This application claims priority to European Patent Application No. 11173791.2, filed Jul. 13, 2011, which is incorporated herein by reference.
The disclosure relates to shaft information for an elevator.
Equipment for generation of shaft information in an elevator shaft has become known from the specification US 2006/0118364 A1. A strip extending over the shaft height serves as a carrier for a code. At least one reader is arranged at an elevator cage movable in the shaft and reads the code during movement over the strip. The reader generates therefrom a signal which reflects the position of the elevator cage in the elevator shaft and which is passed on by means of a hanging cable to the elevator control. Mounting of the strip can be costly in terms of material and working hours and can require additional space in the elevator shaft.
In at least some embodiments, an information system can be constructed without additional working hours and without additional material apart from a reader. In further embodiments, the information system does not need any additional space in the elevator shaft. The code needed for the generation of information can be mounted at the factory or on site at a hanging cable. The hanging cable conducts energy and signals to the elevator cage and signals from the elevator cage to the elevator control and at the same time serves as a carrier for the code for the generation of the information.
When the information device is placed in operation a learning travel is performed and the hanging cable or the code is read by means of a reader arranged at the elevator cage and the thus-obtained information is stored. If in the course of operation the code is dirtied or damaged, the information equipment can reconstruct the failed code by means of the stored information and, for example, log a fault report or a maintenance report. In operation, the elevator cage travels up and down, wherein in each instance the hanging cable, which is travelled over, or the code, which is travelled over, at the hanging cable is detected by means of the reader and the position of the elevator cage determined. Monitoring functions can also be undertaken by the information device and by the code, The code can, for example, contain information relating to excess speed of the elevator cage or information relating to deviation of the elevator cage from the story level at a story stop or information relating to travel beyond the shaft end, etc.
The present disclosure is explained in more detail by way of the accompanying figures, in which:
An information device 4 generates shaft information, which is used by a control device for control of the cage movement and the cage position and/or the counterweight movement and/or the counterweight position. The shaft information comprises, for example, the speed and/or the position in the elevator shaft 1 of the elevator cage 2 and/or of a counterweight. The information device 4 in the illustrated example consists of at least one reader 5 and at least one code 6 arranged at the hanging cable 3, as is shown in
The code patterns 11 to an are different because each code pattern has a different information content. Included in the lowermost code pattern a1 and in the uppermost code pattern an is or are, for example, the position of the code pattern and/or information for triggering an emergency stop. Door positions can also be included in the code patterns. The code patterns between the lowermost code pattern a1 and the uppermost code pattern an are arranged at the hanging cable 3 at a specific spacing DS from the adjacent code pattern and include at least one item of information with respect to the respective position of the code pattern a1 . . . an or form a readable scale, which extends over the travel path of the elevator cage 2, in code form.
The information with respect to the position of the code pattern can also be present twice in each code pattern a1 . . . an, once for travel of the elevator cage 2 in upward direction and once for travel of the elevator cage 2 in downward direction.
A code 6 with only one track is also possible. A certain degree of redundancy is nevertheless provided, because the reader 5 has at the same time more than one code pattern in focus. If a code pattern is dirtied or damaged or unreadable for other reasons, the information content of the unreadable code pattern can be reconstructed or reproduced from the adjacent code patterns. In addition, a fault report or a maintenance report can be generated and logged.
If the elevator cage 2 is located at the top in the elevator shaft 1 the length of the hanging cable 3 at the cage side is large and the length of the hanging cable at the shaft wall side is small. If the elevator cage 2 is located at the bottom in the elevator shaft 1 the length of the hanging cable 3 at the cage side is small and the length of the hanging cable at the shaft wall side is large. The length of the hanging cable 3 at the shaft wall side and thus the length of the hanging cable 3 at which the reader 5 reads the code 6 changes depending on the respective position of the elevator cage 2. Depending on the respective length of the elevator cable 3 on the shaft wall side this hanging cable section stretches to a greater or lesser extent, which has a direct influence on the accuracy of the code 6 in terms of position. However, the influence of the stretching on the accuracy in terms of position is small. For example, in the case of a shaft height of 40 meters the difference is approximately 2.5 millimeters. The difference is independent of the cage load and can, for example, be measured in the case of a learning travel with respect to the door position of the lowermost story door. The influence of the stretching on the measurement accuracy can also be subject to computerized correction in that a computed length change can be additionally added to the measured position.
The same applies to the speed of the elevator cage 2. However, the stretching of the hanging cable 3 produces merely a negligible difference in the speed of the elevator cage 2.
The guide shoe 11 according to
Having illustrated and described the principles of the disclosed technologies, it will be apparent to those skilled in the art that the disclosed embodiments can be modified in arrangement and detail without departing from such principles. In view of the many possible embodiments to which the principles of the disclosed technologies can be applied, it should be recognized that the illustrated embodiments are only examples of the technologies and should not be taken as limiting the scope of the invention. Rather, the scope of the invention is defined by the following claims and their equivalents. We therefore claim as our invention all that comes within the scope and spirit of these claims.
Number | Date | Country | Kind |
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11173791.2 | Jul 2011 | EP | regional |