JP2009234716A - Elevator system and method of controlling the same - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide an elevator system adapted to inhibit a person from getting in an elevator car when a robot gets in the elevator car. <P>SOLUTION: The elevator system includes: the robot 3 moving through regions over a plurality of floors by getting in and out the elevator car 20, and includes an elevator control part 22 for controlling ascending and descending of the elevator car 20; a detection part 29 which is disposed within the elevator car and detects the presence of a person within the elevator car; and a landing instruction input part 26 for detecting the presence of a person in an elevator landing. The elevator system is adapted to enter a robot only mode when, before the robot gets in the elevator car, no person is detected in the elevator car and the elevator landing by the detection part 29 and the landing instruction input part 26. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2010,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to an elevator system and a control method thereof.

  Conventionally, an elevator system for moving a robot to another floor using an elevator has been proposed (Patent Documents 1 and 2). In such an elevator system, when the robot uses the elevator, the elevator is switched to the robot-dedicated mode, and the elevator is controlled based on information from the robot.

  When a person and a robot share the same elevator and move to another floor, if the person and the robot ride on the same elevator car at the same time, there is a possibility of harming the person due to a malfunction of the robot. In order to ensure human safety, there is a demand for avoiding the use of the same elevator by humans and robots at the same time.

  Therefore, in Patent Document 1, when a human detection sensor is provided in an elevator car and the human detection sensor in the elevator reacts when the robot gets into the elevator, a warning is given to the person in the elevator. Techniques that encourage you to get off the elevator are described. Further, Patent Document 2 is provided with a sensor for detecting the presence of a person in an elevator getting-on / off area, and is operated so that a person and a robot exclusively use the same elevator.

In Patent Document 3, a sensor that detects the presence of a person or an object in the elevator car is provided, and a region where the presence of the person or the object is not detected is set as a boarding position in the elevator car of the robot. Patent Document 4 describes an inter-floor moving apparatus including a robot having a self-propelled function and a monitoring function by remote control. Patent Document 5 describes a control method for reducing the burden on an elevator installation worker.
JP 2006-89262 A JP 2005-53671 A JP 2005-18382 A JP-A-7-286870 Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 2003-112868

  When the robot uses the elevator, even if the robot gives a warning to the person, the person may continue to ride in the elevator cage or the person may get into the elevator cage from behind the robot. In this way, the robot can call attention to the person only by the warning sound, and the robot does not have means for physically moving the person from the elevator car to the outside of the elevator car.

  The present invention has been made against the background of the above circumstances, and an object of the present invention is to provide an elevator system and a control method therefor that can suppress the entry of a person when the robot gets into the elevator car. Is to provide.

  An elevator system according to a first aspect of the present invention is an elevator system including a robot that gets on and off an elevator car and moves in an area across a plurality of floors, and an elevator controller that controls the raising and lowering of the elevator car; An elevator cabin instruction input unit provided in the elevator car and for inputting instructions to the elevator control unit, and a boarding area instruction input unit provided in an elevator boarding / alighting area on each floor for inputting instructions to the elevator control unit. And an elevator control unit provided in the elevator car for detecting the presence of a person in the elevator car, and a boarding / alighting area detection unit for detecting the presence of a person in the elevator boarding / alighting area, Before the robot gets into the elevator cage, the elevator detection means and the boarding / alighting area detection means allow the air to enter the elevator cage. If a person is not detected in the beta cage in and the elevator passenger area, it is an robot only mode. Thereby, when the robot gets into the elevator car, it is possible to prevent people from getting in.

  The elevator system according to a second aspect of the present invention is the above-described elevator system, wherein the robot includes a communication unit that transmits and receives a predetermined signal to and from the elevator control unit, and the elevator control unit includes the communication unit. When the elevator call signal is received from the robot via the robot, the boarding / alighting area instruction input unit cancels the instruction reception. As a result, when the robot is in the elevator car, people cannot call the elevator car 20 on other floors, and the robot can exclusively use the elevator car temporarily.

