Patents Examined by Anthony Salata
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Patent number: 10196236Abstract: A monitoring system of an elevator installation having an elevator door and a method of operating the monitoring system are suitable for generating usage data of the elevator door, the monitoring system including a sensor arranged in the elevator installation, wherein at least one physical parameter of the environment of the sensor can be detected by the sensor, and an evaluating unit, which determines an operating state of the elevator door by a course of the physical parameter over time.Type: GrantFiled: July 29, 2014Date of Patent: February 5, 2019Assignee: INVENTIO AGInventors: Astrid Sonnenmoser, Martin Kusserow, Reto Tschuppert
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Patent number: 10196240Abstract: An elevator system includes an elevator car having an elevator car subsystem; a guide rail to guide the elevator car along a hoistway; primary windings positioned along the hoistway; permanent magnets coupled to the elevator car, the primary windings and permanent magnets defining a linear motor for imparting motion to the elevator car in response to a drive signal; and secondary windings coupled to the elevator car, the secondary windings generating a current to power the elevator car subsystem.Type: GrantFiled: May 21, 2013Date of Patent: February 5, 2019Assignee: OTIS ELEVATOR COMPANYInventors: Zbigniew Piech, Wojciech Szelag, Rafal Wojciechowski, Cezary Jedryczka
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Patent number: 10196233Abstract: A ropeless elevator system may include a plurality of elevator cars, a first hoistway, a second hoistway, an upper transfer station, and a lower transfer station. Movement of each of the plurality of elevator cars may be controlled according to a predetermined assignment in which: a plurality of floors is divided into a plurality of floor groups, each of the plurality of elevator cars is assigned to at least one of the plurality of floor groups, and each of the plurality of elevator cars is dispatched only to floors within the at least one floor group assigned thereto.Type: GrantFiled: December 5, 2013Date of Patent: February 5, 2019Assignee: OTIS ELEVATOR COMPANYInventors: Tadeusz Witczak, Zbigniew Piech
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Patent number: 10189676Abstract: The invention relates to a method and to an apparatus for performing a rescue run with an elevator. In the method information is received from the sensors measuring the operation of the elevator about the points being measured with the sensors in question, one or more rescue run functions are selected on the basis of information received from the sensors, and also a rescue run, including the selected one or more rescue run functions, is performed.Type: GrantFiled: November 18, 2015Date of Patent: January 29, 2019Assignee: Kone CorporationInventors: Antti Hovi, Ari Kattainen, Ari Ketonen
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Patent number: 10189677Abstract: An automated elevator control system using facial recognition. The system is capable of recognizing an elevator passenger's face in a field of view of an imaging device in close proximity to the elevator car, capturing the elevator passenger's facial image using video data output from the imaging device, and comparing the captured facial image to pre-registered facial image data in a database storing corresponding authorized floor destination data for each passenger. Upon determining a match between the captured facial image and a stored facial image, the system is capable of sending a signal to the elevator control system to move the elevator car to the elevator passenger's authorized floor destination.Type: GrantFiled: October 29, 2014Date of Patent: January 29, 2019Inventors: Edward A. Bryant, Arthur Scott McClure
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Patent number: 10185858Abstract: In order to increase safety, a computer-implemented method is proposed for determining the position of a lift cabin in a lift shaft with the aid of a coding device, which comprises a code band as a marking, wherein the position is determined analytically by means of an algorithm on the basis of the code of the marking, wherein an extrapolated position is determined from the stored positions and the instant of the recording and, in turn, a coding pattern to be compared in relation to the recording is calculated by inverting the algorithm.Type: GrantFiled: April 13, 2016Date of Patent: January 22, 2019Assignee: CEDES AGInventors: Michael Schatt, Marco Graf
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Patent number: 10183836Abstract: A method of assigning destination call in an elevator group forms chromosomes including genes where each gene is a correlation of a call and an elevator trip, the possible round trips are calculated, each round trip is evaluated for optimization procedure. The calls are assigned to the elevators by the destination call control based on the best chromosome determined.Type: GrantFiled: December 1, 2015Date of Patent: January 22, 2019Assignee: KONE CORPORATIONInventors: Marja-Liisa Siikonen, Mirko Ruokokoski
