Classifications

• • B—PERFORMING OPERATIONS; TRANSPORTING
  • B66—HOISTING; LIFTING; HAULING
  • B66B—ELEVATORS; ESCALATORS OR MOVING WALKWAYS
  • B66B13/00—Doors, gates, or other apparatus controlling access to, or exit from, cages or lift well landings
  • B66B13/24—Safety devices in passenger lifts, not otherwise provided for, for preventing trapping of passengers
  • B66B13/26—Safety devices in passenger lifts, not otherwise provided for, for preventing trapping of passengers between closing doors
• • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
  • E05—LOCKS; KEYS; WINDOW OR DOOR FITTINGS; SAFES
  • E05F—DEVICES FOR MOVING WINGS INTO OPEN OR CLOSED POSITION; CHECKS FOR WINGS; WING FITTINGS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR, CONCERNED WITH THE FUNCTIONING OF THE WING
  • E05F15/00—Power-operated mechanisms for wings
  • E05F15/40—Safety devices, e.g. detection of obstructions or end positions
  • E05F15/42—Detection using safety edges
  • E05F15/43—Detection using safety edges responsive to disruption of energy beams, e.g. light or sound
• • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
  • E05—LOCKS; KEYS; WINDOW OR DOOR FITTINGS; SAFES
  • E05F—DEVICES FOR MOVING WINGS INTO OPEN OR CLOSED POSITION; CHECKS FOR WINGS; WING FITTINGS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR, CONCERNED WITH THE FUNCTIONING OF THE WING
  • E05F15/00—Power-operated mechanisms for wings
  • E05F15/40—Safety devices, e.g. detection of obstructions or end positions
  • E05F15/42—Detection using safety edges
  • E05F15/43—Detection using safety edges responsive to disruption of energy beams, e.g. light or sound
  • E05F2015/434—Detection using safety edges responsive to disruption of energy beams, e.g. light or sound with cameras or optical sensors
• • E—FIXED CONSTRUCTIONS
  • E05—LOCKS; KEYS; WINDOW OR DOOR FITTINGS; SAFES
  • E05Y—INDEXING SCHEME ASSOCIATED WITH SUBCLASSES E05D AND E05F, RELATING TO CONSTRUCTION ELEMENTS, ELECTRIC CONTROL, POWER SUPPLY, POWER SIGNAL OR TRANSMISSION, USER INTERFACES, MOUNTING OR COUPLING, DETAILS, ACCESSORIES, AUXILIARY OPERATIONS NOT OTHERWISE PROVIDED FOR, APPLICATION THEREOF
  • E05Y2900/00—Application of doors, windows, wings or fittings thereof
  • E05Y2900/10—Application of doors, windows, wings or fittings thereof for buildings or parts thereof
  • E05Y2900/104—Application of doors, windows, wings or fittings thereof for buildings or parts thereof for elevators

