Corrugated Elevator Belt Jacket for Smaller Sheaves
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Solution Overview
Problem
Elevator belt systems face limitations in material selection due to the need for elastomeric jackets to accommodate bending around small sheaves while maintaining a long service life, restricting the types of materials that can be used and affecting durability and strength.
Innovation Solution
Incorporating non-elastomeric corrugated insert layers with a higher melting temperature into the jacket, which contact the tension elements and define the outer surface, allowing for the use of more rigid materials and enabling smaller diameter sheaves with improved strain capability and pressure support.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If elastomeric jacket material is used to enable bending around small sheaves, then the belt can accommodate small diameter sheaves and have long service life, but the material selection is restricted and durability and strength are limited
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies composite materials by combining elastomeric jacket base material with non-elastomeric insert layers having higher melting temperatures and superior mechanical properties. This composite structure enables the belt to achieve both the flexibility needed for bending around small sheaves and the enhanced strength/durability provided by the non-elastomeric insert layers, thereby resolving the contradiction between material selection versatility and belt strength.
2Ease of operation
If elastomeric jacket material is used to accommodate bending around small sheaves, then the belt can bend around relatively small sheaves, but the types of materials that can be used are restricted
Solution Approach 1:
The patent segments the jacket into two functional components: an elastomeric jacket base material that provides bending capability and flexibility, and non-elastomeric insert layers that provide enhanced mechanical properties and expand material selection. This segmentation allows each layer to perform its specific function independently, resolving the contradiction between bending capability and material selection versatility.
Solution Approach 2:
By creating a composite jacket structure with elastomeric base material and non-elastomeric insert layers, the patent enables the use of materials with higher melting temperatures and superior mechanical properties while maintaining the bending capability provided by the elastomeric base, thereby expanding material selection without sacrificing operational ease.
3Reliability
If non-elastomeric corrugated insert layers with higher melting temperature are incorporated into the jacket, then durability and wear resistance are enhanced, but the jacket structure becomes more complex
Solution Approach 1:
The patent applies local quality by placing non-elastomeric insert layers with enhanced durability and wear resistance specifically within the jacket structure where they are needed to contact tension elements and provide mechanical support. The elastomeric base material retains its flexibility and bending capability in regions where it is needed. This localized assignment of properties enhances durability without requiring a complete redesign of the entire jacket structure.
Solution Approach 2:
The composite jacket structure combines elastomeric and non-elastomeric materials in a coordinated manner, where the non-elastomeric insert layers provide durability and wear resistance while the elastomeric base provides flexibility. This composite approach enhances reliability through material properties rather than increasing structural complexity.
Data Source
AI summary
An elevator system includes a hoistway, an elevator car movable along the hoistway, and one or more belts operably connected to the elevator car to propel the elevator car along the hoistway. A belt of the one or more belts includes one or more tension elements extending along a belt length, and a jacket at least partially encapsulating the one or more tension elements. The jacket includes a jacket base formed from a first material and one or more insert layers embedded in the jacket base material. The one or more insert layers have a corrugated shape along the belt length, and are formed from a second material different from the first material.