Embodiments of systems and methods for digital control of elevator and other access gateways are described herein. More specifically, embodiments comprise systems and methods for retrofitting or outfitting elevator systems with digital control systems that can be universally applied to virtually every manufacturer's elevator systems.

An automatic elevator safety system includes an elevator safety circuit and an external server. The elevator safety circuit is configured for monitoring the operation of an elevator system comprising at least one elevator car traveling along a hoistway, and an elevator control configured for controlling the movement of the elevator car. At least one of the elevator control and the elevator safety circuit is configured for sending data comprising information about the current state of the elevator system to the external server, in particular in case a safety issue has been detected. The external server is configured for (A) receiving the data sent by the at least one elevator safety circuit; (B) analyzing the received data; and (C) depending on the result of the analysis, sending commands to the elevator system.

An elevator operating device for a floor comprises a touch-sensitive screen. Call symbols are displayed on a user interface, one of which has to be touched in order to input a character stored for this call symbol. In order to enter a two-digit destination floor, the passenger leaves their finger on the touch surface after inputting a first character, whereby the elevator operating device recognizes that the passenger has limited vision. The elevator operating device registers a second character if it detects a confirmation action for the second character without recognizing that the finger has been lifted from the touch surface. As long as the finger is touching the touch surface, no destination call is generated; the destination call is only generated when the passenger lifts their finger, thus indicating that the input has been completed.

A method for determining multiple absolute positions of an elevator car within a shaft of an elevator arrangement uses a portable smart device (smart phone) having a sensor (camera). The method steps include: displacing the elevator car along the shaft during a learning procedure with the portable smart device being releasably attached at a predetermined position at the elevator car; detecting localizing characteristics at each of multiple locations during the learning procedure, the localizing characteristics indicating an absolute position within the shaft, wherein the localizing characteristics are generated by markers such as QR-codes and are detected using the sensor of the portable smart device; communicating information indicating the absolute positions detected during the learning procedure from the portable smart device to an elevator controller; and correlating each of the absolute positions detected during the learning procedure to one of the multiple absolute car positions and storing derived correlation data.

The present invention relates to a conveyor system comprising: a drive machine, a conveyor control unit configured to control operation of a conveyor device, a sensor array comprising at least one sensor mounted to the drive machine and adapted to measure one or more properties of the drive machine, a processing unit associated with the drive machine, wherein the processing unit is connected to the sensor array and configured to obtain and process measurement data from the sensor array to generate in-formation about an operation of the drive machine, and a communication channel between the conveyor control unit and the processing unit. The conveyor system may be an elevator system, an escalator system or a moving walk system.

An elevator safety system includes an electronic safety controller running a software including a monitoring mode for monitoring the position of an elevator car within a hoistway. The system includes a position measurement device for measuring the elevator car position. There are limit position identification markers being installed in the hoistway for defining a starting point of a final movement zone in which the car is still allowed to run in a direction to the outermost ends of the hoistway. However, as soon as the end of the final limit zone is reached by the car, an emergency stop is triggered. The position data for the final limit zone are laid down in a memory of the safety controller as parametrized data for being able to adjust them if so needed. Therewith, it can be avoided that the hardware components in the shaft have to be replaced.

The present invention relates to the determination of the movement of a passenger relative to an elevator car and belongs to the field of elevator intelligent control technologies. The present invention acquires information about the movement of a passenger relative to an elevator car, wherein the information about the movement of the passenger relative to the elevator car is determined based on a change in the signal strength of a first wireless signal received by a personal mobile terminal carried by the passenger and a change in first floor information and/or traveling direction information.

A system for dynamic assignment of buttons on destination entry terminals (DETs) is provided. The system performs operations that include identifying a message for display on a touchscreen display of a destination entry system of an elevator. The message includes a selection button for display on the touchscreen display. The at least one selection button is displayed at a first location on the touchscreen display. The at least one selection button is displayed at a different location on the touchscreen display once a rearrangement criterion is satisfied.

An apparatus for retrofitting an elevator system to enable voice control includes a first main board installable within an elevator adjacent to an elevator button panel and two or more additional main boards installable on respective floors adjacent to respective elevator call panels, each of the main boards having a microphone circuit, a plurality of onboard output relays, and a processor operable to select an output relay in response to a voice command received by the microphone circuit and to output a signal to the selected output relay. One or more auxiliary output relay boards are installable within the elevator adjacent to the elevator button panel, each having a plurality of additional output relays selectable by the processor of the first main board. A controller area network (CAN) bus connects the first main board to the one or more auxiliary output relay boards.

An elevator group control device may handle load calls for an elevator system having an elevator car, whereby a load call includes a departure floor, a destination floor, load specification data and a time period which the load is to be transported from the departure floor to the destination floor. The allocating may include reserving a particular portion of the floor area of the elevator car for the load during a portion of the time period, based on the load specification data and the particular portion being available to accommodate the load during the portion of the time period.