CN111268539B - Foreign matter detection system of elevator - Google Patents

Abstract

Embodiments of the present invention relate to a foreign matter detection system for an elevator, which can appropriately detect foreign matter on a hanger rail. The foreign matter detection system of an elevator of an embodiment comprises a camera, a data generation part and a foreign matter detection part. The camera is installed at the upper part of the elevator cage, and shoots the image of the entrance from the upper part of the elevator cage when the door is opened and closed. The data generating unit analyzes the image captured by the camera and outputs door behavior data indicating the behavior of the door. The foreign matter detection unit determines that foreign matter is present on a hanger rail supporting an upper portion of the door when the abnormal behavior of the door is detected using the door behavior data.

Description

Foreign matter detection system of elevator

The application is based on Japanese patent application 2018-228419 (application date: 12/5/2018), and enjoys priority of the application. This application incorporates by reference the entirety of this application.

Technical Field

The embodiment of the invention relates to a foreign matter detection system of an elevator.

Background

The doors that open and close the doorway of the elevator include car doors and hall doors. The car door and the hall door are configured to move in a left-right interlocking manner along the doorsill and the hanger rail by rolling the hanger roller provided at the upper end portion on the hanger rail in a state where the guide shoe provided at the lower end portion is engaged with the groove of the doorsill, thereby opening and closing the doorway of the elevator. At this time, for example, if foreign matter is deposited on the threshold, the normal opening and closing operation of the door is hindered. Therefore, various methods for detecting foreign matter on the rocker have been proposed. For example, the following methods are known: the limit switch is used to detect the displacement of the guide shoe due to the influence of the foreign matter on the threshold, thereby detecting the foreign matter on the threshold.

The normal opening and closing operation of the door is hindered not only by foreign matter on the threshold but also by the influence of foreign matter on the hanger rail. Since the hanger rail is at a position that cannot be seen by the elevator user, it cannot be expected that the elevator user will notice and remove the foreign matter, as in the case where the foreign matter is present on the threshold. Therefore, when foreign matter is present on the hanger rail, it is required to appropriately detect the foreign matter and notify the maintenance worker of the foreign matter, and prompt the maintenance worker to clean the hanger rail.

Disclosure of Invention

The problem to be solved by the present invention is to provide a foreign matter detection system for an elevator, which can appropriately detect foreign matter on a hanger rail.

The foreign matter detection system of the elevator of the embodiment comprises a camera, a data generation part and a foreign matter detection part. The camera is installed at the upper part of the elevator cage, and shoots the image of the entrance from the upper part of the elevator cage when the door is opened and closed. The data generating unit analyzes the image captured by the camera and outputs door behavior data indicating the behavior of the door. The foreign matter detection unit determines that foreign matter is present on a hanger rail supporting an upper portion of the door when the abnormal behavior of the door is detected using the door behavior data.

According to the foreign matter detection system configured as described above, foreign matter on the hanger rail can be appropriately detected.

Drawings

Fig. 1 is a diagram schematically showing an elevator hall of a building.

Fig. 2 is a diagram schematically showing the inside of a car of an elevator.

Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a door driving mechanism.

Fig. 4 is a schematic view showing a door moving on a threshold as viewed from above.

Fig. 5 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration example of a foreign matter detection system of an elevator according to an embodiment.

Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example of a video captured by a camera.

Fig. 7 is a diagram showing an example of door behavior data.

Fig. 8 is a diagram illustrating a method of detecting abnormal behavior of a door using door behavior data.

Fig. 9 is a flowchart showing an example of operation of the elevator foreign matter detection system according to the embodiment.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, a specific embodiment of an elevator foreign matter detection system to which the present invention is applied will be described in detail with reference to the drawings.

Fig. 1 is a diagram schematically showing an elevator hall 10 of a building, and fig. 2 is a diagram schematically showing the inside of a car 20 of an elevator. As shown in fig. 1, an opening serving as an entrance 30 of an elevator is provided in an elevator hall 10 of a building. Three frames 11 are attached to the opening, and hall doors 12 are provided to open and close doorway 30 surrounded by three frames 11. The hall door 12 has, for example, a split structure in which a pair of left and right door panels move in opposite directions to each other to open and close the doorway 30.

