JP6293080B2 - Passenger conveyor device and control method thereof - Google Patents

Description

  The present invention relates to a passenger conveyor device and a control method thereof.

  A technique for braking an electric motor using a DC voltage accumulated in a smoothing capacitor in an inverter device when a power failure occurs is known (Patent Document 1). In the prior art described in this document, when the three-phase AC voltage is interrupted for a predetermined time or more due to a power failure or the like, using the DC voltage stored in the smoothing capacitor, while continuing the operation of the control circuit in the inverter device, Either an operation for freely rotating the electric motor or an operation for causing the electric motor to perform direct current braking or regenerative braking is executed. The operation of causing the motor to be DC braked or regeneratively braked is performed using the DC voltage stored in the smoothing capacitor.

JP 2005-219914 A

  In the prior art described in Patent Document 1, since the rotation of the motor is controlled only by the electric power stored in the smoothing capacitor, the deceleration stop function of stopping the motor while decelerating the rotation of the motor is prevented in order to prevent the passenger from falling. Sometimes difficult to realize. Since the capacity of the smoothing capacitor is generally small, it is not suitable for a power source for control that requires a relatively long time to stop while decelerating. If a storage battery having a capacity larger than that of the smoothing capacitor can be provided, a deceleration stop function can be realized even in the event of a power failure, but in this case, the entire apparatus becomes larger and the manufacturing cost also increases.

  The present invention has been made in view of the above-mentioned problems, and its purpose is to reduce the speed and stop by using the regenerative power of the inverter device at the time of a power failure, and to enhance safety while suppressing the manufacturing cost. An object of the present invention is to provide a passenger conveyor device and a control method thereof.

  In order to solve the above-mentioned problems, a passenger conveyor device according to the present invention is a passenger conveyor device that circulates and moves steps formed endlessly connected by an electric motor driven at a variable speed by an inverter device. A control circuit to be controlled, a regenerative resistor that changes the regenerative power generated in the inverter device into heat energy, and the inverter device, the control circuit, and the regenerative resistor are provided between the inverter device, the control circuit, and the regenerative resistor. And a switch that is connected to either the resistor or the control circuit, and the control circuit detects whether a power failure has occurred in the AC power supply that supplies AC power to the inverter device. By providing a switching signal, the inverter device is disconnected from the regenerative resistor and connected to the control circuit. Based on the inverter load information acquired from the data device, a predetermined deceleration for generating regenerative power in the inverter is determined, and a deceleration command for instructing the inverter to the predetermined deceleration is output to the inverter Then, the electric motor is decelerated and stopped using the regenerative power generated in the inverter device by the deceleration operation according to the deceleration command as a control power source.

  According to the present invention, the electric motor can be decelerated and stopped by generating regenerative power from the inverter device during a power failure and using the regenerative power as a control power source.

It is a schematic block diagram of an escalator. It is a circuit diagram of the power supply device of an escalator. It is a block diagram of the control circuit of a power supply device. It is explanatory drawing which compares and shows the difference of several deceleration prepared beforehand. It is a flowchart which shows a normal deceleration stop process. It is a flowchart which shows the deceleration stop process at the time of descent | fall operation. It is a flowchart which shows the deceleration stop process at the time of an ascending operation.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. When the passenger conveyor apparatus of this embodiment is an escalator, as will be described later with reference to FIG. 1, a plurality of steps 1 are connected endlessly, and each step 1 is raised or lowered by an electric motor 3 connected to a power supply device 5. It is configured to drive. As will be described later with reference to FIG. 2, the power supply device 5 includes a converter 8 that converts alternating current from the three-phase alternating current power supply 6 into direct current, a smoothing capacitor 9 that smoothes the direct current voltage converted by the converter 8, and a direct current voltage that is a predetermined voltage. And an inverter 10 that converts the AC power into a predetermined frequency, and a control circuit 11 that provides a control signal to the inverter 10. In the passenger conveyor device of the present embodiment, the regenerative resistor 13 is connected to the input side of the inverter 10 via the power switch 12.

  As will be described later with reference to FIG. 3, the control circuit 11 switches and controls the power switch 12 when a power failure is detected, disconnects the regenerative resistor 13, and connects the control circuit 11 to the inverter 10 side with a power switch switch opening / closing unit 16. And a deceleration command selection unit 17 that gives a deceleration to be in a regenerative state based on the inverter load information. Thereby, according to the passenger conveyor apparatus which concerns on this embodiment, instead of using the DC voltage accumulate | stored in the smoothing capacitor 9 at the time of a power failure occurrence, it uses the regenerative electric power which generate | occur | produces by the deceleration operation which will be in a regeneration state. , You can decelerate and stop.

