JPH0478554B2 - - Google Patents

Description

[Detailed Description of the Invention] [Field of Application of the Invention] The present invention relates to an elevator group management control device, and in particular to an elevator group management system suitable for allocating elevators to service new hall calls in order to improve serviceability. This relates to a control device.

[Background of the invention]

When multiple elevators are installed in parallel, it is important to decide which elevator to allocate a new hall call to in order to improve service.

Conventionally, the elevator that will arrive first at the floor where a new hall call has occurred is predicted, and the hall call is assigned to this elevator. but,
This minimum waiting time allocation method works by allocating successive hall calls during busy times to the elevator with the minimum waiting time each time, resulting in delays in service for hall calls that have already been allocated, as shown in Figure 1. The disadvantage is that the waiting time is long.

For this reason, as shown in Japanese Patent Publication No. 55-21709, a standard waiting time is set for new hall calls, and the waiting time to the farthest hall call floor is calculated for each elevator. A method has been proposed in which the elevator with the minimum deviation between the waiting time and the standard waiting time is selected and a hall call is assigned to this elevator. This control method will be explained using FIG. 2. FIG. 2 is an explanatory diagram illustrating the allocation of car calls, hall calls, and the position status of elevators during a certain traffic demand situation when there are three elevators in a 10th floor building. As shown in the figure, it is assumed that Car A is on the 2nd floor in the ascending (UP) direction, Car B is on the 4th floor in the ascending direction, and Car C is on the 7th floor in the descending (DN) direction. Furthermore, each machine A to C
The status of assigned hall calls and car calls is as follows:
Car A has a hall call on the 3rd floor and a car call on the 8th floor.
Car B has hall calls on the 6th and 8th floors, car calls on the 10th floor, and car C has hall calls in the DN direction on the 4th floor, 1,
It is assumed that there is a car call on the second floor. The allocation method when a hall call in the UP direction occurs on the 5th floor in such a state will be explained using a mathematical formula.

Maximum predicted waiting time for each car J (J = A, B, C) when a hall call occurs on floor i
W _Jnax is: W _Jnax = max {W ⁱ _J , W ^kl _J , ..., W ^kn _J } ...(1) Here, W ^l _J ; Predicted time until machine J arrives at the hall call on floor i (predicted Waiting time) W ^kl ... ^,kn _J ; Estimated time to arrive at the hall calls kl to kn that have already been assigned from floor i, which is the hall call floor, to the position of car J in the forward direction (however, each floor Calculated assuming that the machine is in provisional service). Next, to simplify the explanation, in Fig. 2, we assume that the travel time between floors is constant at 2 seconds, and the time for one stop due to a hall call or car call is 10 seconds. (1) From the formula, each unit A to C
The maximum expected waiting time W _Anax ~ W _Cnax is W _Anax = max {W ⁵ _A } = 16 (seconds) W _Bnax = max {W ⁵ _B , W ⁶ _B , W ⁸ _B } = max {2, 14, 28} = 28 (seconds) W _Cnax = max {W ⁵ _C } = 50 (seconds).

By the way, in the condition shown in Figure 1, the standard waiting time W _n is 20
If it is set as seconds, the deviation value D _A ~ D _C of each machine A~C
D _A = W _n -W _Anax = 20-16 = 4 (seconds) D _B = W _n -W _Bnax = 20-28 = -8 (seconds) D _C = W _n -W _Cnax = 20-50 = -30 (seconds), and the A car with the smallest deviation value will be assigned to service the hall call on the 5th floor.

In addition, if the standard waiting time W _n is set to 25 seconds in the condition shown in Figure 1, the deviation values D _A to D _C of each machine A to C are as follows: D _A = W _n - W _Anax = 25-16 = 9 ( ) D _B = W _n −W _Bnax = 25−28 = −3 (seconds) D _C = W _n −W _Cnax = 25−50 = −25 (seconds) In this case, the hall call for the 5th floor is B The machine will be serviced.

In other words, even if the traffic conditions are the same, if the standard waiting time settings are different, the car to be serviced will change.
The drawback is that it is not possible to perform centralized control of waiting time with good serviceability.

