Otis Elevator Company

Jean-Pierre Menard

Jean-Noel Cloux

Jean-Pierre Pougny

Leandre Adifon

Pedro S Baranda

Bruce St Pierre

Marc Frederic Chevilliard

Masashi Kawarasaki

Frank W Adams

Yutaka Matsumoto

An elevator system includes a hoistway defined by a surrounding structure. An elevator car and counterweight are located in the hoistway, and a drive motor is located between the elevator car and a sidewall of the hoistway. The drive motor drivingly couples and suspends the elevator car and counterweight via at least one flat rope or belt.

Elevator system having drive motor located between elevator car and hoistway sidewall

An elevator system includes a control system that determines the amount of load of the car, and that determines the operating speed profile of the car based upon the amount of load in the car. In a particular embodiment, the control system includes a load weighing device and uses the weight of the car to determine the selection between two operating speed profiles: a normal operating speed profile and a reduced operating speed profile. The control system compares the measured live load to a pre-selected threshold, such as the car weight plus twice the percentage balancing multiplied by the rated full load of the elevator system. If this threshold is exceeded, then the reduced operating speed profile is selected. In this way, reduced balancing may be used. The selected percentage balancing may be determined empirically or estimated by taking into account the building size, usage and other operational characteristics.

Elevator with reduced counterweight

Growing community of inventors

Bourg la Reine, France

Jean-Pierre Menard