US Patent 7849974 Method of dispatching an elevator car

An elevator system (20) includes a plurality of cars (22) and destination entry devices (40) located some distance from the elevator cars (22). A controller (38) dispatches an elevator car to a requested destination entered by a passenger before the passenger enters an elevator car. In one example, the controller (38) uses an expected arrival time corresponding to the time it is expected to take for a passenger to travel from the location where the destination request is entered to the location of the elevator car to decide how to dispatch a car to service that request. In one example, the controller dispatches an elevator car to the requested destination on a next trip of that car if the expected arrival time of the passenger near that car occurs at or before the departure time for that next trip. Otherwise, the controller (38) dispatches the car to the requested destination on a subsequent trip after the next trip.