  A first embodiment will be described with reference to FIGS. In the present embodiment, an escalator will be described as an example of the passenger conveyor device. FIG. 1 is a schematic configuration diagram of an escalator.

  The escalator includes a plurality of steps 1 connected endlessly, a handrail 2 connected so as to move in synchronization with these steps 1, and an electric motor 3 that applies a driving force to step 1 and the handrail 2. The drive mechanism 4 and the power supply device 5 that supplies power to the motor 3 are provided.

  FIG. 2 shows a circuit configuration of the power supply device 5 of the escalator shown in FIG. The electric motor 3 shown in FIG. 1 is connected to a three-phase AC power source 6 used as an “AC power source” via an inverter unit 7 as an “inverter device”. Hereinafter, the electric motor 3 is abbreviated as the motor 3.

  The inverter unit 7 includes a converter 8 that converts three-phase alternating current into direct current, a smoothing capacitor 9 that smoothes the direct current voltage converted by the converter 8, and an inverter 10 that converts the direct current voltage into alternating current power having a predetermined voltage and a predetermined frequency. Have.

  A control circuit 11 that controls the power supply device 5 is connected to a three-phase AC power supply 6. The control circuit 11 gives a control signal described later to the inverter unit 7. A regenerative resistor 13 is connected to the input side of the inverter 10 via a power supply changeover switch 12 as a “changeover switch”. The power supply selector switch 12 is operated by a switching signal given from the control circuit 11 and connects the input side of the inverter 10 to either the regenerative resistor 13 or the control circuit 11.

  The control signal that the control circuit 11 gives to the inverter unit 7 includes an operation command for outputting a predetermined frequency and a predetermined voltage from the inverter 10, a pause command for stopping the output of the inverter 10, an acceleration control command, and the like. The acceleration control command includes a deceleration command for decelerating at a predetermined deceleration.

  The control circuit 11 monitors whether a power failure has occurred in the AC power supply 6. When the control circuit 11 detects a power failure, the control circuit 11 outputs a switching signal to the power supply switch 12 to switch it. Specifically, the control circuit 11 switches the power supply switch 9 so that the regenerative resistor 13 is connected to the input side of the inverter 10 via the smoothing capacitor 9 during normal operation. On the other hand, when a power failure is detected, the regenerative resistor 13 is disconnected from the input side of the inverter 10, and the power switch 12 is switched so that the control circuit 11 is connected to the input side of the inverter 10 via the smoothing capacitor 9.

  By controlling the rotation of the motor 3 using the inverter 10, a so-called soft stop function (safe stop function) can be realized. In the soft stop function, the electric motor 3 is stopped at a smaller deceleration for the inverter decelerating operation when an abnormality such as foreign object biting is detected. This prevents passengers from falling.

  However, it is difficult to execute the conventional soft stop function using the inverter 10 when a power failure occurs. This is because power is not supplied to the inverter 10 during a power failure. For this reason, in the prior art, at the time of a power failure, an electric motor stops suddenly by brake braking. In order to solve this problem, in the escalator of this embodiment, the control circuit 11 is configured as follows.

  FIG. 3 is a block diagram of the control circuit 11. In addition to the normal configuration for normal operation of the escalator, the control circuit 11 includes, for example, an input unit 14, a power failure detection unit 15, a power supply switch opening / closing unit 16, a deceleration command selection unit 17, an output unit 18, a storage unit 19, A control unit 20 can be provided.

  The input unit 14 has a function of capturing a power failure detection signal and a passenger load factor calculation signal. The power failure detection signal can be generated, for example, from the current value or voltage value of the three-phase AC power supply 6. A passenger load factor calculation signal as “inverter load information” can be acquired from the inverter unit 7.

  The power failure detection unit 15 is a function for detecting the power failure state of the three-phase AC power supply 6 from the power failure detection signal captured by the input unit 14. The power supply switch opening / closing unit 16 as a “switch control unit” has a function of switching the power supply switch 12 so that the input side of the inverter 10 and the control circuit 11 are connected when the power failure detection unit 15 detects a power failure. It is.

