JP7747447B2 - Automatic door equipment and automatic door diagnostic system - Google Patents

Description

The present invention relates to an automatic door device and an automatic door diagnostic system.

A variety of technologies have been developed to improve the safety of people or objects passing through automatic door systems, or people or objects near automatic door systems. For example, there is a known automatic door system that allows the device used to protect people or objects passing through an automatic door to diagnose its own condition and confirm whether the device is operating normally based on the self-diagnosis (see, for example, Patent Document 1).

Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No. 2020-123887

The self-diagnosis function described in Patent Document 1 is essentially standalone, and may cause a device that is not functioning normally to perform a self-diagnosis. For example, if an abnormality occurs in the device's self-diagnosis function itself, the device may always diagnose itself as "normal."

The present invention aims to provide an automatic door system that controls sliding doors based on the detection results of devices such as detection means, and that can more accurately confirm whether devices such as detection means are operating normally.

One aspect of the present invention includes a detection unit that detects a person or object near a sliding door that is controlled to open or close by a control unit and outputs a detection signal, and a diagnosis unit that diagnoses the state of the detection unit. The diagnosis unit sends a calculation response request to the detection unit, and the detection unit sends the calculation result to the diagnosis unit in response to the calculation response request received from the diagnosis unit.

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the automatic door system. 1 is a block diagram showing a schematic configuration of an automatic door device. FIG. 2 is a flow chart showing the operation of the automatic door system.

The following describes an embodiment of the present invention. Figure 1 is a perspective view of an automatic door system.

As shown in Figure 1, the automatic door system 10 has two sliding doors 12. Each sliding door 12 moves toward opposite sides of the width of the automatic door system 10 to open, allowing pedestrians or objects to pass through the automatic door system 10. When the sliding doors 12 are in a fully closed state with their edges touching, a fixed portion 14 is provided on each side of the sliding door 12 in the width direction. The fixed portions 14 are fixed to the frame on which the automatic door system 10 is installed. When the sliding doors 12 are fully open, the sliding doors 12 and the fixed portions 14 face each other, and the space in front of the fixed portions 14 forms a storage space that stores the sliding door 12 in the fully open state. A guard screen may be provided facing the fixed portions 14.

The automatic door system 10 is equipped with a transom 16 that houses the drive unit of the sliding door 12, which will be described later. The transom 16 is positioned above the sliding door 12 and fixed part 14 so that it extends from the end of one fixed part 14 to the end of the other fixed part 14 in the width direction of the automatic door system 10.

The automatic door system 10 includes a main sensor 18, an auxiliary sensor 20, and an opening protection sensor 22. The main sensor 18, auxiliary sensor 20, and opening protection sensor 22 are protective devices that each detect a person or object within a predetermined area near the sliding door 12 and output a detection signal. The protective devices of the automatic door system 10 generally refer to equipment installed to appropriately protect people or objects passing through or around the automatic door system 10, and include not only the sensors mentioned above, but also cameras for image analysis and physical switches such as emergency stop buttons. The main sensor 18 has a predetermined detection area A1 on the path a person or object takes when approaching the sliding door 12. The main sensor 18 incorporates multiple optical sensors (not shown), and the combined illumination area of each optical sensor defines the detection area A1. When a person or object enters the detection area A1, the main sensor 18 detects it and outputs a detection signal. The detection signal from the main sensor 18 is also used to detect whether there is a person or object within the detection area A1 when the sliding door 12 is closed. In other words, the main sensor 18 also functions as a closing protection sensor.

The auxiliary sensor 20 is a photoelectric sensor with a detection area A2 that crosses the opening created when the sliding door 12 is open. The auxiliary sensor 20 is mounted on a vertical frame facing the opening of the fixed part 14. The detection results of the auxiliary sensor 20 are used to detect the absence of a person or object within the detection area A2 before or while the sliding door 12 is being closed. If a person or object is detected within the detection area A2 while the sliding door 12 is being closed, the automatic door system 10 reverses the movement of the sliding door 12, driving it toward the fully open position.

