Solving Problems

Improvements for common issues

Compliant Electromechanical Door Interlock

The Atlas Interlock is an electromechanical door interlock for the residential elevator market. It was designed to facilitate compliance with the 3/4 in. hoistway door-to-landing sill space requirement, which says that the clearance between the back side of hoistway doors and the hoistway edge of the landing sill shall not exceed 3/4 in. This requirement is found in the ASME A17.1 National Safety Code for Elevators, section 5.3.1.7.2. The Atlas Interlock measures less than 3/4 in. in depth (0.6 in.), allowing it to fit behind the door and within the gap allowed by the ASME A17.1 code. The patent-pending design makes this the only interlock that fits within the 3/4 in. door to sill gap. This interlock also works well with applications such as dumbwaiters and vertical platform lifts.

Key Benefits

• Time savings during installation as this interlock requires no modification to the door or frame
• Cost savings as custom doors/frames are not required for installation of this interlock
• Easy integration with most controllers on the market
• Easy retrofit with existing installations to bring into compliance
• Features
• Compliance with ASME A17.1 and CSAB44.1
• Door-closed monitor and door-locked monitor
• Manual release from inside hoistway/car
• Keyed release from landing using lunar key
• Field changeable handing. One model works for right-hand and left-hand swing doors.
• Electrical
• 24V DC operation
• 250 mA max current (during lock/unlock)
• 15 mA current (when static)

Antimicrobial Technology

Microban International, part of Barr Brands International, has introduced MicroGuardTM by Microban®, antimicrobial technology for polyurethane (PU), elastomeric polymer (EVA) and PVC products. The technology can be integrated on all high touch point products and surfaces, including escalator and elevator handrails, buttons and flooring. MicroGuard is a series of antifungal additives for PVC, PU and EVA applications, including foam. MicroGuard provides high antifungal efficacy and 24/7 built-in protection, preventing microbial degradation to extend a product’s useful lifetime. MicroGuard is part of Microban’s commitment to provide novel technologies with more friendly toxicity profiles than currently available agents. MicroGuard has been developed as a non-leaching antifungal agent comprised of active ingredients that are free of metals, offering an alternative to arsenic-based OBPA — a common antifungal additive — that is causing regulatory concerns due to its ability to contaminate water sources and injure aquatic life. Microban International President Michael Ruby said:

“MicroGuard’s more favorable toxicity profile is ahead of the curve in terms of shifts in the regulatory landscape concerning built-in antifungals for these goods, offering manufacturers a highly effective built-in solution to increase product durability.”

Inductive Proximity Sensors

Carlo Gavazzi Automation Components, headquartered in Milan, Italy, with locations throughout North America, has launched its new ICF Full-Metal Inductive Sensors. The new family of sensors offers increased uptime due to stainless-steel housing and intelligent monitoring capabilities. The sensors are ideal for harsh environments and are fully applicable to the vertical-transportation industry, including elevators and escalators. Carlo Gavazzi is including IO-Link in every inductive sensor for easy ordering, application flexibility and reduced inventory. Through IO-Link, cyclic process data can monitor the quality of detection, which allows predictive maintenance to be scheduled before downtime occurs. Additionally, alarms can be customized to signal if a target position is trending closer to or further from the sensing face or high/low internal sensor temperature. The sensors can be used as standard transistor output sensors without an IO-Link operating environment. Therefore, the ICF Full-Metal Inductive Sensors meet customers’ needs wherever they are on the IIoT (Industrial Internet of Things) journey and equips them for future automation advances. Features and benefits of the ICF Full-Metal Inductive Sensors include:
Extended temperature range (-40° to 85° C and even short exposures of up to 15 min at 100° C)
Washdown capabilities (IP168 and IP69K)
Impact resistance up to 1J due to single-piece stainless-steel AISI304 housing
Ability to withstand pressure on sensing face (up to 260 bar for M12, 200 bar for M18 and 100 bar for M30 housings)
ECOLAB approval

Industrial Lubrication Guide

Renewable Lubricants, headquartered in Hartville, Ohio, recently published its Industrial Lubrication Guide, detailing the company’s extensive line of bio-based lubricants, hydraulic fluids, gear oils and much more. With more than 25 years’ experience manufacturing sustainable formulations, high-performing Renewable Lubricants products meet or exceed the specifications of petroleum-based products and are proven in a wide range of industries and applications, including vertical transportation. Renewable Lubricants observes these petroleum-free products are safer for both the environment and the employees working with them. Copies of the guide are available upon request.

Versatile Rope Alignment Tool

Smart Elevator Tech LLC’s Rope Align Block™ is a proven and effective way to solve common problems that arise with a traction elevator roped 1:1 — hoist ropes binding in the rope brake pads or ropes not aligning with the sheave grooves. When installing a rope brake, such as a Hollister-Whitney Rope Gripper®, BODE Rope Brake or the Draka ERB to an elevator roped 1:1, often the spread of the staggered ropes coming from the car or counterweight hitch is too wide for the open jaw clearance of the rope brake. The ropes lead off from the car or counterweight hitch plate with as much as a 4-in. spread, with each rope running in its own straight line to where it contacts the sheave. The Rope Align Block gathers and aligns the ropes to meet the narrow clearances between the brake pads.
The Rope Align Block is also used to gather ropes that are spread wider than the sheave groove pitch to eliminate misaligned side draw of the outer ropes. This reduces rope and sheave wear, as well as potential rope displacement. Another reported use is as a dampening device to aid in deadening machine harmonics to the elevator car. Fully ASME A17.1/CSA B44 compliant, the Rope Align Block is robustly made from 1.5-in. PVC, which is non-reactive with ropes and carries a flame spread rating <10 and smoke development 0-25. Each unit is made to order per rope size, pitch and number, can ship within five days and includes aircraft cables and clamps to secure the block to the rope shackles.