Segmented Elevator Guide Rail for Tight Hoistway Clearance
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Solution Overview
Problem
The increasing need to fit elevator systems into smaller spaces poses challenges with existing guide rails, as they interfere with hoistway components, requiring adaptations that maintain structural integrity while being time-consuming and costly.
Innovation Solution
A guide rail composed of two separate rail piece parts made from different thicknesses of sheet material, bent into specific shapes and fixed together to form a base and blade section, allowing for adjustable configurations without compromising structural integrity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If guide rails are made from solid steel in standard lengths, then structural integrity is maintained, but adaptability to reduced space elevator systems is poor and modifications are time-consuming and costly
Solution Approach 1:
The guide rail is divided into multiple modular sections that can be independently manufactured and assembled. Each section can be customized for different space requirements while maintaining standardized connection interfaces, enabling quick adaptation to various hoistway dimensions without redesigning the entire rail system.
Solution Approach 2:
The guide rail design incorporates adjustable components that allow modification of rail position and configuration after installation. This dynamic adaptability enables the same basic rail design to accommodate different hoistway sizes and component layouts without requiring complete replacement or complex custom manufacturing.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the base of the guide rail is altered to prevent interference with hoistway components, then adaptability to reduced spaces improves, but structural integrity is compromised
Solution Approach 1:
The guide rail is divided into modular sections with standardized connection interfaces. This segmentation allows the base configuration to be optimized for structural integrity while using standardized connectors that provide adaptability for different installations without compromising the strength of individual rail sections.
Solution Approach 2:
The guide rail employs composite construction combining high-strength materials for the load-bearing blade section with lighter, more adaptable materials for the base section. This composite approach allows the base to be modified for adaptability while the blade section maintains the structural integrity necessary for supporting elevator loads.
3Area of stationary object
If hoistway dimensions are reduced to fit elevator systems in smaller spaces, then space utilization improves, but interference with guide rail and other components increases
Solution Approach 1:
Dividing the guide rail into modular sections allows precise positioning of rail components to avoid interference with other hoistway elements. Each module can be independently configured to fit within reduced dimensional constraints while maintaining proper clearances from machines, brakes, and other components.
Solution Approach 2:
The modular guide rail system utilizes vertical stacking and lateral arrangement of rail sections to navigate around obstacles in the hoistway. By thinking in three-dimensional space rather than simple linear extensions, the rail system can accommodate reduced hoistway dimensions while avoiding interference through clever spatial configuration.
Data Source
Figure 1
Figure 2
Figure 3A~3C
AI summary
According to the present disclosure there is provided a guide rail (100') for an elevator system, the guide rail (100') having an elongate length (L) with a cross-section perpendicular to the elongate length (L); the cross-section comprising a base section (120) for mounting to a wall of an elevator hoistway, and a blade section (130), the blade section (130) extending from the base section (120); wherein the blade section (130) comprises a guide surface (132) for interacting with a guide element of a component movable in the elevator hoistway; the guide rail (100') comprising: a pair of separate rail piece parts (110'a; 110'b) fixed together to form the guide rail (100'); wherein the pair of separate rail piece parts comprises a first rail piece part (110'a; 110'b) and a second rail piece part (110'a; 110'b;); the first rail piece part (110'a; 110'b) being formed from a first thickness (t1, t2) of sheet material bent to have a cross-section of a first predetermined shape, and the second rail piece part (110'a; 110'b) being formed from a second thickness (t1, t2) of sheet material bent to have a cross-section of a second predetermined shape; wherein the first rail piece part (110'a; 110'b) and the second rail piece part (110'a; 110'b) are fixed together such the first predetermined shape and the second predetermined shape together form the base section (120) and the blade section (130), and such that the blade section (130) has a cross-sectional width (W1) at the guide surface (132) that is equal to at least the sum of the first thickness (t1, t2) and the second thickness (t1, t2); and wherein the first rail piece part (110'a; 110'b) and the second rail piece part (110'a; 110'b) are mechanically joined by the sheet material of the first and second rail piece parts (110'a; 110'b) having been clinched together.