US 12,459,780 B2
Method and system for determining the position of an elevator car of an elevator installation
Raphael Bitzi, Lucerne (CH)
Assigned to INVENTIO AG, Hergiswil (CH)
Appl. No. 15/733,714
Filed by Inventio AG, Hergiswil (CH)
PCT Filed Jun. 11, 2019, PCT No. PCT/EP2019/065181
§ 371(c)(1), (2) Date Oct. 2, 2020,
PCT Pub. No. WO2020/001971, PCT Pub. Date Jan. 2, 2020.
Claims priority of application No. 18180204 (EP), filed on Jun. 27, 2018.
Prior Publication US 2022/0127109 A1, Apr. 28, 2022
Int. Cl. B66B 1/34 (2006.01)
CPC B66B 1/3492 (2013.01) 15 Claims
OG exemplary drawing
 
1. A method for determining the position of an elevator car, the elevator car being movable in an elevator shaft of an elevator installation by control of an elevator control, including operating a system capturing images of components and/or shaft equipment serving other functions in the elevator installation using an image capture unit arranged on the elevator car and comparing a current one of the images with at least one stored comparison image of the shaft components and/or shaft equipment in a direction of travel of the elevator car to determine a current position of the elevator car in the direction of travel, the method comprising the steps of:
the system performing a start phase including the steps of
taking a start image with the image capture unit when the elevator car is stationary at an unknown start position in the elevator shaft,
determining a start comparison characteristic value for every possible position of the elevator car in the direction of travel, the start comparison values indicating a measure for a match of the start image with the stored comparison image associated with each of the possible positions,
determining a start assumption position of the elevator car based on the start comparison characteristic values and a start evaluation criterion;
the system performing a review phase including the steps of
moving the elevator car along a review travel path from the unknown start position to a review position in the elevator shaft,
taking a review image with the image capture unit at the review position of the elevator car in the elevator shaft,
determining a review assumption position of the elevator car from the previous start assumption position of the elevator car and the review travel path,
determining a review comparison characteristic value for the review assumption position of the elevator car, the review comparison characteristic value indicating a measure for a match of the review image with the stored comparison image associated with the review assumption position;
and the system performing a decision phase including making a decision, on the basis of the review comparison characteristic, whether to
determine the review assumption position as the current position of the elevator car,
carry out another one of the review phase and another one of the decision phase or,
exclude the review assumption position as the current position of the elevator car; and
the system transmitting the current position of the elevator car to the elevator control when the review assumption position is determined to be the current position of the elevator car.