  In the elevator system according to a third aspect of the present invention, in the elevator system described above, the elevator cab instruction input unit stops receiving instructions when in the robot dedicated mode. As a result, even if a person gets in from behind the robot, the elevator car moves only to the destination floor of the robot, and the person cannot move to the destination floor. For this reason, a person's boarding can be suppressed.

  An elevator system according to a fourth aspect of the present invention is the above-described elevator system, further comprising illumination provided in the elevator car, and the elevator control unit turns off the illumination when in the robot dedicated mode. It is characterized by doing. Thereby, a person's boarding can be suppressed.

  In the elevator system according to a fifth aspect of the present invention, in the above elevator system, the boarding / alighting area detecting means determines that a person is present in the boarding / alighting area when the operation of the boarding / alighting area instruction input unit is performed. Is. Thereby, the person in a boarding / alighting area can be detected with a simple configuration.

  An elevator system control method according to a sixth aspect of the present invention is an elevator system control method including a robot that gets on and off an elevator car and moves in an area across a plurality of floors, and includes a person in an elevator boarding area on each floor. Detecting the presence of a person, detecting the presence of a person in the elevator car, and before the robot enters the elevator car, no person is detected in the elevator car and in the elevator boarding area. A step for setting the robot dedicated mode. Thereby, when the robot gets into the elevator car, it is possible to prevent people from getting in.

  An elevator system control method according to a seventh aspect of the present invention is the above-described control method, wherein an instruction from an getting-on / off area instruction input unit provided in an getting-on / off area is made in response to a call signal of the elevator car transmitted by the robot. Including the step of canceling the reception. As a result, when the robot is in the elevator car, people cannot call the elevator car 20 on other floors, and the robot can exclusively use the elevator car temporarily.

  An elevator system control method according to an eighth aspect of the present invention is the above control method, wherein, in the robot-dedicated mode, the instruction reception of an elevator cabin instruction input unit provided in the elevator cage is stopped. Includes steps. As a result, even if a person gets in from behind the robot, the elevator car moves only to the destination floor of the robot, and the person cannot move to the destination floor. For this reason, a person's boarding can be suppressed.

  A control method for an elevator system according to a ninth aspect of the present invention includes the step of turning off the illumination provided in the elevator car when in the robot-only mode in the control method. Thereby, a person's boarding can be suppressed.

  In the control method for an elevator system according to the tenth aspect of the present invention, in the control method described above, it is determined that a person is present in the boarding area when the boarding area instruction input unit is operated. Thereby, the person in a boarding / alighting area can be detected with a simple configuration.

  ADVANTAGE OF THE INVENTION According to this invention, when a robot gets into an elevator cage | basket, the elevator system which can suppress a passenger | crew's boarding, and its control method can be provided.

  An elevator system according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. FIG. 1 is a diagram showing a conceptual configuration of an elevator system 1 according to the present embodiment. FIG. 2 is a block diagram for explaining an example of the configuration of the robot 3 used in this system. As shown in FIG. 1, the elevator system 1 includes an elevator device 2 and a robot 3. The robot 3 can get on and off the elevator car 20 of the elevator apparatus 2 and move the area over a plurality of floors. The elevator system 1 according to the present invention is configured to be able to switch between a robot-dedicated mode in which the robot 3 can exclusively use the elevator rod 20 and a normal operation mode used by ordinary people.

  As the robot 3, for example, an autonomous movement type robot can be used. As shown in FIG. 2, the robot 3 includes a detection unit 30, a storage unit 31, a control unit 32, a drive unit 33, a warning notification unit 34, and a robot side communication unit 35. The detection unit 30 detects environmental information around the robot 3 itself. The robot 3 detects whether or not there are obstacles around the robot 3 itself, and moves while confirming that there is no obstacle in the traveling direction from the detection result of the detection unit 30. . A collision can be prevented even if there is an obstacle on the moving path on which the robot 3 moves to a target point. As the detection unit 30, a distance sensor using a laser or the like can be used.

