Elevator system that autonomous mobile robot takes together with person

• US 8,958,910 B2
• Filed: 07/07/2011
• Issued: 02/17/2015
• Est. Priority Date: 07/08/2010
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Original Assignee: Hitachi, Ltd.
• Inventors: Ichinose, Ryoko, Takeuchi, Ikuo, Teramoto, Takashi
• Primary Examiner(s): Holloway, Jason
• Assistant Examiner(s): Bendidi, Rachid
• Application Number:
  US13/177,789
• Publication Number:
  US 20120041593A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,321 Days
• Field of Search: 700/245, 700/257, 700/258, 700/259, 700/264
• US Class Current: 700/258
• CPC Class Codes: B66B 1/2458 For elevator systems with multiple shafts and a single car per shaft
• CPC Class Codes: B66B 2201/104 Call input for a preferential elevator car or indicating a special request
• CPC Class Codes: B66B 2201/215 Transportation capacity

Abstract

An elevator system which an autonomous mobile robot and human user can utilize safely and efficiently. The system has an available area detection unit to detect an available area in a cage, and a riding possibility/impossibility determination unit to determine whether or not the autonomous mobile robot can get on the cage based on information on size and position of the available area detected by the available area detection unit. The autonomous mobile robot gets on the cage only when the riding possibility/impossibility determination unit determines that riding is possible.

Claims

1. An elevator system that an autonomous mobile robot takes together with a person, comprising:

the autonomous mobile robot having;

a self position recognition unit that recognizes a current self position;

a mobile unit that both generates a route to a destination based on self position information recognized by the self position recognition unit, and moves by driving a mobile mechanism; and

an autonomous mobile controller that controls respective units in the autonomous mobile robot; and

a plurality of elevators disposed side by side, each of the elevator having;

a cage ascent/decent unit that moves a cage up/down;

a door that opens/closes an entrance of the cage;

a designation floor designation unit that designates a destination of the cage; and

a calling-out unit that calls out the cage to a floor designated by the destination floor designation unit;

the elevator system further comprising;

an elevator controller that controls respective units of the plurality of the elevators;

a communication unit for communication between the plurality of elevators and the autonomous mobile robot that transmits/receives information including at least one of designated floors as a destination of the autonomous mobile robot, wherein the autonomous mobile robot further comprises

a elevator communication unit for communication with the elevator that transmits/receives information including at least one of designated floors as a destination of the autonomous mobile robot;

a riding area presentation unit that presents a moving range of the autonomous mobile robot in the cage to the passenger before the autonomous mobile robot gets in the cage in advance;

an available area detection unit that detects an available area in the cage; and

a riding possibility/impossibility determination unit that determines whether or not the autonomous mobile robot can get on the cage based on information on size and position of the available area detected by the available area detection unit,

wherein if a calling out request from the autonomous mobile robot and a calling out request from the calling out unit are generated to the same floor, the elevator controller controls a plurality of cages to reach the same calling out floor at substantially the same time, and wherein the autonomous mobile controller controls the autonomous mobile robot to get on the cage which arrives later than another of the cages, and only when the riding possibility/impossibility determination unit determines that riding being possible.

2. The elevator system that the autonomous mobile robot takes together with person according to claim 1, wherein a moving suppression unit that suppresses movement of the autonomous mobile robot is provided in the cage, the moving suppression unit suppresses movement of the autonomous mobile robot while the cage is moved up, and the moving suppression unit performs start of movement suppression and release of movement suppression by opening/closing operation of the door.

3. The elevator system that the autonomous mobile robot takes together with person according to claim 1, wherein the plurality of elevators are arrayed,

and wherein when a calling-out request from the autonomous mobile robot and a calling-out request by the calling-out unit occur on the same floor, the elevator controller controls the cage ascent/descent unit to move a plurality of cages to arrive at a corresponding floor almost simultaneously, and

further wherein the autonomous mobile controller controls the autonomous mobile robot to get on one of the cages which arrives later than another of the cages.

4. The elevator system that the autonomous mobile robot takes together with person according to claim 1, wherein,

when the riding possibility/impossibility determination unit does not determine that riding is possible within a predetermined period, the autonomous mobile robot cancels riding judging as being incapable to ride,

a riding failures storage unit that stores the number of riding failures is provided, and

any one or both of the elevator controller and the autonomous movement controller changes a control method to increase a possibility that the riding area for the autonomous mobile robot can be ensured based on the number of riding failures from the riding failures storage unit.

