GB2252287A - Conveyor apparatus - Google Patents

Abstract

Conveyor apparatus (10) for conveying passengers, which conveyor apparatus (10) comprises a elongate conveying platform (13) formed by a series of articulated platform elements (14) movable along a path to carry passengers thereon, two side walls (18) provided along opposite sides of the path, and a handrail (19 or 20) provided on and along the top of each side wall (18) and slidable at substantially the same speed as the conveying platform (13). Each hand rail (19 or 20) comprises a series of articulated members (32) provided lengthwise within a cover (31), and at least some of the handrail members (32a) have exposed base pans (33 and 34) slidably engaging the top of the corresponding side wall (18). <IMAGE>

Description

CONVEYOR APPARATUS This invention relates to conveyor apparatus for conveying people from one location to another.

Such conveyor apparatus (often referred to as "travelators") is already widely used in public buildings such as shopping malls. Generally speaking, such conveyor apparatus for conveying people travels in a straight line and in a horizontal plane only and/or normally for a relatively short distance.

In pending U.K. Patent Application No. 8909829.7, there is disclosed improved conveyor apparatus which is capable both of conveying people in a curved path and at different gradients as well as for a relatively long distance.

Conveyor apparatus for passengers must necessarily be provided with handrails which are preferably continuous throughout the path of travel and must necessarily travel at the same speed as the conveyor platforms.

According to the invention, there is provided conveyor apparatus for conveying passengers, which conveyor apparatus comprises a elongate conveying platform formed by a series of articulated platform elements movable along a path to carry passengers thereon, two side walls provided along opposite sides of the path, and a handrail provided on and along the top of each side wall and slidable at substantially the same speed as the conveying platform, each handrail comprising a series of articulated members provided lengthwise within a cover and at least some of the handrail members having exposed base parts slidably engaging the top of the corresponding side wall.

In a preferred embodiment, each handrail is driven by a driving wheel having its periphery shaped to engage with the base parts of said at least some handrail members.

Preferably, the handrail members are in the form of a series of loop members with substantially each pair of adjacent loop members passing through each other.

Advantageously, the cover is in the form of a sleeve.

It is preferred that a channel is provided along the top of each side wall, and the base parts of said at least some handrail members slidably engage within the corresponding channels.

Preferably, a roller is provided on the base part of each of said at least some handrail members so as to facilitate the sliding movement of the handrails.

The base part of each of said at least some handrail members may have a pair of said rollers on the two sides, said rollers being rotatable about substantially the same axis.

The base part of each of said at least some handrail members may more preferably have two said pairs of rollers, with one pair provided at the leading end and the other pair provided at the trailing end of the said handrail member.

In a preferred embodiment, there is provided an axle supporting the rollers of each said pair, and each corresponding driving wheel has recesses in and around its periphery, said recesses being arranged to engage the base parts of said at least some handrail members at the said axles.

It is preferred that the driving wheel for each handrail is provided within the corresponding side wall at a position between two ends of the said side wall.

It is preferred that each platform element comprises overlapping leading and trailing parts which are pivotable relative to each other about a generally vertical axis, and the leading part and trailing part of adjacent platform elements are pivotable relative to each other about a generally horizontal axis.

The invention will now be more particularly described, by way of example only, with reference to the accompanying drawings, in which: Figure 1 is an overall plan view of an embodiment of conveyor apparatus in accordance with the invention; Figure 2 is a sectional view of the conveyor apparatus of Figure 1 taken along line A-A; Figure 3 is a detailed fragmentary side view, partially broken away, of a part of a handrail of the conveyor apparatus of Figure 1; Figure 4 is a sectional view of the conveyor apparatus of Figure 1 taken along line D-D; Figure 5 is a fragmentary sectional side view of the handrail of the conveyor apparatus of Figure 1; and Figure 6 is a fragmentary sectional end view of the handrail of Figure 5.