The opening protection sensor 22 has a detection area A3 near the storage section of the sliding door 12. The opening protection sensor 22 is installed on the bottom surface of the transom 16 so that the storage section becomes the detection area A3. The detection results of the opening protection sensor 22 are used to detect that no person or object is present within the detection area A3 when the sliding door 12 is opened. If a person or object is detected within the detection area A3 before or while the sliding door 12 is opening, the automatic door system 10 reverses the sliding door 12, driving it toward a fully closed state.

Figure 2 is a block diagram showing the general configuration of an automatic door system. As shown in Figure 2, in addition to the components described above, the automatic door system 10 also includes a diagnostic unit 24, a control unit 26, and a drive unit 28. The main sensor 18, auxiliary sensor 20, and open protection sensor 22 (hereinafter, these sensors may be collectively referred to simply as "sensors"), all enclosed by dashed lines in Figure 2, along with the diagnostic unit 24, make up the diagnostic system for the automatic door system 10.

The diagnostic unit 24 diagnoses the status of the sensors. The diagnostic unit 24 does not need to be configured to diagnose the status of all sensors; for example, it may diagnose the status of only the main sensor 18. Diagnosing the status of a sensor by the diagnostic unit 24 means diagnosing at least one of the following: whether the sensor is activated, whether the sensor is connected to a control system including the control unit 26 for communication, and whether the sensor is performing accurate calculations. The diagnostic unit 24 requests the sensor to perform specified information processing and diagnoses whether the sensor is operating normally based on the processing results on the sensor side. Specifically, the diagnostic unit 24 sends the sensor specified problem information and a request for an answer to that problem, and diagnoses the sensor status based on the information returned from the sensor. Problem information refers to information that can be derived according to rules, such as an arithmetic operation. The calculation may be any type of calculation, as long as the sensor does not have a correct answer (i.e., it is unknown to the sensor) and only the diagnostic unit 24 has the correct answer. To reduce the load on the sensor's calculation processing, for example, a two-term arithmetic operation can be used as the calculation. The information regarding the calculation may be a mathematical formula itself. Alternatively, a database associating multiple types of formulas with their numbers may be prepared in advance, and the database may be stored in the sensor and the diagnostic unit 24. The formula numbers may then be sent from the diagnostic unit 24 to the sensor as information related to the calculation. If the diagnostic unit 24 is connected to multiple sensors, a different formula may be sent to each sensor. The formula sent by the diagnostic unit 24 to the sensor may include variables. In this case, the sensor substitutes a value unique to the sensor, such as the sensor's identification number or device number, for the variable and returns the calculation result to the diagnostic unit 24. If the calculation result from the sensor is incorrect, it is clear that some kind of abnormality has occurred at least in the sensor's calculation processing unit. In such a case, it can be inferred that some kind of abnormality has occurred in the sensor's detection unit, and therefore, when the sensor is not performing calculations properly, the automatic door system 10 diagnoses that an abnormality has occurred in the sensor.

The diagnostic unit 24 may be caused to self-diagnose the state of the sensor. Self-diagnosis refers to the sensor diagnosing itself to determine whether or not there is an abnormality in its own function. The diagnostic unit 24 causes the sensor to perform a self-diagnosis and receives the results. In response to instructions from the diagnostic unit 24, the sensor diagnoses whether the sensor's detection function is normal, whether there is any degradation in sensor performance, and whether or not there is any environmental noise in the detection area (foreign matter in the detection area, dirt on the lens, etc.). The diagnostic unit 24 simultaneously transmits a self-diagnosis instruction and a response request to the sensor. The sensor performs self-diagnosis and calculations in response to the response request in parallel, and simultaneously transmits the results of the self-diagnosis and the calculations to the diagnostic unit 24. Note that the diagnostic unit 24 may transmit a self-diagnosis instruction to the sensor after receiving the calculation results in response to the response request from the sensor. The diagnostic unit 24 diagnoses whether or not an abnormality has occurred in the sensor, taking into account the results of the sensor's self-diagnosis and the calculation results in response to the response request. By performing a diagnosis taking into account the results of the sensor's self-diagnosis, the reliability of the diagnosis results can be increased.