5. An elevator system that autonomous mobile robot takes together with a person, comprising:

the autonomous mobile robot having;

a self position recognition unit that recognizes a current self position;

a mobile unit that both generates a route to a destination based on self position information recognized by the self position recognition unit and moves by driving a mobile mechanism; and

an autonomous mobile controller that controls respective units in the autonomous mobile robot; and

an elevator having;

a cage ascent/decent unit that moves a cage up/down;

a door that opens/closes an entrance of the cage;

a destination floor designation unit that designates a destination of the cage;

a calling-out unit that calls out the cage to a floor designated by the destination floor designation unit;

an elevator controller that controls respective units of the elevator, characterized in that

a plurality of elevators is arrayed and the elevator system further comprises;

a communication unit that transmits/receives information between the autonomous robot and the plurality of elevators responding to the calling-out request from the autonomous mobile robot to the cage, the information including at least one of the designated floors as a destination of the autonomous mobile robot;

a riding area presentation unit that provides an advance indication of a moving range of the autonomous mobile robot to the person in the cage;

an available area detection unit that detects an available area in the cage; and

a riding possibility/impossibility determination unit that determines whether or not the autonomous mobile robot can get on the cage based on information on size and position of the available area detected by the available area detection unit,

wherein when a calling-out request from the autonomous mobile robot and a calling-out request by the calling-out unit occur on the same floor, the elevator controller controls the cage ascent/descent unit to move a plurality of cages to arrive at a corresponding floor almost simultaneously,

further wherein the autonomous mobile robot gets on one of the cages that arrives behind only when the riding possibility/impossibility determination unit determines that riding is possible.

6. The elevator system that autonomous mobile robot takes together with person according to claim 5, further comprising:

a getting on/off status detection unit that always detects detailed positional status of the autonomous mobile robot when the autonomous mobile robot moves to get on/off the cage,

wherein when the autonomous mobile robot is in a door opening/closing position, the elevator controller controls a door opening/closing unit not to close the door based on information from the getting on/off status detection unit.

7. The elevator system that autonomous mobile robot takes together with person according to claim 6, wherein the getting on/off status detection unit always detects the details positional status of the autonomous mobile robot even when the cage is moved up,

and wherein when it is determined that the position of the autonomous mobile robot is changed based on the information from the getting on/off status detection unit while the cage is moved up, the elevator controller controls the cage ascent/descent unit to stop the cage at the closest floor, and then open the door at the closest floor.

8. The elevator system that autonomous mobile robot takes together with person according to claim 5, wherein a moving suppression unit that suppresses movement of the autonomous mobile robot is provided in the cage,

and wherein the moving suppression unit suppresses movement of the autonomous mobile robot while the cage is moved up.

9. The elevator system that autonomous mobile robot takes together with person according to claim 8,

wherein the moving suppression unit performs start of movement suppression and release of movement suppression by opening/closing operation of the door.

10. The elevator system that autonomous mobile robot takes together with person according to claim 8, wherein the moving suppression unit performs the start of movement suppression and the release of movement suppression by an upward/downward acceleration/deceleration force of the cage.

11. The elevator system that autonomous mobile robot takes together with person according to claim 5, wherein at least one priority is set for a calling-out request and destination floor designation for the autonomous mobile robot, the calling-out request by the calling-out unit and the destination floor designation by the destination floor designation unit, and wherein when the priority of the calling-out request by the calling-out unit or the destination floor designation by the destination floor designation unit is higher than the priority of the calling-out request or the destination floor designation for the autonomous mobile robot, the autonomous mobile robot does not get on the cage.

12. The elevator system that autonomous mobile robot takes together with person according to claim 11, wherein any one or both of the calling-out unit and the destination floor designation unit are push buttons, a priority detection unit that detects the number of continuous depression times of the push button is provided, and the priority of the calling-out request or the destination floor designation is designated based on the number of continuous depression times detected by the priority detection unit.

13. The elevator system that autonomous mobile robot takes together with person according to claim 5, wherein, when the riding possibility/impossibility determination unit does not determine that riding is possible within a predetermined period;

the autonomous mobile robot cancels riding so that the riding is impossible;

a riding failures storage unit that stores the number of riding failures is provided; and

when the number of riding failures stored at the riding failure storage is increased, the elevator controller improves the possibility of riding by controlling at least one of elongating the detecting time for the available area, presenting by the audio or display means to secure the riding area, and changing a case color of the autonomous mobile robot.