  The memory | storage part 31 memorize | stores the detection result by the detection part 30 in the map of a movement range, and each place in a movement range. The control unit 32 outputs a control signal for autonomously moving to the instructed destination to the drive unit 33 based on the detection result and the movement range map stored in the storage unit 31. The drive unit 33 including a motor or the like drives the wheels 36 of the robot 3 based on the input control signal. Thereby, the robot 3 autonomously moves by rotating the wheel 36 to the instructed destination. The warning notification unit 34 warns the surrounding people by displaying sound, light, characters, and the like while moving. The robot side communication unit 35 transmits / receives predetermined signals to / from a boarding / exiting region side communication unit 25 and an elevator cabin communication unit 27 described later. The configuration of the robot 3 is not limited to this.

  The elevator apparatus 2 includes an elevator car 20, a hoistway 21, an elevator control unit 22, an elevator driving unit 23, an illumination 24, a passenger area communication unit 25, a passenger area instruction input unit 26, an elevator car communication part 27, and an elevator car An instruction input unit 28 and a detection unit 29 are provided. A machine room is provided in the upper part of the hoistway 21, and an elevator control unit 22 and an elevator driving unit 23 are provided therein. The elevator control unit 22 controls the entire elevator, such as opening / closing of the elevator entrance / exit doors on each floor, lighting / extinguishing of the lighting 24 in the elevator car 20, and raising / lowering of the elevator. The elevator drive unit 23 raises and lowers the elevator car 20 based on a control signal from the elevator control unit 22. The lighting 24 is provided in the elevator car 20 and is turned on when a person is in the elevator car 20 and turned off when a person is not on the car.

  A boarding / alighting area side communication unit 25 is provided in the boarding / alighting area for the elevator car 20. The boarding / alighting area side communication unit 25 is provided in an elevator boarding / alighting area on each floor so that it can communicate with the robot 3 on each floor. An elevator cabin communication unit 27 is provided in the elevator cabin 20. The boarding / alighting area communication unit 25 and the elevator cabin communication unit 27 are connected to the elevator control unit 22 and transmit / receive predetermined signals to / from the robot communication unit 35 described above. The contents of the instruction input to the elevator control unit 22 for the robot 3 to get on and off the elevator car 20 are the instruction of the floor on which the robot 3 gets in (call instruction), the instruction for opening and closing the door of the elevator car 20, the destination floor Instructions. Thereby, the elevator apparatus 2 is controlled according to the signal from the robot side communication unit 35.

  The boarding / alighting area instruction input unit 26 is provided in a boarding / alighting area for the elevator car 20 on each floor. In addition, an elevator cabin instruction input unit 28 is provided in the elevator cage 20. When a person operates the boarding / alighting area instruction input unit 26 or the elevator cabin instruction input unit 28, an instruction is input to the elevator control unit 22. In the normal operation mode, the elevator controller 22 follows the instructions input by the operation performed by a person from the boarding / alighting area instruction input unit 26 in the boarding / alighting area of each floor or the elevator car instruction input part 28 in the elevator car 20. Control up and down 20 and door opening and closing. For example, when the boarding / alighting area instruction input unit 26 is operated, the elevator car 20 is called to the floor where the elevator car 20 is operated, and the elevator car 20 moves to the target floor by designating the destination floor by the elevator car instruction input unit 28. To do.