FIG. 3 is an allocation characteristic diagram using the above waiting time distribution control method, and compared to the minimum waiting time allocation method shown in FIG. 1, the set standard waiting times W ₁ to W ₃ (W ₁ >
The distribution is concentrated around W ₂ > W ₃ ). However, when the traffic demand is low, the standard waiting time can be set to _W3 , and when the traffic demand is high, the standard waiting time can be set to W3.
If W is set to ₁ , there is a problem that control with significant effects will not be possible.

[Purpose of the invention]

The present invention has been made in view of the above, and an object of the present invention is to allocate elevators for servicing new hall calls so as to concentrate the waiting time for hall calls within a predetermined time, thereby improving elevator serviceability. An object of the present invention is to provide an elevator group management control device that can be improved.

[Summary of the invention]

A feature of the present invention is that the setting means for setting a standard waiting time is configured to set an upper limit standard waiting time and a lower limit standard waiting time, and the selecting means for selecting an elevator that services a hall call is configured to: The system is equipped with a priority selection means for selecting an elevator that will service a new hall call from among the elevators whose waiting time evaluation value generated from the calculated predicted waiting time is within the above two reference waiting times, as shown in FIG. , the waiting time for a hall call is a predetermined amount of time.
The point is that it is concentrated within W _U and W _D.

[Embodiments of the invention]

The present invention will be explained in detail below using the embodiments shown in FIGS. 5 to 10. In the description of the embodiments, first, hardware for realizing the present invention will be described, and then software will be described.

FIG. 5 is a hardware configuration diagram showing an embodiment of the elevator group management control device of the present invention.
The elevator group management control microcomputer MA is connected to the call signal HC from the hall call device HD via the parallel input/output circuit PIA, and is also connected to the elevator control microcomputer MA, which controls individual elevators such as door opening/closing and car acceleration/deceleration commands. The control microcontrollers E ₁ to E _JMAX (here, it is assumed that the elevator is a JMAX machine) are connected to the serial communication processors SDA ₁ to SDA _JMAX and the communication line CM ₁ .
~CM Connected via _JMAX .

For detailed configuration and operation explanation of the communication processor, please refer to JP-A-56-37972 and JP-A-56
-Disclosed in Publication No. 37673.

The microcontrollers E ₁ to E _JMAX for controlling the units are parallel input/output circuits with the control input/output elements EIO ₁ to EIO _JMAX , which consist of car call information necessary for control, various elevator safety limit switches and relays, and response lamps.
PIA is connected via signal lines SIO ₁ to SIO _JMAX .

Further, the signal PM from the setting device PD is input to the microcomputer MA via the parallel input/output circuit PIA.

FIG. 6 is an overall configuration diagram showing an embodiment of the software of the elevator group management control device of the present invention, which is processed by the microcomputer MA shown in FIG.
The software SF1 includes an operation control program SF15 that directly commands and controls elevator group management control such as call assignment processing and distributed standby processing, which are the subject of the present invention. This program SF1
5 is an elevator control table SF11 which is a table of data such as elevator position, direction, car call, etc. transmitted from the machine control programs EP ₁ to EP _JMAX (respectively built into the microcomputers E ₁ to E _JMAX in FIG. 5); The input data is data of a hall call table SF12, an elevator specification table SF13 such as the number of managed elevators, and a standard waiting time table SF14 of the standard waiting time set by the setting device PD.

FIG. 7 is a table configuration diagram showing an example of tables SF11 to SF14 in FIG. 6, and this will be described each time the program described below is explained.

8 to 10 are flowcharts showing one embodiment of each program in the operation control program SF15 of FIG. 6, respectively. FIG. 8 is a flowchart of a program that calculates the predicted elevator arrival time and maximum predicted waiting time. This program is started synchronously, for example, every second, and calculates the predicted arrival time from the elevator's current position to any floor. The calculation is performed for all floors and all cars, and the predicted arrival time (maximum predicted waiting time) of all the cars to the farthest allocated hall call floor is also calculated.

