Elevator Travelling Cable Support Arrangement
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Solution Overview
Problem
Travelling cables in elevators are prone to swaying due to wind, waves, and seismic activity, leading to collisions with other components, noise, and reduced ride comfort, with existing solutions being inadequate.
Innovation Solution
A travelling cable support arrangement featuring a guide rail extending from the pit floor to the middle of the elevator shaft, an intermediate fixing point, and a movable travelling cable keeper that allows the cables to follow a curved path, reducing swaying and tension fluctuations.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Adaptability or versatility
If travelling cables are left flexible and hanging in the shaft, then ease of operation and adaptability are improved, but cable stability deteriorates causing swaying due to wind, waves, and seismic activity
Solution Approach 1:
A travelling cable keeper acts as an intermediary device between the flexible travelling cables and the fixed guide rail. The keeper moves along the guide rail while maintaining cable tension through its movable support points, allowing the cables to remain flexible for operation while preventing harmful swaying through the constraint provided by the guide rail system
Solution Approach 2:
The travelling cable keeper is designed to be movable along the guide rail rather than fixed, allowing it to dynamically adapt to the position of the elevator car while maintaining cable tension. The curved path through support points allows dynamic cable routing that accommodates movement while preventing lateral swaying
2Stability of the object's composition
If travelling cables are constrained to prevent swaying, then cable stability is improved, but device complexity increases due to additional guide rails and fixing mechanisms
Solution Approach 1:
The guide rail serves multiple functions: it provides a track for the travelling cable keeper to move along, it acts as a constraint to prevent cable swaying, and it offers an intermediate fixing point for cable attachment. This multi-functionality reduces the need for separate dedicated components for each function, thereby limiting the increase in device complexity
Solution Approach 2:
The cable support system is segmented into discrete components: the guide rail, the intermediate fixing point, and the movable travelling cable keeper. This segmentation allows each component to be optimized for its specific function while maintaining overall system simplicity and ease of installation
3Device complexity
If travelling cables are allowed to sway freely, then device complexity is reduced, but harmful effects increase through collisions with shaft components, noise, and reduced ride comfort
Solution Approach 1:
The travelling cable keeper proactively prevents cable swaying by maintaining continuous contact with the guide rail through its movable support points. This preliminary constraint action prevents the cables from reaching positions where they could collide with shaft components or generate noise, addressing the harmful effects before they occur
Solution Approach 2:
The travelling cable keeper serves as a mediator that absorbs and redirects cable movement forces. By providing a controlled path through its curved support points, it prevents direct transmission of swaying forces to the shaft components, thereby eliminating collisions and noise while adding minimal structural complexity
Data Source
AI summary
The arrangement comprises at least one travelling cable, a guide rail extending from a pit floor at least to a middle of an elevator shaft, an intermediate fixing point positioned in connection with the guide rail, the at least one travelling cable being fixedly attached in said intermediate fixing point, a travelling cable keeper being movably supported on the guide rail so that the travelling cable keeper is movable upwards and downwards along the guide rail, the at least one travelling cable being movably supported in support points on the travelling cable keeper, a path of the at least one travelling cable through the support points in the travelling cable keeper being curved, the at least one travelling cable being movable through the support points.