WO2009153386A1

WO2009153386A1 - Call appliance arrangement of an elevator

Info

Publication number: WO2009153386A1
Application number: PCT/FI2008/000075
Authority: WO
Inventors: Marcello Pepe
Original assignee: Kone Corporation
Priority date: 2008-06-18
Filing date: 2008-06-18
Publication date: 2009-12-23

Abstract

The object of the invention is a call appliance arrangement of an elevator, which comprises one or more call panels (2a, 2b) connected to the control system (8) of the elevator, in which call panels (2a, 2b) is a plurality of touch-sensitive points (7) determined by their placement, which are arranged to function as the call pushbuttons of the elevator. In connection with the call panel (2a, 2b) is at least one measuring element (3), which is arranged to measure the vibration produced in the call panel by a touch. Information about a touch-sensitive point being pressed is arranged to be sent to the control system (8) of the elevator as the measurement result of at least one measuring element (3).

Description

CALL APPLIANCE ARRANGEMENT OF AN ELEVATOR

The present invention relates to elevator systems . More particularly the invention relates to the call appliances of elevator systems .

Elevators normally contain call appliances on the floor levels, such as e.g. call pushbuttons, with which a call is sent for receiving an elevator car at the floor in question and correspondingly elevator cars contain call appliances for sending the elevator car to the desired destination floor. For various reasons many call appliance solutions that are different both visually and in their layout are used at both floor levels and in elevator cars, which e.g. contain a different number of pushbuttons. The aforementioned call appliances normally comprise pressure switches or touch- sensitive switches, which are disposed in the call panel on the wall of the floor level or of the elevator car. The call panel usually comprises some kind of circuit card, to which the pushbuttons of the call panel are connected with wires, and the circuit card is connected to the control system of the elevator, which is arranged to perform the necessary follow-on actions when a pushbutton is pressed. These types of prior-art call panels generally contain a lot of wires, owing to which their installation is difficult, prone to error and time-consuming. A number of different tests must also be conducted on these kinds of call panels before commissioning, which takes time and increases costs.

Low-pressure, i.e. touch-sensitive, buttons are conventionally implemented such that e.g. a capacitive or resistive film is fitted onto the surface of the call panel, which is connected to some kind of identification appliance, which is arranged to identify at which point the touch- sensitive panel is touched. The drawback of this type of touch-sensitive panel is that its shape can be changed to only a very limited extent, because the contact surface must be even. For this reason a touch panel cannot contain e.g. any kind of embossings. For example, Braille characters cannot be implemented in this kind of call panel. Another problem with this kind of touch-sensitive panel is that it is rather vulnerable to defects and it breaks easily, if e.g. it is subjected to vandalism.

The purpose of this invention is to eliminate the aforementioned drawbacks and to achieve a simple and inexpensive, as well as operationally reliable, call appliance arrangement, which makes it possible to use different materials and forms, such as embossing, in the call panel that operates on the touch-sensitive principle incorporated in the arrangement . Embossing refers to patterns grooved into the surface or raised from the surface of the call panel.

The arrangement of the invention is characterized by what is disclosed in the characterization part of claim 1. Other embodiments of the invention are characterized by what is disclosed in the other claims. Some inventive embodiments are also discussed in the descriptive section of the present application. The inventive content of the application can also be defined differently than in the claims presented below. The inventive content may also consist of several separate inventions, especially if the invention is considered in the light of expressions or implicit sub-tasks or from the point of view of advantages or categories of advantages achieved. In this case, some of the attributes contained in the claims below may be superfluous from the point of view of separate inventive concepts. Likewise the different details presented in connection with each embodiment of the invention can also be applied in other embodiments. In addition it can be stated that at least some of the subordinate claims can in at least some situations be deemed to be inventive in their own right . The object of the invention is a call appliance arrangement, which comprises one or more call panels, in which is a plurality of touch-sensitive points determined by their placement. According to the invention, in connection with the call panel is at least one measuring element for measuring the vibration produced in the call panel by a touch, and that the arrangement is arranged to determine information about the touch-sensitive point pressed for sending to the control system of the elevator as the measurement result of the aforementioned at least one measuring element.

The arrangement according to one embodiment of the invention comprises a computing unit, to which the aforementioned at least one measuring element is connected, and which computing unit is arranged to determine information about the touch- sensitive point pressed on the basis of the measurement data of the aforementioned at least one measuring element .

In one embodiment of the invention the touch-sensitive points are of the same undivided material as the frame part of the call panel .

In one embodiment of the invention the touch-sensitive points are formed as embossings on the surface of the call panel.

In one embodiment of the invention the touch-sensitive points are formed by means of stickers fixed to the surface of the call panel.

In one embodiment of the invention the touch-sensitive points are provided with Braille characters.

In one embodiment of the invention reference measurement data relating to the touch-sensitive points is recorded in the computing unit in connection with calibration.

In one embodiment of the invention the feedback indicating a pressing of the touch-sensitive point is arranged to be sent from the control system of the elevator to the signaling device in connection with the call panel.