On the other hand, as shown in fig. 2, a car 20 of an elevator is provided with a pair of left and right front side plates 21, and a curtain plate 22 that connects the pair of left and right front side plates 21 to each other on an upper portion of the car 20. In the car 20, an opening surrounded by the front side plate 21 and the curtain plate 22 serves as an entrance 30 of the elevator, and a car door 23 is provided to open and close the entrance 30. The car door 23 has, for example, a split structure similar to the hall door 12.

When the car 20 stops at the elevator hall 10, the hall door 12 is opened in conjunction with the car door 23 to open the doorway 30, and the user rides in and out. When the boarding and alighting of the user is completed, the hall door 12 is closed in conjunction with the car door 23, and the doorway 30 is closed. In the present embodiment, the hall door 12 and the car door 23 that open and close the doorway 30 of the elevator are simply referred to as "doors" unless they are particularly distinguished.

A curtain plate 22 of the car 20 is provided with a camera 2, and the camera 2 photographs an image of an entrance 30 opened and closed by a door when the door is opened and closed, as viewed from above the car 20. As the camera 2, for example, a camera used in a door control technology disclosed in japanese patent No. 6092433 can be used. A door control technique disclosed in japanese patent No. 6092433 is a control technique in which, when a car 20 stops in an elevator hall 10 and a door is opened and closed, a camera 2 captures an image of an entrance 30 viewed from above the upper part of the car 20, the image captured by the camera 2 is analyzed to detect the presence or absence of a user having a riding intention, and when a user having a riding intention is detected, the door is maintained open or the door in the middle of closing is opened again. In the present embodiment, as will be described later, the video image captured by the camera 2 is used to generate behavior data indicating the behavior of the door.

Here, a specific example of the door driving mechanism will be described with reference to fig. 3. Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an example of a door driving mechanism. Although the drive mechanism for the car door 23 is illustrated in fig. 3, the same drive mechanism can be used for the drive mechanism for the hall door 12. However, since the hall doors 12 are operated in conjunction with the car doors 23, the drive mechanism of the hall doors 12 need not include the door motor 41 described below.

As shown in fig. 3, a door machine 40 is provided on an upper portion of the car 20. The gantry crane 40 includes: a drive pulley 42 attached to a rotating shaft of the door motor 41, a driven pulley 43, an endless drive belt 44 spanned over the drive pulley 42 and the driven pulley 43, and a hanger rail 45 arranged in parallel with the drive belt 44. When the drive pulley 42 is rotated by driving of the door motor 41, the drive belt 44 performs a feeding operation in a horizontal direction (left-right direction) in the figure.

On the other hand, on upper end portions of the pair of door panels constituting the car door 23, suspensions 46 for suspending the car door 23 are provided, respectively. The suspension 46 includes a suspension roller 47 that rolls on the suspension rail 45, and a fixing member 48, and the suspension 46 is coupled to the drive belt 44 by the fixing member 48 in a state where the suspension roller 47 is placed on the suspension rail 45. At this time, the hanger 46 provided on one door panel of the car door 23 and the hanger 46 provided on the other door panel are coupled by the fixing member 48 at positions opposite to each other in the feeding direction of the drive belt 44, as shown in fig. 3.

Further, guide shoes 49 are provided at the lower end portions of the pair of door panels constituting the car door 23, respectively. The guide shoe 49 engages with a groove of a threshold 50 provided in a lower portion of the car 20. In this way, the upper portion of the car door 23 is supported by the hanger rail 45 of the door machine 40 via the hanger 46, and the lower portion of the car door 23 is supported by the rocker 50 via the guide shoe 49.

