Market Context — Why This Technology, Why Now

The global push for smart cities and accessible infrastructure is creating significant market opportunities for automated mobility solutions. Regulatory pressures and ESG initiatives demand buildings and public spaces cater to diverse user needs, including those with mobility challenges. Concurrently, rising operational costs and labor scarcity are forcing facility managers to seek innovative automation to maintain service quality while improving efficiency. This technology aligns perfectly with these trends, offering a proven path to enhance user experience and optimize resource allocation.

Key Competitive Advantages
01

Enhances Convenience with Contactless, Automated Operation

02

Reduces Security Risks and Costs by Eliminating Public Network Dependency

03

Enables Easy Integration with Existing Infrastructure

Market Opportunity
Smart Offices & Commercial Facilities
~$500M globally (AI est.)
There is an urgent need to improve the convenience of intra-building movement for employees and customers, alongside optimizing operational efficiency in facility management. This technology addresses high demand as part of smart building initiatives.
Smart office solution providers Commercial property management groups Building automation system integrators
Medical & Care Facilities
~$450M globally (AI est.)
Supporting autonomous movement for the elderly and patients, while reducing the workload on nursing and care staff, could optimize limited resources and enhance service quality.
Hospital system integrators Elderly care facility operators Medical equipment suppliers
Public Transport & Station Buildings
~$350M globally (AI est.)
Supporting smooth movement for individuals with reduced mobility contributes to improving overall urban accessibility and convenience. Adoption is particularly anticipated in large-scale redevelopment areas.
Public transportation authorities Airport and railway station operators Urban development project managers
Logistics & Factory Facilities
~$350M globally (AI est.)
Automated guided vehicles (AGVs) could efficiently transport goods between floors by autonomously coordinating with elevators. This directly leads to labor savings and productivity improvements, accelerating smart factory initiatives.
Logistics automation providers AGV manufacturers Smart factory solution developers
IP Defensibility — Why Competitors Can't Replicate This
What This Patent Covers

This patent successfully overcame four prior art references, indicating strong inventiveness and uniqueness. It protects a multi-faceted system for automated, local elevator control via IoT devices, ensuring flexible enforcement and a robust legal foundation until 2041.

Competitive White Space

Adjacent areas not explicitly covered include advanced predictive analytics for elevator traffic management, integration with broader smart city platforms for multimodal transport, or energy optimization features for elevator operation.

Economic Impact
~$13.5M/year estimated operational cost savings per facility (est.).
estimated ROI · USD · AI analysis
ROI Calculation Logic

Annual personnel costs for elevator guidance and mobility support in large commercial or hospital facilities can exceed ~$65K (AI est.). Automating part of this task could reduce annual personnel costs by ~20% (~$13K AI est.) and, combined with a ~50% reduction in user wait times, is estimated to generate over ~$13.5M (AI est.) in economic benefits annually.

Speed to Market
6× faster than in-house development
This technology benefits from an already established basic configuration of IoT devices and wireless communication protocols, with technical verification underway for its local, public network-independent system. As it involves a mechanism to physically operate existing elevator buttons without extensive modifications, adopting companies could potentially shorten development time by approximately 2.5 years compared to in-house development, significantly compressing time-to-market. The core elemental technologies required for implementation are clear, enabling rapid productization.
Competitive Positioning

X: Ease of Implementation
Y: User Experience Enhancement

Business Models & Applications
🏢 SaaS Licensing Model
Offer access to IoT devices and integration software implementing this technology via a subscription model scaled to facility size, ensuring recurring revenue.
🤝 Joint Development & OEM Supply
Collaborate with existing elevator manufacturers or building management system companies to co-develop and supply products or solutions incorporating this technology, accelerating market penetration.
💡 Smart Mobility Support Solutions
Propose this technology as a core component of comprehensive smart mobility support systems for specific clients such as hospitals, commercial facilities, and office buildings.
Adjacent Application Opportunities
🚚 Logistics & Factory Automation
AGV-Elevator Automated Integration
Automated Guided Vehicles (AGVs) in factories and warehouses could autonomously coordinate with elevators using this technology, fully automating inter-floor material transport. This could establish an efficient and safe logistics flow without human intervention, potentially contributing to a 30% increase in productivity.
🏨 Hospitality & Healthcare
Service Robot Inter-Floor Mobility Support
Service robots could leverage this technology to autonomously operate elevators for tasks like room service or cleaning in hotels, addressing labor shortages and enhancing customer experience. This allows hotel staff to focus on core services. It also has potential applications for transporting medical supplies and specimens within hospitals.
♿ Accessibility & Smart Cities
Universal Mobility Support in Public Facilities
In public spaces like stations, airports, and large commercial complexes, this technology could create an environment where wheelchair users and stroller users can smoothly access elevators. By integrating with smartphones or wearable devices, it could provide personalized mobility assistance, significantly improving urban accessibility.
Integration Roadmap — Estimated 18-Month Deployment
Phase 1: Basic Verification & Environment Assessment
Duration: 3 months
Conduct detailed surveys of existing elevator systems, wireless environments, and IoT device installation locations at candidate facilities. Perform basic functional verification using a prototype of this technology.
Phase 2: System Development & Pilot Deployment
Duration: 6 months
Develop customized IoT devices to meet facility-specific requirements, implement integration software, and conduct pilot deployment and operational testing in a small-scale area.
Phase 3: Full-Scale Rollout & Optimization
Duration: 9 months
Improve the system based on pilot deployment results and proceed with full-scale deployment across the entire facility. Collect user feedback and implement continuous operational optimization and feature expansion.
Technical Feasibility
This technology achieves its functionality by retrofitting IoT devices with physical button-pressing mechanisms, without directly interfering with existing elevator control systems (refer to Claim 1). Utilizing general-purpose mid-range and short-range wireless communication technologies eliminates the need for large-scale infrastructure modifications or special communication protocol introductions. It exhibits high compatibility with existing elevator equipment, enabling relatively low-cost and short-term system construction.
Success Scenario
Upon implementing this technology, elevator waiting times for users in commercial facilities and hospitals could potentially be reduced by an average of 30%. This could lead to smoother pedestrian flow within facilities, enhancing customer satisfaction. Additionally, staff time spent on mobility assistance may be reduced by 20% annually, allowing them to focus on core tasks. Consequently, overall facility operational efficiency is expected to improve, with estimated annual cost savings in the tens of millions of dollars.
Patent Record
APPLICATION NO.
特願2020-170901
REGISTRATION NO.
6991610
FILING DATE
2020/10/09
GRANT DATE
2021/12/10
EXPIRATION DATE
2040/10/09
PATENT HOLDER
国立研究開発法人情報通信研究機構
Examination History
2021年05月14日
早期審査に関する事情説明書
2021年05月14日
出願審査請求書
2021年06月01日
早期審査に関する通知書
2021年07月20日
拒絶理由通知書
2021年09月13日
意見書
2021年09月13日
手続補正書（自発・内容）
2021年11月09日
特許査定