output unit, 16 data mixing / separation processing unit, 17 transmission / reception processing unit,
A1 base station, A2 monitoring center

Claims (6)

A voice input / output means for converting voice in the elevator car into an electrical signal to generate a voice signal and generating voice from the voice signal;
Imaging means for photographing the interior of the elevator car and outputting image data;
Operation state detection means for detecting the operation state of the elevator car and outputting detection data;
Monitoring data output means for selecting or mixing the image data and the detection data and outputting them as monitoring data;
Data mixing means for mixing the sound signal generated by the sound input / output means and the monitoring data and outputting as elevator information;
An elevator monitoring apparatus comprising: transmission / reception means for transmitting the elevator information to a monitoring center via a communication line and receiving an audio signal from the monitoring center.   The elevator monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the monitoring data output means selects or mixes data to be output as monitoring data based on a data request transmitted from the monitoring center.   The elevator monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the transmission / reception means starts a transmission operation to the monitoring center when the operation state detection means detects an abnormal operation of the elevator car. Drive control means for controlling drive of the elevator car;
Data separation means for separating the center information composed of the audio signal received by the transmission / reception means and the control data for the drive control into the audio signal and the control data;
The elevator monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the drive control means performs drive control based on the control data. Voice compression means for compressing the voice signal generated by the voice input / output means,
The elevator monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the data mixing unit mixes the compressed audio signal with the monitoring data.   The elevator monitoring apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the transmission / reception means starts transmission of elevator information when a call is started via the voice input / output means.

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