Otis Elevator Company

Richard C McCarthy

Joseph Bittar

Paul Bennett

Bruce A Powell

Anthony Cooney

Frederick H Barker

Samuel C Wan

John K Salmon, Deceased

Gilbert W Wierschke

LucyMary Salmon

Young S Yoo

Harold Terry

Thomas He

Eric K Jamieson

Greg A Schienda

Joseph Bledsoe

Chris Singarella

Randall Keith Roberts

Richard E Peruggi

Clement A Skalski

Rudi Steger

LucyMary Salmon, Executor

George C Tweed, Jr

A pair of elevator cars () traveling in the same hoistway have their positions sensed (--) to provide for each a position signal () from which velocity signals () are derived; lookup tables () of safe stopping distance (B, S) for braking and safeties are formed as a function of all possible combinations of velocity (V(U), V(L)) of said cars. Comparison of safe stopping distances for contemporaneous velocities of said cars with actual distance between said cars provides signals () to drop the brakes () of one or more of the cars, and provides signals () to engage the safeties () of all cars if the cars become closer or if acceleration detectors () determine a car to be in freefall.

Multi-car elevator hoistway separation assurance

The device for controlling movement of a plurality of elevator cars in a single hoistway includes a door monitor module () that facilitates controlling movement of elevator cars (). The door monitor module () is configured to determine when at least one door () along a hoistway () is open. The door monitor module () places a first relay () in a selected operative state if a first elevator car () is stopped at a landing corresponding to the at least one open door. The door monitor module () places a second relay () in a selected operative state if a second elevator car () is stopped at a landing corresponding to the at least one open door. The door monitor module () is also configured to place both relays () into the selected operative state if neither of the elevator cars () is stopped at a landing corresponding to an open door () along a hoistway ().

Control device for operating two elevator cars in a single hoistway

A platform stabilization coupler for transmitting acceleration forces to an elevator platform disposed on an elevator car frame is presented. The coupler includes a vibration member having a first surface disposed in fixed relation to either one of the elevator car frame and the platform. The coupler additionally includes a linear bearing disposed in fixed relation to a second surface of the vibration member. The bearing is disposed in moveable relation with the other of the elevator car frame and the platform to allow substantially vertical movement of the platform relative to the elevator car frame. The vibration member and linear bearing provide a transmission path for the lateral acceleration forces from the elevator car frame to the platform.

Elevator platform stabilization coupler

Acceleration control system utilizing elevator platform stabilization coupler

An elevator system provides service between a ground level and each of three upper levels through a single elevator shuttle hoistway system. Three elevator cabs 34-36, B, D, F are moved in a triple deck elevator car frame 35, or a four deck elevator car frame 75 in a low hoistway 26, 76; two cabs are moved in a double deck elevator car frame 30 or four deck car frame 76 in a mid hoistway 27, 52; and one cab is moved in a single deck car frame 31 or triple deck car frame 77 in a high hoistway 28, 53. Other embodiments have other car frame arrangements.

Integrated, multi-level elevator shuttle

To prevent elevator rope stretch effects when a horizontally transferable elevator cab (18) is rolled onto and off of an elevator car frame (10), an elevator car/floor lock (31) includes a bolt (47) which extends across the interface between the car frame and the building and engages a strike (39). Jack screw (44) and solenoid (60) embodiments are shown. To take the weight off the lock bolts so that they may be retracted to permit moving the car frame vertically in the hoistway, strain gages (64, 65) or load sensors (62, 63) provided in or adjacent the bolts sense the weight supported thereby, and a pretorque program (FIG. 6) provides armature current to the hoisting motor to raise or lower the car frame sufficiently to reduce the load on the bolts to nil.

Pretorque to unload elevator car/floor locks before retraction

Elevator cabs are transferred between elevators, which may be shuttles, in various levels of a building, such as transport floors, in response to car calls registered in the cabs and hall calls registered on the transport floors. The cabs may be transferred from carriages or bogeys onto elevator car frames in a lateral direction, which is perpendicular to the motion of the cab on a carriage or bogey, or in a longitudinal direction which is the same as the direction of motion of a cab on a carriage or bogey. The horizontal/vertical control and transfer may be effected in response to the arrival at transport floors of elevators having cabs therein, or in response to the arrival at an elevator of a bogey carrying a cab which must be transported between a transport floor on one level of a building and a transport floor on another level of a building, in order to serve the need of a car call registered therein or a hall call. The horizontal transportation may occur on transport floors within a building, or may extend between different building segments or between different buildings.

