JPH0676180B2 - Elevator group management system - Google Patents

Description

Description: TECHNICAL FIELD The present invention relates to an elevator group management system, and particularly to an elevator group management suitable for managing an elevator apparatus including an information guide / notification device in each elevator hall. Regarding the system.

[Prior Art] In a group-controlled elevator device, a conventional technique that can display general information such as event guides and weather forecasts of each floor on a display device provided in a hall or a car is disclosed in, for example, It is known and described in JP-A-60-191977, JP-A-61-136887, JP-A-61-226479 and the like.

The prior art described in JP-A-60-191977 and JP-A-61-136887, according to the waiting time, from the start to the end of the display, select the optimum message length, Alternatively, the control for changing the display mode such as changing the speed of scroll display is performed. Further, the prior art described in the above-mentioned Japanese Patent Laid-Open No. 61-226479 makes it possible to switch and display the information display contents according to the floor in the car.

All of the above-mentioned conventional techniques are characterized in that they mainly provide a method of displaying general information rather than elevator operating information. On the other hand, a technique for preferentially displaying elevator operation information under a predetermined condition using a display device having a function of alternately displaying general information and elevator operation information is disclosed in, for example, JP-A-62-62.
No. 186707, etc., and is known.

[Problems to be Solved by the Invention] Although the above-mentioned conventional technique is effective as a method of providing elevator operation guidance and general information guidance, the point is that the control method of the elevator is positively changed according to the information guidance. Is not taken into consideration, and it is impossible for the user to change the operation method of the elevator according to the information provided, and it is said that the user is providing a truly effective display. There was a problem that it could not be said.

The object of the present invention is to provide information guidance as described above,
An object of the present invention is to provide an elevator group management system that enables a user to control part of an elevator control method, for example, determination of a call assignment car.

[Means for Solving the Problems] According to the present invention, the object is to provide a first allocation candidate elevator and a second allocation candidate elevator in so-called call allocation control for determining a service elevator when a new hall call occurs. Only when the extracted first allocation candidate elevator does not satisfy the predetermined condition, the control target values of the first and second candidate elevators are compared, and the comparison result is displayed on the display device. It is achieved by giving the user the decision right as to which of the first and second call allocation candidate elevators is to be allocated for a predetermined time.

[Operation] In general, the operation control unit provided in the group management control device is
It has a function of selecting an elevator that satisfies a preset control target. However, depending on the operation status of the elevator at that time, there may be a case where an elevator deviating from the target value must be selected. Therefore, in the present invention, the call assignment candidate elevators are not narrowed down to one, two elevators are extracted, and a function of temporarily registering these elevators is added, and at the same time, the information guidance notification device installed in the elevator hall is Notify that one of the two temporarily registered candidate elevators can be arbitrarily selected. If the user determines that the first call allocation candidate elevator is acceptable, the user does not need to perform any operation, and in this case, after a predetermined time has elapsed,
The first call allocation candidate elevator is main-registered.
Further, when the user desires to allocate a call to the second call allocation candidate elevator, the user presses the hall call button again, so that the second candidate elevator is main-registered. As a result, the user can participate in the selection of the elevator to be used.

[Embodiment] An embodiment of an elevator group management system according to the present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the drawings.

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the state of an elevator, FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an information notification content determination unit, and FIG. Is a diagram for explaining an example of information guidance at a new hall call generation floor, FIG. 5 is a diagram for showing an example of a guidance message, and FIG.
FIG. 7 is a flow chart for explaining the call allocation operation, and FIG. 7 is a flow chart for explaining the operation for determining the content of the schedule notification when the temporary allocation signal is input. In FIGS. 1, 3, and 4, 1 is a group management control device,
1-1 is a data learning unit, 1-2 is a program generation unit, 1
-3 is an operation control unit, 1-4 is an information notification content determination unit, 2, 2
-1 to 2 to 3 are unit control devices, 3 are elevator halls, 3C, 3C1 and 3C2 are hall call buttons, 3H, 3H1 to 3H3 and 4H are information guide notification devices, and 3C _C 1 and 3C _C 1'are display controls. Equipment, 3Cd1,3Cd
1'is an indicator, 4 is a car, 4C is a car call button, and 5 is an information input device.

