JP5985561B2 - Elevator group management control device - Google Patents

Description

  Embodiments described herein relate generally to an elevator group management control device that controls the operation of a plurality of passenger cars.

  In high-rise buildings, etc., multiple elevators (cars) are installed to realize a large number of transportation systems. On the other hand, from the viewpoint of energy saving, operation is carried out by reducing the number of operating cars in quiet hours when there are few users. For example, in a normal time zone, driving is performed using 8 cars, and in a quiet time zone, 2 cars are put in a suspended state and 6 cars are operated.

  In addition, when there are a plurality of cars, each car is called a “unit”. A car to which a hall call is assigned is called an “assigned car”. “Place call” is call information registered at the landing on each floor, and has information on the destination direction (up / down) and registered floor. The “car call” is call information registered in the car of each car, and has information on the destination floor and the registered car.

  Here, each unit moves on each floor according to the above-mentioned hall call and car call. Therefore, in order to reduce the number of operating units, it is common to set a unit that has lost these calls as a candidate for suspension.

Japanese Patent No. 4177045

  However, depending on the operating status of each unit when the number of operating units is reduced, a large number of calls may already be assigned. For this reason, the number of operating units cannot be reduced immediately, and power is consumed during that time.

  The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide an elevator group management control device that can put a to-be-suspended unit into a dormant state as soon as possible when reducing the number of operating units and suppress power consumption during that period.

The elevator group management control device according to the present embodiment finally responds when the hall call assigned to each unit is canceled in the elevator group management control device that controls the operation of a plurality of units. Based on the predicted arrival time calculating means for calculating the predicted arrival time to the floor and the predicted arrival time calculated by the predicted arrival time calculating means, the unit to be suspended is selected from the above units, and the unit Allocation control means for changing the allocation of the hall call assigned to the other unit, and the predicted arrival time calculating means cancels at least one hall call assigned to each unit. Assuming that the predicted arrival time to the floor that finally responds is calculated, the allocation control means calculates the predicted arrival time calculated by the predicted arrival time calculation means. Therefore, the unit with the minimum time until it becomes a non-directional state in each unit is subject to suspension, and the time until it becomes the non-directional state in the hall call assigned to that unit is minimized. Reassign the hall call to other units .

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an elevator group management control apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating an example of a learning table used in the elevator group management control apparatus according to the first embodiment. FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation number change processing of the elevator group management control apparatus in the first embodiment. FIG. 4 is a diagram showing an operation state of each car in the first embodiment. FIG. 5 is a diagram illustrating an operation state after the allocation change of each unit in the first embodiment. FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation number change process of the elevator group management control apparatus according to the second embodiment. FIG. 7 is a diagram illustrating an operation state after the allocation change of each car in the second embodiment.

  Hereinafter, embodiments will be described with reference to the drawings.

(First embodiment)
FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing a configuration of an elevator group management control apparatus according to the first embodiment, in which a configuration in which a plurality of elevators are group-managed is shown. The “elevator” referred to here basically means a “car”, and when there are a plurality of vehicles, it is also referred to as “unit”. In the example of FIG. 1, there are only three units A to C, but a configuration in which more units are group-managed may be used.

  In the figure, 1a to 1c are elevator control devices, and 2a to 2c are passenger cars. The elevator control device 1a controls the operation of the car 2a of No. A. Specifically, the elevator control device 1a performs control of a motor (winding machine) (not shown) for moving the car 2a up and down, door opening / closing control, and the like. The same applies to the elevator control device 1b for the B machine and the elevator control device 1c for the C car. These elevator control devices 1a to 1c are configured by a computer.

  The cars 2a to 2c move up and down in the hoistway by driving a motor (winding machine). An operation panel 3a having various operation buttons including a destination floor button, a door open button, a door close button and the like is installed in the passenger car 2a. The signals of these buttons are transmitted to the group management control device 10 via the elevator control device 1a of Unit A.

  Similarly, an operation panel 3b having various operation buttons including a destination floor button, a door open button, a door close button and the like is installed in the passenger car 2b. The signals of these buttons are transmitted to the group management control device 10 via the elevator control device 1b of Unit B. An operation panel 3c having various operation buttons including a destination floor button, a door open button, a door close button, and the like is installed in the passenger car 2c. The signals of these buttons are transmitted to the group management control device 10 via the elevator control device 1c of Unit C.