  When the power failure detection unit 15 detects a power failure, the deceleration command selection unit 17 serving as a “deceleration command generation unit” is based on the passenger load factor calculation signal acquired by the input unit 14 and performs a predetermined decrease in which the inverter 10 enters a regenerative state. This is a function of determining a speed and outputting a deceleration command for operating at the determined deceleration to the inverter 10. In this embodiment, one deceleration is selected from a plurality of decelerations prepared in advance according to the passenger load factor calculation signal and the driving direction. For this reason, it is referred to as a deceleration command selection unit 17. Instead of this, a configuration may be used in which a deceleration at which the inverter 10 is in a regenerative state is obtained by calculation based on a predetermined calculation formula each time.

  The output unit 18 is a function for outputting a switching signal from the power supply switch opening / closing unit 16 to the power supply switch 12 and outputting a deceleration command from the deceleration command selection unit 17 to the inverter 10.

  The storage unit 19 is a function for storing a computer program for realizing the deceleration stop process at the time of a power failure according to the present embodiment and control parameters such as deceleration. The control unit 20 is a function for controlling the operation of the control circuit 11.

  FIG. 4 is a diagram illustrating a plurality of different decelerations used during deceleration stop. The vertical axis in the figure indicates the speed of the escalator (the rotational speed of the motor 3), and the horizontal axis in the figure indicates the time.

  It is assumed that the escalator is operating at the normal speed Vs from the start of operation of the escalator to time t0. Here, when a power failure occurs at time t0, one of the decelerations θs and θh prepared in advance is selected based on the passenger load factor calculation signal and the driving direction of the escalator. The

  The standard deceleration θs as the “first deceleration” is selected in three cases. The first case is a case where the escalator is stopped at a normal time when no power failure occurs. In the first case, it is not necessary to positively use the regenerative power of the inverter 10, and it is only necessary to prevent the passenger from falling. The second case is a case where a power failure occurs when the escalator is operating downward. In the second case, the regenerative power from the inverter 10 is used as a control power source, and the escalator is decelerated and stopped. The third case is a case where a power failure occurs in the case where the escalator is operating in a load state where the passenger load factor calculation signal is less than a predetermined threshold. Also in the third case, the regenerative power from the inverter 10 is used as a control power source, and the escalator is decelerated and stopped. When the escalator is decelerated at the standard deceleration θs, the escalator stops and the speed becomes zero at time t2, for example, about 1 or 2 seconds after the power failure occurrence time t0.

  The high deceleration θh as the “second deceleration” is set to a value larger than the standard deceleration θs. The high deceleration θh is selected when a power failure occurs when the escalator is in an ascending operation under a load state where the passenger load factor calculation signal is equal to or greater than a predetermined threshold. When the escalator is decelerated at the high deceleration θh, the escalator stops and the speed becomes 0 at time t1 (t1 <t2), for example, about 1 second after the power failure occurrence time t0. The high deceleration θh is set so that the regenerative power from the inverter 10 can be used as a control power source even during a high load rising operation. As the value of the high deceleration θh is increased, the regenerative power from the inverter 10 can be increased, but the passenger's posture during braking may become unstable. Therefore, the value of the high deceleration θh is set so that the regenerative power necessary for realizing the soft stop function is obtained within a range in which the passenger does not fall.

  In other words, when stopping the inverter 10 during continuous operation, if the deceleration (deceleration time) is specified and the frequency and voltage are gradually reduced, the motor 3 acts as a generator due to the inertial force, and the input of the inverter 10 Regenerative power appears on the side. In this embodiment, this regenerative power is used as a power source for operating the control circuit 11.

  FIG. 5 is a flowchart showing normal deceleration stop processing. This normal deceleration stop process is applied to both the descending operation and the ascending operation.

  The control circuit 11 monitors whether the operation stop condition for stopping the operation of the escalator is satisfied (S1). The operation stop condition is, for example, a case where an administrator presses a stop switch provided near the escalator, or a case where an emergency stop device is activated due to a foreign object biting. When the operation stop condition is satisfied (S1: YES), the control circuit 11 outputs a deceleration command to the inverter 10 (S2), and reduces the rotation speed of the motor 3 by a predetermined deceleration θs to stop the operation of the escalator. (S3).

  FIG. 6 is a flowchart showing a deceleration stop process when a power failure occurs during the descending operation of the escalator.

  The power failure detection unit 15 of the control circuit 11 monitors whether a power failure has occurred based on a power failure detection signal acquired through the input unit 14 (S11). When the power failure detection unit 15 detects a power failure state (S11: YES), the power failure detection unit 15 gives a power failure detection signal to the power supply switch opening / closing unit 16.

