System Having Multiple Cabs in an Elevator Shaft and Control Method Thereof

摘要

An elevator system which utilizes a plurality of independently moving cabs in each elevator shaft. The lower cabs are connected to spatially separated counterweights in order to prevent interference between cables, pulleys and counterweights. The top cab may be connected to one or two counterweights by connection points on the roof of the cab. The cabs are mounted on tracks, to guide each cab through the elevator shaft. The system includes a motor attached to each of the cabs by lift cables to facilitate the independent movement of all cabs. Existing buildings can be retrofit for compatibility with the present invention. A system and method for controlling the motions of all cabs comprising determining and selecting an optimal cab and a best hoistway range to service passenger requests.

主权项

1. A method for controlling a multi-cab elevator system on a computer, the elevator system having one or more hoistways, each hoistway having a plurality of cabs, the computer comprising a processor, a memory operatively coupled to the processor, the memory storing code executed by the processor for implementing the method including:
receiving a request, said request including information regarding a requested floor and a required direction of movement; determining and selecting an optimal hoistway among the one or more hoistways, wherein a hoistway that is already servicing a prior request to the requested floor, in the required direction of movement, is selected as the optimal hoistway; for a hoistway that is not already servicing a prior request to the requested floor in the required direction of movement, the optimal hoistway is determined and selected from the one or more hoistways by utilizing information regarding whether the hoistway is traveling in the required direction of movement, has capacity and contains a cab that is traveling within a stopping distance to the requested floor; determining and selecting a best cab among the plurality of cabs in the optimal hoistway, wherein a cab already servicing the requested floor is selected as the best cab; for a cab that is not already servicing the requested floor, the best cab is determined and selected from the plurality of cabs utilizing information regarding whether the cab is within a safe stopping distance of the requested floor; delegating the request to the best cab selected; and moving the best cab to service the request.