  In addition, hall buttons 4a, 4b, 4c,... For registering hall calls are installed at halls (elevator halls) on each floor. These hall buttons 4a, 4b, 4c,... Are composed of an upward button and a downward button, and are configured to press the upward button or the downward button in accordance with the destination direction of the user. It should be noted that the lowermost floor is composed only of an upward button and the uppermost floor is composed of only a downward button.

  The “hall call” is a call signal registered by operating a hall button installed at a hall on each floor, and includes information on a registered floor and a destination direction. The “car call” is a call signal registered by operating a destination floor button provided in the car room, and includes information on the destination floor and the car number.

  The group management control device 10 is a device for performing group management control of the operation of each unit, and is configured by a computer similarly to the elevator control devices 1a to 1c. In the present embodiment, the group management control device 10 includes a state monitoring unit 11, a call storage unit 12, an allocation control unit 13, an operation number setting unit 14, an operating number detection unit 15, and a predicted arrival time calculation unit 16. ing. Note that these processing units are actually realized by software or a combination of software and hardware.

  The state monitoring unit 11 monitors the operation state (car position, operation direction, door open / close state, etc.) of each unit, the car call occurrence state, and the like. The call storage unit 12 stores hall calls registered by operating the hall buttons 4a, 4b, 4c.

  When a newly registered hall call is stored in the call storage unit 12, the allocation control unit 13 selects a unit to which the hall call is allocated using a predetermined allocation evaluation method, and the unit is assigned as the allocated unit. Respond to the hall call registration floor. Examples of the allocation evaluation method include a fuzzy method and an RTS (Real Time Scheduling) method. As will be described later, the assignment control unit 13 has a function of changing the assignment of hall calls.

  The operation number setting unit 14 sets the operation number. For example, when there are 8 units, it is used when operating from 8 units to 6 units for power saving. As a setting method, for example, a building administrator may arbitrarily set the operation by operating a switch, a terminal, or the like, or may set an optimal number of operation appropriately for each time zone with reference to past traffic demand.

  FIG. 2 shows a traffic demand learning table 17. The learning table 17 stores an average non-response time for each predetermined time zone (in this example, every hour). The “average unanswered time” is an average time from when the hall call is registered until the assigned machine responds to the registered floor of the hall call.

  The operation number setting unit 14 refers to the learning table 17 to determine that the traffic demand is low when the average non-response time is short, and reduces the operation number at that time from the current state. Conversely, when the average non-response time is long, the operation number setting unit 14 determines that the traffic demand is high, and increases the operation number at that time from the current state.

  The operating number detection unit 15 detects the current operating number based on the operation state information of each unit obtained from the state monitoring unit 11. The “current number of operating units” is a unit that can be operated in a directional direction (upward / downward). In other words, a car that is currently traveling upward or downward, or is landing on the floor, but is scheduled to travel to another floor by having a hall call or a car call (effective Number of direction units).

  The predicted arrival time calculation unit 16 has the following predicted arrival time in order to reduce the number of operating vehicles when the operating number set by the operating number setting unit 14 is larger than the operating number detected by the operating number detection unit 15. The calculation process is performed.

  That is, the predicted arrival time calculation unit 16 targets the currently operating units in each unit and assumes the case where the hall call assigned to each unit is cancelled. Calculate the estimated arrival time.

  Based on the predicted arrival time calculated by the predicted arrival time calculation unit 16, the allocation control unit 13 sets a unit having the minimum time until it becomes a non-directional state in each unit as a suspension target and allocates the unit to that unit. The assigned hall call will be reassigned to another unit.

  Next, the operation of the first embodiment will be described.

  FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the operation number change process of the group management control device 10 according to the first embodiment. The processing shown in this flowchart is executed when the group management control device 10 which is a computer reads a predetermined program.