When the car 20 stops at the elevator hall 10, the belt 44 is driven by the driving of the door motor 41 to perform a feeding operation, and the suspending elements 46 coupled to the belt 44 by the fixing elements 48 move along the hanger rail 45 while rolling the hanger rollers 47 on the hanger rail 45. Thereby, the pair of door panels of the car door 23 suspended on the hanger 46 moves left and right in a state where the guide shoes 49 are engaged with the grooves of the sills 50. In conjunction with the movement of the pair of door panels constituting the car door 23, the pair of door panels constituting the hall door 12 also moves similarly. Thereby, the doorway 30 of the elevator is opened.

When a predetermined time has elapsed or the door motor 41 is reversed in response to a button operation or the like, the drive belt 44 is driven to perform the feeding operation in the reverse direction. Thus, the pair of door panels constituting the car door 23 and the pair of door panels constituting the hall door 12 are moved in a reverse direction in conjunction with the time of opening the doorway 30 in a state where the hanger rollers 47 are respectively rolled on the hanger rails 45 and the guide shoes 49 are engaged with the grooves of the threshold 50. Thereby, the doorway 30 of the elevator is closed.

Fig. 4 is a schematic view showing the car door 23 and the hall door 12 moving in the left-right direction while interlocking with each other on the threshold 50, as viewed from above. The pair of door panels constituting the car door 23 and the pair of door panels constituting the hall door 12 are coupled to a drive mechanism by, for example, a link mechanism, not shown, and operate in conjunction with each other. The door driving mechanism described above is an example, and is not limited to this. The door driving mechanism may be any mechanism that moves the door so as to open and close the doorway 30 of the elevator in a state where at least the upper portion of the door is supported by the hanger rail 45 and the lower portion of the door is supported by the threshold 50.

The elevator foreign matter detection system of the present embodiment is a system for detecting foreign matter that becomes an important factor inhibiting normal opening and closing operations of the doors as described above, and particularly, can appropriately detect foreign matter on the hanger rail 45. In order to detect a foreign object on the hanger rail 45, in the present embodiment, the image captured by the camera 2 is used.

Fig. 5 is a block diagram showing a functional configuration example of the elevator foreign matter detection system 1 according to the present embodiment. As shown in fig. 5, the foreign object detection system 1 includes a camera 2, a data generation unit 3, a foreign object detection unit 4, and a warning output unit 5. The data generation unit 3, the foreign object detection unit 4, and the warning output unit 5 are implemented by, for example, 1 or more processors. These units may be realized by a general-purpose processor such as a CPU executing a program, that is, by software, or may be realized by a processor such as a dedicated IC, that is, by hardware. These units may be implemented by software and hardware at the same time. When a plurality of processors are used, each processor may implement one of the above-described respective sections, or 2 or more of the respective sections.

As described above, the camera 2 is provided on the curtain plate 22 or the like above the car 20, and photographs an image of the doorway 30 viewed from above the car 20 when the door is opened or closed. Fig. 6 is a diagram showing an example of the video 60 captured by the camera 2, and shows 1 frame of the video captured at the timing when the doorway 30 is opened. As shown in fig. 6, a threshold 50 partitioning the doorway 30, and the hall door 12 and the car door 23 constituting the doors are photographed in a video 60 photographed by the camera 2. The image 60 captured by the camera 2 when the door is opened and closed is sent to the data generation unit 3 and the foreign object detection unit 4.

The data generating unit 3 analyzes the image 60 captured by the camera 2 when the door is opened and closed, and generates door behavior data indicating the behavior of the door. For example, the data generating unit 3 can generate door behavior data indicating the behavior of the door by extracting a characteristic point of the door (for example, a contact point between the door front end portion and the threshold 50) as a reference point P (see fig. 6) from each frame of the image 60 captured by the camera 2 and tracking the position of the reference point P between frames.

Fig. 7 shows an example of the door behavior data generated by the data generation unit 3. The door behavior data 70 shown in fig. 7 is a graph showing the relationship between the moving distance of the door and time. If the door behavior is normal, as shown in fig. 7, door behavior data 70 indicating that the door is moving at a constant speed can be obtained during the period from when the door starts moving to when the door is immediately stopped and decelerated. The door behavior data 70 generated by the data generation unit 3 is sent to the foreign object detection unit 4.

