Escalator Step Segments With Chain And Track Transport
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Solution Overview
Problem
Conventional escalators require a large overall height at both the lower and upper end areas, making them unsuitable for installations where space is limited, such as airports, due to their complex design and significant height requirements.
Innovation Solution
The escalator design features rectangular step segments with wheels at each corner, where the front wheels are transported by circulating chains and the rear wheels run on sloping tracks without chains, allowing for horizontal transport and a low overall height by using sloping treads in the rear transport area, with horizontal tracks and deflection mechanisms for efficient space utilization.
Engineering Contradictions & Design Principles
Engineering Contradiction Analysis
1Ease of operation
If conventional escalator designs with hinged profiles and transport chains are used, then the escalator can transport passengers, but the overall height at both lower and upper end areas becomes excessively large
Solution Approach 1:
The step segments are divided into multiple profiles that can be independently positioned. Each profile has wheels at its corners, with front wheels on transport chains and rear wheels on running tracks, allowing segmented control of the step structure to achieve low profile at end areas while maintaining transport function
Solution Approach 2:
Instead of having the step segments fold or collapse to reduce height, the invention inverts the approach by using a rigid rectangular step plate with wheels at corners that run on horizontal tracks at the ends. The low height is achieved by the horizontal orientation of tracks and step plates at end areas, not by folding mechanisms
2Stability of the object's composition
If step segments with considerable height are used to ensure structural stability, then the escalator can maintain rigidity, but the installation height requirements increase significantly
Solution Approach 1:
The step segments are designed as rectangular plates with constant height, transporting horizontally on horizontal tracks at end areas. This changes the dimensional approach from vertical stacking to horizontal positioning, achieving stability through horizontal track support rather than vertical height
3Reliability
If the rear wheels of step segments are attached to transport chains, then all wheels are uniformly supported, but the device complexity and manufacturing difficulty increase
Solution Approach 1:
Different parts of the step segment have different support mechanisms: front wheels are attached to transport chains for controlled movement, while rear wheels run on running tracks without attachment. This local differentiation optimizes both reliability and simplicity by applying the appropriate support type to each wheel position
Data Source
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AI summary
The invention relates to an escalator comprising a plurality of movable step segments which are arranged in a row and run in each case on four wheels which are mounted at the four corners of each step segment, wherein the step surface of each step segment lies horizontally during transport to the front and drops obliquely during transport to the rear, each step segment being formed by a right-angled step plate of the same height and a wheel being mounted in each case at the four corners thereof. According to the invention, the front two wheels of each step segment are transported by two rotating transport chains in the transport region to the front of the escalator, wherein the rear two wheels of each step segment run on two oblique first tracks without being fixed to the transport chains and, in the return transport region, the step segments are transported back with the obliquely lying step surface on two oblique, rear second tracks by the two rotating transport chains.