Referring firstly to Figure 1 of the drawings, there is shown an embodiment of conveyor apparatus 10 according to the invention, mhici; has an entrance end 11 and an exit end 12 -placed side by side. The intermediate portion of the conveyor apparatus 10 extends in a partly straight partly curved manner, as shown. Conveying platform 13 for passengers is formed by a series of articulated platform elements 14, each having a leading part 15 and a trailing part 16.

As described in detail in pending U.K. Patent Application No. 8909829.7, the leading and trailing parts 15 and 16 of each platform element 14 are pivotable about a generally vertical axis relative to each other, and the leading and trailing parts 15 and 16 between adjacent platform elements 14 are pivotable about a generally horizontal axis relative to each other. This construction permits the conveying platform 13 to turn round and up or down in a smooth manner.

Throughout the entire section of the conveyor platform 13 accessible to passengers, there are provided an opposed pair of side walls 17 and 18 and a pair of handrails 19 and 20 on and slidable along the tops of the corresponding side walls 17 and 18, respectively, for the passengers to hold their balance. The handrails 19 and 20 are arranged to travel at the same speed as the conveying platform 13.

As the conveying platform 13 and the handrails 19 and 20 are required to travel in a not straight forward path and for a relatively long distance, as is apparent from Figure 1, drive stations 21 are provided at appropriate intervals.

Referring also to Figure 2, each drive station 21 comprises an electric motor 22 and a gearbox 23 for modifying the driving speed provided by the electric motor 22. The gearbox 23 is provided with one side wall 17 or 18 of the conveyor apparatus 10, and its output drive is transmitted to a co-operating gearbox 24 provided within the opposite side wall 18 or 17 by means of a drive-transmission shaft 25.

Insofar as each drive station 21 is concerned, the conveying platform 13 receives its driving force from the electric motor 22 by means of a pinion 26 mounted on the shaft 25. Each successive platform element 14 engages with the pinion 26, as the former passes above the latter, by means of a toothed rack 27 mounted on the underside of the said platform element 14 in the direction of travel. The handrails 19 and 20 receive their driving force from the electric motor 22 by means of corresponding drivetransmission chains 28 which are in drive engagement with the respective gearboxes 23 and 24.

As shown in Figures 3 and 4, the conveying platform 13 and the handrails 19 and 20 travel underneath a passenger loading/unloading platform 29 at the entrance and exit ends 11 and 12 of the conveyor apparatus 10. The loading/ unloading platform 29 is provided slightly above the conveying platform 13 so that the latter does not need to change its level of travel while passing through the platform 29. It is, however, necessary for the handrails 19 and 20 to turn down in order to pass underneath and turn up again after passing underneath the loading/unloading platform 29. In this regard, the handrails 19 and 20 are turned by means of rounded ends of the corresponding side walls 17 and 18 and respective wheels 34, in S-shaped paths as shown in Figure 3.

Referring now to Figures 5 and 6, each handrail 19 or 20 is formed by a chain 30 provided lengthwise within a rubber sleave 31. Each chain 30 is provided by a series of chain members 32 in the form of closed loops, with adjacent loops of each pair passing through each other. Each alternate (upright) chain member 32a has two pairs of rollers 33, with the rollers 33 of each pair mounted symmetrically on the corresponding ends of a laterally extending axle 34.

The two axles 34 of each chain member 32 are connected thereto from below by separate posts 35 depending from the corresponding leading and trailing ends of the said chain member 32. Adjacent chain members 32a are connected together by a chain member 32b which lies generally at right angles to the said chain members 32a when the chain 30 is in tension.

The handrails 19 and 20 are to be driven with the corresponding chains 30 taking up the tension, whilst the corresponding sleeves 31 are provided for comfortable passenger gripping. Each chain 30 receives its driving force via the respective drive-transmission chain 28 by means of a toothed wheel 36 around one side of which the said chain 28 engages (Figure 2).

The rollers 33 with the associated axles 34 are exposed below the corresponding sleeves 31, with the respective posts 35 extending through the corresponding sleeves 31.

