Elevator Guide Rail Fastening for Maintenance Access
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Solution Overview
Problem
In elevator systems with long shafts, the modular design of guide rails requires frequent removal and reassembly of individual rail elements for maintenance and repairs, leading to significant labor and wear on fastening means due to the need to adjust and realign the rail elements each time.
Innovation Solution
The guide rail elements are equipped with adjustable fastening means such as rollers, ball sockets, hinges, and telescopic constructions that allow them to be pivoted, rotated, or shifted without complete removal, enabling access to the space between the rail and shaft wall for maintenance without extensive adjustments, using locks and magnets to facilitate movement in multiple spatial dimensions.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Length of moving object
If guide rails are assembled from individual rail elements for long shafts, then the guide rail can be installed in long shafts, but maintenance and repairs require removal and reassembly of rail elements leading to significant labor and wear
Solution Approach 1:
The guide rail is divided into modular rail elements that can be independently removed and repositioned. Each rail element can be separately accessed for maintenance without requiring removal of adjacent elements, reducing overall maintenance labor while maintaining the capability to serve long shafts.
Solution Approach 2:
The fastening means incorporates movable and adjustable components that allow rail elements to be dynamically repositioned during maintenance. The fastening system can be quickly adjusted between secured and movable states, enabling efficient maintenance access and reassembly without permanent disassembly.
2Ease of repair
If rail elements are removed and reassembled for maintenance, then access to electrical and electronic components is possible, but the rail elements must be readjusted which involves considerable work and wear on fastening means
Solution Approach 1:
The fastening means is pre-configured with adjustable components that can be quickly released and resecured without requiring precise readjustment. The design incorporates pre-aligned features and quick-release mechanisms that eliminate time-consuming manual readjustment of rail elements during maintenance cycles.
3Area of stationary object
If the guide rail is compactly designed with electrics and electronics between the rail and shaft wall, then space is efficiently utilized, but the guide rail must be removed for maintenance work
Solution Approach 1:
The compact design is maintained by segmenting the guide rail into modular elements. Each segment can be independently removed to access the electrical and electronic components located in the space between the rail and shaft wall, preserving efficient space utilization while enabling targeted maintenance access without removing the entire guide rail system.
Applied Scientific Principles
This section explains which scientific principles are used to turn an abstract innovation direction into a practical engineering solution.
Function Achieved in This Case
This solution reduces maintenance labor by allowing rail elements to be moved and repositioned without complete disassembly, minimizing wear on fastening means and enabling efficient access to electrical and electronic components, while ensuring secure reattachment post-maintenance.
Implementation Method 1
the at least one rail element can be equipped with rollers with which the at least one rail element is slidably mounted on the rails of the at least one fastening element with respect to the at least one shaft wall. The at least one rail element can be displaced thereon with respect to the shaft wall to which the rear side of the at least one rail element faces.
Implementation Method 2
Instead of rollers, the at least one rail element can also be equipped with ball sockets in which balls are stored. When using rollers, the at least one rail element can be moved in a maximum of two spatial dimensions. The use of balls results in a further degree of freedom, so that the at least one rail element in the elevator shaft can be moved in up to three spatial dimensions.
Implementation Method 3
A further possibility is an embodiment of the at least one fastening means, which has at least one hinge, around which the at least one rail element is pivotably mounted with respect to the at least one shaft wall.
Implementation Method 4
using locks and magnets to facilitate movement in multiple spatial dimensions
Data Source
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AI summary
The present invention relates to a guide rail for a lift system, the guide rail comprising at least one rail element (1) and being fastened on at least one shaft wall (4) of the lift system via at least one fastening means (2), wherein the at least one rail element (1) is mounted in a movable manner in relation to at least one shaft wall (4) and the at least one rail element (1) can be moved in relation to the at least one shaft wall (4) such that the space between the at least one rail element (1) and the shaft wall (4), said space being directed towards the rear side of the at least one rail element (1), is freed for inspection purposes.