The foreign object detection unit 4 detects a foreign object that is an important factor inhibiting the opening and closing of the door, using the image 60 captured by the camera 2 at the time of opening and closing of the door and the door behavior data 70 generated by the data generation unit 3.

For example, the foreign object detection unit 4 checks whether or not there is an abnormality in the behavior of the door based on the door behavior data 70 generated by the data generation unit 3. When the opening and closing of the door is hindered by the foreign matter, as shown in fig. 8, an abnormality occurs in the door behavior data 70 such that the moving speed of the door is temporarily decreased (see a portion a in fig. 8). For example, when such a speed abnormality of the door is detected from the door behavior data 70, the foreign matter detection unit 4 can determine that the behavior of the door is abnormal. The curve indicated by the broken line in fig. 8 indicates door behavior data 70 in the case where the behavior of the door is normal. The foreign object detection unit 4 may hold the door behavior data 70 in the case where the behavior of the door is normal in advance, and determine the presence or absence of an abnormality by comparing the data with the data in the case of being normal.

The foreign object detection unit 4 analyzes the image 60 captured by the camera 2 when the door is opened and closed, and determines whether or not a foreign object is present on the threshold 50. This processing can be realized, for example, by the following method: a plurality of patterns representing the characteristics of foreign objects are held in advance, pattern matching is performed using the region of the threshold 50 in each frame of the image 60 captured by the camera 2 as a search region, and foreign objects matching the patterns are detected. For example, the image 60 captured by the camera 2 may be input to a recognizer such as a neural network after learning, and the presence or absence of a foreign object on the threshold 50 may be determined.

Then, the foreign matter detection unit 4 determines that foreign matter is present on the hanger rail 45 when it is determined that foreign matter is not present on the threshold 50 through the analysis of the image 60 as described above, but an abnormality in the behavior of the door is detected from the door behavior data 70 generated by the data generation unit 3. When determining that foreign matter is present on the hanger rail 45, the foreign matter detection unit 4 calculates behavior abnormality time Ta (see fig. 8) indicating the length of time during which the movement of the door is stopped (the length of time during which the movement speed of the door temporarily decreases) from the door behavior data 70. The foreign matter detection unit 4 also determines the position of the foreign matter on the hanger rail 45 using the door behavior data 70. The position of the foreign object on the hanger rail 45 can be determined based on, for example, a movement distance La (see fig. 8) of the door from the start of movement of the door to the stop of movement (temporary decrease in movement speed).

When determining that there is a foreign object on the hanger rail 45, the foreign object detection unit 4 transmits the behavior abnormality time Ta and the position of the foreign object on the hanger rail 45 to the warning output unit 5, and instructs the warning output unit 5 to output a warning.

The warning output unit 5 outputs a warning indicating that foreign matter is present on the hanger rail 45, for example, to a terminal of a service center that provides services such as elevator maintenance inspection, in response to an instruction from the foreign matter detection unit 4. At this time, the warning output unit 5 outputs a warning of a level corresponding to the length of the behavior abnormality time Ta transmitted from the foreign object detection unit 4 among the predetermined plurality of levels of warning. For example, it is considered that the longer the behavior abnormality time Ta is, the higher the urgency is, and therefore, a warning for prompting a quick response is output. The warning output unit 5 outputs a warning including position information indicating the position of the foreign object on the hanger rail 45 transmitted from the foreign object detection unit 4.

This can prompt an operator performing elevator maintenance inspection to take appropriate measures such as cleaning by transmitting the presence of foreign matter on the hanger rail 45. Further, since the position of the foreign matter on the hanger rail 45 can be transmitted, the cleaning operation for removing the foreign matter on the hanger rail 45 can be performed efficiently.

