Patent Application
20110290592
The object of the present invention is an elevator provided with locking apparatus to prevent movement of the elevator car as presented in the preamble of claim 1 and a locking apparatus to prevent movement of the elevator car as presented in the preamble of claim 6.
In some situations, e.g. when installing an elevator or when the hoisting machine or the brakes of an elevator are being serviced, tested or adjusted, movement of the elevator car and of the counterweight must be prevented in some other way than by means of the operating brakes. It is known that this can be performed by locking the elevator car and/or the counterweight into their positions on the guide rail e.g. by means of a safety gear, a latch or wedges. This is, however, awkward, laborious and time-consuming, and necessitates working in the elevator hoistway. Another prior-art solution is to fix a rope clamp to the hoisting roping, by means of which the hoisting roping is bound fast to e.g. the overhead beam of the hoistway. This is also, however, an awkward and time-consuming solution and requires special tools.
The purpose of this invention is to eliminate the aforementioned drawbacks and to achieve an elevator provided with locking apparatus to prevent movement of the elevator car as well as an operationally reliable, easy to use, simple and inexpensive locking apparatus to prevent movement of the elevator car. The elevator according to the invention is characterized by what is disclosed in the characterization part of claim 1. Correspondingly, the locking apparatus according to the invention is characterized by what is disclosed in the characterization part of claim 6. Other embodiments of the invention are characterized by what is disclosed in the other claims.
Some inventive embodiments are also discussed in the descriptive section of the present application. The inventive content of the application can also be defined differently than in the claims presented below. The inventive content may also consist of several separate inventions, especially if the invention is considered in the light of expressions or implicit sub-tasks or from the point of view of advantages or categories of advantages achieved. In this case, some of the attributes contained in the claims below may be superfluous from the point of view of separate inventive concepts. Likewise the different details presented in connection with each embodiment can also be applied in other embodiments. In addition it can be stated that at least some of the subordinate claims can in at least some situations be deemed to be inventive in their own right.
The basic idea of the invention is to prevent unintended movement of the elevator car in servicing work, in connection with installation or in a corresponding situation by acting on the traction sheave. According to the invention, prevention is performed with a separate holding means, of which there can be one or more for each direction of rotation of the traction sheave or instead shared for both directions of rotation. Preferably one holding means is arranged to act on the traction sheave. The balancing in traction sheave elevators is often such that in a normal servicing situation unintended movement can occur in only one direction, in which case the only holding means can be suitably arranged to prevent movement in only this direction. A highly suitable solution is also one in which there is one dedicated holding means for each direction of rotation. Preferably the holding means is a prevention apparatus resting on the frame of the machine, which prevention apparatus can be brought, if necessary, to meet the detent on the traction sheave and thus to prevent rotation of the traction sheave. The holding apparatus can if necessary be made in connection with the brake incorporated in the machine. Functionally the holding apparatus is independent of the brake, whether it is in connection with the brake or separate from the brake. One advantage of the solution according to the invention is that by means of it movement of the elevator car and of the counterweight can be effectively, dependably and safely prevented. Another advantage is that the arrangement is very easy and quick to use, nor does it necessitate awkward working in the hoistway. A further advantage is that the apparatus according to the invention is disposed in connection with the hoisting machine, in which case it is easy to access it when the hoisting machine or the brakes are being serviced. An advantage of the positioning of the apparatus is also that long trailing cables for the electrical monitoring of its space are not needed, because it is disposed near the control system of the elevator. Another advantage is that the apparatus can be used with different car heights. Yet another advantage is that the apparatus is suited for many different elevators and hoisting machines. Another advantage is also that the apparatus is easy to install and it is particularly suited to the modernization of a very old elevator, even if e.g. the car sling and the guide rails were made by different manufacturers. Another advantage is that the apparatus takes little space. A particularly suitable application for the invention is in connection with the machines of gearless elevators. A further advantage is that the solution is inexpensive and simple to implement.
In the following, the invention will be described in greater detail by referring to an embodiment example and the attached simplified drawings, wherein
The locking apparatus 5 also comprises an essentially rod-like holding means 6, which is hinged to the base 7 by means of a hinge 6a, as has been described above. The holding means 6 is hinged on the outer surface of the base 7, i.e. on a fixing lug 14 on the surface that points away from the traction sheave 2, which fixing lug comprises a hole essentially in the direction of the plane of the base for 30 the hinge 6a. Suitably there are two fixing lugs 14, and in
In addition, the locking apparatus 5 comprises one or more grooves 8, at least on the top edge of the base 7, for the holding means 6, a locking means 10 and also position detector means 13 for the holding means 6. In addition, jump guards 11 are fixed to both side edges of the base 7, which jump guards do not however actually belong to the locking apparatus 5 itself. The jump guards 11 are arranged to prevent the hoisting ropes from jumping off the traction sheave 2.
For preventing movement of the elevator car and rotational movement of the traction sheave 2, the holding means 6 is fitted to turn around the hinge 6a in the direction of the plane of the base 7 into the groove 8 on the top edge of the base 7 and thus to meet at its end on the traction sheave 2 side the holding detent 9 on the traction sheave 2, such as e.g. a spoke in the radial direction of the traction sheave or a corresponding cast detent. The holding means 6 can be activated, i.e. can be turned between the spokes of the traction sheave 2, either by hand or e.g. by remote control.
The locking means 10 is hinged to its base 7 next to the groove 8. The locking means 10 is arranged to turn to close the groove 8 and thus to prevent the holding means 6 from jumping from its locking position out of the groove 8. Detector means 13 that detect the position of the holding means are also connected to the holding means 6, which detector means are arranged to give notification when the holding means 6 is in use, so that no attempt is made to drive the elevator when the holding means 6 is between the spokes 9 of the traction sheave 2. The detector means 13 are connected to the control system of the elevator e.g. via conductors 12. A second groove 8 is also made ready on the opposite side of the base 7 in the lateral direction so that the position of the holding means 6 could, if necessary, be changed or so that also a second holding means could be connected to the base 7.
It is obvious to the person skilled in the art that different embodiments of the invention are not limited to the example described above, but that they may be varied within the scope of the claims presented below. Thus, for example, the solution according to the invention can be used in a different type of hoisting machine than that described above.
It is also obvious to the person skilled in the art that the locking apparatus can be fixed to elsewhere in the proximity of the traction sheave than to the hoisting machine itself.
Likewise it is obvious to the person skilled in the art that the locking apparatus and holding means according to the invention can be different to what is described above. The holding means can be e.g. a rod or corresponding element that can be directly pushed inwards or pulled outwards. In this case the holding means is moved e.g. backwards and forwards in the axial direction of the traction sheave.
It is further obvious to the person skilled in the art that the detent of the holding means can be something other than a spoke of the traction sheave, such as e.g. a detent made separately to the traction sheave. This type of detent can also be separate from the traction sheave, e.g. on the brake rim that rotates along with the traction sheave, on the rotor rim that rotates the traction sheave or on similar to it. There can be a number of detents. An easy way to make a number of detents that are separate from the traction sheave is to connect a flange or ring, comprising teeth or holes, to the traction sheave.
It is further obvious to the person skilled in the art that there can be e.g. two holding means instead of one, of which e.g. one can lock the traction sheave in one direction of rotation and the other can lock the traction sheave in the other direction of rotation.
| Number | Date | Country | Kind |
|---|---|---|---|
| 20090010 | Jan 2009 | FI | national |
| Number | Date | Country | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Parent | PCT/FI2010/000002 | Jan 2010 | US |
| Child | 13175095 | US |