As shown in FIG. 1, an elevator group management system according to an embodiment of the present invention includes a hall call button 3c installed in a hall 3 on each floor, a signal from the hall call button 3C, and a unit controller 2. A group management control device that selects and determines an elevator serving a hall call according to a signal from the unit control devices 2-1 to 2-3 and issues a command to each unit control device 2-1 to 2-3. 1. Each floor is equipped with an elevator hall and information guidance / informing devices 3H, 4H installed in the car. The group management control device 1 includes a data learning unit 1-
1, a program learning unit 1-2, an operation control unit 1-3, and an information notification content determination unit 1-4 are configured, and each of these functional units performs the following functions.

The data learning unit 1-1 is used for various data such as signals from the hall call button 3C, elevator positions from the respective unit control devices 2-1 to 2-3, driving directions, the number of passengers in each car, and car call signals. Is received, statistical processing is performed on these data, and the current data is tabulated for use by the operation control unit 1-4. This statistical data is determined by performing simulation using the operation method and the call allocation control method used by the program generation unit 1-2 and the operation control unit 1-3, the parameters used, and the like. The result of this determination is recorded in the control data table provided in the operation control unit 1-3.

The operation control unit 1-3 determines a traffic flow or a time zone, derives a control method corresponding to the traffic flow or the time zone from the control data table, and controls the operation of the elevator according to the contents of the table. . On the other hand, the program generation unit 1-2 determines an elevator operation method and a call allocation control method for satisfying values for a plurality of control targets set in advance by an external input device, and a parameter to be used. The control unit 1-3 also determines whether or not the control target value is satisfied with respect to the result of the allocation determination, and when the elevator that exceeds the target value, that is, cannot satisfy the target value is selected. Selects the second call allocation candidate elevator. In addition, if the operation control unit 1-3 substantially satisfies the target value or the estimated arrival time of the selected elevator is within the predetermined value, the operation control unit 1-3 selects the second allocation candidate elevator first without selecting it. The elevator is main-registered as the call-assigned elevator, and the assigned number is instructed to service (stop) the floor where the hall call was placed.

When the second call allocation candidate elevator is selected as described above, the operation control unit 1-3 records the first and second call allocation candidate elevators in the provisional registration table and, at the same time, reserves the guidance for the first allocation candidate elevator. The light is turned on, the call answering light attached to the hall call button 3C is turned on flickering, and the information notification content determination unit 1-
A guidance notification message is selected at 4 and the changeable message of the call allocation elevator is displayed on the information guidance notification device 3H installed at the landing of the first call allocation candidate elevator. If the user presses the hall call button 3C again while the changeable message is displayed or the hall call response light is flickering, the operation control unit 1-3 displays the second Mainly register the call assignment candidate elevator, and if nothing is operated, first
Register the call assignment candidate elevators as is. Further, a call selection button such as a touch panel may be provided separately from the hall call button so that the user who wants to change the call elevator can press the selection button.

As described above, the system of the present invention provides the user with the right to decide which of the first call allocation candidate elevator and the second call allocation candidate elevator is selected, thereby improving the usability of the elevator device. Can be improved.

Next, the operation of the present invention will be described in more detail.

FIG. 2 shows an example of elevator positions, service directions, and call states when three group elevators Nos. 1 to 3 are controlled by one group management control device. , This will be explained.

The main specifications of the elevator group management system shown in FIG. 2 are that the maximum number of passengers in each car is 20 and that an information guide notification device is installed in the elevator hall in front of each car. The main control targets for the time zone shown in Fig. 2 are an average waiting time of 25 seconds or less and a congestion level of 40% in the car.
It is assumed that the following is set. The priority of the control target is that the average waiting time is the highest, followed by the degree of congestion in the car and the order of etc.

In the example of FIG. 2, a new hall call is currently generated on the 8th floor, and as an elevator that provides services for this call, waiting time, boarding time, congestion degree in the car, etc. are evaluated for each elevator, and It is assumed that a method is used in which a comprehensive evaluation value weighted according to the priority of the control target is obtained, and the elevator is assigned a call with the smallest evaluation value. An example of the evaluation formula is as follows.

