CN1388844A - Rope, and elevator using the same - Google Patents

Abstract

An elevator in which the diameter of the pulleys is reduced and also prevents the problems of shortened life and reduced strength of the cables to ensure safety and stability. For this purpose, a cable is used in which a plurality of single steel wires constituting the cable are respectively coated with a resin material, and the entire steel cable is also coated with a resin material, thereby reducing the risk of damage due to slippage between the single steel wires. The resulting wear and the wear due to contact with the pulley, which occurs when the cable is clamped in the pulley. When the diameter of the elevator sheave is reduced, the problem of shortening the life of the cable can be prevented or the life of the steel wire can be extended. Therefore, the volume and weight of the equipment including the motor and the hoist can be reduced, the installation space can be saved, and the safety and stability of the entire equipment can be improved by extending the service life of the cables.

Description

Cables and elevators using such cables

technical field

The present invention relates to a cable elevator, and more particularly, the present invention relates to an elevator using steel cables made of steel wires coated with a resin material, and the outer circumference of the steel cables is also coated with a resin material .

Background technique

The cable elevator includes a driving device provided with a motor, a speed reducer, a pulley and a deflection pulley, and also has an elevator car load applied to one end of the main rope wound on the pulley (hereinafter referred to as "cable ”) and apply a counterweight load to the other end of the cable to move the elevator car and counterweight up and down by friction between the cable and the pulleys.

Cables are generally formed by twisting together multiple strands of steel, which in turn are made by twisting steel wires together. This steel cable satisfies the friction characteristics, wear resistance, fatigue resistance, etc. required for driving an elevator, and has high stability.

However, since the cable is a consumable product, it must have a certain service life. The life factor of the cable can be divided into four types, namely: the fatigue caused by the bending and elongation of the cable when the cable moves over the pulley, the wear caused by the relative movement between the steel wires, and the Wear between the outermost steel wire and the wall of the pulley groove, corrosion caused by the contact of the cable with the air. Thus, in order to reduce the influence of repeated bending when the cable moves from the pulley, the ratio D/d of the pulley diameter D to the cable diameter d is set to 40 or more.

Additionally, the diameter D of the pulley is directly related to the motor drive torque required to move the elevator car up and down. In order to reduce the volume and weight of the elevator including the motor, the diameter of the pulley must be reduced.

In addition, steel cables are wound on pulleys made of cast iron and driven by friction. Therefore, when the cable is clamped in the pulley, the mutual contact of the metal parts will generate vibration and noise, which will affect the comfort.

As a solution to these problems, the specification of Japanese Patent JP-A-7-267534 discloses a method of reducing the diameter of the pulley and reducing vibration and noise by using a cable twisted from synthetic fibers, wherein the fibers Examples are aramid fibers, which are more flexible than steel wires and which are also coated with a resin, such as urethane.

In addition, in order to determine the service life of the synthetic fiber cable coated with resin, the description of Japanese Patent JP-A-8-261972 discloses a method of embedding conductive carbon fibers into the synthetic fiber cable coated with resin and detecting the voltage. A method of judging whether the conductive carbon fiber is broken, wherein the strength of the conductive carbon fiber is weaker than that of the synthetic fiber.

In addition, the greater the contact pressure with the pulley, the shorter the service life of the cable. That is, the contact pressure of the cable is proportional to the tension F of the cable and inversely proportional to the diameter D of the pulley. Thus, if the diameter of the pulley is reduced, the pressure increases (the pressure of the cable is approximately equal to F/(D/d)).

As a solution to this problem, International Application WO99/43885 discloses a method of using a flat belt to reduce the contact pressure with the pulley to prolong the life of the resin coated on the surface of the flat belt, wherein the flat belt consists of multiple Consists of a linear array of steel strands formed by twisting together steel wires capable of being coated with resin or synthetic resin such as aramid fibers.

In order to reduce the diameter of the pulley in the mechanical device using the cable, including the pulley in the cable elevator, in order to reduce the volume of the motor or winch used to drive the pulley and reduce the installation area of the mechanical device, it is necessary to solve the problems in the process of reducing the bending radius of the cable. The resulting drop in cable life and strength.

It is an object of the present invention to provide a safe and reliable cable by solving the problem of reduced life and strength of the cable when the bending radius of the cable is reduced.

Another object of the present invention is to provide a safe and reliable elevator by solving the problem of reduction in cable life and strength that occurs when the bending radius of the cable is reduced.

Contents of the invention

To achieve the above objects, the cable according to the present invention is produced by twisting together a plurality of steel wires coated with a resin material to form a steel strand, and then twisting the plurality of steel strands into a steel cable , and then coat the resin material on the outer circumference of the steel cable.

In addition, the present invention also provides an elevator in which the elevator car and the counterweight are connected together by a plurality of steel cables, and the cables are wound on pulleys frictionally driven by a motor, wherein a plurality of resin-coated steel wires are twisted on Together to form a steel strand, a plurality of steel strands are twisted together to form a steel cable, the outer circumference of the entire steel cable is coated with a resin material, and the cross section of the steel cable perpendicular to its axial direction is generally circular ring.