The diagnostic unit 24 either stores the answer to the calculation sent to the sensor in advance, or performs the calculation itself each time it sends a calculation to the sensor. Therefore, the diagnostic unit 24 stores the correct answer to the calculation sent to the sensor. The diagnostic unit 24 compares the answer from the sensor with the correct answer it stores. If the answer and the correct answer are the same, the diagnostic unit 24 diagnoses that the sensor is normal. On the other hand, if the answer and the correct answer are different, the diagnostic unit 24 diagnoses that the sensor is abnormal. The diagnostic unit 24 sends the diagnostic result to the control unit 26. The diagnostic result of the diagnostic unit 24 may also be output via output means such as a display unit, and communicated to an administrator.

Furthermore, if a response is not received from the sensor within a predetermined time, the diagnosis unit 24 diagnoses that an abnormality has occurred in the sensor.

The diagnostic unit 24 diagnoses the state of the sensor when a predetermined condition is met. The diagnostic unit 24 can diagnose the state of the sensor each time the condition is met, that is, the sliding door opens once and then closes. In this case, the diagnostic unit 24 diagnoses the state of the sensor each time the sliding door 12 is fully closed. By diagnosing the state of the sensor when the sliding door 12 is fully closed, the diagnosis of the sensor state can be completed before the sliding door 12 is next driven to open. This eliminates the need to diagnose the state of the sensor immediately before the sliding door 12 is driven to open, allowing the sliding door 12 to be driven to open more quickly.

The diagnostic unit 24 may also diagnose the state of the sensor when the sliding door 12 transitions from a driven state to a stopped state. The transition of the sliding door 12 from a driven state to a stopped state can occur when the sliding door 12 is driven toward the fully closed state and stops after reaching the fully closed state, when the sliding door 12 is driven toward the fully open state and stops after reaching the fully open state, or when the sliding door 12 stops due to an abnormality while moving toward any of the states. The diagnostic unit 24 may also diagnose the state of the sensor when a person or object is detected by the auxiliary sensor 20 or the opening protection sensor 22 while the sliding door 12 is being driven, and the sliding door 12 is driven in reverse.

The diagnostic unit 24 may be configured to simultaneously diagnose the status of the main sensor 18, auxiliary sensor 20, and open protection sensor 22 in a single diagnosis.

The control unit 26 controls the opening and closing of the sliding door 12 based on the detection results of the sensor. Specifically, the control unit 26 receives a detection signal from the sensor and transmits an open or close signal to the drive unit 28 based on the received detection signal. When the sliding door 12 is in a fully closed state and a person or object is detected approaching the sliding door 12 within the detection area A1 of the main sensor 18, the control unit 26 transmits an open signal to the drive unit 28 to drive the sliding door 12 to open based on the detection signal from the main sensor 18. At this time, the control unit 26 may refer to the detection results of the open protection sensor 22. When referencing the detection results of the open protection sensor 22, the control unit 26 does not transmit an open signal to the drive unit 28 if a person or object is detected within the detection area A3. Furthermore, when the sliding door 12 is in a fully open state and no person or object is detected within the detection area A1 of the main sensor 18, the control unit 26 transmits a close signal to the drive unit 28 to drive the sliding door 12 to close based on the detection signal from the main sensor 18. At this time, the control unit 26 may refer to the detection results of the auxiliary sensor 20. When referring to the detection results of the auxiliary sensor 20, if a person or object is detected within the detection area A2, the control unit 26 will not send a close signal to the drive unit 28.

The control unit 26 changes the control parameters for driving the sliding door 12 to open or close based on the diagnosis results sent from the diagnosis unit 24. The control parameters for the sliding door 12 refer to parameters or combinations of parameters related to the operation of the sliding door 12 that can be controlled by the control unit 26, including the driving speed and driving direction of the sliding door 12. If the diagnosis results from the diagnosis unit 24 indicate that an abnormality has occurred in the sensor, the control unit 26 changes the control parameters. If the control parameters are changed, the control unit 26 slows or stops the driving speed of the sliding door 12, or reverses the driving direction, in accordance with the changed control parameters. If the driving speed of the sliding door 12 is set as a control parameter, when an abnormality occurs in the sensor, the control unit 26 drives the sliding door 12 at a speed slower than normal, or reduces the driving speed of the sliding door 12 to zero and stops it. Furthermore, if the abnormality in the sensor is resolved, i.e., if the diagnosis unit 24 determines that no abnormality has occurred in the sensor, the control unit 26 may change the control parameters for the sliding door 12 and return them to their initial settings. Furthermore, when a sensor abnormality is diagnosed, the sliding door 12 may be opened fully at a low speed, and multiple parameters may be changed simultaneously to maintain the sliding door 12 in the fully open state. At this time, an alert may be issued to inform the user that the sliding door 12 will be opened fully. Maintaining the sliding door 12 in the fully open state prevents people or objects from being unable to pass through the automatic door system 10.