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Patent number: 10183837Abstract: A method for the exchange of data between one unit of an elevator system and a monitoring unit of a service center locationally remote from the elevator system, wherein, via a first communication network, the one unit is connected with a communication unit arranged on, or in, an elevator car that travels vertically in an elevator hoistway, and wherein the data that are transmitted by the one unit are transmitted to the communication unit and stored there. A mobile-communication end-device brought into the elevator car by an elevator passenger is connected, via a second wireless communication network, with the communication unit and the stored data are transmitted by the communication unit to the end-device, and stored in the latter. When the elevator car is exited by the elevator passenger with the end-device, the stored data are transmitted from the end-device via a public mobile-communication network to the monitoring unit.Type: GrantFiled: July 31, 2014Date of Patent: January 22, 2019Assignee: INVENTIO AGInventor: Martin Kusserow
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Patent number: 10179718Abstract: An elevator includes a control system for monitoring the load of a car, which control system is adapted to prevent the normal starting of the elevator, optionally also including relevelling, when there is an overload in the car. The elevator includes at least one position measuring device, speed measuring device and/or movement measuring device in order to determine the movement and/or position of the car, and the control system of the elevator is adapted to remove the prevention of normal starting when at least one said position measuring device, speed measuring device and/or movement measuring device detects that the car moved or is moving upwards in the elevator shaft.Type: GrantFiled: April 7, 2016Date of Patent: January 15, 2019Assignee: KONE CORPORATIONInventors: Lauri Stolt, Risto Jokinen
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Patent number: 10173861Abstract: A method includes receiving, by a computing device including a processor, a handwriting input including a selection of a destination floor associated with an elevator system, determining, by the computing device, that the handwriting input selection is recognizable, presenting, by the computing device, a message that requests confirmation that the input selection is interpreted correctly based on determining that the handwriting input selection is recognizable, receiving, by the computing device, a response to the message that confirms the input selection, and causing, by the computing device, the elevator system to provide access to the destination floor based on the response.Type: GrantFiled: May 24, 2013Date of Patent: January 8, 2019Assignee: OTIS ELEVATOR COMPANYInventor: Xiaobin Tang
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Patent number: 10173862Abstract: A process for operating an elevator control device, whereby for local access to the elevator control device via a programming device, the elevator control device automatically sends an identifier to the programming device and the identifier is input to an operator panel associated with the elevator control device. The elevator control device permits the local access when the previously sent identifier has been entered correctly within a predetermined input time.Type: GrantFiled: September 15, 2014Date of Patent: January 8, 2019Assignee: INVENTIO AGInventors: Claudio Colombano, Adrian Bünter, Andrew Paice, Philipp Lüthi, Thomas Räber
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Patent number: 10160619Abstract: A hydraulic elevator system includes a power unit and elevator controller where the elevator car is controlled within the hoistway when a portion of the hoistway might be flooded. The power unit includes a water tight tank having a ventilation tube or snorkel. A moisture sensor is connected with the elevator controller, and positioned within the pit of the hoistway. The moisture sensor detects the existence of a flooded pit condition and communicates such a condition to the elevator controller. The elevator controller initiates a safety sequence when the presence of a flooded pit condition is detected to prevent the elevator car from entering a flooded area of the hoistway.Type: GrantFiled: June 30, 2014Date of Patent: December 25, 2018Assignee: ThyssenKrupp Elevator CorporationInventors: Anthony Frank Hamlett, Aaron Bailey, Chris B. Jackson, Sang Choi
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Patent number: 10160618Abstract: A method for evacuating people with an elevator system. The method including identifying an evacuation mode in the elevator system; determining the amount of people in each building floor to be evacuated by a normal evacuation service of the elevator system and whether there exists at least one person to be evacuated who is entitled to a prioritized evacuation service; calculating an estimated evacuation waiting time for each floor to be evacuated by the normal evacuation service, wherein the calculation takes into account that the at least one person allowed to the prioritized evacuation service is evacuated first; and causing display of the estimated evacuation waiting time iii each building floor to be evacuated by the normal evacuation service.Type: GrantFiled: November 25, 2015Date of Patent: December 25, 2018Assignee: Kone CorporationInventors: Janne Sorsa, Marja-Liisa Siikonen
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Patent number: 10155640Abstract: An elevator system includes a primary source of electrical power; a power unit having a power supply, the power supply producing DC power from the primary source of electrical power. A rescue storage device provides power to the elevator system when the primary source of electrical power is unavailable. The rescue storage device is coupled to an output of the power supply to provide additional DC power with the DC power when the primary source of electrical power is available and an increased power requirement is present.Type: GrantFiled: September 24, 2013Date of Patent: December 18, 2018Assignee: OTIS ELEVATOR COMPANYInventors: Juergen Gewinner, Felix Benjamin Donath, Peter Herkel, Daryl J. Marvin
