Emergency power supply device for lift systems

• US 20030089556A1
• Filed: 09/24/2002
• Published: 05/15/2003
• Est. Priority Date: 03/31/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Inventio AG (Schindler Holding AG)
• Original Assignee: Inventio AG (Schindler Holding AG)
• Inventors: Eilinger, Thomas
• Granted Patent: US 6,938,733 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 187/290
• CPC Class Codes: B66B 5/02 responsive to abnormal operating conditions
• CPC Class Codes: B66B 5/027 to permit passengers to leave an elevator car in case of failure, e.g. moving the car to a reference floor or unlocking the door

Abstract

Emergency current supply equipment (10) for lift installations with electric motor drives has the task of bridging over temporary drops or interruptions in main voltage and of supplying, in the event of failure of the mains supply during a lift travel, all components of the lift installation needed for an evacuation travel with energy until such time as the lift car has reached the level of a storey. The energy storage unit (11) used for that purpose comprises as the storage medium exclusively capacitors in the form of supercapacitors (13) or a combination of supercapacitors (13) and electrochemically acting batteries (14).

Claims

1. Emergency current supply equipment (10) for lift installations with electric motor drives, which comprises an energy storage unit (11) for electric energy, which bridges over temporary drops or interruptions in mains voltage and ensures the performance of an evacuation travel in the event of failure of the mains supply during a lift travel, in that it supplies energy to all electrical components, which participate in the evacuation travel, of the lift installation at least until such time as the lift cage has reached the level of a storey, characterised in that the energy storage unit (11) comprises capacitors in the form of supercapacitors (13).

2. Equipment according to claim 1, characterised in that the energy storage unit (11) comprises as the storage medium either exclusively supercapacitors (13) or a combination of supercapacitors (13) and electrochemically acting batteries (14).

3. Equipment according to one of claims 1 and 2, characterised in that it co-operates with a frequency converter (1) by which the travel speed of the lift is regulated.

4. Equipment according to claim 3, characterised in that the energy storage unit (11) thereof is charged from the direct voltage intermediate circuit (5) of the frequency converter (1) and that this energy storage unit (11) supplies stored energy back into this direct voltage intermediate circuit as needed, wherein an interposed power flow regulator (12) controls the energy flow between the different voltage levels of the direct voltage intermediate circuit (5) and the energy storage unit (11).

5. Equipment according to claim 4, characterised in that in the event of failure of the mains supply it supplies at least those electrical components (18), which must function for a full evacuation travel, of the lift installation with emergency current by way of the direct voltage intermediate circuit of the frequency converter, wherein these components (18) are also supplied in normal operation from the said direct voltage intermediate circuit (5).

6. Method for emergency current supply of lift installations with electric motor drives, in which in the event of failure of the mains supply or temporary drops or interruptions in mains voltage during a lift travel an emergency current supply equipment (10) supplies the components (18), which are important for an evacuation travel, of the lift installation with energy at least until such time as the lift cage has reached the level of a storey, characterised in that at least a part of the emergency current supply energy is stored in storage media in the form of supercapacitors (13).

7. Method according to claim 6, characterised in that in the event of failure of the mains supply or temporary drops or interruptions in mains voltage the emergency current supply equipment (10) comes into use free of interruption.

8. Method according to claim 6 or claim 7, characterised in that a single emergency current supply equipment (10) supplies several lifts.

9. Method according to claim 6 or claim 7, characterised in that the emergency current supply equipment (10) is installed either to be stationary in the building or to be mobile on a lift vehicle with integrated drives.

10. Method according to one of claims 6 to 9, characterised in that the emergency current supply equipment (10) comprises an energy storage unit (11), which is permanently connected by way of a power flow regulator (12) with the direct voltage intermediate circuit (5) of a frequency converter (1) and is so designed that in addition to its function as an emergency current store it serves in normal operation of the lift for reduction in the mains supply power required for the lift installation, in that the energy storage unit (11) receives energy from the mains in phases with a low power requirement of the drive system, recuperates energy during braking processes and delivers energy to the drive system during a high power requirement.