  For example, the number of operating units is appropriately set according to the traffic demand for each time zone, and the operation of each unit is controlled by the set number (operating set number). Here, the current operating number (the number of directional units) detected by the operating number detection unit 15 is compared with the operation set number (step S11). As a result, when the current number of operating units is greater than the set number of operations, that is, for example, when operating with 8 units reduced from 6 units, 7 units are currently operating (directional state) (step) The following process is executed through the predicted arrival time calculation unit 16 and the allocation control unit 13 (Yes in S11).

  That is, first, the estimated arrival time calculation unit 16 cancels all hall calls that have already been assigned to each of the currently operating units (directional units) (step S12). For example, if seven units are currently in operation, all of the already allocated hall calls are canceled for these seven units.

  Note that “cancel an already allocated hall call” does not cancel an already allocated hall call, but assumes that there is no hall call in the calculation. After the assigned machine responds to the hall call registration floor, the hall call is actually canceled. When all hall calls already assigned to each unit are canceled, the estimated arrival time calculation unit 16 assumes that only a car call is registered in each unit, and the estimated arrival time to the floor that finally responds. And the result is passed to the allocation control unit 13 (step S13).

A specific example is shown in FIG.
Assume that three units, Unit A, Unit B, and Unit C, are in operation and one of them is suspended. 5th floor upward hall call to Unit A, 15th floor upward hall call to Unit B, 17th floor upward hall call, 20th floor downward hall call, 5th floor downward hall call assigned to Unit C Suppose that

  For Unit A, since the 10th floor car call and the 12th floor car call are registered as destination floors, after stopping at the 10th floor, the time until finally reaching the 12th floor is predicted. Specifically, based on the distance from the current position (1st floor) to the 10th floor and the operating speed, the door opening and closing time on the 10th floor, the distance from the 10th floor to the 12th floor and the operating speed, Calculate the time (prediction) when it arrives.

  For Unit B, since it is only a car call on the 12th floor, the time from arrival at the current position (10th floor) to the 12th floor is predicted. As for Unit C, there are car calls on the 10th and 1st floors, so after stopping at the 10th floor from the current position (15th floor), the time until finally reaching the 1st floor is predicted.

  Here, let Ta, Tb, and Tc be the estimated arrival times of each car when all of the hall calls are canceled. For example, when Ta = 80 seconds, Tb = 20 seconds, and Ta = 100 seconds, Unit B arrives at the 12th floor which is the final response floor first, where the passenger is lowered and enters a non-directional state. “Become non-directional” means that there is no upward / downward driving, no hall call is assigned, and a standby state is entered at the current floor.

  Based on the predicted arrival time of each unit calculated by the predicted arrival time calculation unit 16, the allocation control unit 13 selects a unit having the shortest time until it becomes a non-directional state as a dormant candidate unit (step S14). Then, the allocation control unit 13 changes all the hall calls already allocated to the unit selected as the suspension candidate unit to other units (step S15).

  In the example of FIG. 4, Unit B enters the non-directional state earliest, so Unit B is selected as a candidate for suspension. Also, the 15th floor upward hall call, the 17th floor upward hall call, and the 20th floor downward hall call assigned to Unit B will be reassigned to Unit A or Unit C. In addition, after the allocation change, it is assumed that the additional allocation of new hall calls to the Unit B elected as the suspension candidate unit is restricted.

The state of assignment change is shown in FIG.
In this example, the 15th floor upward hall call, the 17th floor upward hall call, and the 20th floor downward hall call assigned to Unit B have been reassigned to Unit A. In this case, Unit B becomes non-directional after answering the car call on the 12th floor (after 20 seconds). Therefore, if the arrival time to the final response floor (20th floor) when the hall call is not reassigned is, for example, 100 seconds, it is possible to quickly stop Unit B by shortening from 100 seconds to 20 seconds. .

  It should be noted that the allocation change to which unit is performed using a generally known allocation change technique, and detailed description thereof is omitted here. However, a general allocation change is used to improve operation efficiency by preventing long waiting, but in this embodiment, it is used for the purpose of shortening the time when the number of operating units is reduced.

  In step S14, when there are a plurality of corresponding units, that is, when there are a plurality of units with the minimum time until the non-directional state is reached, the number of assigned hall calls is small. Prioritize unit No. as a candidate for suspension. This is to reduce the number of allocation changes as much as possible in consideration of the effect on other units.