Description of drawings

Fig. 1 is the sectional view of the first embodiment of the cable of the present invention;

Fig. 2 is the result chart of carrying out fatigue test to the steel wire in the cable shown in Fig. 1;

Fig. 3 is the view that the cable shown in Fig. 1 is clamped in the pulley groove;

Fig. 4 is the sectional view of the second embodiment of the cable of the present invention;

Figure 5 is a cross-sectional view of a third embodiment of the cable of the present invention;

The sectional view of the fourth embodiment of the cable of the present invention of Fig. 6;

The sectional view of the fifth embodiment of the cable of the present invention of Fig. 7;

Fig. 8 is the perspective view of the first embodiment of the elevator of the present invention;

Figure 9 is a top view of the first embodiment of the elevator of the present invention;

Fig. 10 is the top view of the second embodiment of the elevator of the present invention;

Fig. 11 is the perspective view of the third embodiment of the elevator of the present invention;

Fig. 12 is the perspective view of the fourth embodiment of the elevator of the present invention;

Fig. 13 is the perspective view of the fifth embodiment of the elevator of the present invention;

Fig. 14 is the perspective view of the sixth embodiment of the elevator of the present invention;

Fig. 15 is the perspective view of the seventh embodiment of the elevator of the present invention;

Fig. 16 is the perspective view of the eighth embodiment of the elevator of the present invention;

Fig. 17 is a perspective view of a ninth embodiment of the elevator of the present invention.

Best Mode for Carrying Out the Invention

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION The present invention will be described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Steel cables, which are load-bearing components, are made by twisting steel wires together to form strands, and then twisting the strands together. Due to their flexibility, cables are widely used in many mechanisms including elevators by being coiled or clamped in pulleys. Cables made of steel are consumable components, so their longevity depends on increased reliability and safety. As mentioned above, in order to reduce the fatigue and wear caused by repeated bending when the cable moves on the pulley, repeated bending becomes a factor affecting the service life of the cable. According to different mechanical devices, the diameter D of the pulley can be compared with the diameter of the cable. The ratio between d (D/d) is set to a constant value or more (for an elevator, the value is set to 40 or more).

Reducing the diameter of the pulley helps reduce the volume, space and cost of the mechanism. In order to minimize the negative impact of the above four factors related to cable life, the cables of the present invention are fabricated as shown in the following examples:

Referring to FIG. 1, a steel cable 1 as a load-bearing member is made by twisting steel wires 2 together to form steel strands 3, and then twisting the steel strands 3 together. Each steel wire 2 is coated with a steel wire coating 4 , the entire cable 1 is coated with an intermediate coating material 6 , the outermost layer of which is coated with a cable coating 5 .

In the case of reducing the pulley diameter, or in elevators, in order to make the ratio D/d of the pulley diameter D to the cable diameter d less than 40 (the traditional value in the life factor mentioned in the prior art), the cable must be increased 1 Fatigue characteristics caused by the bending of the pulley when moving on it. Therefore, attention should be focused on the bending stresses acting on the wires 2 constituting the cable 1, and the shape of the wires required to reduce the diameter of the sheave should be examined. When the running cable is wound around the pulley, bending stress σb acts on the steel wire 2 . Here, the maximum bending stress (σbmax) acts on the outermost layer of each wire along the cross section, and the stress value is proportional to the distance from the center of the wire 2 . That is, this value is proportional to the diameter δ of the steel wire 2 . When E represents the longitudinal modulus of elasticity of the steel wire 2, the maximum bending stress δbmax can be expressed by the following equation:

σbmax=Eδ/D

In addition, the stress magnitude (amplitude) σa acting on the outermost layer of the steel wire 2 can be expressed by the following formula:

σa=Eδ/2D

According to these equations, the possible stress acting on the steel wire 2 can be reduced by reducing the diameter δ of the steel wire 2 . Traditional elevators use pulleys with a diameter of 500mm and steel cables with a wire diameter of 0.8mm. Therefore, as an example, a steel cable with a carbon content of 0.7% and a diameter of 0.3 mm can be used to complete the fatigue test and determine the fatigue limit σa1 by locally pulsating tension. The average stress at this time is about 500Mpa. The result is shown in Figure 2. Therefore, it can be clearly found that the stress magnitude (amplitude) σa of the fatigue limit σa1 is about 260Mpa.

Therefore, if the above-mentioned fatigue-tested steel wire is used to make a cable, and the diameter of the pulley is reduced, the following equation must be satisfied in order to set the ratio D/d between the pulley diameter D and the cable diameter d is 40 or less, the equation is as follows:

Eδ/2D＜260(Mpa)

For example, in an elevator device using conventional steel wires, the pulley diameter D is 500mm, the steel rope diameter d is 12mm, and the steel wires constituting the steel rope 1 have a diameter of 0.8mm. The ratio D/d of the pulley diameter D to the wire diameter d was 41.7. On the contrary, for the steel cable of the present embodiment, if the pulley diameter D is reduced to 200mm, the steel cable diameter d is set to 12mm, and its diameter δ of the steel wire constituting the steel cable 1 is about 0.50mm, then the value D/ d is 16.7mm. Furthermore, if the wire diameter d is set to be 12 mm and the diameter δ of the wire constituting the wire rope 1 is about 0.25 mm, then the value D/d is 8.3 mm.

From the perspective of fatigue, the stress σa generated on the steel wire 2 can be reduced by reducing the diameter δ of the steel wire 2 . In addition, if considering the fact that wear due to the relative movement of the steel wire 2 affects the service life of the cable, reducing the diameter of the steel wire 2 affects the life of the cable. The relative movement of the cable 2, ie the sliding distance, increases with the increase of the cable diameter d. In order to reduce the distance of relative movement, it is better to make the diameter of the cable smaller. However, reducing the diameter d of the steel cable also reduces the breaking strength of the steel cable 1, so the breaking strength of the steel wire 2 must be increased. Thus, the breaking strength of the steel wires 2 constituting the steel cord 1 should be 1770 MPa or greater.