Definitions

• This invention relates to equipment for sensing that an object is in a defined space, in particular, a doorway, such as an elevator car doorway.
• One such device puts a light beam in a path transverse the door opening and uses a sensor to detect an interruption of the light beam, which would occur if an obstruction is between the door. Then, upon sensing an interruption, the sensor issues a signal to the door control mechanism to alter the normal operation of the doors, preferably reopen them.
• device has an array of light sources disposed on one side of the doorway, producing parallel light beams at different levels, and a corresponding array of photo-sensitive detectors arranged on the other door, for sensing those light beams, thus creating a system which can sense objects of different heights between the door.
• the light beams are generally colli- ated by a lens to ensure that each sensor is responsive to one light source.
• This arrangement although generally satis ⁇ factory, has a disadvantage: because the light beams are spaced apart from each other, objects between the beams are not sensed. For instance, an arm extended horizontally may fail to be sensed.
• the sensitivity could, of course, be improved, for instance, by spacing the parallel beams more closely together, in effect, providing substantially contiguous light beams. But, that would be costly to implement, and, to maintain sensitivity, the light beams would need to be highly collimated to prevent stray light from one sensor from reaching an adjacent - the wrong - sensor, -as that could blind the sensor.
• the large number of photodetectors and their optical systems for beam colli aticn that would be needed would, of course, add significantly to cost.
• Mirrors may be used to extend the path length of a light beam from its source so that the beam traverses the door opening a number of times prior to striking a photodetector.
• a device for sensing the presence of an object in the doorway of an elevator cab comprises: a plurality of emitters, each spaced apart from each other, and each activatable to emit radiation; a' plurality of sensors each adapted to issue a signal in response to radiation received from an emitter, said sensors each being spaced apart from each other, and each being spaced apart from each emitter along a radia ⁇ tion path extending between it and that emitter; means for activating said emitters repetitively in ⁇ a first sequence; and means for detection of a signal, if any, issued by any one of said sensors in response to an activated emitter; whereby an obstruction occurs during said sequence of any radiation path extending between any one of said emitters and one of said sensors may be detected.
• FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram showing an arrangement of emitters and sensors disposed, according to the invention, on adjacent cooper ⁇ ating elevator doors.
• Fig. 2 shows the arrangement of Fig. 1 as the doors approach each other.
• Figs. 3, 4 and 5 show other arrangements of sensors and emitters according to the invention.
• Figs. 1 and 2 there is a first elevator door 10 and a second elevator door 20. These doors, shown in an open position in Fig. 1, slide to open and close, and, as they close, the closure edge 11 of door 10 touches the closure edge 21 of door 20.
• the first array is comprised of the emitters 12 that are spaced apart from each other along the edge 11 and the sensors 13 that are at the top and bottom of the edge 11.
• the second array, on the adjacent closure edge 21 Con door 20) is comprised of the remaining emitters 22 and sensors 23, which are on the edge 21.
• the emitters may be light bulbs, LED devices or any radiation emitting device; for example, an infrared emitter that is modulated, so that its emitted radiation is distinguishable from background radiation of the surroundings.
• the sensors may be any device that is sensitive to the radiation of the emitters; yet, adapted to be insensitive to radiation other than from the emitters.
• the sensors may be photo- diodes, phototransistors or the like, and these may be gated in synchronization with a modulated emitter for improved sensitivity.
• the radiation from the emitters is not colli- ated, unlike related prior techniques that use lights and detectors in matched pairs, where collimation is required for good sensitivity. Conse ⁇ quently, each sensor actually receives radiation in a plurality of paths, each extending between the sensor and one of the emitters, as Fig. 1 shows. 5 In Figs.
• each path is distinguished there by an alphabetic index that is indicative of the sensor, and a numeral that is indicative of the emitter at 0 the ends of the path. From Fig. 2 it is apparent that these paths criss-cross, defining a network in space, the gap between the door closure edges 11 and 21, and that the space between these paths is smaller than in the prior art devices. 5 A circuit is provided whereby each emitter is energized to emit radiation in a first sequence, and each sensor is monitored in a second sequence so that one emitter is energized and one sensor is monitored, at any time.
• each of the emitters 12 is 0 energized in sequence while one of sensors 23 is monitored; then each of emitters 22 is energized sequentially while one of sensors 13 is monitored. After that, each of emitters 12 are again sequentially energized while the other (the second of the sensors 5 23) is monitored. Then the emitters of sensors 22 are again sequentially energized while the other (the second sensor 13) is monitored.
• the exact sequence is not important, although, in a preferred, basic operation, each emitter and a sensor c ⁇ mbina- 0 tion that define a radiation path therebetween is respectively energized and monitored repetitively many times per second in some sequence.
• each path is thus monitored for obstruction once in an overall sequence, and, because the sensor does not receive radiation from other emitters and no other emitter is activated, the sensor is highly sensitive to the obstruction.
• the sensitivity of the sensors may be adjusted in synchronization with the energization of the emitters, since each path involves a unique combination of sensor and emitter. For example, the gain of an amplifier receiving a signal from sensor 13 may be higher when one emitter 22 is activating path C7 than when another emitter 22 is activating path A ⁇ .
• FIG. ' 2 shows the embodiment of Fig. 1, but when the doors are in a more nearly closed position, it will be seen there that the flux density in space of the radiation paths increases as the doors approach each other.
• the invention includes embodiments such as those shown in Figs. 3, 4 and 5. Yet, those skilled in the art will recognize that be ⁇ cause emitters are available at low cost in comparison with sensors, there are many possible geometric arrangements within the scope of the invention.
• a combination of sensors and emitters may also be selected for simultaneous activity. For example, at the same time that an emitter on one edge and a sensor on the other edge are operative, a sensor on that one edge and an emitter on that other edge may be operative.
• the circuits required to construct embodiments according to the invention may use multiplex tech ⁇ niques which are apparent to those skilled in the art from the foregoing.
• embodiments of the invention may be utilized in a somewhat different application, not to monitor the doorway entrance to an elevator, but as a security device to monitor an area; for example, to sense when someone is in a dangerous position with relation to a machine, or to sense the movement of people on and off properly, or, for that matter, to sense the presence of an object in any predetermined space.

Landscapes

• Elevator Door Apparatuses (AREA)
• Geophysics And Detection Of Objects (AREA)

Priority Applications (1)

Applications Claiming Priority (2)

Publications (1)

Family

ID=3768955

Family Applications (1)

Country Status (6)

Cited By (18)

Citations (6)

Family Cites Families (5)

• 1982
  • 1982-01-28 WO PCT/US1982/000113 patent/WO1982002787A1/en active IP Right Grant
  • 1982-01-28 JP JP57500799A patent/JPS58500039A/ja active Granted
  • 1982-01-28 DE DE8282900762T patent/DE3277425D1/de not_active Expired
  • 1982-01-28 EP EP82900762A patent/EP0070883B1/de not_active Expired
  • 1982-02-08 CA CA000395793A patent/CA1241404A/en not_active Expired
  • 1982-02-10 ES ES82509497A patent/ES8303601A1/es not_active Expired

Patent Citations (6)

Non-Patent Citations (1)

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