Call input device with display and call input detection method for calling an elevator car

Abstract

A call input device for an elevator system includes at least one call input facility having at least one directional call button, such as an up-direction call button and/or a down-direction call button. The call input device further includes a storage medium and an output region. During operation, when the directional call button is actuated, instructions for call input by a user stored in the storage medium are output in the output region.

Claims

1. A call input device for calling an elevator car of an elevator system to reach a plurality of floors positioned one above the other, the call input device comprising: a call input facility mounted in a region of floor door at an associated floor of the elevator system, the call input facility adapted to generate an elevator call to call an elevator car to the associated floor through a connection to an elevator controller of the elevator system; the call input facility including at least one directional call button being either an up-direction call button or a down-direction call button for selecting a direction of travel desired by a user; the call input device including a storage medium and an output region being a display region, wherein actuation of the at least one directional call button by the user does not trigger the elevator call and outputs instructions for operating actuatable destination call buttons in the output region that enable the elevator car to be assigned, the instructions being stored in the storage medium; and wherein the display region has a first sub-region and a second sub-region, the at least one directional call button being displayed in the first sub-region and the destination call buttons being simultaneously displayed in the second sub-region, and the instructions, when outputted, being displayed in the first sub-region in place of the at least one directional call button while the destination call buttons are simultaneously displayed in the second sub-region.

2. The call input device according to claim 1 wherein at least one of the first sub-region and the second sub-region is a touch-sensitive input display region.

3. The call input device according to claim 1 wherein the first sub-region is a touch-sensitive input display region that displays the at least one directional call button and, in response to the at least one directional call button being actuated, the instructions are displayed in the second first sub-region.

4. The call input device according to claim 1 including one of the call input facility mounted at each of the floors of the elevator system, each of the call input facilities including a destination call input facility for entering destination calls for destination floors among the floors of the elevator system, each of the destination call input facilities responding to entry of a destination call by storing a call identifying a one of the floors at which destination call was entered and a call identifying a destination floor associated with the destination call, wherein entry of the destination call by a user is made in the output region.

5. The call input device according to claim 4 wherein the at least one directional call button includes one of the up-direction call button and one of the down-direction call button, wherein actuation of the up-direction call button generates a display in the output region of only destination floors that are above a one of the floors at which the up-direction call button is actuated and actuation of the down-direction call button generates a display in the output region of only destination floors that are below a one of the floors at which the down-direction call button is actuated.

6. The call input device according to claim 4 wherein the instructions contain an indication that destination floors are shown in the output region and that one of the destination floors must be selected by the user, and an indication that the elevator car of the elevator system is assigned for a journey from a one of the floors at which the call input facility is mounted to the destination floor selected by the user.

7. The call input device according to claim 1 wherein the output region includes a loudspeaker and the instructions stored in the storage medium are output as a voice output from the loudspeaker.

8. A method for detecting a call input in a call input device of an elevator system, the method comprising the steps of: detecting actuation of a directional call button; in response to the actuation of the directional call button, outputting instructions for inputting a destination call in the elevator system, the instructions being stored in a storage medium; and wherein the call input device has a display region including a first sub-region and a second sub-region, displaying the directional call button in the first sub-region and destination call buttons simultaneously in the second sub-region, and displaying the instructions, when outputted, in the first sub-region in place of the directional call button while the destination call buttons are simultaneously displayed in the second sub-region.

9. The method according to claim 8 including providing the call input device with a call input facility mounted in a region of floor door at an associated floor of the elevator system, the call input facility including the directional call button, the storage medium and the display region, wherein actuation of the directional call button by a user does not trigger the destination call and outputs the instructions in the display region.

10. The method according to claim 9 wherein the output display region includes a touch-sensitive input display region and including steps of displaying destination floors in the touch-sensitive input display input display region and detecting an input of one of the destination floors in the touch-sensitive input display region.

11. The method according to claim 10 including interrogation of a separate up-direction call button and a separate down-direction call button to detect an actuation, wherein after the up-direction call button has been actuated, displaying only ones of the destination floors that are above a one of the floors at which the call input facility is mounted, and wherein after the down-direction call button has been actuated, displaying only ones of the destination floors that are below the floor at which the call input facility is mounted.

12. The method according to claim 10 including outputting the instructions for inputting a destination call as a visual display of the instructions in the first sub-region of the touch-sensitive display input region and displaying the destination floors in the second sub-region of the touch-sensitive display input region.

13. The method according to claim 8 including outputting the instructions as a voice output from a loudspeaker.

Description

DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

(1) The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to embodiments in the figures, which show:

(2) FIG. 1: an elevator system running over several floors having a call input device, comprising one call input facility per floor, by way of example.

(3) FIG. 2: a first embodiment of a call input facility of a call input device according to the invention.

(4) FIG. 3: a second embodiment of a call input facility.

(5) FIG. 4a: a first state of a third embodiment of a call input facility.

(6) FIG. 4b: a second state of the third embodiment of the call input facility.

(7) FIG. 5a: a fourth embodiment of a call input facility in a first state.

(8) FIG. 5b: the fourth embodiment of the call input facility in a second state.

(9) FIG. 5c: the fourth embodiment of the call input facility in a third state.

(10) FIG. 5d: the fourth embodiment of the call input facility in a fourth state.