In addition, in this embodiment, the surface of each steel wire 2 is covered with a steel wire coating 4 in order to reduce the abrasion caused by the relative movement of the steel wires 2 . The wire coating 4 is made of resin such as polyethylene, polyamide, tetrafluoroethylene, polyurethane, epoxy resin or vinyl chloride. Compared with steel, the elastic modulus of the steel wire coating 4 is small, so that when the steel wires 2 contact each other, a sufficient contact area is formed to allow the steel wires to slide under low surface pressure. In this way, it is possible to prevent the steel wires 2 from contacting each other locally, thereby reducing the wear of the steel wires.

The steel wire coating 4 used to reduce the wear of the steel wire 2 is made of an existing material whose plastic flow pressure is lower than that of steel, that is, a soft coating material. The frictional force generated by the mutual sliding contact of the steel wires 2 can be roughly represented by the product Aw·s of the contact area Aw and the shear strength s of the material. In this way, the contact area Aw is basically equal to (vertical load)/(plastic flow pressure of the material), so that the steel as the base material has a smaller contact area. Therefore, the shear generated by the relative sliding of the steel wire 2 can be borne by the steel wire coating 4, which is made of a soft coating material with low shear strength, and the vertical load is carried by the base material The steel wire 2 is supported, so that the frictional force is very small. In this case, a solid lubricant such as molybdenum sulfide or graphite can be used as the soft coating material constituting the wire coating 4, and the same effect can be produced.

In the case of reducing the diameter δ of the wire 2 and the diameter D of the pulley, in addition to the wear caused by the relative sliding of the wire 2, the wear caused by the contact between the outermost wire on the cable and the pulley groove must also be considered wear and tear. Therefore, in this embodiment, in order to reduce the wear between the steel wire 2 and the pulley groove, the outermost surface of the steel cable 1 is covered with a steel cable coating 5, as shown in FIG. 1 . The above-mentioned coating material for the wire rope 2 can be used as the material for the wire rope coating 5 . In summary, wear has a close relationship with the ratio of contact surface pressure to material yield pressure, so the amount of wear can be reduced by reducing this ratio. That is, as described above, reducing the contact surface pressure is very effective in reducing the amount of wear. Compared with the case where the wire 2 is in direct contact with the pulley groove, the case where the entire wire rope 1 is covered with a coating in a closed state and contacts the pulley groove can increase the radius of curvature at the contact point, thereby increasing the contact surface, that is, reducing the contact surface pressure. In addition, in addition to the radius of curvature on the contact point, the contact area can be increased and the contact pressure can be reduced by reducing the elastic modulus of the material.

The intermediate coating material 6 is arranged between the steel wire 2 and the steel cord coating 5 applied on the outermost layer and reduces the wear of the steel cord coating 5 from the inside. In addition, the steel cable coating 5 also has the function of isolating the entire steel cable 1 from the surrounding air, thereby improving the corrosion resistance of the steel cable 1 . Therefore, even if the mechanical equipment is installed outdoors, the stable reliability and service life of the steel cable 1 can be guaranteed. In addition, the color of the steel cable coating 5 can be set at will, so that the mechanical equipment installed outdoors or indoors has a large design space.

Since the cable 1 of the present invention is made in the above manner, the steel wires 2 do not come into direct contact with each other or with the pulley groove. Thus, in the steel strand 3 formed by twisting together a plurality of steel wires, the steel wires arranged in the outermost layer need not have wear resistance. The steel cable 1 according to the invention finally consists of Wallington-type steel strands 3, while the steel wires 2 have a substantially equal diameter δ.

When the diameter D of the pulley is reduced in order to facilitate the reduction of the size and weight of the mechanical equipment, in addition to the bending due to the smaller diameter of the wire, the coating 4 on the wire 2 and the coating 5 of the wire on the entire rope 1 In addition to the stress reduction, the twisting method of the steel cable 1 will also affect the flexibility of the steel cable, wherein the coating 4 is used to reduce the wear caused by the reduction of the steel wire diameter. In short, the twisting method of the steel wire 1 used in mechanical equipment includes: the Lang's twisting method (Lang's layer) of twisting the steel wire 2 and the steel strand 3 in the same direction and twisting the steel wire 2 and the steel strand 3 along the same direction. Ordinary twisting method of twisting in opposite directions.

In a cable produced by the Lange twist method, the angle formed by the steel wire 2 with respect to the central axis of the steel cable 1 is greater than the corresponding angle in a cable produced by the ordinary twist method. Therefore, the overall flexibility of Lang's Twisted Cable is high in terms of bending alone. In this way, when the cable 1 of the present embodiment is used in the case where the diameter of the pulley becomes smaller, for example, in an elevator, when the cable is used in a situation where the ratio of the diameter D of the pulley to the diameter d of the cable is lower than 40, it can be used Cable 1 made by twisting method. In addition, in the cable made by the Langer twist method, the steel wire on the surface of the cable is longer, and the surface is smoother than that of the cable made by the ordinary twist method, so that the cable made by the Langer twist method The cables withstand little local contact and low contact surface pressure. Thus, when the cable 1 is clamped in the pulley, the compressive stresses acting on the coating of the cable are lower compared to cables made by ordinary twisting methods. The contact pressure between the cable 1 and the pulley increases as the diameter of the pulley decreases. Considering the fatigue and life of the cable coating 5, in the case where the cable 1 of this embodiment is applied to an elevator whose pulley diameter has been reduced, when the ratio D/d of the pulley diameter D to the cable diameter d is less than 40 , you can use the cable 1 made by Lang's twist method.