φk = a ₁ φtk + a ₂ φwk + a ₃ φpk + (1) φk ^* = min (φ ₁ , φ ₂ , ... φk) (2) In the above equations (1) and (2), φk is K , Φtk is an evaluation value of waiting time of Unit K, φwk is an evaluation value of riding time of Unit K, φpk is an evaluation value of congestion degree in the car of Unit K, a ₁ , a ₂ , a ₃ ... ... is the weighting factor of each evaluation value,
As shown in the following equation, the total sum is 1.

a ₁ + a ₂ + a ₃ + ... + an = 1 However, n: number of target items In addition, the evaluation value for each control target item is a value that is uniformly normalized, and φk ^* is the selected unit. It shows the evaluation value of. Incidentally, various methods have been proposed so far for the calculation method of the evaluation value for each control target, but in the present invention, the method to be used is freely changed and used according to the situation, so a detailed description thereof will be given. Omitted.

For the elevator selected by the evaluation formula, a high priority control target value and a predicted value are compared, if
When the predicted value deviates from the target value by a predetermined value or more, the selected elevator is set as the first call allocation candidate elevator, and for other elevators, (1),
The second call allocation candidate elevator is selected by evaluation by the expression (2).

For example, in the example shown in FIG. 2, it is assumed that No. 2 is selected as the first call allocation candidate elevator. In this case, as can be seen from FIG. 2, the congestion degree in the car of Unit 2 is 75%, which is significantly higher than the target value of 40%, so a second call allocation candidate selection command is generated, Two call allocation candidate elevators are selected. As a result, in the example of FIG. 2, the first car is selected as the second call allocation candidate elevator. The selection result is transmitted to the information notification content determination unit 1-4.

As shown in FIG. 3, the information notification content determination unit 1-4 is configured to include an input / output management unit a ₁ , an information transmission unit a ₂ , a timer a ₃ , a priority table a ₄ and a schedule table a _5. ing.

The information from the operation control unit 1-3 such as the selection result described above is
The message is transmitted to the input / output management unit a _1, and it is determined here which message is displayed on which floor of the information guidance / informing device. The timer a ₃ manages the message display time, scroll time, and the like. In addition, in the information notification content determination unit 1-4, information such as display messages and moving images created in advance based on an input signal from the information input device is stored in the priority table a ₄ and the schedule table a _5. Is held. This priority table
a ₄ is a table in which the display contents with prioritized guidance information are recorded.The schedule table is a display in front of the car to which hall calls are not assigned and a display in the car at a certain time. It is a table of instructions for displaying the contents stored in the table.

In the example shown in FIG. 2, when the operation control unit 1-3 selects and temporarily registers two call allocation candidate elevators, the input / output management unit a ₁ provides the temporary registration command and information necessary for each display. Then, the display content is determined based on these information, and a command to display the determined display content in the hole is transmitted via the information transmission section a ₂ . In the hall,
Based on the command from the information transmission unit a ₂ , the display control device 3Co1 that constitutes the information guidance / notification device 3H installed in the hall.
Guidance information is recorded in the display, and display screen data for this guidance is displayed on the display device 3Cd1.

FIG. 4 shows a display example of each car on the 8th floor of the example shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 4, the information guidance / informing device for the second elevator, which is the first call allocation candidate.
It is displayed on 3H2 that the allocation can be changed, and general information such as time information and weather forecast information is displayed on the other information guidance notification devices 3H1 and 3H3 in front of the elevator. In addition, the reservation lights L1 to L3 are continuously turned on only in front of the first call allocation candidate elevator, and draw the attention of waiting passengers. Further, the hall call buttons 3C1 and 3C2 on the floor are lit flickering to indicate that the call assignment can be changed.

FIG. 5 shows an example of the display of the information guidance / informing device 3H2 of the second car selected as the first call allocation candidate elevator.