In this particular embodiment, the posts 35 and thus the axles 34 are placed at regular intervals apart. Each driving wheel 36 has recesses 37 provided around the other side of its periphery at equal intervals generally identical with that of the roller axles 34. The uppermost recesses 37 of the driving wheels 37 engage with the corresponding roller axles 34 right above, whereby the chains 30 and thus the handrails 19 and 20 are drivable by the corresponding driving wheels 36 upon rotation of the latter.

The handrails 19 and 20 are guided to their paths of travel both along the tops of the corresponding side walls 17 and 18 and underneath the passenger loading/unloading platform 29 by means of respective co-extending guide-ways 38. Each guide-way 38 is formed by a pair of C-section channels 39 placed slightly apart in a face-to-face manner, leaving therebetween an upper gap 40 and a lower gap 41. The rollers 33 on opposite sides of each chain 30 are arranged to travel within and along the corresponding channels 39 of the respective guide-way 38. The upper gap 40 caters for the chain member posts 35 which pass therethrough. The internal width of each channel 39 is made only marginally larger than the diameter of the rollers 33, and the upper gap 40 is made only marginally wider than the diameter of the posts 35. This construction ensures reasonable stability of the handrails 19 and 20 in both vertical and horizontal directions. It is apparent that the lower gap 41 of each guide-way 38 is provided to permit the driving wheels 36 to engage with the corresponding chains 30.

It will be appreciated that the conveyor apparatus according to the invention may have the described handrail arrangement yet only for conveying passengers in a straight path and/or for a relatively short distance.

The invention has been given by way of example only, and various modifications of and/or alterations to the described embodiment may be made by persons skilled in the art without departing from the scope of the invention as specified in the appended claims.

Claims (12)

1. Conveyor apparatus for conveying passengers, which conveyor apparatus comprises a elongate conveying platform formed by a series of articulated platform elements movable along a path to carry passengers thereon, two side walls provided along opposite sides of the path, and a handrail provided on and along the top of each side wall and slidable at substantially the same speed as the conveying platform, each handrail comprising a series of articulated members provided lengthwise within a cover and at least some of the handrail members having exposed base parts slidably engaging the top of the corresponding side wall.

2. Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 1, wherein each handrail is driven by a driving wheel having its periphery shaped to engage with the base parts of said at least some handrail members.

3. Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 1 or claim 2, wherein the handrail members are in the form of a series of loop members with substantially each pair of adjacent loop members passing through each other.

4. Conveyor apparatus as claimed in any one of claim 1 to claim 3, wherein the cover is in the form of a sleeve.

5. Conveyor apparatus as claimed in any one of claim 1 to claim 4, wherein a channel is provided along the top of each side wall, and the base parts of said at least some handrail members slidably engage within the corresponding channels.

6. Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 5, wherein a roller is provided on the base part of each of said at least some handrail members so as to facilitate the sliding movement of the handrails.

7. Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 6, wherein the base part of each of said at least some handrail members has a pair of said rollers on the two sides, said rollers being rotatable about substantially the same axis.

8. Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 7, wherein the base part of each of said at least some handrail members has two said pairs of rollers, with one pair provided at the leading end and the other pair provided at the trailing end of the said handrail member.

9. Conveyor apparatus as claimed in claim 7 or claim 8 when dependent upon claim 2, wherein there is provided an axle supporting the rollers of each said pair, and each corresponding driving wheel has recesses in and around its periphery, said recesses being arranged to engage the base parts of said at least some handrail members at the said axles.

10. Conveyor apparatus as claimed in any one of claim 2 to claim 9, wherein the driving wheel for each handrail is provided within the corresponding side wall at a position between two ends of the said side wall.

11. Conveyor apparatus as claimed in any one of the preceding claims, wherein each platform element comprises overlapping leading and trailing parts which are pivotable relative to each other about a generally vertical axis, and the leading part and trailing part of adjacent platform elements are pivotable relative to each other about a generally horizontal axis.

12. Conveyor apparatus substantially as hereinbefore described with reference to the accompanying drawings.