In addition, in the case of cables made by ordinary twisting methods, when tension acts on the cables, the rotational resistance in the untwisting direction increases. Thus, if the cable 1 of the present embodiment is applied to a machine with the highest priority of preventing the rotation of the cable 1, the cable 1 made by the ordinary twisting method can be used.

When the steel wire 2 constituting the cable 1 breaks, the service life of the cable 1 as a load-bearing part will be reduced. Determining the breakage of the cable 1 covered with the outermost layer of the cable coating 5 can be carried out by detecting the breakage of the steel wire 2 constituting the load-bearing part by means of magnetic flaw detection such as magnetic flux leakage.

FIG. 3 is a cross-sectional view of the cable 1 of the present invention clamped in the pulley 7 . In the case of an elevator application, the cable 1 is clamped in the pulley groove 8 and a motor (not shown) is used to rotate the pulley 7 so that the cable 1 passes through the friction force between the cable 1 and the pulley groove 8 be driven. The pulley groove 8 is provided in a liner 9 mounted in the pulley 7 to which the liner 9 is detachably mounted. The pad 9 is made of resin, for example polyurethane, polyamide or polyethylene, taking into account the friction forces and possible wear that occur between the pad 9 and the cable coating 5 . By using these resin materials, the contact with the cable coating material similar to the above resin materials can be made elastic, or viscoelastic resin friction and sufficient friction force can be produced in the elevator. It is also possible to replace the liner 9 by applying a coating of resin material, which also produces suitable friction and wear resistance.

Fig. 4 is a cross-sectional view of a second embodiment of the cable of the present invention. This embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that a fiber core 10 is mounted in the center of the cable 1 . The fiber core 10 is made of a natural fiber such as hemp or a synthetic fiber such as polypropylene, polyester, polyamide, polyethylene, aramid or PBO. This structure reduces the wear of the steel wire 2 or wire coating 4 due to the relative sliding of the steel strand 3 when the cable is under tension or is bent by being wound on a pulley. Furthermore, the fiber core 10 made of high-strength synthetic fibers increases the breaking strength of the cable 1 . In this case, the twisting method of the fiber core is set in such a way that the elongation of the strand made of steel wire 2 matches the elongation of the fiber core to distribute the load correctly to the strand 3 and fiber core. The core material of the cable can be polyurethane, polyamide or polyethylene.

Fig. 5 is a cross-sectional view of a third embodiment of the cable of the present invention. This embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that the steel strand 3 arranged in the center of the cable is covered with a steel strand coating 11 . The strand coating 11 is made of a resin material such as polyurethane, polyamide or polyethylene. In this way, the wear of the steel wire 2 or the steel wire coating 4 due to the relative sliding of the steel strand 3 can be reduced. All strands 3 can be coated with a strand coating.

Fig. 6 is a cross-sectional view of a fourth embodiment of the cable of the present invention. This embodiment differs from the first embodiment in that all steel strands 3 are coated with a steel strand coating 11 . In this way, compared with the above-mentioned embodiments, this embodiment can more effectively reduce the abrasion of the steel wire 2 or the steel wire coating 4 due to the relative sliding of the steel strand 3 .

Fig. 7 is a cross-sectional view of a fifth embodiment of the cable of the present invention. The difference between this embodiment and the sixth embodiment is that there is no coating on the steel wire, but each steel strand 3 is covered with a steel strand coating 11 and filled with a lubricant 12 . The lubricant 12 is a solid lubricant such as molybdenum sulfide or graphite or grease. With this structure, even if the cable 1 is bent, the lubricant 12 can still be used to reduce the wear due to the relative sliding of the steel wire 2 . In this regard, compared to the sixth embodiment, the service life of the cable can be further extended by having each steel wire 2 coated and further sealing the lubricant into each steel strand. In the above-mentioned embodiment, the service life of the cable can be extended by filling each steel strand with the same filler material as the above-mentioned coating material.

Fig. 8 is a perspective view of a first embodiment of an elevator employing the above steel ropes. In addition, FIG. 9 is a top view showing the hoistway of this embodiment when viewed from above.

The elevator car 51 is supported on cables 53 by means of pulleys mounted on the bottom of the elevator car. One end of the cable 53 is fixed to the building at a support point 54 . Its other end is fixed on the building at supporting point 55 by the pulley 52 that is installed on the bottom of elevator car, pulley 56 and a counterweight pulley 58 that is installed on the counterweight 57. The driving device 59 rotates the pulley 56 to drive the cable 53 by the frictional force generated between the pulley 56 and the cable 53, thereby moving the elevator car 51 and the counterweight 57 in the vertical direction. The drive device 59 is provided with a brake 60 .

In FIG. 8, the driving means 59 is shown as a gearless type driving means including a motor, but it may also be a gear type driving means using reduction gears. As shown in FIG. 9, the elevator car 51 can be controlled by the guide member 61 and the elevator car rail 62 so as to move only in the vertical direction. Also, although not shown in the figures, the counterweight 57 is controlled by means of guide members and a counterweight rail 63 so that it moves only in the vertical direction. In addition, the elevator car 51 is provided with doors 72a and 72b on the side of the elevator car so as to be opposed to the parking side doors 73a and 73b on the side of the walkway. In Figures 8 and 9, the drive unit 59 is suspended above the elevator car 51, but it could also be mounted in the space between the elevator car 51 and the hoistway wall 64 via a smaller motor or reduction gear.

