JP7387857B1 - Passenger conveyor control device - Google Patents

Abstract

The present invention provides a control device for a passenger conveyor that gives a warning if a reversing operation is performed when the passenger conveyor is activated. The present invention includes a plurality of steps 30, a motor 20 for driving the steps 30 in a first direction or a second direction, and a starting switch 74 for moving the steps 30 in the first direction or the second direction. It has a control unit 50 that controls the motor 20 and operates the steps 30 in the first direction or the second direction based on the operation of the start switch 74, and the control unit 50 controls the basic operation of the steps 30 determined in advance. The direction is memorized, and when the basic driving direction and the driving direction at startup based on the operation of the starting switch 74 are different, a warning is given that the operation is a reversal operation for reversing the driving direction. [Selection diagram] Figure 4

Description

Embodiments of the present invention relate to control devices for passenger conveyors, such as escalators and moving walkways.

Conventionally, the operation of ascending or descending an escalator has been performed by a manager. This driving operation is described in the manual, and the manual states not to perform a reversal operation such as performing a descending operation immediately after the end of the ascending operation or performing an ascending operation immediately after the end of the descending operation.

Japanese Patent Application Publication No. 2004-224539 JP 2021-008359 Publication

However, there are cases where the manager does not follow the manual and performs a reversing operation immediately after stopping, in which case the protection function is activated and the passenger conveyor stops. Furthermore, if the operator mistakenly switches the train to descend when it is originally intended to be an upward drive, the safety of passengers may be endangered. For example, in a plurality of escalators lined up, some of the escalators may be started in a direction opposite to a predetermined driving direction.

In view of the above-mentioned problems, the embodiments of the present invention aim to provide a passenger conveyor control device that gives a warning if a reversing operation is performed when the passenger conveyor is started.

An embodiment of the present invention includes a plurality of steps, a motor for driving the steps in a first direction or a second direction opposite to the first direction, and a motor for driving the steps in the first direction or the second direction. The step further comprises: a starting switch for moving the step; and a control unit that controls the motor and drives the step in the first direction or the second direction based on the operation of the starting switch. The control unit stores the driving direction of the step at the k-th (k=>1) startup as the basic driving direction of the step, and stores the driving direction of the step at the k-th (k+1)-th startup as the basic driving direction. If the direction is different from the direction, a warning is given to the effect that the operation is a reversal operation for reversing the driving direction, and after the warning, the basic driving direction stored at the k-th startup is reset, and (k+1 ) The control device for a passenger conveyor is characterized in that the driving direction at the time of the first startup is stored as the basic driving direction .

It is an explanatory view seen from the side of an escalator showing one embodiment of the present invention, and is a diagram omitting structures on the left side when looking from the upper floor to the lower floor. FIG. 3 is a front view of the operation panel. FIG. 2 is a block diagram showing the electrical configuration of an escalator. It is a flowchart of the control method at the time of starting an escalator.

A passenger conveyor according to an embodiment of the present invention will be described. In this embodiment, an escalator 10 is used as the passenger conveyor and will be described with reference to FIGS. 1 to 4.

(1) Escalator 10
The overall structure of the escalator 10 will be explained with reference to FIG. 1. FIG. 1 is an explanatory diagram of the escalator 10 viewed from the left side. However, in order to make the internal structure of the escalator 10 easier to understand, illustrations of members on one side (left side) of the escalator 10 are omitted. When explaining the front and back direction of the escalator 10, it is assumed that the upper floor is looking down from the lower floor, the upper floor is the rear side, and the lower floor is the front side, and when the left and right direction is explained, it is assumed that the upper floor is looking down from the lower floor. This is the direction when looking down.

A truss 12, which is the framework of the escalator 10, spans the upper and lower floors of the building 1 and is supported in the front-rear direction using support angles 2 and 3.

Inside the machine room 14 on the upper floor side at the upper end of the truss 12, a drive device 18 for driving the steps 30 and a pair of left and right step sprockets 24, 24 are provided. This drive device 18 includes a motor 20, a reducer 21, a small drive sprocket 19 attached to the output shaft of the reducer 21, and a disk type sprocket that stops the rotation of the motor 20 and maintains the stopped state. It has an electromagnetic brake 23. A large drive sprocket 17 is coaxially attached to the pair of left and right step sprockets 24, 24, and an endless drive chain 22 is spanned between the small drive sprocket 19 and the small drive sprocket 19. Furthermore, inside the machine room 14 on the upper floor side, there are a drive circuit 80 (see FIG. 3) that controls the motor 20, the electromagnetic brake 23, etc., and a control section 50 (see FIG. 3) that controls the entire escalator 10. A housed control box 68 is provided.