Next, we will explain the operation of the automatic door system. Figure 3 is a flow chart showing the series of operations of the automatic door system.

First, we will explain the sequence of operations of an automatic door system when no sensor abnormalities have occurred. Assume that the sliding door 12 of the automatic door system 10 is fully closed. The automatic door system 10 continuously or periodically checks the detection results of the main sensor 18 and the open protection sensor 22, and waits until the detection result of the main sensor 18 changes (No in step S1). When a person or object enters the detection area A1 and the main sensor 18 detects this (Yes in step S1), the main sensor 18 sends a detection signal to the control unit 26. Upon receiving the detection signal from the main sensor 18, the control unit 26 sends an open signal to the drive unit 28, and drives the sliding door 12 toward the fully open state at the set drive speed (step S2), provided that the open protection sensor 22 does not detect a person or object within the detection area A3 (step S2). When the sliding door 12 reaches the fully open state, the sliding door 12 stops. The control unit 26 waits until a person or object is no longer detected within the detection area A1 (No in step S3). When a person or object within the detection area A1 moves outside the detection area A1, the detection signal from the main sensor 18 transitions. In response to the transition of the detection signal (Yes in step S3), the control unit 26 sends a close signal to the drive unit 28, driving the sliding door 12 toward the fully closed state (step S4).

Also, although not shown in Figure 3, if a person or object is detected within detection area A1 while the sliding door 12 is being driven toward the fully closed state, or if a person or object is detected within detection area A2 of the auxiliary sensor 20, the control unit 26 may perform processing to drive the sliding door 12 in the reverse direction toward the fully open state.

During the series of operations described above, the diagnostic unit 24 diagnoses the state of the sensor when a predetermined condition is met. In this example, the diagnostic unit 24 diagnoses the state of the sensor when the sliding door 12 is fully closed.

Following step S4, in step S5, the control unit 26 waits until the sliding door 12 is fully closed (No in step S5). When the sliding door 12 is fully closed (Yes in step S5), in step S6, the diagnosis unit 24 diagnoses the sensor. Note that the process in step S6 indicates that the diagnosis unit 24 sends a calculation to the sensor. In step S7, the diagnosis unit 24 determines whether an abnormality has occurred in the sensor. If the response from the sensor is incorrect (i.e., does not match the response held by the diagnosis unit 24), or if there is no response from the sensor, the diagnosis unit 24 determines that an abnormality has occurred in the sensor. On the other hand, if the response from the sensor is correct, the diagnosis unit 24 determines that no abnormality has occurred in the sensor. If it is determined that no abnormality has occurred in the sensor, the automatic door system 10 ends the series of processes.

If an abnormality has occurred in the sensor, the control unit 26 changes the control parameters of the sliding door 12 in step S8. By changing the control parameters, for example, the driving speed of the sliding door 12 when a person or object is detected within the detection area A1 will be slowed, or the sliding door 12 will remain stopped even if a person or object is detected within the detection area A1.

As described above, the automatic door system 10 can diagnose the sensor status by combining the sensor with an external device (separate device from the sensor) connected to the sensor. This allows the sensor status to be diagnosed with high accuracy. Furthermore, if an abnormality occurs in the sensor, the abnormality can be immediately notified to an administrator, or the operating speed of the sliding door 12 can be slowed down.

In addition, by performing a diagnosis by the diagnosis unit 24 when the series of operations of the sliding door 12 has finished and the sliding door 12 is in a fully closed state, standby time can be used effectively. For example, if the sliding door 12 is in a fully closed state and a diagnosis is performed immediately before the sliding door 12 is opened after a person or object is detected within the detection area A1, there will be a delay in the timing at which the sliding door 12 opens. In contrast, by performing a diagnosis during standby time, delays in the operation of the sliding door 12 can be prevented. Furthermore, diagnosis may be performed when the sliding door 12 is in a fully open state (i.e., at the timing of step S5 in Figure 3).