When the cable 53 is manufactured as in the above embodiment, the pulley 52, the pulley 56 and the counterweight pulley 58 at the bottom of the elevator car in Fig. 8 have smaller diameters than those using conventional cables.

The hoistway of the elevator is provided with a hollow at its bottom which is used as free space. In the structure that adopts the cable of the present invention, the diameter of the pulley 52 at the bottom of the elevator car is very small, so that the size of the bottom pulley 52 of the elevator car that protrudes downward from the elevator car is reduced, and the pit is also comparable to that of the prior art. The pits are shallower, which helps reduce the cost of building the building.

In addition, since the size of the pulley 52 at the bottom of the elevator car can be reduced, the overall weight of the elevator car can be reduced to allow acceleration and deceleration of the elevator car with less driving force. In this way, it is possible to reduce the size of the driver or motor constituting the driving means, thereby reducing the power of the power source that supplies power to the driving parts. In addition, although not shown in the drawings, the elevator car 51 is generally also provided with an emergency braking part capable of braking the elevator car 51 when the cable 53 breaks. Since the total weight of the elevator car 51 and the bottom pulley 52 of the elevator car has been reduced, the braking force required by the emergency braking components is also reduced, making the emergency braking components lighter than conventional components.

Furthermore, since the diameter of the pulley 56 becomes smaller, the rotational speed of the pulley 56 required to move the elevator car 51 at a predetermined speed increases, and the torque generated by the driving device 59 becomes smaller. That is, the drive device 59 operates at a greater speed with less torque. Thus, if the drive means 59 is a gearless drive, the diameter of the motor can be reduced. In addition, if a gear type drive is used, the reduction ratio of the reduction gear can be reduced or the reduction gear can be omitted. Like this just can reduce the installation space that is arranged on the drive device 59 of the top of hoistway, thereby, under the very low situation of the building ceiling of top floor, can reduce the protruding amount of hoistway.

As shown in Figure 9, in order to save the installation space of drive unit 59, pulley 56, counterweight pulley 58 and counterweight 58, preferably pulley 56 and counterweight pulley 58 are generally linearly installed on the elevator car 51 and the hoistway wall 64 in the gap between. In this way, when the diameters of the pulley 56 and the counterweight pulley 58 decrease, the mounting position of the counterweight pulley 58 moves in the direction of arrow A in the drawings. This enlarges the gap between the lifting channel wall 64 and the counterweight 57 in the above-mentioned figures, thereby increasing the width dimension of the counterweight 57 (dimension B in the figures). In this way, the thickness of the counterweight 57 (dimension C in the drawings) required to construct a counterweight of the same weight will be reduced, thereby reducing the gap between the elevator car 51 and the hoistway wall 64 (dimension D in the drawings). . Therefore, the space occupied by the lifting passage can be reduced.

In addition, the use of the cable 53 of the present invention shown in Figs. 8 and 9 has the following advantages.

Firstly, the service life of the cable 53 is extended, thereby extending the replacement period of the cable. That is to say, compared with the elevator using conventional cables, the friction coefficient between the cables 53 and the pulleys 56 is larger, so that the pressure of the cables 53 on the pulleys 56 can be reduced. This pressure is created by the tension in the cable, which in turn is created by the combined weight of the elevator car 51 and the counterweight 57 . Therefore, even if the pressure becomes small, no sliding occurs between the cable 53 and the pulley 56, that is, the total weight of the elevator car 51 and the counterweight 57 is reduced. Therefore, the manufacturing cost of the elevator car 51 and the counterweight 57 can be reduced, and the power of the driving device 59 and the power source can also be reduced.

In the embodiment shown in Figure 9, the longitudinal axes of the pulley 52 and the pulley 56 at the bottom of the elevator car are generally perpendicular to each other, rather than extending in the same direction. If a conventional flat belt were used in an elevator of this construction, the belt would twist between pulley 52 and pulley 56 at the bottom of the elevator car. The twisted flat belt enters the pulleys 52 and 56 at the bottom of the elevator car in an oblique direction, causing localized wear or unstable friction characteristics. On the contrary, since the cross-section of the cable 53 of the present invention is substantially circular, and even if a structure that may twist the cable is adopted, the situation of local wear and the situation of destabilizing the friction characteristic do not occur.

In addition, resin fiber cables may change or age when they are exposed to ultraviolet rays, so resin fiber cables cannot be used in conditions where sunlight may directly or indirectly shine on the hoistway and in sightseeing elevators installed outdoors. On the contrary, the cable of the present invention can use steel wires as reinforcing components for load bearing. Therefore, even when exposed to ultraviolet rays, the cable does not deteriorate and can be used under the conditions mentioned above.

In addition, at a temperature of about 200-700°C, the resin fiber cable may be denatured, thereby sharply reducing its strength. Therefore, when the resin fiber cable is applied to an elevator, it may break due to a fire in a building depending on its material. In addition, when the flat belt provided with the twisted steel wires becomes hot due to a fire in a building, the sheath resin material used to bind the twisted steel wires will melt, thereby causing the twisted wires to become entangled with each other, thus causing Make the elevator malfunction. In contrast, the cable of the present invention employs steel wires as reinforcing members for load bearing. Therefore, even if the hoistway becomes hot due to a fire, only the resin coating material is likely to melt, and its strength remains high at about 1000°C when using conventional steel cables. Since the elevator cannot be used when a fire breaks out in the building, the problem of reducing the durability of the cables due to a fire in the building does not directly affect the safety of the elevator, but when the building accidentally catches fire while the elevator is in use, The above features provide an effective measure.

