Adjustable Elevator Traction Cable Reservoir for Construction Adaptation
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Solution Overview
Problem
Elevator systems during construction phases require a traction medium that can be repeatedly lengthened and shortened without reducing its service life or recyclability, as existing solutions like cable clamps shorten the traction cable's lifespan.
Innovation Solution
An elevator system with a reservoir that uses deflecting axles and a fixing unit to adjust the length of the traction medium, allowing it to be lengthened or shortened by altering the spacing between axles, and a setting cable system to manage the lengthening and shortening process, ensuring the traction medium is only fixed at its ends and not clamped, thereby maintaining its integrity.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If a cable clamp is opened and closed at different positions of the traction cable to lengthen the usable section, then the service life of the traction cable is shortened, but the elevator system can be adapted to growing buildings
Solution Approach 1:
The traction cable system is segmented into a working section (between deflecting axles) and a reservoir section (stored on the lifting platform). This allows the working section to be repeatedly used while the reservoir section serves as a replaceable reserve, eliminating the need to clamp and unclamp the same cable repeatedly.
Solution Approach 2:
The reservoir on the lifting platform stores a reserve section of the traction cable that can be discarded (paid out) when the building grows, while the original working section is recovered and continues to be used. This separates the adaptation function from the working cable, preserving its service life.
2Adaptability or versatility
If the traction medium is fixed at multiple points along its length to adjust length, then the operational flexibility is improved, but the structural integrity and service life are reduced
Solution Approach 1:
The fixing function is extracted from the traction cable itself and transferred to the deflecting axles and the lifting platform structure. The traction cable is only fixed at its ends, while intermediate length adjustments are achieved by moving the deflecting axles relative to each other, not by clamping the cable.
Solution Approach 2:
The deflecting axles serve as intermediaries between the fixed ends of the traction cable. By adjusting the spacing between these intermediary axles, the effective length of the working section is changed without creating additional fixed points that would compromise the cable's integrity.
3Ease of manufacture
If the elevator system uses a fixed length traction cable during construction, then the installation simplicity is improved, but the ability to grow with the building is lost
Solution Approach 1:
The system transitions from a static fixed-length cable to a dynamic configuration where the reservoir on the lifting platform can be raised or lowered to adjust the working length. This dynamic adjustment mechanism maintains installation simplicity while enabling growth adaptation.
Solution Approach 2:
The lifting platform serves multiple functions: it acts as the support structure for the elevator car, the mechanism for raising the elevator to new levels, and the reservoir for storing the reserve section of the traction cable. This multi-functionality enables building growth without adding separate systems.
Data Source
AI summary
An elevator system having: an elevator car vertically movable in an elevator shaft; a traction medium for raising and lowering the elevator car and being guided around at least one roller to the car and being fixed merely at ends thereof; a traction medium reservoir including at least one first deflecting axle and at least one second deflecting axle around which the traction medium is guided in alternation between the first and second axles so that a section, the length depending on the spacing of the first and second axles, of the traction medium is received in the reservoir; and a fixing unit to which the second deflecting axle is fixed, wherein the fixing unit is fastenable at different positions in the elevator shaft so that the spacing between the first and second axles is settable to determine the length of the traction medium received in the reservoir.