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(11) | EP 0 748 759 A1 |
| (12) | EUROPEAN PATENT APPLICATION |
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| (54) | Suspension apparatus for elevator doors |
| (57) Suspension apparatus for landing doors or car doors of an elevator, which doors are
telescopic comprising an outer door panel (10) and an inner door panel (12) comprising
a horizontal rail (28) of substantially I-shaped transverse section defining two lower
wheel tracks (46,48) and two upper wheel tracks (38,40), suspension plates (50,52)
fixed to the upper edges of the door panels and each having at least two spindles
(74) on which lower and upper wheels are journalled, the two upper tracks of the rail
each having at least one cutout through which the wheels can be removed from the rail
or inserted therein, and each of the suspension plates having ports through which
a curved tool may be inserted for securing a lock nut on the inner wheels whilst a
second tool loosens the spindle. |
[0001] The present invention relates to suspension apparatus for landing doors or car doors of elevators, and more particularly telescopic doors with side opening or central opening. Doors of this kind normally have a fast-acting outer panel and a slow-acting inner panel the speed of displacement of which is generally half of that of the fast-acting panel.
[0002] A suspension apparatus for telescopic doors is already known, comprising two separate parallel rolling rails, each provided with two tracks located one above the other, one being adapted for the travel of wheels and the other for the travel of counter-wheels, the wheels and counter-wheels being carried by suspension plates which are fixed to the upper edges of the door panels.
[0003] Suspension apparatus of this kind is difficult to mount as it comprises numerous elements which have to be correctly adjusted relative to one another. In particular, care must be taken to ensure that the two rails are parallel and straight. A much simpler suspension device for telescopic doors is known, which comprises only one rail with two tracks. This rail has a substantially I-shaped section and comprises a vertical central core and, on each side thereof, four horizontal side wings the longitudinal edges of which are curved vertically inwards to form two lower rolling tracks intended for the running of wheels and two upper counter-abutment tracks on which the said wheels abut when the panels are raised. The wheels are journalled on spindles which are removably carried on suspension plates fixed to the door panels. This suspension apparatus which has only one rail and no counter-wheels is naturally easier to assemble than the apparatus having two rails and counter-wheels mentioned above.
[0004] Nevertheless, this latter suspension apparatus does not allow easy replacement of the wheels. In fact, it is impossible to remove them perpendicularly to the rail as they straddle the counter-abutment rolling tracks and are therefore retained by their peripheral cheeks. Moreover, the wheels of the inner door panel are even more difficult to replace because they are housed in the rear track of the rail and are thus inaccessible from the front. As a result, the wheels can only be replaced by dismantling the entire suspension apparatus, which is a long and complicated task.
[0005] The present invention sets out to overcome these drawbacks and provides suspension apparatus for the doors of an elevator which allows rapid and simple replacement of the wheels, without the need to dismantle the entire suspension apparatus.
[0006] Thus according to the invention there is provided suspension apparatus for landing doors or car doors of an elevator, which doors are telescopic comprising an outer door panel and an inner door panel, comprising:
a horizontal rail of substantially I-shaped transverse cross-section comprising a vertical central core, lower horizontal wings the longitudinal edges of which extend upwardly to form lower wheel tracks and upper horizontal wings the longitudinal edges of which extend downwardly to form upper wheel tracks,
suspension plates fixed to the upper edges of the respective door panels and each carrying at least two spindles on which wheels are rotatably mounted, the wheels being arranged to roll along the lanes defined by said tracks, one on each side of the said central core, characterised in that
the two upper tracks of the said rail each have at least one cutout through which the said wheels can be removed from the rail transversely or inserted therein, each said spindle is in the form of a bolt having a non-circular head and a shank terminating in a threaded portion,
the said spindles of the wheels which roll along the outer lane of the rail pass through the suspension plate of the outer door panel from behind and are each fitted with a lock nut on their threaded portion which projects from the surface of said suspension plate,
the said central core of the rail has holes arranged to be located opposite the spindles of the wheels of the inner door panel when the said panel is in the closed position, whereby the spindles of the said wheels of the inner door panel may be inserted by being passed through said holes in the central core and then through their said wheels and the suspension plate of the inner door panel, whereafter a lock nut may be screwed onto the threaded portion thereof which projects from the rear surface of said suspension plate, and
each of the said suspension plates has ports through which a curved tool may be inserted for securing the lock nut of the inner wheels whilst a second tool, inserted through said holes in the central core of the rail and cooperating with the spindle head, unscrews the spindle.
