Patent ID: 6601679
Filing Date: 2003-08-05
Classification: B66B

Abstract:
An elevator system in a building having a plurality of hoistways, each hoistway having an elevator cab moving therein to provide service to a plurality of floors in said building, comprising:a plurality of hall fixtures at each floor including at least one service call request button switch for requesting service along said hoistways in a corresponding direction, and a service call request button light for each of said service call request button switches; connection means for connecting each of said hall fixtures on each floor to a high power electromagnetic floor transceiver located on a same or adjacent floor in close proximity thereto; a controller having a high power electromagnetic controller transceiver operatively associated with each of said floor transceivers for exchanging electromagnetic messages between each floor and said controller; and said floor transceivers transmitting to said controller transceiver messages indicating the activation of one of said service call request buttons, said controller transceiver transmitting messages to selected ones of said floor transceivers to cause a service call request button light to be turned on in response to registering a corresponding service call request for that floor and to be turned off in response to one of said elevator cabs approaching the related floor to provide service; wherein the fixtures on each floor include, for each of said hoistways, a set of one or more hall lanterns including an up direction hall lantern on each floor except the highest floor and a down direction hall lantern on each floor except the lowest floor; wherein said controller transceiver transmits messages addressed to the transceiver of a selected floor to cause a corresponding one of said lanterns to light in response to one of said elevator cabs approaching said selected floor to provide service thereto, and transmits messages to the transceiver of said selected floor to turn off a corresponding lantern in response to closing of the door of a corresponding elevator cab stopped at said selected floor; and wherein said controller comprises a group controller portion having a transceiver communicating with said floor transceivers, and a plurality of car controller portions, each car controller portion having a transceiver communicating with corresponding ones of said fixture transceivers.