In addition, if there are multiple sensors, sensor connection errors (cross-connection) can be diagnosed by sending different calculations or requesting different answers for each sensor.

The present invention is not limited to the above-described embodiments, and each configuration of the embodiments can be modified as appropriate without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

For example, when the control unit 26 drives the sliding door 12, if a person or object is detected by the auxiliary sensor 20 or the opening protection sensor 22, the control unit 26 does not send a drive signal. However, in such cases, the control unit 26 may send a null signal as the drive signal.

The present invention can also be applied to systems in which multiple sliding doors are controlled by a single control unit. In such systems, the accuracy of diagnosis can be improved by sending different calculation response requests for each sensor.

10: Automatic door system, 12: Sliding door, 18: Main sensor, 20: Auxiliary sensor, 22: Open protection sensor, 24: Diagnostic unit, 26: Control unit, 28: Drive unit

Claims (9)

A protection device that detects a person or object near a door that is controlled to be opened or closed by a control unit and outputs a detection signal;
a diagnostic unit that diagnoses a state of the protective device,
The diagnostic unit transmits a request for a calculation to the protection device,
the protection device transmits a calculation result to the diagnosis unit in response to a response request for the calculation received from the diagnosis unit;
A plurality of the protective devices are provided,
The diagnostic unit transmits a response request regarding a different calculation for each protection device,
Each of the plurality of protective devices returns a calculation result using a value specific to that protective device to the diagnostic unit. the diagnostic unit transmits a self-diagnosis instruction to at least one of the plurality of protective devices;
the at least one protection device executes a self-diagnosis in response to the instruction for self-diagnosis received from the diagnostic unit, and transmits a result of the self-diagnosis to the diagnostic unit;
The automatic door system according to claim 1. the diagnosing unit diagnoses whether at least one of the plurality of protective devices is activated based on a calculation result received from the at least one protective device;
When the diagnosing unit diagnoses that the at least one protection device is not operating normally, the control unit changes a control parameter for driving the door to open or close.
The automatic door system according to claim 1. An automatic door system according to any one of claims 1 to 3, wherein the diagnostic unit sends a response request to at least one of the plurality of protective devices each time the door is opened and then closed. An automatic door system according to any one of claims 1 to 4, wherein the diagnostic unit sends a response request to at least one of the plurality of protective devices at least when the door transitions from a driving state to a stopped state, when the door enters a fully open state, or when the door enters a fully closed state. An automatic door system according to any one of claims 1 to 5, wherein the calculation is a function calculation using a device number uniquely assigned to at least one of the plurality of protective devices. a control unit that controls the door to open or close;
a protection device that detects a person or an object near the door and outputs a detection signal to protect the person or object from contact with the door;
a diagnosis unit that transmits problem information including a problem for which the protection device does not have a correct answer to the protection device, receives answer information including an answer to the problem from the protection device, and compares the correct answer with the answer to diagnose a state of the protection device;
A plurality of the protective devices are provided,
The diagnostic unit transmits a request for answering the question regarding a calculation that differs for each protection device,
Each of the plurality of protective devices returns the answer information including the calculation result using a numerical value specific to the protective device as the answer to the diagnosing unit.
Automatic door device. The automatic door system of claim 7, wherein the control unit changes the control parameters for driving the door to open or close when the diagnostic unit diagnoses that at least one of the plurality of protective devices is not operating normally. Automatic doors are designed to be open or closed, so they can be easily operated.
a diagnostic unit that diagnoses a state of the protective device,
The diagnostic unit transmits a request for a calculation to the protection device,
the protection device transmits a calculation result to the diagnosis unit in response to a response request for the calculation received from the diagnosis unit;
A plurality of the protective devices are provided,
The diagnostic unit transmits a response request regarding a different calculation for each protection device,
An automatic door diagnostic system in which each of the multiple protective devices returns a calculation result using a numerical value specific to that protective device to the diagnostic unit.