In FIG. 8, steps E10 and E120 indicate loop processing for the total number of elevators (JAMX). In step E20, an initial value is set in the work time table _TJ , and its contents are set in the predicted arrival time table of the elevator control table SF11 in FIG. Initial values include the number of seconds left before departure depending on the open/closed state of the door, and the predetermined time until activation when the elevator is stopped.

Next, in step E30, the floor is advanced by one, and in step E40, it is compared whether the floor is the same as the elevator position. Here, if they are the same, it means that the predicted arrival time and maximum predicted waiting time for one elevator have been calculated, and step E120
Jump up and repeat the same process for the other elevators. On the other hand, if "NO" in step E40, the time T _r required for traveling on the first floor is added to the time table T _J (step E50), and the time table
Set T _J in the predicted arrival time table (step E60). Next, step E70 determines whether there is an assigned hall call and if so,
The stop time T _S required for floor stopping is calculated using the time table T _J
(step E80), and then in step F90 the contents of this time table _TJ are written into the maximum predicted waiting time table _WJ of the elevator control table SF11. Next, the process jumps to step E30 and the above process is repeated for all floors. Also, step
If the determination in E70 is "NO", it is determined in step E100 whether there is a car call, and if there is a car call, the stop time T _S is added to the time table T _J in step E110, and the process jumps to step E30. step
If the result of E100 is “NO”, step immediately.
Jump to E30.

FIG. 9 is a flowchart of a call assignment program, which is activated when a hall call occurs. In step A10, the generated hall call is read from the outside. Then step A40 to A60 at steps A20 and A80.
The processes up to this point are loop-processed for the upward and downward directions of the elevator, and in steps A30 and A70, the process is loop-processed for all floors (the top floor for iMAX). At step A40, it is determined whether there is a hall call occurring in the M direction (up or down) on the i floor, and if so, the waiting time concentration algorithm processing at step A50 is performed. This is to perform intensive control so that the maximum predicted time of each car falls within the reference times W _U and _WD , and this will be described later using FIG. 10. Next, in step A60, this hall call is assigned to the selected optimal elevator.

FIG. 10 is a processing flowchart of step A50 in FIG. Clear the number N of elevators for work in step A50-1. This number N is the maximum expected waiting time within the set standard waiting times W _U and W _D
This value is the count of the number of elevators with W _J , and is used to determine the processing of steps A50-15 to A50-18. Next, in step A50-2, the work deviation value α _J is cleared. Then, in step A50-3, the minimum work value MIN is set to 1000 seconds (initial value). Next, in steps A50-4 and A50-5, the number of elevators JMAX, the set standard waiting time
Enter W _U and W _D. And step A50-6
Now, using FIG. 8, the maximum predicted waiting time _WJ for each car mentioned above will be calculated. Step A50-7, A50
-13 is a loop process that calculates the total number of elevators. In step A50-8, it is determined whether the maximum predicted waiting time _WJ of each car is smaller than the upper limit standard waiting time _WU and larger than the lower limit standard waiting time _WD . If you are satisfied with that, step
At A50-9, the minimum value for work MIN and the maximum predicted waiting time W _J are compared, and if W _J is smaller, W _J is replaced with the minimum value for work MIN (step A50-9).
10) Add 1 to the number of work elevators N (step A50-11). And step A50−
Jump to 13 and repeat the above process for all elevators. If the determination in step A50-8 is "NO", the difference between the lower limit standard waiting time W _D , which is the work deviation value α _J , and the maximum predicted waiting time W _J of each machine is calculated in step A50-12. do. and,
Move to step A50-13.

In step A50-14, it is determined whether there is no elevator that satisfies the conditions in step A50-8. If there is one or more, step A50-14 is performed.
Jump to step 19 and select the elevator with the maximum value MIN processed in step A50-10. If there is no elevator that satisfies the conditions of step A50-8 at step A50-14, the process from step A50-15 is performed. Step A50−
15, A50-18 is a loop process that calculates for all elevators. At step A50-16, the minimum work value MIN is compared with the deviation value α _J calculated at step A50-12, and if α _J is smaller, α _J is replaced by the minimum work value MIN. Then, the process moves to step A50-18, and the above process is repeated until the process is completed for all elevators. after that,
Move to step A50-19 and select the elevator with the minimum value MIN.