When the foreign matter detection unit 4 analyzes the image captured by the camera 2 at the time of opening and closing the door and detects a foreign matter on the threshold 50, for example, a sound broadcast or the like that prompts a user of the elevator to remove the foreign matter on the threshold 50 is output from a speaker provided in the elevator hall 10 or the car 20.

Next, the operation of the elevator foreign matter detection system 1 according to the present embodiment will be described with reference to fig. 9. Fig. 9 is a flowchart showing an operation example of the elevator foreign matter detection system 1 according to the embodiment. A series of processes shown in the flowchart of fig. 9 is executed, for example, each time the car 20 stops at the elevator hall 10 to open and close the door.

When the car 20 stops at the elevator hall 10, the camera 2 starts shooting. The camera 2 photographs an image 60 of the doorway 30 opened and closed by the door as viewed from above the car 20 (step S101). The image 60 captured by the camera 2 is sent to the data generation unit 3 and the foreign object detection unit 4.

Next, the data generation unit 3 analyzes the video captured by the camera 2, and generates door behavior data 70 indicating the behavior of the door (step S102). The door behavior data 70 generated by the data generation unit 3 is sent to the foreign object detection unit 4.

Next, the foreign object detection unit 4 determines whether or not there is an abnormality in the behavior of the door using the door behavior data 70 generated by the data generation unit 3 (step S103). Here, when the abnormal behavior of the door is not detected (no in step S103), it is determined that there is no abnormality and the process is terminated as it is.

On the other hand, when the abnormal behavior of the door is detected from the door behavior data 70 (yes in step S103), the foreign object detection unit 4 analyzes the image 60 captured by the camera 2 and determines whether or not there is a foreign object on the threshold 50 (step S104). Here, when the foreign matter on the threshold 50 is detected from the image 60 (yes in step S104), a sound broadcast prompting the user of the elevator to remove the foreign matter on the threshold 50 is output from, for example, a speaker provided in the elevator hall 10 or the car 20 (step S105), and the series of processes is terminated.

On the other hand, when the foreign object on the threshold 50 is not detected from the image 60 (no in step S104), the foreign object detection unit 4 determines that the foreign object is present on the hanger rail 45, calculates a behavior abnormality time Ta when the behavior of the door becomes abnormal, and further determines the position of the foreign object on the hanger rail 45 using the door behavior data 70 (step S106). The behavior abnormality time Ta calculated by the foreign matter detection unit 4 and the position of the foreign matter on the hanger rail 45 are transmitted to the warning output unit 5.

Then, the warning output unit 5 outputs a warning of a level corresponding to the length of the behavior abnormality time Ta among the predetermined plurality of levels of warnings and including position information indicating the position of the foreign matter on the hanger rail 45 to a terminal or the like of a service center that provides services such as elevator maintenance inspection (step S107), and the series of processes is ended.

As described above in detail by referring to a specific example, the elevator foreign matter detection system 1 according to the present embodiment analyzes the image captured by the camera 2 when the door is opened and closed, generates door behavior data 70 indicating the behavior of the door, and determines that foreign matter is present on the hanger rail 45 when an abnormal behavior of the door is detected using the door behavior data 70. Thus, according to the foreign matter detection system 1, the foreign matter on the hanger rail 45 can be appropriately detected.

In particular, the foreign matter detection system 1 analyzes the image captured by the camera 2 when the door is opened and closed, determines whether or not there is a foreign matter on the threshold 50, and determines that there is a foreign matter on the hanger rail 45 when the abnormal behavior of the door is detected from the door behavior data 70 although there is no foreign matter on the threshold 50. Thus, according to the foreign matter detection system 1, whether the important factor causing the abnormality of the behavior of the door is the foreign matter on the threshold 50 or the foreign matter on the hanger rail 45 can be discriminated, and the foreign matter on the hanger rail 45 can be further appropriately detected.

Further, in the case where it is determined that there is a foreign object on the hanger rail 45, the foreign object detection system 1 outputs a warning of a level corresponding to the length of the behavior abnormality time Ta during which the behavior of the door becomes abnormal, and therefore, can prompt an operator or the like performing elevator maintenance inspection to appropriately respond to the degree of an obstacle due to the foreign object on the hanger rail 45.