Inside the machine room 16 on the lower floor side at the lower end of the truss 12, a pair of left and right driven sprockets 26, 26 are provided. A pair of left and right endless step chains 28, 28 are spanned between a pair of left and right step sprockets 24, 24 on the upper floor side and a pair of left and right driven sprockets 26, 26 on the lower floor side. Between the pair of left and right step chains 28, 28, a pair of left and right first wheels 301, 301 of a plurality of steps 30 are connected at regular intervals. When the motor 20 rotates, the first wheel 301 of the step 30 runs on a guide rail dedicated to the first wheel (not shown) fixed to the truss 12, and the second wheel 302 of the step 30 runs on the first wheel dedicated guide rail fixed to the truss 12. It runs on a guide rail 25 exclusively for two wheels.

A pair of left and right handrails 36, 36 are erected on both left and right sides of the upper part of the truss 12. A handrail rail 39 is provided above the balustrade 36, and an endless handrail belt 38 moves along this handrail rail 39.

A front skirt guard 40 on the upper floor side is provided at the front lower part of the upper floor side of the pair of left and right handrails 36, and a front skirt guard 42 on the lower floor side is provided at the front lower part on the lower floor side. Inlet portions 46 and 48, which are entrances and exits for the handrail belt 38, protrude from the front skirt guards 40 and 42, respectively. Skirt guards (inner decks) 44 are provided at the lower side surfaces of the pair of left and right handrails 36, respectively, and the steps 30 run between the pair of left and right skirt guards 44, 44. The skirt guard 44 near the entrance on the upper floor side is provided with an operation panel 52 and a speaker 54 for the escalator 10, and the skirt guard 44 near the entrance on the lower floor side is provided with an operation panel 56 and a speaker 58 for the escalator 10. ing. Although not shown in FIG. 1, as shown in FIG. 3, the front skirt guards 40, 42 are provided with indicators 70, 72 that indicate the driving direction of the steps 30.

The handrail belt 38 moves in synchronization with the steps 30 as a belt sprocket (not shown) rotates together with the step sprocket 24 .

An upper floor board 32 is provided horizontally on the ceiling surface of the machine room 14, which is an entrance between the pair of left and right skirt guards 44, 44 on the upper floor. A lower floor board 34 is provided horizontally on the ceiling surface of the machine room 16, which is an entrance between the pair of left and right skirt guards 44, 44 on the lower floor. A comb-shaped comb 60 is provided at the tip of the boarding board 32 on the upper floor side, and the step 30 enters into or is pulled out from this comb 60. A comb-like comb 62 is also provided at the tip of the boarding board 34 on the lower floor side.

(2) Operation panel 52, 56
Next, the operation panels 52 and 56 will be explained with reference to FIG. 2. Since the operation panel 52 provided on the upper floor and the operation panel 56 provided on the lower floor have the same structure, the operation panel 52 provided on the upper floor will be described.

As shown in FIG. 2, the operation panel 52 is provided with a start switch 74 and a stop switch 76 side by side.

As shown in FIG. 2, the starting switch 74 is a rotary key switch and has a mechanical automatic return function. Alternatively, by rotating the key 84 to the lowered position, the cylinder 74a is rotated. Then, the key 84 automatically returns to a neutral position, that is, a position where the keyhole 74b stands straight, by springback, and can be pulled out only in this position. In addition, in FIG. 2, the starting switch 74 is described as an "operation key switch."

When the administrator inserts the key 84 into the keyhole 74b of the starting switch 74 and rotates the cylinder 74a to the left to automatically return, the control unit 50 rotates the motor 20 in the upward direction. Furthermore, when the cylinder 74a is rotated to the right and automatically returned, the control unit 50 rotates the motor 20 in the downward direction.

As shown in FIG. 2, the stop switch 76 is a rotary key switch and has a mechanical automatic return function. Rotate in the direction of "buzzer" and then reverse to the "stop" position. Then, the key 84 returns to the neutral position by springback and can be pulled out. When the stop switch 76 is operated, the control unit 50 sounds a stop buzzer from the speakers 54 and 58, and then stops the escalator 10. In addition, in FIG. 2, the stop switch 76 is expressed as a "stop/buzzer key switch."

(3) Electrical configuration of escalator 10 Next, the electrical configuration of escalator 10 will be described with reference to the block diagram of FIG. 3.