One advantage of the arrangement according to the invention is that by means of it different call appliances of the elevator in terms of their appearance, material and shape, provided with call panels operating on the touch-sensitive principle, can be flexibly and easily made using, however, the same standard components . One advantage compared to conventional touch-sensitive panels is that e.g. by means of the arrangement according to the invention it is possible to incorporate Braille characters or other embossing, among other things, in the call panel to facilitate the giving of a call. Another advantage is that the arrangement is operationally reliable, and does not break easily even if e.g. subjected to vandalism. Furthermore, the call panel is not sensitive to dirt or in general to different environmental influences. A further advantage is that the amount of components and wiring needed in the call appliance according to the arrangement is small, owing to which the arrangement is simple and inexpensive to manufacture as well as easy and fast to install. The measuring elements required by the call panel are essentially small sensors, easy e.g. to fix onto the rear surface of the call panel, the placement of which is not critical. The measuring elements can preferably also be integrated into the wall panel of the elevator car, in which case it is not necessary to manufacture a separate call panel or install it in the elevator car. Another advantage is that different components, such as a microphone and loudspeakers, RFID identification tags, etc., can be easily integrated into the touch-sensitive panel according to the invention. Yet another advantage is that the arrangement according to the invention does not require much testing before commissioning and the touch-sensitive points are easy to calibrate either at the elevator factory or at the installation site. In the following, the invention will be described in more detail by the aid of one of its embodiments with reference to the attached drawings, wherein

Fig. 1 presents an oblique top view of one elevator provided with the arrangement according to the invention at a floor level with the door open and

Fig. 2 diagrammatically presents a call appliance arrangement of an elevator according to the invention.

Fig. 1 presents an oblique top view of an elevator, the elevator car 1 of which is at a floor level with the door open. The call panel 2a of the floor level is disposed on the wall of the floor level, next to the door of the elevator and the call panel 2b of the elevator car on the wall of the elevator car 1, in connection with which other components are also disposed, such as e.g. a microphone, loudspeakers and a display, which is fitted to show, among other things, at which floor level the elevator car 1 is at any time. The arrangement according to the invention, which is described in more detail in the descriptive part of Fig. 2, is used in both the control panels 2a and 2b. Since the call panels 2a and 2b are in principle similar to each other in structure, the common reference number 2 is used to refer to them below.

Fig. 2 diagrammatically presents one embodiment of the call appliance of an elevator according to the invention. The arrangement comprises a call panel 2, fixed to the wall of the floor level or of the elevator car 1, which is made e.g. of glass, metal, wood, plastic or similar material. In the situation of Fig. 2 the call panel 2 is rectangular in shape, with rounded corners, but it can be shaped to that desired according to the situation and also 3 -dimensionalIy, and apertures or holes can be made in it if necessary. The call panel 2 can thus be fitted preferably as a visually suitable entity with respect to the other interior decor of the elevator car 1 or correspondingly to the appearance of the floor level. If, for example, the walls of the elevator car 1 are surfaced with wood paneling, wood can be used as the material of the call panel 2b. The aforementioned wood paneling can also form the call panel, in which case a separate call panel fixed to the wall of the elevator car is not needed. In this case a wall element of the elevator car, onto which the touch-sensitive points are marked, e.g. with embossings, and to the rear surface of which the necessary anchoring is fixed, e.g. by glueing, functions as the call panel. As mentioned earlier, it is possible to integrate different actuators into the call panel 2, such as e.g. a microphone and loudspeakers, RFID identifier tags, etc. Different texts and other information, such as e.g. information concerning certain floors, can also be added to the call panel 2.

The call panel 2 is comprised of a frame part 2c as well as touch-sensitive points 7, which are arranged to function as the call pushbuttons of the elevator. The frame part 2c and the touch-sensitive points 7 are of the same undivided material, such as e.g. plastic. The touch-sensitive points 7 are e.g. embossings and they are made on the call panel 2 e.g. in connection with the casting, milling, painting, gluing of the embossings onto the surface of the panel and/or with some similar method.

Measuring elements 3 are fitted in connection with the call panel 2, preferably onto the rear surface of the call panel 2, each of which is arranged to measure the instantaneous vibration produced in the call panel by a touch and to send measurement information about this to the computing unit 4, to which the measuring elements 3 are connected with a twin wire 6. The measuring elements 3 are sensors that measure movement, e.g. sensors that measure acceleration, which measure the vibration in the surface of the frame part caused sound waves created in the frame part when the call panel 2 is touched. In this case the magnitude measured with the measuring means is the acceleration of the vibration produced on the surface of the frame part at a certain point of it. The vibration produced by a touch can be locally measured also by measuring the speed or distance (position) of the surface of the call panel in the desired points. The measuring elements are preferably piezoelectric sensors but they can also be optical sensors, inductive sensors or capacitive sensors.