  Upon receiving the power failure detection signal, the power supply switch opening / closing unit 16 outputs a switching signal from the output unit 18 to the power supply switch 12. Upon receipt of this switching signal, the power supply switch 12 disconnects the regenerative resistor 13 from the input side of the inverter 10 (S12), and connects the control circuit 11 to the input side of the inverter 10 (S13).

  The power failure detection unit 15 also provides a power failure detection signal to the deceleration command selection unit 17. Upon receiving this power failure detection signal, the deceleration command selection unit 17 outputs a deceleration command signal for instructing the inverter 10 to decelerate and stop at the standard deceleration θs from the output unit 18 (S14). Here, since the standard deceleration θs can be set as a value that is in a regenerative state based on a general inverter load, even if the value prepared in advance is used as it is when a power failure occurs during the descent operation, Regenerative power can be obtained. The initial value θs may be corrected based on the inverter load information immediately before the power failure, and the corrected value may be used.

  Regenerative power is generated by the deceleration operation of the inverter 10, and this regenerative power is used as a control power source for operating the control circuit 11 (S15). Thus, even during a power failure, the escalator can be stopped while being decelerated at the standard deceleration θs, and passenger safety can be ensured.

  FIG. 7 is a flowchart showing a deceleration stop process when a power failure occurs during the escalator ascending operation.

  The power failure detection unit 15 of the control circuit 11 monitors whether a power failure has occurred based on the power failure detection signal acquired from the input unit 14 (S21). When the occurrence of a power failure is detected (S21: YES), the power supply switch opening / closing unit 16 operates the power supply switch 12 to disconnect the regenerative resistor 13 from the input side of the inverter 10 (S22), and the control circuit 11 is connected to the inverter 10. Connect to the input side (S23).

  The inverter 10 calculates the passenger load factor and outputs a passenger load factor calculation signal to the control circuit 11. The control circuit 11 acquires a passenger load factor calculation signal from the inverter 10 via the input unit 14 (S24).

  The deceleration command selection unit 17 of the control circuit 11 selects a deceleration required for using the regenerative power as a control power source from the passenger load factor (S25). Here, it is assumed that the deceleration command selection unit 17 stores in advance the passenger load factor by the inverter 10 and the relationship between the standard deceleration θs and the high deceleration θh corresponding to the passenger load factor. For example, the standard deceleration θs is selected when the passenger load factor is a low load state less than a predetermined threshold, and the high deceleration θh is selected when the passenger load factor is a high load state equal to or greater than the predetermined threshold. A passenger load factor may be divided into three or more ranks, and a deceleration selection table in which deceleration is preset for each rank may be used.

  When it is determined that the deceleration required to bring the inverter 10 to the regenerative state is the standard deceleration θs, the deceleration command selection unit 17 outputs a deceleration command for decelerating and stopping the escalator at the standard deceleration θs. Output from the unit 18 to the inverter 10 (S26).

  On the other hand, when the deceleration command selection unit 17 determines that the deceleration required to bring the inverter 10 to the regenerative state is the high deceleration θh, the deceleration command selection unit 17 decelerates the escalator at the high deceleration θh and stops it. A deceleration command is output from the output unit 18 to the inverter 10 (S27).

  Regenerative power is generated by the deceleration operation of the inverter 10. This regenerative power is input to the control circuit 11 via the power supply changeover switch 12 and becomes a DC power source of the control circuit 11 (S28). As a result, the control circuit 11 can generate regenerative power even during the ascending operation to secure a control power source, and can realize a soft stop function.

  As described above, in the process shown in FIG. 7, when a power failure occurs during the escalator ascending operation, the deceleration command value given to the inverter 10 from the control circuit 11 is appropriately selected in consideration of the passenger load factor such as the number of passengers. . Therefore, it can be stopped gently to ensure passenger safety.

  In this embodiment configured as described above, the DC voltage stored in the smoothing capacitor 9 is not used when a power failure occurs during operation, but the inverter 10 is in a regenerative state by the deceleration command selection unit 17 of the control circuit 11. Select the deceleration to become, and decelerate and stop using the regenerative power generated by the deceleration operation of the escalator. Therefore, it is not necessary to provide an emergency power source such as a storage battery, and safety can be improved while suppressing an increase in manufacturing cost.

  The above-described embodiment has been described in detail for easy understanding of the present invention, and is not necessarily limited to one having all the configurations described. Further, it is possible to add, delete, and replace other configurations for a part of the configuration of the above-described embodiment. For example, this embodiment can be applied to a passenger conveyor device such as a walking walk instead of an escalator.