[0007] An embodiment of the invention will now be describe by way of example and with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which:-
Figure 1 is a perspective view of a suspension device;
Figure 2 is an elevation of the suspension device of Figure 1;
Figure 3 is a sectional view on the line III-III in Figure 2;
Figure 4 is a sectional view on the line IV-IV in Figure 2;
Figure 5 is a sectional view on the line V-V in Figure 2;
Figure 6 is a sectional view on the line VI-VI in the Figure 2; and
Figure 7 is an elevation of a wheel spindle.
[0008] The invention will be described hereinafter with particular reference to a telescopic arrangement of doors opening to the side, comprising two simple door panels, but as will be seen it may equally be applied to telescopic doors opening centrally and comprising two pairs of telescopic doors moving in opposite directions. The landing door and the car door are fitted with identical suspension devices and this is why only one of these devices is shown in the drawings and described hereinafter.
[0009] The telescopic door shown in Figures 1 to 3 comprises an outer panel 10 and an inner panel 12 parallel to one another, their planes being slightly offset relative to one another. The panels 10,12 are carried by a suspension device 14 on which they are driven in sliding fashion at different speeds, the speed of travel of the outer panel 10 generally being twice that of the inner panel 12.
[0010] The suspension device 14 comprises a parallelepipedonal housing 16 which is elongate in the horizontal direction and is integrated in the lintel of the frame of the landing door of the elevator. In the case of a car door, this housing is fixed to the structure of the car.
[0011] The housing has a rear wall 18, an upper wall 20, a lower wall 22 and two end walls 24,26 and is open at the front so that an operator standing outside of the elevator car is given free access to the elements contained therein.
[0012] A horizontal rail 28 is fixed in the housing by means of flanges 30 integral with the end walls 24,26. The rail is substantially I-shaped in cross section. It has a central vertical core 32, two upper wings 34,36 having longitudinal edges 38,40 folded downwards, and two lower wings 42,44 having longitudinal edges 46,48 folded upwards.
[0013] The edges of the wings located on the same side of the central core, namely 38,46 and 40,48 respectively, are located in the same vertical plane and may thus serve respectively as rolling tracks and counter abutment tracks for the wheels.
[0014] The panels 10,12 of the door are respectively fixed at their upper edges to suspension plates 50,52, by means of nut and bolt assemblies 54.
[0015] In the case of a landing door, the suspension plate 50 is equipped with a lock 56 which cooperates with a keeper 58 fixed to the housing 14 when the door is in the closed position.
[0016] The panels 10,12 are driven along by a mechanism comprising a drive cable 60 which is wound around pulleys 62,64,65 which are fixed respectively to the rail 28 and to the suspension plates 50 and 52.
[0017] The suspension plate 50 for the outer panel 10 has on its rear surface at least two wheels 66,68 which are mounted so as to roll in the outer lane of the rail 28, formed by the tracks 38,46. Similarly, the suspension plate 52 for the inner panel 12 has on its front surface two wheels 70,72 mounted so as to roll in the inner lane of the rail, formed by the tracks 40,48.
[0018] The wheels 66,68,70,72 are rotatably mounted on spindles 74 one of which is shown in detail in Figure 7. The spindles are in the form of a bolt and comprise a shank 76 terminating in a threaded portion 78 and a six-sided head 80. At the end of the threaded portion is formed a hollow hexagonal recess 82 intended for the insertion of an Allen key.
[0019] As shown in Figures 3 and 5, the shank of the spindle 74 of each of the outer wheels 66,68 passes through the axial hole in said wheels from behind, the wheels having previously been positioned in the outer lane of the rail, and said shank then passes through the suspension plate 50. The threaded portion of the shank projects from the front surface of the suspension plate 50 and is fitted with a lock nut 84.
[0020] Two holes 86,88 are drilled in the central core 32 of the rail 28, these holes being located opposite the spindles 74 of the wheels 70,72 of the inner panel 12 when the latter is in the closed position.
[0021] As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the shank of the spindle of the inner wheels 70,72 passes successively, from in front, through said holes 86,88, through the axial hole of said wheels, previously positioned in the inner lane of the rail, and then through the suspension plate 52. The threaded portion of the shank projects from the front surface of the suspension plate 52 and is fitted with a lock nut 90.
[0022] In order to enable the wheels 66,68,70,72 to be replaced without having to dismantle the entire suspension system, cutouts 92,94 may be provided on the upper tracks 38,40 of the rail 28 so as to eliminate the bent edge over a length which is sufficient to enable the wheels to be removed. These cutouts may be provided close to the ends of the rail.