In addition, in an elevator using traditional steel cables, the greater the lifting height, the longer the cable length. In this case, since the cable has to support its own weight, it is necessary to further increase the strength of the cable. In contrast, the cable 53 of the present invention has a lower weight per unit length than a conventional steel cable of equal strength. Therefore, even when the cable of the present invention is used for an elevator having a large hoisting height, the cable can suppress an increase in the suspension load due to its own weight.

The cable of the present invention has the advantage of being light in weight, so that when installing an elevator or replacing an old cable with a new one, the operations of transporting, installing and removing the cable are easy.

In addition, in the combined structure of the cable and the steel pulley in the prior art, noise is generated due to the mutual contact of the cable and the pulley. This is especially true in high-speed elevators where the pulleys rotate at high speeds. On the contrary, when the cable of the present invention is used, since its surface is coated with resin, which is softer than steel, contact noise can be prevented regardless of whether the pulley is made of steel or resin.

In addition, to prevent galling between wires or between strands, conventional wire ropes are filled with lubricant. Therefore, there is a possibility of oil stains such as lubricant splashing and sticking to clothes. In contrast, the cable of the present invention does not use lubricants, so oil contamination is never present. In conclusion, the steel cables of the elevator will not be exposed inside the elevator car or the passenger portion, and the above advantages can effectively prevent the hoistway walls from being polluted, or effectively improve the operating environment for maintenance and inspection workers.

In addition, the resin fiber cable has a large elongation at the beginning of use, so its length must be adjusted after a certain period of time after installation. This is because resin fibers are softer than steel wires, so it takes a long time for the fibers to adapt and come into close contact with each other. In contrast, the cable of the present invention has a steel wire structure at its center, so that its initial elongation stabilizes earlier than in the case of conventional steel cables, making it unnecessary to adjust the length of the cable again.

The cable of the present invention is coated with resin on its surface, so it can be arbitrarily colored by properly selecting the type of resin or mixing pigments into the resin. In this way, for a sightseeing elevator or an outdoor elevator, people can not notice the existence of the cable by making the color of the cable the same as the color of the building or the hoistway, or on the contrary, by making the color of the cable the same as the color of the building. Or the color of the hoistway is completely different to highlight the operation of the elevator. Alternatively, the different parts of the cable have different colors, so that different color combinations are seen depending on the vertical position of the elevator car 51 . In this case, it is necessary to prevent the resin layers from being separated from each other at the junction of colors. Therefore, instead of pre-mixing the pigment into the resin, it is possible to color the resin with different colors by mixing the pigment with the resin while continuously applying the resin to the outer circumference of the cable body and by changing the pigment to be mixed. Layer coloring, but also to ensure that the resin layer is a continuous layer. As mentioned above, the design effect can be enhanced by coloring the cables 53 .

Figure 10 is a top view of a second embodiment of an elevator employing the cables of the present invention. The main difference between this embodiment and the embodiment shown in FIG. 9 is that the counterweight 57 is installed in a different position. That is, the counterweight 57 is mounted between the side of the elevator car 51 positioned opposite the elevator car side doors 72a, 72b and the hoistway wall 64. Therefore, the pulley 52, the pulley 56 and the drive 59 at the bottom of the elevator car are installed in different positions. These structural differences are caused by the constraints of the building pattern. As shown in Figure 10, in this embodiment the longitudinal axes of the pulley 52 and the pulley 56 at the bottom of the elevator car extend in different directions, and the longitudinal axes of the pulley 56 and the counterweight pulley 58 also extend in different directions. That is, the cable is twisted between pulley 52 and pulley 56 and further twisted between pulley 56 and counterweight 58 . Therefore, if a conventional flat belt is used in an elevator having such a structure, local wear may occur, or the friction characteristics may become unstable, as compared with the structure shown in FIGS. 8 and 9. However, if the cable of the present invention is applied to the structure shown in Fig. 10, the phenomenon of localized wear and unstable friction characteristics will never occur because the cross-section of the cable is substantially circular, which is a feature of the present invention. . That is to say, this embodiment is a structure that can more fully utilize the advantages of the cable of the present invention.

Fig. 11 is a perspective view of a third embodiment of an elevator using the cables of the present invention. In this embodiment, top pulleys 65 and 66 are used to mount pulley 56, drive 59 and brake 60 at the bottom of the hoistway. The main advantage of this construction is that the potentially noisy drive 59 can be installed at the bottom of the hoistway, rather than at the top of the hoistway, where noise is less of a problem, but in the hoistway Noise travels most easily. In addition, compared with the embodiment shown in FIGS. 8 and 9, the entire length and weight of the cable 53 will become longer and heavier, respectively, so there is a problem that much time and effort are required to complete the installation operation. However, when the cable of the present invention is used in this structure, the weight of the entire cable can be reduced and the installation operation can be facilitated. That is to say, this embodiment is a structure that more fully utilizes the light weight advantage of the cable of the present invention.

Fig. 12 is a perspective view of a fourth embodiment of an elevator using the cables of the present invention. In this embodiment, the counterweight 57 shown in FIG. 11 is positioned behind the elevator car shown in FIG. 10 . Of course, this embodiment has the problems involved in the embodiment shown in Figures 10 and 11, namely, in Figure 10, the cable 53 is twisted in two places, and in Figure 11, due to the length of the cable, it is Increases the weight of the entire cable. However, by using the cable of the present invention, it is possible to prevent the occurrence of local wear and instability of the frictional characteristics, and also to reduce the weight of the entire cable, even in structures that require the cable to be twisted.