  A detector 29 that detects the presence of a person in the elevator car 20 is provided in the elevator car 20. As the detection unit 29, a distance sensor using a laser or the like can be used. In this case, a horizontal plane parallel to the floor surface in the elevator car 20 is scanned with a light beam, and the reflected light is measured to determine whether or not a person is present in the elevator car 20. When only the wall on the inner surface of the elevator car 20 is detected by the detection unit 29, it can be determined that there is no person, and when something other than the wall is detected, it can be determined that there is a person in the elevator car 20. The detection unit 29 is not limited to this, and an ultrasonic sensor, a three-dimensional camera, or the like can be used. Further, as the detection unit 29, in addition to the above-described optical distance sensor, an infrared-sensitive human sensor that detects a person by detecting infrared rays from a human body may be used in combination. Furthermore, a warning notification unit that gives a warning to a person in the elevator car 20 when the robot 3 is on the elevator car 20 may be provided in the elevator car 20.

  In the elevator system 1 according to the present embodiment, when the robot 3 calls the elevator car 20, before the robot 3 gets into the elevator car 20, the detection unit 29 determines whether or not there is a person in the elevator car 20. At the same time, it is determined whether there is no person in the boarding area. The presence of a person in the boarding / alighting area is determined by whether or not the boarding / alighting area instruction input unit 26 has been operated. That is, when the boarding / alighting area instruction input unit 26 is operated and the elevator car 20 is called before the robot 3 calls the elevator car 20, it is determined that a person exists in the boarding / alighting area. It is also possible to provide a sensor or the like for detecting the presence of a person in the boarding area. Further, when a person is detected by the detection unit 29, a warning sound or the like may be given to prompt the person to get off the elevator car 20.

  When it is determined that there is no person in the elevator car 20 and the boarding / alighting area, the elevator is in the robot-dedicated mode. The robot-dedicated mode means that (1) the call reception of the boarding / alighting area instruction input unit 26 is canceled and cannot be operated, (2) the instruction reception of the elevator cabin instruction input unit 28 is canceled and cannot be operated, and (3) elevator The lighting 24 in 20 is turned off, and only the robot 3 can move between floors exclusively. Therefore, in the robot dedicated mode, the elevator control unit 22 controls the raising / lowering of the elevator car 20 and the opening / closing of the door according to the signal transmitted from the robot side communication unit 35 of the robot 3.

  As described above, when the elevator system 1 determines that there is no person in the elevator car 20 and the boarding / alighting area before the robot 3 gets into the elevator car 20, the reception of the boarding / alighting area instruction input unit 26 is stopped. The For this reason, when the robot 3 is in the elevator car 20, a person cannot call the elevator car 20 on another floor. Further, since the reception of the elevator car instruction input unit 28 is canceled, even if a person gets in from behind the robot 3, the elevator car 20 only moves to the destination floor of the robot 3, and the person goes to the destination floor. I can't move. Furthermore, since the illumination 24 in the elevator car 20 is turned off, it is possible to prevent people from getting in. Thereby, according to the elevator system 1 which concerns on this invention, the robot 3 can exclusively use the elevator cage | basket 20 temporarily, and the general people share the elevator apparatus 2 with the robot 3 safely and exclusively. It becomes possible.

  When a person operates the getting-on / off area instruction input unit 26 during the robot-dedicated mode, the call instruction of the person may be accepted and a wait notification may be issued until the movement of the robot 3 is completed. In this case, after the movement of the robot 3 is completed and the robot 3 gets off the elevator rod 20, the elevator rod can be moved to the floor where the operation of the getting-on / off area instruction input unit 26 is performed.

  Next, a control method of the elevator system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to FIG. FIG. 3 is a flowchart for explaining a control method of elevator system 1 according to the present embodiment. As shown in FIG. 3, first, the robot 3 calls the elevator car 20 (step S1). Specifically, the robot 3 transmits a boarding floor instruction to the boarding / alighting area side communication unit 25 from the robot side communication unit 35. As a result, the elevator control unit 22 receives an instruction on the floor on which the robot 3 gets in.