[0023] On the suspension plates 50,52, ports 96 to 99 are formed at points located above the spindles of the wheels; the use of these ports will be explained hereinafter.
[0025] Replacement is simple with regard to the wheels 66,68 of the outer panel 10. In order to do this, the two nuts 84 are removed, which are directly accessible on the front surface of the suspension plate 50. The wheels 66,68 are then disconnected from the suspension plate and rolled along the track 46 until they are level with the cutout 92 through which they are removed from the rail.
[0026] A new roller fitted with its spindle 74 is then introduced into the outer lane of the rail through the cutout 92, then rolled along until it arrives opposite one of the holes in the suspension plate 50. Then the threaded end 78 of the spindle is passed through said hole and a nut 84 is screwed onto this end. In order to prevent the spindle from rotating whilst the nut is tightened, it is held by means of a spanner which is inserted in the hollow recess 82.
[0027] In order to replace the wheels 70,72 of the inner panel 12, first of all the door is moved into its closed position so that the spindles of the wheels are facing the holes 86,88 in the rail. Then the nuts 90 are secured by means of a special curved spanner 100 which is passed through the port 98 or 99, as diagrammatically shown in Figure 4, whilst the spindle is unscrewed by means of a spanner cooperating with the head 80, through the hole 86 or 88. The wheels can then be disconnected from the suspension plate 52 by removing the spindles through the holes 86,88 in the rail and they are then rolled along until they are level with the cutout 94 through which they are removed from the rail.
[0028] A new roller, without its spindle, is introduced into the inner lane of the rail through the cutout 94 and rolled until it arrives opposite one of the holes 86 or 88 in the rail. Then the spindle 84 is inserted successively through said hole, the axial hole in the wheel and the corresponding hole in the suspension plate 52. Then, using the curved spanner 100, a nut 90 is placed on the threaded portion of the spindle which projects to the rear of the suspension plate 52. Whilst the nut is held with the curved spanner, the spindle is tightened using a simple spanner which engages with the head 80 through the hole 86 or 88.
[0029] Each of the suspension plates 50,52 has a lower edge 102,104 bent in a Z-shape which is intended to hook over the upwardly bent edges 106,108 of the lower wall 22 of the housing when the wheels 66,68 and 70,72 have been disconnected from the suspension plates. The panels 10,12 are consequently held in the suspended position and prevented from falling when they are disconnected from their wheels.
a horizontal rail (28) of substantially I-shaped transverse cross-section comprising a vertical central core (32), lower horizontal wings the longitudinal edges of which extend upwardly to form lower wheel tracks (46,48) and upper horizontal wings the longitudinal edges of which extend downwardly to form upper wheel tracks (38,40),
suspension plates (50,52) fixed to the upper edges of the respective door panels and each carrying at least two spindles (74) on which wheels (66,68, 70,72) are rotatably mounted, the wheels being arranged to roll along the lanes defined by said tracks, one on each side of the said central core, characterised in that the two upper tracks (38,40) of the said rail each have at least one cutout (92,94) through which the said wheels can be removed from the rail transversely or inserted therein,
each said spindle is in the form of a bolt having a non-circular head (80) and a shank (76) terminating in a threaded portion (78),
the said spindles of the wheels which roll along the outer lane of the rail pass through the suspension plate (50) of the outer door panel (10) from behind and are each fitted with a lock nut (84) on their threaded portion which projects from the surface of said suspension plate,
the said central core of the rail has holes (86,88) arranged to be located opposite the spindles of the wheels (70,72) of the inner door panel (12) when the said panel is in the closed position, whereby the spindles of the said wheels (70,72) of the inner door panel may be inserted by being passed through said holes (86,88) in the central core and then through their said wheels and the suspension plate (52) of the inner door panel, whereafter a lock nut (90) may be screwed onto the threaded portion thereof which projects from the rear surface of said suspension plate, and
each of the said suspension plates has ports (96 to 99) through which a curved tool (100) may be inserted for securing the lock nut (90) of the inner wheels whilst a second tool, inserted through said holes (86, 88) in the central core of the rail and cooperating with the spindle head (80), unscrews the spindle.
characterised in that the said spindles (74) have, at their end located nearest the threaded portion, a hollow hexagonal recess (82) for the insertion of a tool to secure the spindle (74) whilst the said lock nut (84) is tightened or loosened.