In this way, when there are multiple elevators whose maximum predicted waiting time W _J is between the set upper limit standard waiting time W _U and _{the lower limit standard waiting time W D ,} The elevator with the smallest deviation was selected.

Although one embodiment of the present invention has been described above,
According to the embodiment of the present invention, new hall calls are given priority service to elevators whose maximum predicted waiting time _WJ for each car is between the set standard waiting times _WU and _WD . It is possible to maintain a stable waiting time in response to the ever-changing traffic volume within the building, and it is possible to improve elevator service.

In addition, in the above embodiment, the lower limit standard waiting time
Although the elevator with the maximum predicted waiting time W _J closest to W _D is assigned priority to service new hall calls, the time generated from the two standard waiting times W _U and W _D , e.g. (W _U +
βW _D )/2 (β; proportionality constant) may be used.

In addition, although the explanation was made using the maximum predicted waiting time W _J as the waiting time evaluation value for each car, the maximum predicted waiting time W _J
An n-th power value (n is a positive integer) may be used.

Note that the two reference waiting times W _U and _WD can be varied depending on each traffic situation, and may be controlled not only by the above-mentioned program but also by using an external setting device or a clock means.

〔Effect of the invention〕

As explained above, according to the present invention, it is possible to allocate elevators that service new hall calls so that the waiting time for hall calls is concentrated in a predetermined time period, and the serviceability of elevators can be improved. be.

[Brief explanation of drawings]

Fig. 1 is an allocation characteristic diagram according to the conventional minimum waiting time allocation method, Fig. 2 is an explanatory diagram of elevator operation, Fig. 3 is an allocation characteristic diagram according to the conventional waiting time distribution control method, and Fig. 4 is an allocation characteristic diagram according to the present invention. 5 is a hardware configuration diagram showing an embodiment of the elevator group management control device of the present invention, and FIG. 6 is an overall configuration diagram showing an embodiment of the software of the elevator group management control device of the present invention. Figure, 7th
8 is a table configuration diagram showing an example of each table in FIG. 6, and FIGS. 8 to 10 are flow charts showing an example of each program in the operation control program in FIG. The figure is a flowchart of the program that calculates the predicted elevator arrival time and the maximum predicted waiting time, Figure 9 is the flowchart of the call allocation program, and Figure 10 is the
3 is a processing flowchart of the waiting time centralized control algorithm shown in FIG. MA...Elevator group management control microcomputer, HD...Hall call device, PD...Setting device,
E ₁ ~E _JMAX ...Microcomputer for machine control.

Claims (1)

[Scope of Claims] 1. A hall calling means for calling elevators provided on each floor, a calculation means for calculating a predicted waiting time until a plurality of elevators operating between each floor arrive at each floor, and a standard waiting time. In an elevator group management control device comprising a setting means for setting a time, and a selection means for selecting an elevator that will service the hall call from the predicted waiting time and the reference waiting time, the setting means is configured to set an upper limit criterion. The system is configured to set a waiting time and a lower limit standard waiting time, and the selection means selects elevators whose waiting time evaluation value generated from the predicted waiting time is within the two standard waiting times. An elevator group management control device characterized by comprising priority selection means for selecting an elevator that will service a new hall call. 2. When there are a plurality of elevators whose waiting time evaluation values are within the two standard waiting times, the priority selection means selects a first elevator that is generated from the lower limit standard waiting time or the upper and lower limit standard waiting times. 2. The elevator group management control device according to claim 1, wherein the elevator group management control device is configured to select the elevator that has the smallest deviation from the standard waiting time of No. 3 as the elevator that will service the new hall call. 3. The elevator group management control device according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the waiting time evaluation value is the maximum of the predicted waiting times of at least the floors scheduled to stop. 4. The elevator group management control device according to claim 1, 2, or 3, wherein the setting means is configured to be able to vary the reference waiting times of the upper and lower limits.