An elevator system includes an elevator car configured to travel in a hoistway; an elevator car door configured to open and close; a machine configured to impart force to the elevator car; an interface configured to generate a lockdown mode signal; and a controller configured to control operation of at least one of the machine and the elevator car door in response to the lockdown mode signal.

The present invention relates to an elevator control device and method for evacuation, pertaining to the field of elevator control technologies. The elevator control device and method of the present invention control, according to the occupant information and disaster information of a plurality of evacuation floors, stopping of an elevator car at at least one of the plurality of evacuation floors. The present invention makes the evacuation process of a plurality of evacuation floors more efficient and reliable.

An elevator system includes: an elevator entity; and a mobile robot. In response to a detection that the mobile robot shall provide electrical energy to the elevator entity, the mobile robot is configured to: receive an instruction to provide electrical energy to the elevator entity; couple to a coupling station of the elevator entity; and provide electrical energy to the elevator entity via the coupling station of the elevator entity. A method to transfer electrical energy in an elevator environment is also disclosed.

A method of operating a building elevator system includes determining that an evacuation call is active for an evacuation floor serviced by a first elevator group. A transfer floor serviced by the first elevator group is set as an evacuation discharge floor of the first elevator group. A second elevator group is requested to enter an evacuation mode of operation. The second elevator group is operable to service the transfer floor and a discharge floor. The transfer floor is set as the evacuation floor of the second elevator group. Control of the first elevator group and the second elevator group is coordinated to evacuate one or more occupants from the evacuation floor serviced by the first elevator group to the discharge floor serviced by the second elevator group.

A method of detecting water within a pit of an elevator shaft including: emitting an electromagnetic wave from an electromagnetic wave source towards a bottom of an elevator shaft; detecting a reflected electromagnetic wave of the electromagnetic wave using an electromagnetic wave detector; and determining whether water is present within the pit of the elevator shaft in response to the reflected electromagnetic wave.

A method and an apparatus for automatic condition checking of an elevator are provided, wherein an elevator car of the elevator is situated in a door zone of a first landing in an elevator shaft following an earthquake. The method includes determining whether the load carried by hoisting ropes is evenly distributed between the hoisting ropes by checking the status or measurement data of at least one rope tension measurement device. The test unit determines whether the elevator car is empty and conducts a drive test for the elevator car in order to determine unimpeded access for the elevator car to other landings. The elevator is returned to normal use, if the drive test indicates unimpeded access for the elevator car to the other landings.

During an evacuation situation in a building that is equipped with an elevator system and in which a plurality of fixed point markers are arranged at defined sites, an escape route is transmitted to a person by means of a mobile device. The fixed point markers store data that can be received by the mobile device. An instantaneous position of the mobile device can be determined when the mobile device uses data received from a fixed point marker to access a database in which the data is linked to a site of the fixed point marker. The ascertainment of the escape route to a destination is based on the instantaneous position of the mobile device. The person is registered on reaching the destination when the mobile device is detected at the destination.

An evacuation strategy support system using an occupant evacuation elevator (OEE) capable of supporting an evacuation strategy so that information on a number of occupants is recognized by real-time occupant monitoring and thus occupants on each floor may use stairs and the occupant evacuation elevator to safely and quickly evacuate when a disaster situation occurs in a skyscraper and thus the occupants use the occupant evacuation elevator to evacuate, capable of monitoring occupant information on each floor in real time and supporting calculation of an evacuation capacity of the occupant evacuation elevator to establish an evacuation strategy to allow safe evacuation and early reaction in an overall skyscraper to be performed, and capable of optimizing the calculation of the evacuation capacity of the occupant evacuation elevator applicable to an initial stage of a design of the skyscraper, and a method thereof are provided.

A safety inspection system of an occupant evacuation elevator capable of having a laser range finder installed on each of an elevator rope and an elevator guide rail of the occupant evacuation elevator of a skyscraper and checking a length and verticality of each of the elevator rope and the elevator guide rail measured from the laser range finder to monitor slight distortion or location variation in real time, and accordingly, capable of easily performing a safety inspection of the occupant evacuation elevator, capable of performing the safety inspection of the occupant evacuation elevator in real time to operate the occupant evacuation elevator again in an operation mode of the occupant evacuation elevator according to an occurrence of a disaster situation in the skyscraper, and accordingly, capable of safely and quickly evacuating occupants and a method thereof are provided.

A method of operating an elevator system including: receiving an evacuation call from a first evacuation floor; moving an elevator car to the first evacuation floor; opening doors of the elevator car when the elevator car arrives at the first evacuation floor; monitoring, using a sensor system, a remaining capacity of the elevator car; and closing the doors of the elevator car when at least one of a first selected period of time has passed and the remaining capacity is equal to a selected remaining capacity.