Horizontal and vertical passenger transport

A first slidable auxiliary pinion (58a) on the bottom of a horizontally moveable elevator cab A (FIGS. 2-6) disposed on a car frame (14) or a landing is moved out from under the cab toward another car frame (13) or landing by means of a motorized pinion (56) until it engages a motorized pinion (57) on the adjacent car frame (13) or landing, which then pulls the auxiliary pinion and the entire cab toward the other car frame or landing until a main rack (45) fixed to the bottom of the cab engages a motorized pinion (34) on the other car frame (13) or landing, which pinion then pulls the entire cab onto the other car frame or landing. The auxiliary racks (58a, 58b) may be mounted on a common auxiliary rack member (58), or may be separate. The auxiliary motorized pinions (55, 56, 57) may be bidirectional, or may be; and auxiliary pinions (32C, 33C, 34C) may be; mounted on the same shaft with main pinions (32b, 33b, 34b).

Fail-safe movement of elevator cabs between car frames and landings

A plurality of express shuttle elevators S1-S4 exchange elevator cabs at a transfer floor 26 with local elevators L1-L10 by means of a carriage 107, the casters of which 93 are guided by tracks 70-83. The transfer floor has linear induction motor (LIM) primary segments 60-67 disposed on the transfer floor; the carriage has a LIM secondary 128 thereon for propulsion. The carriages can be locked 91, 92 to the transfer floor for loading, and cabs can be locked 131 onto the carriages for stability when being moved. A controller (FIGS. 10-13) keeps track of the progress of the cabs from one elevator to another.

Shuttle elevators feeding local elevators

The arrival of each of four dual-hoistway shuttle elevators S1-S4 is synchronized with a selected one of ten local elevators L1-L10, or ten low rise elevators L1-L10 and ten high rise elevators H1-H10 at a transfer floor 26 by limiting 140 the speed of the shuttle, gradually 149, or rapidly 154, 155 decreasing the speed of the shuttle, delaying a local elevator by holding its doors open for extra time, or controlling the speed of a local elevator, by cancelling or avoiding hall calls. Empty local elevators may be allowed to remain at the high end of the building, or compelled to travel to the lobby if needed. Elevators approaching a transfer floor may be synchronized by adjusting the speed of one of them until the remaining distance is the same for both. Hall calls may be prevented, cancelled, or negatively biased in dependence upon the tardiness of a local elevator. Synchronization may be achieved between shuttle elevators and local elevators, between portions of multi-hoistway shuttle elevators, and amongst elevator combinations employing three or more hoistways.

Synchronizing elevator arrival at a level of a building

To prevent elevator rope stretch effects when a horizontally transferable elevator cab (18) is rolled onto and off of an elevator car frame (10), an elevator car/floor lock (31) includes a bolt (37) which extends across the interface between the car frame and the building and engages a strike (39). Jack screw (44) and solenoid (60) embodiments are shown. The bolt may extend from the car frame to the building (FIGS. 1-4) or from the building to the car frame (FIG. 5).

Locking elevator car frame to building during loading/unloading

Transferring elevator cabs between non-contiguous hoistways

An elevator cab X is moved from a hoistway TL to a car frame (11) simultaneously with moving a cab Y from the car frame (11) onto a landing TR. Double deck car frames (11a) may be utilized with cars P, Q going in the opposite direction of cars X, Y as they are transferred between the car frame and corresponding landings.

Synchronized off-shaft loading of elevator cabs

Elevator cabs A-C move upwardly through three or more contiguous overlapping hoistways 38-40 in the upper decks of double deck car frames 41-43, and move downwardly through the hoistways in the lower decks (or vice versa). To switch between decks, the cabs are offloaded from the hoistways into auxiliary elevators 50, 51 at the terminal ends of the shuttle, and are moved to be adjacent to the other deck by the auxiliary elevator and loaded thereon for the trip in the opposite direction. A second embodiment has additional auxiliary elevators 64, 65 and additional cabs D, E so that loading and unloading of passengers do not delay movement of the cabs in the hoistways.

Elevator shuttle with auxiliary elevators at terminals

An elevator shuttle includes a plurality of elevator hoistways (14, 19, 24) which overlap, the elevator car frames (13, 21, 25) traveling in each hoistway including two decks per cab being carried by the car frame, plus an extra deck on car frames (20) in other than the highest (24) and lowest (14) hoistways. This allows cabs (C) traveling simultaneously, upwardly, in three or more hoistways to pass cabs (A, B) simultaneously traveling downwardly in those hoistways. The cabs may be loaded and unloaded while in the hoistway (FIGS. 1, 13, 21) or while in off-hoistway landing areas (FIG. 28). Embodiments include one cab per hoistway and two cabs per hoistway; three hoistways and four hoistways.

Growing community of inventors

Simsbury, CT, United States of America

Richard C McCarthy