  In addition, when each unit is arranged at the landing, priority may be given to the unit arranged at a position far from the entrance of the landing as a candidate for suspension. For example, if it is arranged in the order of Unit A, Unit B, Unit C from the side closer to the entrance of the hall, Unit C will be given priority. This is because if the unit far from the entrance to the landing is stopped, the user can conveniently use the unit near the entrance to the landing.

  In the above example, it is assumed that the number of operating units is reduced by one. However, when it is necessary to reduce two or more units, it is possible to sequentially select candidate units to be stopped by repeating the processing from step S11. Shall be.

  As described above, according to the first embodiment, the unit that becomes the non-directional state earliest from the estimated arrival time of each unit when the already allocated hall call is canceled and responded with only the car call is selected as the candidate for suspension. Then, the hall call assigned to that unit is reassigned to another unit. As a result, when the number of operating units is reduced, it is possible to put the sleep target unit into a dormant state as soon as possible and suppress the power consumed during that time.

(Second Embodiment)
Next, a second embodiment will be described.

  In the elevator system of the forecast light specification, after the hall call is registered, the forecast light of the unit to which the hall call is assigned is turned on. Therefore, the user only has to wait in front of the unit where the forecast light is lit.

  However, if all the already assigned hall calls are canceled and a candidate for suspension is selected as in the first embodiment, when the assignment is changed to another unit, the lighting of the forecast light is switched on each floor. This will cause trouble for users. Therefore, in the second embodiment, the number of suspension target machines is selected while suppressing the allocation change as much as possible.

  Since the configuration of the group management control device 10 is the same as that of the first embodiment, processing as the second embodiment will be described here with reference to a flowchart.

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing the operation number change process of the group management control device 10 in the second embodiment. The processing shown in this flowchart is executed when the group management control device 10 which is a computer reads a predetermined program.

  For example, the number of operating units is appropriately set according to the traffic demand for each time zone, and the operation of each unit is controlled by the set number (operating set number). Here, when the current operating number (number of directional vehicles) detected by the operating number detection unit 15 is greater than the operation set number (Yes in step S21), the predicted arrival time calculation unit 16 and the allocation control unit 13 The following processing is executed through

  That is, first, the predicted arrival time calculation unit 16 cancels hall calls already assigned to these units one by one for each currently operating unit (directional unit) (step S22).

  Note that “cancel hall calls that have already been assigned one by one” does not actually cancel one hall call at a time, but assumes that there are no hall calls in the calculation. . After the assigned machine responds to the hall call registration floor, the hall call is actually canceled.

  The estimated arrival time calculation unit 16 calculates the estimated arrival time to the floor that finally responds, assuming that the remaining hall call and car call are registered for each unit. The data is transferred to the allocation control unit 13 (step S23). This is repeated for the number of hall calls, and the predicted arrival time calculation unit 16 obtains a predicted arrival time for each pattern (step S24).

In the example of FIG.
For Unit A, there is only a pattern for canceling the upward hall call on the 5th floor, and the estimated arrival time in that pattern is obtained. The predicted arrival time at this time is Ta-1.
For Unit B, there are three patterns for canceling the upper hall call on the 15th floor, the upper hall call on the 17th floor, and the lower hall call on the 20th floor one by one, and the estimated arrival time of each pattern is obtained. . The estimated arrival times at this time are Tb-1 (when the 15th floor hall call is canceled), Tb-2 (when the 17th floor call is canceled), and Tb-3 (when the 20th floor call is canceled). To do.

  For Unit C, there is only a pattern for canceling the downward hall call on the 5th floor, and the estimated arrival time of the pattern is obtained. The predicted arrival time at this time is Tc-1.

  For Unit B, the estimated arrival time is calculated in a form including not only the car call but also the hall call, so it is preferable to take into account the derived call after responding to the hall call.

  That is, for example, when Unit B responds to an upward hall call on the 15th floor, it is conceivable that a user who gets on the 15th floor registers a car call on any of the 16th to 20th floors. This is called a “derivative call”. Since the idea about this derived call has already been proposed in an allocation method called RTS (Real Time Scheduling), detailed description thereof will be omitted here. RTS predicts and evaluates the operation of each unit taking into account the impact of the currently assigned calls on future calls and the impact of future calls on all unanswered calls assigned so far It is a method.