The computing unit 4 comprises a calculation means 5, which is arranged to determine on the basis of the measurement data received from the measuring elements at which point the call panel is touched at any given time. Determination is based on analysis of the vibration caused by touch, which vibration is individual, depending on, among other things, the location of the touch-sensitive point and of the measuring element in the call panel. Determination of the location of the touch- sensitive point on the basis of vibrations caused by touch is based in itself on prior art and is not within the scope of this invention. Information about the touch-sensitive point identified is transmitted from the computing unit to the elevator control or to the group control of the elevator group e.g. as coordinate data of the touch-sensitive point or as an individualized code of the touch-sensitive point.

The computing unit 4 is calibrated such that it is able to determine, on the basis of the measurement data coming from the measuring elements 3, which pre-defined touch-sensitive point 7 of the panel 2 has been touched. In connection with calibration the information relating to each touch-sensitive point is recorded in the computing unit, e.g. the reference measuring data received from each measuring element when a certain touch-sensitive point 7 is touched on the call panel during the calibration phase. Reference measurement data can be used as comparison data in determining the touch-sensitive point pressed after calibration. The touch-sensitive points 7 are marked on the panel 2 e.g. as numbers, figures, embossings and/or other similar markings. It is also possible to make markings on the touch- sensitive points 7 in Braille characters, which is difficult with conventional touch-sensitive displays. The touch- sensitive points 7 thus correspond to the conventional call buttons of an elevator, i.e. the numbers of the floor levels, the door-opening and the door-closing buttons, the stop button, etc. When the call panel 2 is pressed on one of the touch-sensitive points 7, the computing unit 4 identifies at which point the call panel was pressed and sends information about this to the control system 8 of the elevator, which on the basis of this information takes the necessary follow-on procedures, such as e.g. sending the elevator car 1 to the desired floor. The control system 8 additionally contains means, which are arranged to send feedback 9 indicating a pressing of the touch-sensitive point 7 to the call panel 2. The feedback 9 reports to the user who pressed the touch-sensitive point 7 that the command has been issued. The feedback 9 reports to the user e.g. with a signaling device, such as with a loudspeaker or signal lamp that is in connection with the call panel 2. The signaling device can be disposed in the proximity of the call panel or it can be integrated into the call panel.

What is essential to the arrangement according to the invention is that the components that measure the touch- sensitive point 7 of the call panel 2, i.e. the measuring elements 3, as well as the computing unit 4 can be connected to almost any call panel whatsoever. The computing unit 4 must only be calibrated in connection with the installation to identify the desired touch-sensitive points 7. For this reason the call panel 2 can be made differently in terms of shape and appearance to be that desired for each elevator using however the same standard components for detecting a touch. It is obvious to the person skilled in the art that the invention is not limited solely to the examples described above, but that it may be varied within the scope of the claims presented below. Thus, for example, there can be a different amount of measuring elements than two. Just one sensor functioning as a measuring element is sufficient e.g. in the kind of call panel in which there is only one row of touch-sensitive points.

It is further obvious to the person skilled in the art that the frame part and the touch-sensitive points of the call panel are not necessarily of the same undivided material but instead the touch-sensitive points can be connected to the frame part with some other method. The touch-sensitive points can be e.g. stickers glued to the frame part.

It is also obvious to the person skilled in the art that the measuring elements can also be in wireless connection with the computing unit, in which case twin wires connecting the measuring elements and the computing unit are not needed.

Claims

1. Call appliance arrangement of an elevator, which comprises one or more call panels (2a, 2b) , in which call panels (2a, 2b) is at least a plurality of touch-sensitive points (7) determined by their placement, characterized in that in connection with the call panel (2a, 2b) is at least one measuring element (3) for measuring the vibration produced in the call panel by a touch, and in that information about the touch-sensitive point (7) pressed is arranged be sent to the control system (8) of the elevator as the measurement result of the aforementioned at least one measuring element (3) .

2. Arrangement according to claim 1, characterized in that the arrangement comprises a computing unit (4) , to which the aforementioned at least one measuring element is connected and which computing unit is arranged to determine information about the touch-sensitive point pressed on the basis of the measurement data of the aforementioned at least one measuring element .

3. Arrangement according to any of claims 1 - 2, characterized in that the touch-sensitive points (7) in the call panel (2a, 2b) are of the same undivided material as the frame part (2c) of the call panel (2a, 2b) .

4. Arrangement according to any of claims 1 - 3 above, characterized in that the touch-sensitive points (7) in the call panel (2a, 2b) are formed of embossings on the call panel .

5. Arrangement according to any of claims 1 - 4 above, characterized in that the touch-sensitive points (7) are formed by means of stickers fixed to the surface of the call panel .

6. Arrangement according to any of claims 4 - 5 above, characterized in that the touch-sensitive points (7) in the call panel (2a, 2b) are provided with Braille characters.

7. Arrangement according to any of claims 1 - 6 above, characterized in that reference measurement data relating to the touch-sensitive points (7) in the call panel (2a, 2b) are recorded in the computing unit (4) .

8. Arrangement according to any of claims 1 - 7 above, characterized in that the feedback (9) indicating a pressing of a touch-sensitive point (7) is arranged to be sent from the control system (8) of the elevator to the signaling device in connection with the call panel (2a, 2b) .