  When the instruction of the boarding floor of the robot 3 is accepted, the instruction acceptance of the boarding area instruction input unit 26 is stopped (step S2). Thereby, the boarding / alighting area instruction | indication input part 26 becomes inoperable, and a person's call of the elevator car 20 is prohibited. Thereafter, the call acceptance prohibited state is maintained until the movement of the robot 3 is completed. Then, it is determined whether or not there is a person in the boarding / alighting area (step S3). That is, before the robot 3 calls the elevator car 20, it is determined whether or not the operation of the getting-on / off area instruction input unit 26 has already been performed. If the operation of the boarding / alighting area instruction input unit 26 is performed before the robot 3 calls the elevator car 20, and it is determined that there is a person in the boarding / alighting area (step S3, YES), normal operation is performed. (Step S4). Then, before moving the elevator car 20 to the floor called by the robot 3, the elevator car 20 is moved to the floor where the calling / unloading area instruction input unit 26 is operated and called by a normal operation, and then the person who gets in Is moved to the destination floor designated by the elevator cabin instruction input unit 28. Thereafter, it is determined again whether or not there is a person in the boarding area (step S3).

  In step S3, when it is determined that there is no person in the boarding / alighting area (step S3, NO), that is, when the operation of the boarding / alighting area instruction input unit 26 is not performed before the robot 3 calls the elevator car 20. Then, it is determined whether or not there is a person in the elevator car 20 (step S5). When the detection unit 29 determines that there is a person in the elevator car 20, normal operation is performed (step S5). Then, by normal operation, the person in the elevator car 20 moves the elevator car 20 to the destination floor designated by the elevator car instruction input unit 28. Thereafter, it is determined again whether or not there is a person in the elevator car 20 (step S5).

  And when it is judged that there is no person in the elevator car 20 (step S5, NO), the illumination 24 in the elevator car 20 is turned off, and the instruction reception of the elevator car communication unit 27 is stopped. (Step S2). As a result, the elevator car communication unit 27 becomes inoperable. Thereafter, even if a person gets into the elevator car 20 and operates the elevator car communication part 27, an instruction to move to the destination floor is not accepted. Thereafter, the destination instruction reception prohibition state is maintained until the movement of the robot 3 is completed.

  As described above, when it is determined that there is no person in the boarding / alighting area and the elevator car 20 after the robot 3 has called, (1) the call reception of the boarding / alighting area instruction input unit 26 is canceled and the operation becomes impossible. (2) The instruction reception of the elevator cabin instruction input unit 28 is stopped and the operation becomes impossible, and (3) the robot dedicated mode in which the illumination 24 in the elevator cabin 20 is turned off is set. Thereby, the preparation for getting the robot 3 into the elevator car 20 in a state where there is no person in the elevator car 20 is completed.

  After entering the robot dedicated mode, the elevator car 20 is moved to the boarding floor designated by the robot 3, and the robot 3 gets into the elevator car 20 and moves to the destination floor of the robot 3 (step S8). . Specifically, when the elevator car 20 arrives at the boarding floor where the robot 3 is waiting, the elevator control unit 22 can enter the robot 3 with the door for entering the elevator car 20 opened. State. Then, the robot 3 gets into the elevator car 20 that has arrived at the boarding floor, and transmits a signal instructing the destination floor from the robot side communication unit 35 to the elevator car communication unit 27. In response to this instruction, the elevator control unit 22 moves the elevator car 20 to the destination floor. Thereby, the robot 3 can be moved to the destination floor without being accompanied by a person.

  When the robot 3 arrives at the destination floor and opens the door, the robot 3 gets off the elevator car 20 (step S9). After the robot 3 gets off the elevator car 20, (1) the getting on / off area instruction input unit 26 can be operated, (2) the elevator car instruction input part 28 can be operated, and (3) the illumination 24 in the elevator car 20 Is turned on (step S10). Thereafter, normal operation is performed in accordance with instructions input to the boarding / alighting area instruction input unit 26 and the elevator cabin instruction input unit 28 (step S11).