Fig. 13 is a perspective view of a fifth embodiment of an elevator using the cables of the present invention. In this embodiment, the pulley 56, drive 59 and brake 60 are mounted on top of the hoistway or in a machine room arranged above the hoistway. The elevator car is supported by an elevator car frame 68 and suspended from the cables 53 by a vertical frame 69 and a crosshead 70. One end of the cable 53 is connected to the crosshead 70 and the other end is connected to the counterweight 57 via the pulley 56 and the deflection wheel 67 . The pulley 56 is rotated to drive the cable 53 by friction between the pulley 56 and the cable 53 , thereby moving the elevator car 51 and the counterweight 57 . The support of the elevator car 51 by the elevator car frame 68 and the use of deflection wheels 67 are not essential requirements of the present invention.

This embodiment can be widely applied to the construction of elevators, but such constructions can also use the cables of the present invention. Specifically, in the structure of this embodiment, the deflection wheel 67 is often used, so compared with the structure without the deflection wheel, the winding angle, that is, the angle range in which the cable 53 is wound on the pulley 56 is likely to be smaller. The frictional force between the pulley 56 and the cable 53 has the property of decreasing continuously with the winding angle. Therefore, the friction force is insufficient to give the cable 53 a tendency to slide on the pulley 56 . On the contrary, when using the cable 53 of the present invention, a higher frictional force can be obtained as compared with the conventional steel cable, thereby providing a reliable elevator capable of preventing the cable 53 from slipping.

Fig. 14 is a perspective view of a sixth embodiment of an elevator using the cables of the present invention. This embodiment employs a thin cylindrical drive 59, brake 60 and pulley 56 having a small thickness relative to its diameter. Therefore, by disposing the driving device 59 in the space between the hoistway and the elevator car 51, the head space of the hoistway can be reduced. In other configurations, the driving device is installed in the headspace of the hoistway. The driving device 59 in this embodiment is preferably constituted by a permanent magnet type gearless synchronous motor. In this case, if the diameter of the pulley 56 is large, the rotational speed of the pulley 56 moving the elevator car 51 at the same speed is small, and the torque generated by the driving device 59 increases. Therefore, the diameter of the motor constituting the driving means 59 must be very large. On the contrary, when the cable of the present invention is used, the diameter of the pulley 56 can be reduced, so that the diameter of the driving device 59 can be appropriately reduced to reduce the size of the lifting passage.

Fig. 15 is a perspective view of a seventh embodiment of an elevator using the cables of the present invention. In this embodiment, the elevator car 51 is suspended from a suspension point 71 by cables 53 . The cable 53 is connected to a counterweight 57 through a pulley 56 . This structure does not require any vertical frames or crossheads to suspend the elevator car 51, so it has the advantage of simplifying the structure around the elevator car. Furthermore, since the crosshead is not required, the overall height including the elevator car and the crosshead is reduced, so that a small extra space can be provided at the top of the hoistway. Thus, since the driving device 59 is installed in this extra space, the smaller the height dimension of the driving device 59, the smaller the extra space. Therefore, when the cable of the present invention is used, the diameter of the pulley 56 can be small, and the diameter of the motor constituting the drive unit 59 can also be small, so that the height dimension of the drive unit 59 can be reduced. In this way, the extra space provided at the top of the hoistway can be kept small.

Fig. 16 is a perspective view of an eighth embodiment of an elevator using the cables of the present invention. The structure of this embodiment is as follows: the driving device 59, the brake 60 and the pulley 56 are installed inside the counterweight 57, and the cable 53 is driven by the pulley 56 to move the elevator car 51 and the counterweight 57 in the vertical direction. In the structure of this embodiment, it is not necessary to install the driving device and the like on the side of the building, so that the space of the hoistway can be reduced compared with the prior art. However, in order to fit the drive 59, brake 60 and pulley 56 within the counterweight 57, it is necessary to reduce the size of these components. On the contrary, if adopt the cable of the present invention, so just can reduce the diameter of pulley 56, thereby make driving device 59 and brake 60 become smaller, just can install these parts in counterweight 57 like this.

In FIG. 16, the driving device 59, the brake 60 and the pulley 56 are installed in the counterweight 57, but when these components are installed on the elevator car 51, the same effect can be obtained by using the cable of the present invention.

Fig. 17 is a perspective view of a ninth embodiment of an elevator employing the cables of the present invention. This embodiment is a structure with the following features: the elevator car 51 and the counterweight 57 are connected to each other by the top pulley 65 and the cable 53, the guide rail 76 is installed between the driving roller 74 and the pressure roller 75, and the driving device 59 is used to rotate The rollers 74 are driven to move the elevator car 51 and counterweight 57 in the vertical direction. Similar to the embodiment shown in Figure 16, this embodiment does not require the drive and other components to be mounted to the side of the building, so it has the effect of reducing the hoistway space. Here, the structure is preferably such that the top pulley 65 is supported on the guide rail 76 in order not to subject the side of the building to a suspension load. However, in order not to enlarge the hoistway, it is necessary to install the top pulley 65 in such a way that it can move its center from the guide rail 76 in the horizontal direction. In this case, the bending moment generated by the suspended load acts on the guide rail 76, thus easily bending the guide rail. On the contrary, if the cable of the present invention is used, the size of the top pulley 65 can be reduced, thereby reducing the horizontal displacement and bending moment between the top pulley 65 and the guide rail 76 . Therefore, the weight of the guide rail 76 can be reduced.

