Safety device for an elevator

• US 20060137941A1
• Filed: 12/15/2005
• Published: 06/29/2006
• Est. Priority Date: 12/27/2004
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Moteurs Leroy Somer (Emerson Electric Company)
• Original Assignee: Moteurs Leroy Somer (Emerson Electric Company)
• Inventors: Robelin, Arnaud, Andrejak, Jean-Marie
• Granted Patent: US 7,506,726 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 187/293
• 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

The present invention relates to a safety device for an elevator comprising a cabin, a counterweight, a cabin drive motor, said motor having a rotor, and at least one power-failure electromechanical brake, the safety device comprising a control device arranged: to receive at least one information allowing emergency power to be applied to the brake in order to release the rotor and allow the cabin blocked between two floors to move under the effect of unbalance between the weight of the cabin and the weight of the counterweight; to receive at least one information enabling the speed of the cabin to be known; and to manage power supply to the brake in such a manner as to enable the cabin to move to an evacuation floor while preventing the speed of the cabin from exceeding a predefined limit, wherein the information enabling the speed of the cabin to be known is provided by at least one electrical magnitude from the motor.

Claims

1. A safety device for an elevator comprising a cabin, a counterweight, a cabin drive motor, said motor having a rotor, and at least one power-failure electromechanical brake, the safety device comprising a control device arranged:

to receive at least one information allowing emergency power to be applied to the brake in order to release the rotor and allow the cabin blocked between two floors to move under the effect of unbalance between the weight of the cabin and the weight of the counterweight;

to receive at least one information enabling the speed of the cabin to be known; and

to manage power supply to the brake in such a manner as to enable the cabin to move to an evacuation floor while preventing the speed of the cabin from exceeding a predefined limit,

wherein the information enabling the speed of the cabin to be known is provided by at least one electrical magnitude from the motor.

2. A device according to claim 1, in which the control device is arranged to receive information representative of the cabin arriving at the evacuation floor, and for automatically interrupting the power supply to the brake when said information is received.

3. A device according to claim 2, in which the evacuation floor is a floor other than the floors between which the cabin was initially situated.

4. A device according to claim 1, in which the control device is arranged to analyze information representative of the amplitude of the voltage induced by the rotation of the rotor and the frequency of said voltage, and in the event of inconsistency, to generate an error signal.

5. A device according to claim 1, comprising a battery for powering the brake in the absence of mains electricity.

6. A device according to claim 5, comprising a voltage-raising device for raising the voltage delivered by the battery to a value compatible with powering the brake.

7. A device according to claim 1, in which the brake is powered intermittently with a time-out of predetermined duration between two consecutive periods of power being applied to the brake.

8. A device according to claim 7, in which the time-out lies in the range about 0.5 s to about 10 s.

9. A device according to claim 1, comprising a brake power supply circuit having at least first and second contact switches that must both be ON to allow power to be applied to the brake, the first switch being controlled by a signal that is independent of the control device, the second switch being controlled both by a signal that is independent of the control device and by a signal coming from the control device.

11. Elevator machinery fitted with a safety device as defined in claim 1.

12. An elevator fitted with a safety device according to claim 1.

10. A safety device for an elevator comprising a cabin, a counterweight, a cabin drive motor, said motor having a rotor, and at least one power-failure electromechanical brake, the safety device comprising a control device arranged:

to receive at least one information allowing emergency power to be applied to the brake in order to release the rotor and allow the cabin blocked between two floors to move under the effect of unbalance between the weight of the cabin and the weight of the counterweight;

to receive at least one information enabling the speed of the cabin to be known; and

to manage power supply to the brake in such a manner as to enable the cabin to move to an evacuation floor while preventing the speed of the cabin from exceeding a predefined limit,

further comprising a brake power supply circuit having at least first and second contact switches that must both be ON to allow power to be applied to the brake, the first switch being controlled by a signal that is independent of the control device, the second switch being controlled both by a signal that is independent of the control device and by a signal coming from the control device.