Control of an electricity supply apparatus in an elevator system

• US 8,689,944 B2
• Filed: 01/22/2013
• Issued: 04/08/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/17/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Kone Corporation
• Original Assignee: Kone Corporation
• Inventors: Manfredi, Mirco, Ruggieri, Sara Maria Rosaria, Pilone, Alessandro, Donghi, Claudio, Burroni, Francesco
• Primary Examiner(s): SALATA, ANTHONY J
• Application Number:
  US13/747,021
• Publication Number:
  US 20130133987A1
• Time in Patent Office: 441 Days
• Field of Search: 187/247, 187/277, 187/290, 187/293, 187/296, 187/297, 187391-393, 187/289, 307/66, 307/69, 318799-815
• US Class Current: 187/289
• CPC Class Codes: B66B 1/28 electrical detecting excessive speed B66B5/04 ; control of electrical motor H02P
• CPC Class Codes: B66B 1/30 effective on driving gear , e.g. acting on power electronics, on inverter or rectifier controlled motor
• CPC Class Codes: B66B 1/302 for energy saving
• CPC Class Codes: B66B 1/34 Details , e.g. call counting devices, data transmission from car to control system, devices giving information to the control system
• CPC Class Codes: H02M 5/12 for conversion of voltage or current amplitude only

Abstract

The invention relates to an electricity supply apparatus, an elevator system and a method for limiting the electricity consumption of an elevator system. The electricity supply apparatus according to the invention is fitted to supply electricity to one or more devices in an elevator system. The minimum value of the permitted supply voltage with which the apparatus still operates is determined for one or more appliances of the elevator system, and the electricity supply apparatus is equipped to change the supply voltage of the one or more appliances of the elevator system towards the minimum value of the permitted supply voltage for limiting electricity consumption of the elevator system.

Claims

1. Electricity supply apparatus that supplies electricity to one or more devices in an elevator system;

the electricity supply apparatus being configured to determine a minimum value of the permitted supply voltage with which a particular one of said one or more devices of the elevator system still operates;

the electricity supply apparatus being configured to limit electricity consumption of the elevator system by changing the supply voltage of one or more devices of the elevator system towards the determined minimum value of the permitted supply voltage.

2. Electricity supply apparatus according to claim 1, the apparatus further comprising:

two outputs,

the electricity supply apparatus being configured to

supply a constant voltage via a first of said two outputs to one or more devices of the elevator system and

to simultaneously change, vie the second of said two outputs, the voltage to be supplied to one or more devices of the elevator system towards the determined minimum value of the permitted supply voltage.

3. Electricity supply apparatus according to claim 1 or 2, the apparatus further comprising:

a transformer, the transformer including a primary and a secondary, the secondary being connected to an electricity supply of one or more devices of the elevator system;

tap switches connected to taps of the transformer; and

a controller configured to change the supply voltage of one or more of the aforementioned devices of the elevator system towards the determined minimum value of the permitted supply voltage by controlling the tap switches.

4. Electricity supply apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the primary of the transformer is connected to an alternating electricity source of the elevator.

5. Electricity supply apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the tap switches are connected to the taps of the primary of the transformer.

6. Electricity supply apparatus according to claim 3, wherein the tap switches are connected to the taps of the secondary of the transformer.

7. Electricity supply apparatus according to claim 6, the transformer further comprising:

a separate secondary, which is connected without tap switches to the electricity supply of one or more devices of the elevator system.

8. Electricity supply apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an input for a control signal of a power-saving mode.

9. Electricity supply apparatus according to claim 1, further comprising an input for data about a voltage of an alternating electricity source of the elevator.

10. Elevator system comprising:

means for setting an operating mode of the elevator system;

an electricity supply apparatus that supplies electricity to one or more devices in the elevator system;

the electricity supply apparatus being configured to determine a minimum value of the permitted supply voltage with which a particular one of said one or more devices of the elevator system still operates; and

the electricity supply apparatus being configured to limit electricity consumption of the elevator system by changing the supply voltage of one or more devices of the elevator system towards the determined minimum value of the permitted supply voltage;

the electricity supply apparatus being configured to change the supply voltage of one or more devices of the elevator system towards the determined minimum value of the permitted supply voltage in response to an operating mode indicating a limited electricity consumption of the elevator system.

11. Elevator system according to claim 10, wherein the electricity supply apparatus changes the supply voltage of one or more devices of the elevator system towards the determined minimum value of the permitted supply voltage in response to a determination that an elevator in the elevator system has stopped moving.

12. Elevator system according to claim 10 or 11, wherein the operating mode indicating a limited electricity consumption of the elevator system includes a standby mode of the elevator.

13. Elevator system according to claim 10, further comprising:

an elevator control unit that controls the operation of the elevator in response to elevator calls, and

the electricity supply apparatus changes the supply voltage of the elevator control unit towards the determined minimum value of the permitted supply voltage in response to control of the operation of the elevator.

14. Method for limiting the electricity consumption of the elevator system, the method comprising:

identifying an operating mode of the elevator system;

determining a minimum value of a permitted supply voltage with which a particular one of one or more devices of the elevator system still operates; and

adjusting the supply voltage of one or more of said devices of the elevator system towards the determined minimum value of the permitted supply voltage in order to limit the electricity consumption of the elevator system based on the identified operating mode.