  Based on the predicted arrival time obtained for each of these patterns, the allocation control unit 13 selects the unit that has the shortest time until it becomes a non-directional state as the candidate stop unit (step S25). Then, the allocation control unit 13 changes the hall call that minimizes the time until it becomes a non-directional state among hall calls already assigned to the machine selected as the candidate for suspension (step S26).

  That is, when the time until the pattern when the downward hall call on the 20th floor of Unit B is canceled is minimized, Unit B is selected as a candidate for suspension. At this time, the downward hall call on the 20th floor assigned to Unit B is reassigned to Unit A or Unit C. In addition, after the allocation change, it is assumed that the additional allocation of new hall calls to the Unit B elected as the suspension candidate unit is restricted.

The state of assignment change is shown in FIG.
In this example, the downward hall call on the 20th floor assigned to Unit B has been changed to Unit A. In this case, after responding to the hall call on the 17th floor, Unit B enters a non-directional state when the driving service from the user who has boarded it to the destination floor registered as a car call is completed.

  In the above example, it is assumed that only one hall call is canceled for each unit. However, the same applies to the case where two or more hall calls are canceled.

  As described above, according to the second embodiment, it is possible to cancel at least one hall call instead of all the already assigned hall calls and select a candidate for suspension, so that the suspension is made as soon as possible when reducing the number of operating units. It is possible to put the target machine into a dormant state and suppress the power consumed during that time. Furthermore, since the number of hall calls to be canceled is small, the allocation change can be suppressed, and the influence on other units and lighting switching in the case of the forecast light specification can be reduced.

  According to at least one of the embodiments described above, it is possible to provide an elevator group management control device that can reduce the number of operating units as soon as possible to put the suspension target unit into a dormant state and suppress power consumption during that period. it can.

  In addition, although some embodiment of this invention was described, these embodiment is shown as an example and is not intending limiting the range of invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, replacements, and changes can be made without departing from the scope of the invention. These embodiments and modifications thereof are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the invention described in the claims and the equivalents thereof.

  DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1a-1c ... Elevator control apparatus, 2a-2c ... Car, 3a-3c ... Operation panel, 4a, 4b, 4c ... Hall button, 10 ... Group management control apparatus, 11 ... State monitoring part, 12 ... Call memory part, DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 13 ... Allocation control part, 14 ... Operation | movement number setting part, 15 ... Active number detection part, 16 ... Predicted arrival time calculation part, 17 ... Learning table.

Claims (5)

In the elevator group management control device that controls the operation of multiple units,
A predicted arrival time calculating means for calculating a predicted arrival time to a floor that finally responds when canceling a hall call assigned to each unit,
Based on the predicted arrival time calculated by the predicted arrival time calculation means, a unit to be paused is selected from the above units, and the hall call allocated to that unit is reassigned to another unit Control means, and
The predicted arrival time calculating means is:
Assuming the case where at least one hall call assigned to each unit is canceled one by one, the estimated arrival time to the floor that finally responds is calculated,
The allocation control means is
Based on the predicted arrival time calculated by the predicted arrival time calculation means, the unit with the minimum time until it becomes a non-directional state in each unit is subject to suspension, and the hall call assigned to that unit An elevator group management control device, wherein the hall call that minimizes the time until the non-direction state is reached is changed to another unit. The allocation control means is
The elevator group according to claim 1, wherein when there are a plurality of units to be suspended among the units, the unit having a small number of assigned hall calls is preferentially selected. Management control unit. The allocation control means is
2. The elevator group management control device according to claim 1, wherein when there are a plurality of units to be suspended among the units, a unit far from the entrance of the hall is preferentially selected. Number of operation setting means for setting the number of operation,
An operation number detecting means for detecting the current operation number;
The predicted arrival time calculating means is:
When the operating number set by the operating number setting means is larger than the operating number detected by the operating number detecting means, the predicted arrival time of the number of currently operating units among the units is targeted. The elevator group management control device according to claim 1, wherein a calculation process is executed. The above operation number setting means is
The elevator group management control device according to claim 4, wherein the number of operating vehicles is set based on traffic demand learned in advance for each time zone.

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