Abstract: A safety device to arrest movement of an elevator car guided by non-metallic guide rails employs a friction surface mounted on a wedge. The wedge is located in proximity to an angular horizontal locator when in the unengaged position. Upon activation of the wedge during an overspeed condition the horizontal locator urges the friction surface of the wedge into contact with the guide rail.

Abstract: In an elevator system utilizing up-peak channeling which displays the floors of the sectors to be served by each elevator during its next trip, visually handicapped persons alert the system by means of a signal transmission from a portable device, and are then enabled to enter a car call for any floor in the building. An embodiment with a lobby receiver enables calls to any floor in the next several elevators which may leave the lobby floor. An embodiment with receivers in every car enables calls to any floor in a car which receives the signal.

Abstract: A normal terminal stopping device (NTSD) using terminal zone position checkpoint detection with a binary coding method to identify a checkpoint within a terminal zone, and a digital shaft encoder mounted on the shaft of the hoist motor to determine a car position relative to a target stopping point. A microprocessor-based controller is used to compare a velocity command signal to a velocity limit reference. If the velocity command exceeds the velocity limit, the NTSD functions will take over to cause the elevator car to decelerate at the NTSD rate. In particular, the velocity limit reference is computed according to lead compensation and curve shaping techniques to attain better drive tracking characteristics of the motion controller. Binary coded checkpoints are used to eliminate error introduced in a car position derived from a motor shaft digital encoder.

Abstract: An elevator system 10 includes an elevator car 12 with a plurality of roller guide assemblies 20 attached hereto. The roller guide assemblies 20 guide the elevator car 12 vertically within a hoistway along a plurality of guide rails 16. Each roller guide assembly 20 includes at least one resin stop assembly 50 to minimize vibration and lateral movement of the elevator car 12. The resin stop assembly 50 includes a resin spring 52 adjacent to a rigid container 54, both coupled between a roller wheel arm 26 and the roller guide base 40. The resin stop assembly 50 improves the ride quality of the elevator car 12 by selectively limiting lateral acceleration and velocity of the elevator car 12.

Abstract: Cabs, such as passenger and freight cabs, are transferred from one horizontal transport bogie that is moving along a track to another horizontal transport bogie moving at the same speed on an adjacent track. The cab may be transferred from one train or shuttle of moving bogies to another train of moving bogies, or may be transferred from a train of moving bogies to an auxiliary shuttle or bogie on a siding so as to permit the cab to be brought to a stop, either to allow transfer of passengers, to be moved into the car frame of an adjacent elevator for vertical transport within the building, or to simply await the coming of another train, traveling in either the same or in opposite direction, to which the cab may then be transferred.

Abstract: An emergency terminal speed limiting device (ETSLD) uses terminal zone position checkpoint detection with a binary coding method for the sensible stationary part mounted in the terminal zone. Instead of using three separate stationary vanes of different lengths as cams for actuating three separate switches on the car as they pass by the cams, only two vanes are needed. They can be of shorter length, e.g. equal length, and overlapped in a central part of the terminal zone to create three distinct subzones to thereby create a sensible binary coded subzone indicator. The boundaries of the subzones can be used as position checkpoints. Material and manpower for installation are thereby reduced. The stationary part need not be vanes but could take other forms such as reflective tape. Likewise, the moving sensor part can be other than a cam-operated switch, such as an optical transceiver.

Abstract: An elevator cab includes an indentation in the shape of the cab. The indentation permits the cab to be compact without compromising the floor area of the cab. In a particular embodiment, the indentation accommodates the presence of a machine in the hoistway when the cab is adjacent to the machine.