Further, in the case where it is determined that there is a foreign object on the hanger rail 45, the foreign object detection system 1 further determines the position of the foreign object on the hanger rail 45 and outputs a warning including position information indicating the position of the foreign object on the hanger rail 45, so that the position of the foreign object on the hanger rail 45 can be transmitted to the operator, and the operator can efficiently perform a cleaning operation or the like for removing the foreign object on the hanger rail 45.

The foreign matter detection system 1 for an elevator described above can have various extended functions. For example, the foreign matter detection unit 4 may detect an abnormal behavior of the door in real time from the door behavior data 70, and increase the torque of the door motor 41 that drives the door when the behavior abnormal time Ta during which the behavior of the door becomes abnormal exceeds a predetermined upper limit value. The torque increase of the door motor 41 can be achieved, for example, by: the value of the drive current supplied from the motor control circuit that controls the door motor 41 to the door motor 41 is increased in accordance with the torque increase command from the foreign matter detection unit 4.

This effectively eliminates the problem that the door cannot be completely closed due to the influence of foreign matter on the hanger rail 45. The increase in torque of the door motor 41 may be performed not only when the foreign object detection unit 4 detects some abnormal behavior but also continuously until the cleaning operation by the operator is finished.

In the above example, it is determined that foreign matter is present on the hanger rail 45 when the abnormal behavior of the door is detected from the door behavior data 70 although the foreign matter on the threshold 50 is not detected from the image 60 captured by the camera 2. However, the abnormal behavior of the door may be caused not only by foreign matter on the doorsill 50 but also by the influence of, for example, a user touching the door or a user's luggage being caught by the door. Therefore, the foreign matter detection unit 4 may determine not only whether there is a foreign matter on the threshold 50 but also whether there is such contact of the user or the sandwiching of the luggage of the user using the image captured by the camera 2, and may determine that there is a foreign matter on the hanger rail 45 when the abnormal behavior of the door is detected based on the door behavior data 70, although not only the foreign matter on the threshold 50 but also the contact of the user or the sandwiching of the luggage of the user is not detected.

While several embodiments of the present invention have been described above, these embodiments are presented as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of the invention. These new embodiments can be implemented in other various forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and changes can be made without departing from the spirit of the invention. These embodiments are included in the scope and gist of the invention, and are included in the invention described in the claims and the equivalent scope thereof.

Claims (4)

1. A foreign matter detection system for an elevator, comprising:

a camera which is arranged at the upper part of a cage of the elevator and shoots an image of an entrance from the upper part of the cage when a door is opened and closed;

a data generating unit configured to analyze the image captured by the camera and generate door behavior data indicating a behavior of the door;

a foreign matter detection unit which determines that foreign matter is present on a hanger rail supporting an upper portion of the door when the abnormal behavior of the door is detected using the door behavior data; and

and an alarm output unit that outputs an alarm of a level corresponding to a time period during which the behavior of the door is abnormal among a plurality of predetermined levels of alarms when it is determined that the foreign object is present on the hanger rail.

2. The foreign matter detection system of an elevator according to claim 1,

the foreign matter detection unit analyzes the image captured by the camera to determine whether or not there is a foreign matter on a threshold supporting a lower portion of the door, and determines that a foreign matter is present on the hanger rail when an abnormal behavior of the door is detected although there is no foreign matter on the threshold.

3. The foreign matter detection system of an elevator according to claim 1,

the foreign matter detection part also judges the position of the foreign matter on the hanging rail by using the door behavior data,

the warning output unit outputs the warning including position information indicating a position of the foreign object on the hanger rail.

4. The foreign matter detection system of an elevator according to claim 1 or 2,

the foreign matter detection unit increases a torque of a door motor that drives the door when a time period during which behavior of the door becomes abnormal exceeds an upper limit value.

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