  Thus, according to the present invention, when it is determined that there is no person in the boarding / alighting area and the elevator rod 20, the robot dedicated mode is set. For this reason, even if a person gets in from behind the robot 3, the elevator car 20 moves only to the destination floor of the robot 3, and the person cannot move to the destination floor. Further, since the interior of the elevator car 20 is turned off, it is possible to suppress a person from getting into the elevator car 20. Accordingly, it is possible to suppress the entry of a person when the robot gets on the elevator car while ensuring the safety of the person.

  The present invention is not limited to the above-described configuration, and various modifications can be made. For example, in the description of the above embodiment, one elevator has been described, but the present invention can also be applied to a case where a plurality of elevators are installed.

It is a figure which shows the notional structure of the elevator system which concerns on embodiment. It is a block diagram for demonstrating an example of the structure of the robot used for the elevator system which concerns on embodiment. It is a flowchart for demonstrating the control method of the elevator system which concerns on embodiment.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Elevator system 2 Elevator apparatus 3 Robot 20 Elevator rod 21 Hoistway 22 Elevator control part 23 Elevator drive part 24 Illumination 25 Boarding area communication part 26 Boarding area instruction | indication input part 27 Elevator car side communication part 28 Elevator car instruction | indication input part 29 Detection unit 30 Detection unit 31 Storage unit 32 Control unit 33 Drive unit 34 Warning notification unit 35 Robot side communication unit 36 Wheel

Claims (10)

An elevator system including a robot that gets on and off an elevator car and moves in an area across multiple floors,
An elevator controller for controlling the raising and lowering of the elevator car;
An elevator cabin instruction input unit which is provided in the elevator cage and which inputs an instruction to the elevator control unit;
A boarding / alighting area instruction input unit that is provided in an elevator boarding / alighting area on each floor and that inputs instructions to the elevator control unit;
An in-cabin detection means provided in the elevator car for detecting the presence of a person in the elevator car,
A boarding / alighting area detecting means for detecting the presence of a person in the elevator boarding / alighting area;
The elevator control unit is configured such that when no person is detected in the elevator car and the elevator boarding / alighting area by the car interior detecting means and the boarding / alighting area detecting means before the robot gets into the elevator car, Elevator system with dedicated mode. The robot includes a communication unit that transmits and receives a predetermined signal to and from the elevator control unit.
When the elevator control unit receives a call signal of the elevator car from the robot via the communication means,
The elevator system according to claim 1, wherein the boarding / alighting area instruction input unit stops receiving instructions.   The elevator system according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the elevator cabin instruction input unit stops receiving instructions when in the robot-dedicated mode. It further comprises lighting provided in the elevator car,
The elevator system according to claim 1, 2 or 3, wherein the elevator control unit turns off the illumination in the robot dedicated mode.   The elevator system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the boarding / alighting area detection unit determines that a person is present in the boarding / alighting area when the boarding / alighting area instruction input unit is operated. An elevator system control method including a robot that gets on and off an elevator car and moves in an area across a plurality of floors,
Detecting the presence of a person in the elevator boarding area on each floor;
Detecting the presence of a person in the elevator car;
A method for controlling an elevator system including a step of setting a robot-dedicated mode when a person is not detected in the elevator car and in the elevator boarding / alighting area before the robot gets into the elevator car.   The elevator system control method according to claim 6, further comprising a step of canceling an instruction reception of a boarding / alighting area instruction input unit provided in a boarding / alighting area in response to a call signal of the elevator car transmitted by the robot.   The control method for an elevator system according to claim 6 or 7, further comprising a step of canceling an instruction reception of an elevator car instruction input unit provided in the elevator car in the robot dedicated mode.   The method for controlling an elevator system according to claim 6, 7 or 8, comprising a step of turning off the illumination provided in the elevator car in the robot dedicated mode.   The control method for an elevator system according to any one of claims 6 to 9, wherein when the operation of the boarding / alighting area instruction input unit is performed, it is determined that a person is present in the boarding / alighting area.

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