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Patent number: 10150646Abstract: An elevator device enabling efficient evacuation of people left in a building is provided. The elevator device includes: an evacuation operation mode request switch provided in a hall of an elevator on a rescue floor; a car that if the evacuation operation mode request switch is kept in an operated state, keeps operating in an evacuation operation mode in which the car moves between the rescue floor and an evacuation floor; and an operation control device that is provided in the hall of the elevator on the rescue floor, and if the operation control device is operated when the car is stopped at the rescue floor, moves the car to the evacuation floor.Type: GrantFiled: September 17, 2013Date of Patent: December 11, 2018Assignee: MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATIONInventors: Yoshimasa Koba, Shinichi Kuroda, Takaharu Ueda, Ashiqur Rahman, David Willem Lodewijk Offerhaus
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Patent number: 10138090Abstract: An elevator car rolling suppression device capable of suppressing rolling of an elevator car includes a drive unit configured to press a guide unit against a guide rail. The device also includes a position detecting unit configured to detect a position of an elevator car within a shaft, a storage unit configured to store the position of the elevator car within the shaft and an acceleration of the elevator car in association with each other. The device also includes a control unit configured to extract the acceleration in the lateral direction of the elevator car detected by the position detecting unit from the storage unit. The control unit also controls the drive unit so as to adjust the pressing force of the guide unit against the guide rail to a pressing force that is derived from at least the extracted acceleration in the lateral direction of the elevator car.Type: GrantFiled: March 16, 2016Date of Patent: November 27, 2018Assignee: FUJITEC CO., LTD.Inventors: Takahiro Nakano, Motoki Kaneko
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Patent number: 10131520Abstract: The purpose of the invention is to detect a failure situation wherein the machinery brake of an elevator does not open sufficiently. In the method for testing failure of a machinery brake of an elevator, the machinery brake is controlled to open. After this, the traction sheave is oscillated with a test torque, the movement of the elevator machine is measured in connection with the oscillation, and if the machine does not move in connection with the oscillation, it is deduced that the machinery brake has not opened and has therefore failed.Type: GrantFiled: October 22, 2015Date of Patent: November 20, 2018Assignee: KONE CorporationInventors: Ari Kattainen, Tapio Tyni
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Patent number: 10131518Abstract: The invention relates to a method in allocation of an elevator for a passenger of an elevator system, including a step of allocating an elevator for a passenger in a lobby of the elevator system, and thereafter a step of signaling the allocated elevator to the passenger before the arrival of the car of the allocated elevator at said lobby. The method includes the steps of obtaining traffic data describing traffic in said elevator lobby, and determining the signaling moment based on said traffic data, and thereafter signaling the allocated elevator to the passenger at the determined moment. The invention relates also to an elevator system implementing the method.Type: GrantFiled: November 30, 2015Date of Patent: November 20, 2018Assignee: KONE CORPORATIONInventors: Jere Vuorenala, Niko Elomaa, Tuomas Susi, Johan Grönholm
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Patent number: 10124986Abstract: An elevator controller that enables enhancement in serviceability, avoids a collision between multiple cars that ascend/descend inside a common shaft, and suppresses increase in the number of floors a car cannot reach. The elevator controller includes: multiple cars arranged inside a common shaft such that each car can ascend/descend independently; an occupied area setting mechanism setting, for each of the multiple cars, a maximum area of a travel section necessary for the car to make an emergency stop as an occupied area for the car based on a running speed, a running direction, and a call registration status; and a running speed setting mechanism setting a running speed of a car so a number of floors the car can service is maximized within a range in which the car can make an emergency stop without entering an occupied area set by the occupied area setting mechanism for the other car.Type: GrantFiled: July 10, 2013Date of Patent: November 13, 2018Assignee: MITSUBISHI ELECTRIC CORPORATIONInventor: Shingo Kondo
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Patent number: 10118797Abstract: A method includes receiving, by a computing device comprising a processor, registration information associated with a tenant of a building and at least one user device, determining, by the computing device, that the at least one user device is within a threshold distance of the building, causing, by the computing device, an identity of the tenant to be provided by the at least one user device based on the determination that the at least one user device is within the threshold distance of the building, and causing, by the computing device, an elevator car to be dispatched to a floor of the building on which the tenant is located.Type: GrantFiled: May 20, 2013Date of Patent: November 6, 2018Assignee: OTIS ELEVATOR COMPANYInventor: Adam Keser