First, in f _1, and that the assignment elevator is changeable, and displays the predicted values for high priority item in the control target of the Unit. Next, at f ₂ , the predicted value of the second call allocation candidate elevator is displayed. Then at f ₃ ,
By pressing the hall call button again, it is informed that the call is assigned to the first car selected as the second call assignment candidate elevator. In this example, since the message to be displayed is long, the message is scrolled horizontally or vertically as shown in f ₃ 1 and f ₃ 2. If the request to change the call assignment is received from the user by pressing the hall call button 3C again, as shown by f ₄ , the changed machine is guided, and if there is no request for change,
Providing guidance corresponding to the indicator, shown as f ₅ .

The above-mentioned guidance message is an example for explaining the embodiment of the present invention, and the content thereof can be variously changed. Further, in the above-mentioned example, guidance is provided by visual display, but similar guidance can be provided by using the voice guidance device.

As described above, by using the information guidance / informing device, the embodiment of the present invention can partially incorporate the user's request and control the elevator such as selecting the elevator. , The usability of the user can be improved.

The previously set control target value is determined by the intention of the owner or manager of the building, and may be different from the user's own target value.
Even in some cases, by giving the user the right to select an elevator, it becomes possible to perform control in a more user's standpoint.

Next, according to the flow shown in FIG. 6, the operation control unit 1
-3 operation will be described.

(1) First, if the traffic flow pattern is created by the data learning unit 1-1 (created from data from 5 minutes before the hall call is generated) or when the traffic flow is changed significantly. The traffic flow pattern in the new time zone is determined (step 101).

(2) Next, the operation method that matches the AC communication pattern determined in step 101 is determined using the control data table created by the program generation section 1-2 (step 102).

(3) Next, a call assignment candidate elevator is selected using the call assignment elevator selection method and parameters in the control data table, and the estimated arrival time T ₁ of the elevator at the call generation floor is obtained (step Ten
3,104).

(4) The estimated arrival time T ₁ obtained in step 104 is a predetermined value a
It is determined whether or not the value is (call assignment changeable value) or more (step 105).

(5) If the determination in step 105 is less than or equal to the predetermined value, the elevator is main-registered (step 111).

(6) If the determination in step 105 is greater than or equal to the predetermined value, the second
The call allocation candidate elevator is selected, and the estimated arrival time T ₂ of the elevator at the call generation floor is obtained (steps 106 and 107).

(7) The predicted arrival time T ₂ obtained in step 107 is a predetermined value a
It is determined whether or not (step 108).

(8) If the determination in step 108 is smaller than the predetermined value, it is determined whether or not there is a next car, and if not, the first call allocation candidate elevator is main-registered (steps 110, 11).
1).

(9) If it is determined in step 110 that there is a next machine,
The second call allocation candidate elevator is selected again (steps 110 and 106).

(10) If the judgment in step 108 exceeds the predetermined value, the first and second call allocation candidate elevators are recorded in the temporary registration table (step 109).

The recording result of this step 109 is transmitted from the operation control unit 1-3 to the information notification content determination unit 1-4 for information guidance.

(11) In step 112, the maximum value of the call allocatable time and the elapsed time are compared with each other based on the shorter estimated arrival time of the temporarily registered car. For example, if T ₁ ≤ T ₂ , then Tm
ax = T ₁ −a. As a result, if no operation is performed until the elapsed time exceeds the maximum value Tmax, the allocation candidate is main-registered (step 111).

(12) If the call allocatable time Tmax is not reached in step 112, it is judged whether or not there is a call for main registration in the second selected car (step 113).

(13) If there is a call in step 113, the call is assigned to the second candidate and the process is terminated (step 114). If there is no call, the elapsed time is advanced and the process from step 112 is repeated.

As a result, the information notification content determination unit operates as follows in accordance with the flow chart shown in FIG.

(1) First, the information given from the operation control unit 1-3 is
It is determined whether the signal is a temporary registration command signal (step
201).

(2) If it is determined in step 201 that it is a normal main registration command, the screen is selected and determined so as to display the status of the elevator on the information guidance notification device in front of the call allocation elevator (step 209).

(3) If it is determined in step 201 that the command is a temporary registration command,
The unit numbers of the first and second call allocation candidate elevators are read, and main target predicted value data is collected (steps 202 and 203).

