Method for post-processing a surface structure of shaft material

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10696522-B2
Application number	US-201515534784-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Dec 14, 2015
Priority date	Dec 15, 2014
Publication date	Jun 30, 2020
Grant date	Jun 30, 2020

Abstract

A method for refinishing a surface structure of shaft material of an elevator, which extends along a shaft, enables the use of image data to determine an absolute position and/or speed of an elevator car. The elevator includes the elevator car, which is movable in the shaft, a camera, which is arranged at the elevator car and generates the image data from the surface structure, and an evaluating unit, which determines the absolute position and/or the speed of the elevator car from the image data. The surface structure is refinished at least locally in order to increase a distinctiveness of the surface structure in the image data. The shaft material can be, for example, a guide rail, a fastening element of the guide rail, or a shaft wall.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A method for determining an absolute position and/or speed of an elevator car that is movable in an elevator shaft, the method comprising the steps of:
identifying a surface structure of an elevator shaft material in the elevator shaft for determining the absolute position and/or speed of the elevator car in the elevator shaft, the surface structure extending in the shaft along a travel path of the elevator car;
selecting at least one location on the surface structure for refinishing;
refinishing the at least one location by at least one of mechanical processing and layer-coating processing to increase a distinctiveness of the at least one location in image data;
arranging a camera at the elevator car; and
generating the image data of the at least one location on the surface structure from the camera for use by an evaluating unit to determine at least one of the absolute position and the speed of the elevator car based upon the image data.

2. The method according to claim 1 wherein the at least one location is an entirety of the surface structure.

3. The method according to claim 1 wherein the at least one location includes all of the surface structure that lacks distinctiveness detectable in the image data prior to performing the refinishing step.

4. The method according to claim 1 wherein the surface structure is refinished subsequently to a basic process of forming the shaft material.

5. The method according to claim 1 wherein the surface structure is part of at least one of a wall of the elevator shaft, a guide rail in the elevator shaft and a fastening element in the elevator shaft.

6. The method according to claim 1 including performing the refinishing step by spraying-on a three-dimensional structure using a structuring spray.

7. The method according to claim 6 wherein the three-dimensional structure is at least one of a nitro-cellulose binder, a vinyl copolymer and a polyurethane synthetic resin dispersion.

8. The method according to claim 1 including performing the refinishing step by spraying-on a two-dimensional pattern using a pattern spray.

9. The method according to claim 8 wherein the two-dimensional pattern is formed from a hammer-finish paint that includes at least one of aluminum flakes, mica, bronze and silicon oil.

10. The method according to claim 1 including performing the refinishing step by a machining processing method.

11. The method according to claim 10 wherein the machining processing method is at least one of grinding, engraving, blasting and brushing.

12. The method according to claim 1 including performing the refinishing step by a non-machining processing method.

13. The method according to claim 12 wherein the non-machining processing method is at least one of stamping, etching, hammering and laser marking.

14. An elevator comprising:
an elevator car movable in a shaft, the shaft including a shaft material that has a surface structure extending along a travel path of the elevator car;
a camera arranged at the elevator car for generating image data from the surface structure wherein an evaluating unit determines an absolute position of the elevator car in the shaft based upon the image data; and
wherein the shaft material is an elevator component refinished, at least locally, by performing the method according to claim 1 .

15. The elevator according to claim 14 wherein the elevator component is one of a wall of the shaft, a guide rail for the elevator car, and a fastening element for the guide rail.

Assignees

• Inventio Ag

Inventors

• Bitzi Raphael
• Weinberger Karl

Classifications

• B66B1/3492 Primary

  Position or motion detectors or driving means for the detector (B66B1/40, B66B1/50 take precedence; length measuring G01B; speed measuring G01P) · CPC title

• B66B7/023

  Mounting means therefor · CPC title

• B66B9/00

  Kinds or types of lifts in, or associated with, buildings or other structures (characterised by control systems B66B1/00; apparatus for raising or lowering persons on stages of theatres A63J5/12) · CPC title

• B66B1/34

  Details {, e.g. call counting devices, data transmission from car to control system, devices giving information to the control system} · CPC title

• B66B7/02

  Guideways; Guides (arrangements in mine shafts E21D7/02) · CPC title