In addition to the above-mentioned elevators, the cable of the present invention can also be applied in other fields. As one of these applications, a case where the present invention is applied to a crane will be described below. In general, cranes are usually used outdoors or in a larger indoor space, which may expose the cables constituting the crane to wind, rain and dust. Therefore, wear caused by rust or dirt will shorten the service life of the cable. On the contrary, since the surface of the cable of the present invention is coated with a resin layer, the stranded steel wires as the reinforcing part are not directly exposed to wind, rain or dust. Therefore, the present invention can extend the life of the cable compared to conventional steel cables.

Furthermore, in the cable of the present invention, the surface of the resin layer can be easily colored. Therefore, by painting the resin layer of the surface in various colors, the cables are made easy to spot by the operator of the crane or the workers performing wire handling operations around the crane. Therefore, a crane with good safety and operability can be made. In this case, the color of the surface resin layer of the cable is preferably yellow, orange and different fluorescent colors. However, if the color of the surrounding environment is similar to the above-mentioned colors, then this color will not improve visibility, and of course other colors should be used.

As an example of applying the present invention to fields other than elevators, a case where the cable of the present invention is applied to gondolas or elevators in ski resorts will be described below. Gondolas or lifts are often used outdoors in a manner similar to a crane, as described above. The cable of the present invention is coated with resin so that it has good weather resistance and an extra long life.

In addition, the traditional steel cable appearance does not match the view of the ski resort because the steel wires are exposed. On the other hand, the cable of the present invention can easily color the surface resin layer, so that an elevator whose appearance can match the scenery can be manufactured. For example, if it is desired to make the lift unobtrusive, the cables are preferably painted white or a light color close to white. Conversely, if it is necessary to make the lift stand out in the direction of its extension, a visible color like red, blue or green is suitable. In particular, alternate directions of movement can be easily identified by passengers by painting the cables adjacent to the elevator in different colors.

Also, with a chair lift, the passenger sits right under the cable. Thus, there is a problem that depending on the way the lubricant is applied to the cable, the passenger's clothes may be soiled by falling lubricant droplets. But the cable of the present invention does not require the use of lubricants, so there is no need to worry about staining the clothes of passengers.

By the way, cables used on lifts in ski resorts must be looped, ie opposite ends of the cable must be connected together. For traditional steel cables, the cables are made into loops by unraveling the steel strands that make up the cables and then weaving together the steel strands protruding from opposite ends through a splicing process. On the contrary, the cable of the present invention can be made into a ring by the following operations:

A fixed portion of the surface coating resin located at both ends of the cable is removed. Then, the steel strands that make up the cable are untied, and the strands protruding from both ends are braided together through a splicing process. Next, the resin material is applied again to the treated portion.

In this case, if rainwater or the like penetrates into the cable through the recoated portion, the cable may be rusted and its strength deteriorated. Therefore, it is necessary to apply a coating on this part at least in a weatherproof manner. As a preferred example, a tube made of a heat-shrinkable resin may be fitted over the cable by heating, or a resin tape may be wound around the cable with a pressure-sensitive adhesive. Alternatively, a sealing material can be used to make the cable more weatherproof by closing the interface between the original surface resin layer and the reapplied resin.

The present invention made in the above manner can prevent the shortening of the life of the rope due to the reduction in the diameter of the elevator sheave, or prolong the life of the rope. Therefore, the present invention can reduce the size and weight of the equipment including a motor and a hoist, save the space required for installing the elevator, and also can improve the safety and reliability of the whole device by prolonging the service life of the cables.

Claims (15)

1. A cable comprising: a plurality of steel strands twisted together; A plurality of steel wires formed by twisting said steel strands together, wherein: The outer surface of the steel cable is coated with a resin material, and the cross section of the steel cable is substantially circular. 2. A cable according to claim 1, wherein said plurality of steel wires are coated with a resin material. 3. The cable of claim 2, further comprising: a fiber core disposed at the center of the cable. 4. The cable according to claim 1, wherein, among said plurality of steel strands, at least one steel strand disposed at the center of said cable is coated with a resin material. 5. The cable according to claim 2, wherein, among said plurality of steel strands, at least the steel strand at the center of said cable is coated with a resin material. 6. The cable of claim 1, wherein each of said plurality of steel strands is coated with a resin material. 7. The cable of claim 2, wherein each of said plurality of steel strands is coated with a resin material. 8. A cable according to claim 4, characterized in that a lubricant is impregnated into the coating of said steel strands. 9. A cable according to claim 5, characterized in that a lubricant is impregnated into the coating of said steel strands. 10. The cable of claim 6, wherein a lubricant is impregnated into the coating of each of said strands. 11. The cable of claim 7, wherein a lubricant is impregnated into the coating of each of said strands. 12. A cable according to claim 1, characterized in that said coating has multiple layers. 13. An elevator, wherein an elevator car and a counterweight are connected together by a plurality of main cables driven by being wound around a pulley which can be driven by a motor, and the plurality of Comprising a cable according to any one of claims 1 to 12. 14. An elevator according to claim 13, characterized in that the ratio D/d of the diameter D of said sheaves to the diameter d of said main harness is 40 or less, and The diameter δ of the steel wire and the diameter D of the pulley satisfy the following equation relationship: Eδ/2D＜260〔MPa〕 Where E represents the longitudinal characteristic modulus of the steel wire. 15. Elevator according to claim 13, characterized in that said cable is made by Lang's twisting process in which wires and strands are twisted together in the same direction.

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