(4) Next, based on the data collected in step 201, it is possible to change the allocation to the information guidance / informing device in front of the first call allocation candidate elevator, and the first and second call allocation candidates. A message for guiding a predicted value of a typical control target of an elevator and a method of changing the allocation to the second call allocation candidate elevator is selected and determined, and a timer is set according to the changeable time (steps 204, 205). .

(5) While the timer does not reach the time limit, the message selected and determined in step 204 is transmitted as a display command to the display control device of the floor, and it is determined whether or not the hall call button for changing the allocation is operated ( Steps 206-208).

(6) If the time is over at step 206, the contents displayed on the information guidance notification device in front of the first call allocation candidate elevator are reset. For example, when the first call allocation candidate elevator is directly registered as it is, the display screen is set so as to guide the position, direction, and state of the elevator (steps 206 and 209).

(7) When the second call allocation candidate elevator has been reassigned, the first call allocation candidate is displayed to that effect, and then the display screen is selected and decided to provide general information guidance. The information guidance informing device of the second call allocation candidate elevator includes the position of the elevator,
The display screen is selected and determined so that the state such as the direction is displayed (steps 208 and 209).

(8) While there is a hall call on the floor, the display data is transmitted to the display control device, a predetermined display is performed on the information guidance notifying device, and the process is terminated (step 210).

Although the above-described embodiment of the present invention has been described as one in which the information guidance notification device is installed for each elevator, the present invention is
It can also be applied to the case where one information guide display device is installed in the elevator hall, and can have the same function. Furthermore, although the number of selected units was limited to two,
It is also possible to select more than one.

According to the embodiment of the present invention, by adding an information guidance notification device,
Since it is possible to provide guidance according to the status of control (determination of elevators assigned to calls), the user can know the status of the next elevators in advance, and since the elevators to be assigned can be determined, For example,
Even if the user thinks that he / she will not board the vacant elevator even if it is a little late, the user can decide such an elevator, and the usability for the user can be improved.

In the case of the prior art, for example, if call allocation with an emphasis on waiting time is made, even if it is crowded, only the elevator that comes earlier will be selected, and the user who thinks as described above,
Since the elevator did not board the arriving elevator and called the next elevator again after the elevator departed, the crowded elevator was unnecessarily stopped on the floor that did not need to be stopped, and the elevator In addition to the inconvenience of delayed arrival of passengers to the destination floor,
The above-mentioned user who issued the hall call cannot issue a call to the next elevator until the crowded elevator departs, and cannot know in advance what state the next elevator is in. In some cases, the elevator of No. 1 had to be exhausted, but according to the embodiment of the present invention, all the drawbacks of the prior art described above can be eliminated.

The above-described embodiment of the present invention has been described as selecting candidate elevators with the predicted arrival time as the control target and causing the user to determine one of the plurality of candidate elevators. However, the control target is only the predicted arrival time. Instead, it may be the congestion level in the car, boarding time, long waiting rate, reservation change rate, energy saving rate, information guidance amount, transportation efficiency, etc. Also, the result of comparing the above control target values for each candidate elevator Can be notified to the information guidance notification device to assist the user in selecting an elevator.

Further, in the above-described embodiment of the present invention, as a condition for selecting the first and second candidate elevators, the first candidate elevator cannot satisfy the preset control target value. For example, when the traffic demand is less than or equal to a predetermined congestion level, which may be set in advance corresponding to the time zone, the first candidate elevator is the highest priority target among the preset control targets. This may be the case when the user is not satisfied, or when a specific user makes a hall call by using an ID card, a transmitter or the like possessed by the user.

[Effects of the Invention] As described above, according to the present invention, depending on the situation,
Since the user can participate in the selection of the call-assigned elevator, it is possible to eliminate the occurrence of unnecessary stop calls in advance during busy hours and improve the usability of the user.