The control unit 50 is housed in a control box 68, controls the entire escalator 10 using software, and has a storage unit 78 that stores software and operating information. This storage section 78 is composed of a memory and other storage devices. The control unit 50 includes a drive circuit 80 connected to the motor 20 and the electromagnetic brake 23, a lighting device 82, an operation panel 52 on the upper floor, an operation panel 56 on the lower floor, a speaker 54 on the upper floor, and a speaker 58 on the lower floor. It is connected. The lighting device 82 is provided on the balustrade 36, the combs 60 and 62, and the skirt guard 44. Furthermore, indicators 70 and 72 indicating the driving direction are connected to the control unit 50.

(4) Control method when escalator 10 is started Next, a control method when escalator 10 is started will be described with reference to the flowchart in FIG. 4. The control unit 50 of this embodiment controls the previous time (here, "previous time" is "kth time", and k=>1. => indicates "more than" in the formula. That is, k is 1 or more). ) is an integer), and the administrator performs a reversal operation in which the driving direction at the time of startup is different from the previous driving direction and the current driving direction (that is, the (k+1)th time). It is designed to give a warning when the This control is performed by software stored in the storage section 78 of the control section 50. In addition, in the flowchart of FIG. 4, rising is written as "UP", falling is written as "DN", starting switch 74 is written as "starting SW", and stop switch 76 is written as "stop SW".

In step S1, the escalator 10 is stopped. Then, the process advances to step S2.

In step S2, in order to operate the escalator 10, the administrator inserts the key 84 into the keyhole 74b of the start switch 74 and rotates it to the upward direction, then the process proceeds to step S3 (in case of y); otherwise, step S5 Proceed to (in case of n).

In step S3, the control unit 50 raises the steps 30 of the escalator 10 to start the k-th (ie, "previous") operation. Then, the process advances to step S4.

In step S4, the control unit 50 stores in the storage unit 78 that the driving direction at the k-th startup is upward as the basic driving direction, and proceeds to step S8.

In step S5, if the administrator rotates the start switch 74 to the lower side instead of the upper side, the process advances to step S6 (in case of y), and if the administrator has not rotated the start switch 74 to both the upper side and the lower side, step S2 Return to (in case of n).

In step S6, the control unit 50 lowers the steps 30 of the escalator 10 to start the k-th (ie, "previous") operation. Then, the process advances to step S7.

In step S7, the control unit 50 stores in the storage unit 78 that the driving direction at the k-th startup is downward as the basic driving direction, and proceeds to step S8.

In step S8, if the stop switch 76 is operated while the k-th operation continues, the process proceeds to step S9 (in the case of y), and if it is not operated, step S8 is continued to continue the k-th operation. (in case of n).

In step S9, the control unit 50 stops the k-th operation of the escalator 10, and proceeds to step S10.

In step S10, if the administrator operates the start switch 74 again and rotates it to the upward side, it is assumed that the (k+1)th (i.e., current) operation is started, and the process advances to step S11 (in case of y). , otherwise the process proceeds to step S13 (in case of n).

In step S11, the control unit 50 calls the k-th driving direction (basic driving direction) stored in the storage unit 78, and determines that the k-th driving direction and the (k+1)-th driving direction are the same direction (i.e., upward). ), the process advances to step S12. On the other hand, if the k-th driving direction and the (k+1)-th driving direction are different directions, the process advances to step S16 (in case of n).

In step S12, k=(k+1) is set, the current operation is updated as the previous operation, and the process returns to step S3. In step S3, the new k-th (old (k+1)-th) upward driving direction is started (in the case of y), and in step S4, the control unit 50 starts the new k-th (old (k+1)-th) driving direction. A certain rise is set as the basic driving direction and is overwritten and stored in the storage unit 78. Then, the process advances to step S8.

In step S13, if the administrator operates the start switch 74 to the descending side for the (k+1)th operation, the process advances to step S14 (in the case of y), and if neither the ascending side nor the descending side is operated Then, the process returns to step S10 (in case of n).

In step S14, the control unit 50 calls the k-th driving direction (basic driving direction) stored in the storage unit 78, and determines that the k-th driving direction and the (k+1)th driving direction are the same direction (i.e., descending). ), the process advances to step S15. On the other hand, if the k-th driving direction and the (k+1)-th driving direction are different directions, the process advances to step S16 (in case of n).

In step S15, k=(k+1) is set, the current operation is updated as the previous operation, and the process returns to step S6. In step S6, the new k-th (old (k+1)-th) downward operation is started (in the case of y), and in step S7, the control unit 50 starts the new k-th (old (k+1)-th) downward driving direction. A certain descent is set as the basic driving direction and is overwritten and stored in the storage unit 78. Then, the process advances to step S8.