(11) FIG. 6: a fifth embodiment of a call input facility.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

(12) FIG. 1 shows an embodiment of an elevator system 15 which runs over four floors 2 and has three elevators 16.A, 16.B, 16.C. The elevator system 15 comprises a call input device 1. On each floor 2 there is an elevator door 14 for each of the three elevators 16.A, 16.B, 16.C, and a call input facility 19 as part of the call input device 1. The call input facilities 19 are fixedly arranged in the region of the doors 14, i.e. to the right of the doors 14 in this embodiment, i.e. outside the car.

(13) FIG. 2 shows a first embodiment of a call input device 1 according to the invention. In this first embodiment, the call input device 1 consists of a directional call input facility 11 which comprises an up-direction call button 5 and a down-direction call button 6 and an output region designed as a display region 7. The up-direction call button 5 and the down-direction call button 6 are designed as pushbuttons. The display region 7 is designed as a display. Information on the various destination floors is shown on the display 7 during operation. After the up-direction call button 5 and the down-direction call button 6 have been actuated, instructions for selecting the call input are displayed during operation. In this embodiment, the instructions (not shown) comprise information on which of the destination floors 13 are below the input floor, i.e. below the floor on which the call input facility and the passenger are located, when the down-direction call button is actuated and, when the up-direction call button is actuated, comprise information on which of the destination floors 13 are above the input floor.

(14) FIG. 3 shows a second embodiment of the call input device 1 according to the invention wherein the call input facility 19 is designed as a destination call input facility 3. In this embodiment, the display region 7 is designed as a touch-sensitive input display region 7 in the form of a touchscreen having a first sub-region 8 and a second sub-region 9. In the first sub-region 8, the directional call input facility 11 is implemented in the form of an up-direction call button 5 and a down-direction call button 6. This implementation is a kind of dummy, the actuation of which does not result in the elevator being called. The destination floors 13 are displayed in the second sub-region 9. One of the destination floors 13 can be selected by touching the corresponding portion of the touchscreen, whereupon the elevator is called. In this embodiment, the elevator is called using a destination call. If the up-direction call button 5 or the down-direction call button 6 is pressed, instructions 12 for selecting the destination floor 13 are output in the form of a voice output via the output region 7, which in this embodiment is designed as a loudspeaker 18. The instructions 12 are stored in a storage medium 20. In these instructions, the passenger is made aware that they should select their destination floor 13 outside the elevator with the aid of the destination floors 13 displayed in the second sub-region, and that one of the plurality of elevators will then be assigned to them for their journey.

(15) FIG. 4a shows a third embodiment of the call input device 1 according to the invention. In this embodiment, the call input facility 19 is again designed as a destination call input facility 3 in the form of a touchscreen. In a first operating state, the first sub-region 8 and the second sub-region 9 are identical to the embodiment described above. The up-direction button 5 and the down-direction button 6 are displayed on the first sub-region 8 of the touchscreen. The destination floors 13 for destination selection are displayed on the second sub-region 9 of the touchscreen. If the up-direction button 5 or the down-direction button 6 is pressed in the first sub-region, visual instructions 12 for operating the destination call input facility 3 appear in the first sub-region in a second operating state (see FIG. 4b). In this embodiment, the instructions 12, stored in the storage medium 20, contain three instruction images 12.1, 12.2, 12.3. The display image 12.1 shows the second sub-region on a reduced scale and a hand choosing one of the destination floors (not shown). The second display image 12.2 shows, on a reduced scale, how an elevator is assigned for the desired journey after the destination floor has been selected using a letter (using the letters A, B, C for the elevator system shown in FIG. 1), which is displayed on the second sub-region. The third display image 12.3 shows the passenger that they should use the corresponding elevator after the assignment.

(16) FIGS. 5a to 5d each show a fourth embodiment of a call input facility 19 of a call input device 1 according to the invention. The structure of the call input facility 19 is very similar to that of the third embodiment described above. The elements already present in FIGS. 4a and 4b are denoted by the same reference signs in FIGS. 5a to 5d. The description of the elements will not be repeated, and reference is made instead to the preceding description in the paragraph above. In FIG. 5a, the up-direction button 5 with a black background indicates that the passenger has actuated this button 5. FIG. 5b shows how instructions 12.1, 12.2, 12.3 for using the destination call input facility 3 are then output in the first sub-region 8, similarly to the procedure described for FIGS. 4a and 4b, instead of the directional call buttons 5, 6. In contrast to the example described for FIGS. 4a and 4b, after the up-direction call button 5 has been actuated, an adapted selection of destination floors 13 is displayed in the second sub-region 9 (FIG. 5b). Only floors above the input floor are displayed in the second sub-region 9 (FIG. 5b). Similarly, when the down-direction call button 6 (FIG. 5c) is actuated, only destination floors which are below the input floor are displayed in the second sub-region 9 of the touchscreen (FIG. 5d).

(17) FIG. 6 shows a fifth embodiment of a call input facility 19 according to the invention. The structure of the call input facility 19 is very similar to the embodiments described above. The elements already present in FIGS. 2 to 5d are denoted by the same reference signs in FIG. 6. The description of the elements will not be repeated, and reference is made instead to the preceding description. The call input facility 19 is located on the lowest floor. There is only one direction of travel from this lowest floor, namely up. Therefore, only an up-direction call button 5 is implemented in the first sub-region 8. When this button 5 is actuated, instructions 12.1, 12.2 and 12.3 are output in the first sub-region (similar to the third embodiment) (not shown, see FIG. 4b).

(18) In accordance with the provisions of the patent statutes, the present invention has been described in what is considered to represent its preferred embodiment. However, it should be noted that the invention can be practiced otherwise than as specifically illustrated and described without departing from its spirit or scope.