[Brief description of drawings]

FIG. 1 is a block diagram showing the overall configuration of an embodiment of the present invention, FIG. 2 is a diagram illustrating the state of an elevator, FIG. 3 is a block diagram showing the configuration of an information notification content determination unit, and FIG. Is a diagram for explaining an example of information guidance at a new hall call generation floor, FIG. 5 is a diagram for showing an example of a guidance message, and FIG.
FIG. 7 is a flow chart for explaining the call allocation operation, and FIG. 7 is a flow chart for explaining the operation for determining the information notification guidance when the temporary allocation signal is input. 1 ... Group management control device 1-1 ... Data learning unit, 1-
2 ... Program generation unit, 1-3 ... Operation control unit, 1-
4 ... Information notification content determination unit, 2,2-1 to 2-3 ... Unit control device, 3 ... Elevator hall, 3C, 3C1,3C2 ...
Hall call button, 3H, 3H1 to 3H3,4H ... Information guidance notification device,
3C _C 1,3C _C 1 '... Display control device, 3Cd1,3Cd1' ... Display device, 4 ... Car, 4C ... Car call button, 5 ... Information input device.

 ─────────────────────────────────────────────────── ─── Continuation of the front page (72) Inventor Yuto Suzuki 4026 Kuji Town, Hitachi City, Hitachi, Ibaraki Prefecture Hitachi Research Laboratory Ltd. (72) Masachika Yamazaki 4026 Kuji Town, Hitachi City, Ibaraki Prefecture Hitachi Ltd. Hitachi Research Laboratory (72) Inventor Kenji Yoneda 1070 Imo, Katsuta City, Ibaraki Prefecture Mito Plant, Hitachi, Ltd. (56) References JP 59-167463 (JP, A)

Claims (12)

[Claims] 1. A plurality of elevators working between floors on multiple floors, a hall call button installed in an elevator hall on each floor, an operation control unit for allocating and controlling an elevator to be serviced by an input signal of the buttons, and an elevator on each floor. In an elevator group management system provided with an information guide notification device installed in a hall, means for notifying that each elevator can be selected by the information guide notification device installed in the elevator hall on each floor, and the selectable notification An elevator group management system, which is provided with means for instructing a desired elevator when a user performs the above. 2. A plurality of elevators working between floors on multiple floors, a hall call button installed in an elevator hall on each floor, an operation control section for allocating and controlling an elevator to be serviced by an input signal of the buttons, and an elevator on each floor. In an elevator group management system equipped with an information guide notification device installed in the hall, the information guide notification device installed in the elevator hall of each floor, in addition to the estimated arrival time of each elevator, the number of passengers in the car, the estimated boarding time An elevator group management system comprising means for informing at least one of them and means for instructing an elevator desired by a user. 3. The claim according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the time during which the user can instruct the service elevator in the elevator hall is within a predetermined time after the hall call is generated. Elevator group management system. 4. The elevator group management system according to claim 3, wherein the predetermined time is a time obtained by subtracting a call assignment changeable time from a predicted arrival time of an elevator having a short predicted arrival time. . 5. A means for blinking and displaying a hall call response lamp while a service elevator can be instructed at a landing, according to any one of claims 1 to 4. Elevator group management system. 6. The information guidance notifying device comprises means for switching and notifying the states of a plurality of elevators, and means for allocating a call to the elevators in the state informed at the time of operating the desired elevator instruction means. The elevator group management system according to any one of claims 1 to 5. 7. The elevator group management system according to claim 1, further comprising means for invalidating the desired elevator instruction means. 8. When the desired elevator instructing means is not operated, the group management control device assigns the call to an elevator selected in advance, as claimed in any one of claims 1 to 7. Of these, the elevator group management system described in item 1. 9. The desired elevator instructing means also serves as a hall call button.
An elevator group management system according to any one of items 1 to 8. 10. The information guide / informing device is provided for each of a plurality of elevators, and after the call-assigned elevator is selected and determined, the information guide / informing device of the selected elevator is made to notify the operation information of the elevator. An elevator group management system according to any one of claims 1 to 9. 11. The elevator group management system according to claim 10, wherein the elevator information guide notification device other than the selected elevator is notified of information other than the elevator operation information. 12. The elevator group management system according to claim 10, characterized in that the guide notification of the information guide notification device of the elevator other than the selected one is interrupted.