In step S16, it is determined that the k-th driving direction is upward and the (k+1)-th driving direction is downward, or the k-th driving direction is downward and the (k+1)-th driving direction is upward. Based on this, the control unit 50 determines that a reversing operation has been performed, sounds a buzzer from the speakers 54 and 58, and then makes a voice guidance announcement such as "The current operation is a reversing operation", and then the administrator A warning is issued and the process advances to step S17.

In step S17, the control unit 50 resets the k-th (previous) driving direction in the storage unit 78 after the warning, and returns to step S2. After receiving the warning, the administrator determines whether or not the reversing operation is correct, and if the reversing operation is correct, operates the start switch 74 again so that the reversing occurs, and if the reversing operation is incorrect, the administrator prevents the reversing from occurring. Operate the start switch 74 again.

(5) Effects According to this embodiment, the driving direction at the k-th startup is memorized, and when a reversing operation different from the k-th driving direction is performed at the (k+1)th startup, the speaker 54 By issuing a warning indicating that a reversing operation has been performed based on the guidance from , 58, it is possible to prevent unnecessary stops of operation due to the reversing operation after the stop operation, and to ensure the safety of passengers from dangers caused by misunderstanding the driving direction. .

Further, even when a plurality of escalators 10 are installed, it is not necessary for the administrator to remember the driving direction of each escalator 10.

(6) Example of modification In the above embodiment, the kth driving direction is memorized and compared with the (k+1)th driving direction to determine whether or not a reversal operation has been performed. The direction may be stored at the time of installation of the escalator 10, and the basic operating direction may be compared with the operating direction at startup to determine whether or not it is a reversal operation. Note that this basic driving direction is not updated every time the vehicle is started, unlike the above embodiment.

Further, in the above embodiment, the control when performing the reversing operation was performed by the software stored in the control unit 50, but instead of this, an electric circuit that determines the reversing operation is connected to the electric circuit that constitutes the start switch 74. It may be realized by doing so.

Further, in the above embodiment, when a reversing operation is performed, a buzzer sound or an announcement is made from the speakers 54 and 58, but in addition to this, a buzzer sound and an announcement are made from the speakers 54 and 58. A visual warning may be given by blinking one or more of the lighting device 82 and indicators 70, 72.

Further, in the above embodiment, when a reversing operation is performed, a buzzer sound or an announcement is made from the speakers 54 and 58, but for escalators 10 that do not have speakers 54 and 58, instead of a sound warning, Immediately after the reversal operation, the steps 30 may be moved at a slower speed (for example, 10 m/min) than the normal speed (for example, 30 m/min) to warn the administrator that the reversal operation is being performed.

Further, in the above embodiment, the switch for performing the reversing operation is the activation switch 74, but it may be replaced by a push button or a switch on a touch panel. Alternatively, it may be a switch on a remote control for an administrator to control the escalator 10.

Furthermore, in the embodiment described above, the present invention has been described as being applied to the escalator 10, but the present invention may be applied to a moving sidewalk instead.

Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above, this embodiment is presented as an example and is not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These novel embodiments can be implemented in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and changes can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments and their modifications are included within the scope and gist of the invention, as well as within the scope of the invention described in the claims and its equivalents.

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 10... Escalator, 20... Motor, 30... Steps, 50... Control part, 52... Control panel, 54... Speaker, 56... Control panel, 58... Speaker , 74... Start switch, 76... Stop switch, 78... Storage section

Claims (4)

multiple steps,
a motor that drives the step in a first direction or a second direction opposite to the first direction;
an activation switch for moving the step in the first direction or the second direction;
a control unit that controls the motor and drives the step in the first direction or the second direction based on the operation of the start switch;
has
The control unit includes:
storing the operating direction of the step at the k-th (k=>1) start-up as the basic operating direction of the step;
When the basic driving direction and the driving direction at the (k+1)th start-up are different, a warning is given that the operation is a reversal operation for reversing the driving direction;
After the warning, the stored basic driving direction at the k-th startup is reset, and the driving direction at the (k+1)th startup is stored as the basic driving direction.
A passenger conveyor control device characterized by: The control unit issues the warning with a buzzer sound or voice guidance.
A control device for a passenger conveyor according to claim 1. The control unit issues the warning by making the operating speed of the step after the reversing operation slower than the normal speed.
A control device for a passenger conveyor according to claim 1. The starting switch is a rotary key switch,
When the cylinder of the key switch is rotated in one direction by a key, the control unit operates the step in the first direction;
When the cylinder of the key switch is rotated by the key in another direction opposite to the first direction, the control unit operates the step in the second direction.
A control device for a passenger conveyor according to claim 1.