  1: Step, 2: Hand rail, 3: Electric motor, 4: Drive mechanism, 5: Power supply, 6: AC power supply, 7: Inverter unit, 8: Converter, 9: Smoothing capacitor, 10: Inverter, 11: Control Circuit, 12: Power switch, 13: Regenerative resistor

Claims (6)

In a passenger conveyor device that circulates and moves steps formed endlessly connected by an electric motor driven at a variable speed by an inverter device,
A control circuit for controlling the inverter device;
A regenerative resistor that changes regenerative power generated by the inverter device into heat energy;
A selector switch provided between the inverter device and the control circuit and the regenerative resistor, and connected to either the regenerative resistor or the control circuit by a switching signal from the control circuit;
With
The control circuit includes:
Detect whether a power failure has occurred in the AC power supply that supplies AC power to the inverter device,
When the power failure is detected, the inverter device is disconnected from the regenerative resistor and connected to the control circuit by giving the switching signal to the changeover switch,
Based on the inverter load information acquired from the inverter device, a predetermined deceleration for causing the inverter device to generate regenerative power is determined, and a deceleration command for instructing the inverter device to the predetermined deceleration Output to the inverter device,
Using the regenerative power generated in the inverter device by the deceleration operation according to the deceleration command as a control power supply, decelerating and stopping the electric motor;
Passenger conveyor device. The control circuit includes:
When stopping the electric motor under the situation where the power failure has not occurred,
The inverter device is connected to the regenerative resistor by the changeover switch,
Giving a deceleration command to the inverter device to decelerate and stop the electric motor;
Regenerative power generated in the inverter device by a deceleration operation according to the deceleration command is converted into thermal energy by the regenerative resistor;
The passenger conveyor apparatus according to claim 1. The control circuit selects, as the predetermined deceleration, a deceleration according to the inverter load information from a plurality of decelerations prepared in advance.
The passenger conveyor apparatus in any one of Claim 1 or Claim 2. When the electric motor circulates the step in either the upward or downward direction,
The control circuit includes:
When the electric motor detects the power failure when moving the step in the downward direction, the first deceleration is selected as the predetermined deceleration from the plurality of decelerations prepared in advance,
When the electric motor detects the power failure when moving the step in the upward direction, a first reduction of the plurality of decelerations prepared in advance when the inverter load information is greater than or equal to a predetermined threshold value. Selecting a second deceleration greater than a speed as the predetermined deceleration, and selecting the first deceleration as the predetermined deceleration when the inverter load information is less than the predetermined threshold;
The passenger conveyor apparatus according to claim 3. The control circuit includes:
A power failure detection unit for detecting whether a power failure has occurred in an AC power supply for supplying AC power to the inverter device;
A switch control unit that outputs the switching signal and switches the selector switch;
Based on the inverter load information acquired from the inverter device, a predetermined deceleration for generating regenerative electric power in the inverter device is determined, and a deceleration command for generating the predetermined deceleration to the inverter device is generated. A deceleration command generator,
When the power failure detection unit detects the power failure, the switch device is disconnected from the regenerative resistor by providing the switching signal from the switch control unit to the changeover switch and connected to the control circuit, and the deceleration command A controller that decelerates and stops the electric motor using regenerative power generated in the inverter device as a power source by a deceleration operation according to
Comprising
The passenger conveyor apparatus according to claim 1. A method of controlling a passenger conveyor device that circulates and moves steps formed endlessly connected by an electric motor driven at a variable speed by an inverter device,
Switching between connecting the regenerative resistor or the control circuit to the regenerative resistor or the control circuit between the regenerative resistor that changes the regenerative power generated in the inverter device into heat energy and the control circuit that controls the inverter device A switch is provided,
The control circuit includes:
Detect whether a power failure has occurred in the AC power supply that supplies AC power to the inverter device,
When the power failure is detected, the inverter device is disconnected from the regenerative resistor and connected to the control circuit by giving a switching signal to the changeover switch,
Based on the inverter load information acquired from the inverter device, a predetermined deceleration for causing the inverter device to generate regenerative power is determined, and a deceleration command for instructing the inverter device to the predetermined deceleration Output to the inverter device,
Using the regenerative power generated in the inverter device by the deceleration operation according to the deceleration command as a control power supply, decelerating and stopping the electric motor;
Control method for passenger conveyor device.

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