JP2008168971A - Passenger conveyor - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To suppress increase in cost due to addition of a roller and the number of man-hours during maintenance work as much as possible, while effectively suppressing bending by adding the roller in a central part in the width direction of a step. <P>SOLUTION: An intermediate roller 10 is provided in the central part in the width direction of the step 2, and an intermediate guide rail 13 for supporting the intermediate roller 10 is laid. For the intermediate roller 10, a roller at least of which portion rolled on the intermediate guide rail 13 is made of metal or rigid plastic is used, and for the intermediate guide rail 13, a guide rail comprising a rail base material 13a and a cushioning material 13b fitted to the rail base material 13a is used. The intermediate roller 10 is rolled on the cushioning material 13b of the intermediate guide rail 13. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to passenger conveyors such as escalators and moving walkways, and in particular, has a structure in which rollers are arranged in the center in the width direction in addition to both ends in the width direction of steps and pallets (hereinafter collectively referred to as steps). Related to passenger conveyors.

  Passenger conveyors such as escalators and moving walkways have a structure that transports passengers by connecting a number of steps to a chain driven by a motor and circulating these steps between the entrance and exit. It is. In many steps, a pair of rollers is disposed at both ends in the width direction. The pair of rollers are supported by a pair of guide rails laid between the entrance and the exit. These rollers roll on the guide rails to guide the movement of the step. Further, when a passenger gets on the step, the reaction force due to the load acts on the pair of rollers in a distributed manner, and the step load is supported by the pair of rollers rolling on the guide rail.

By the way, in recent years, wide type passenger conveyors in which the distance in the width direction of the step is increased for the purpose of mass transportation. In this wide type passenger conveyor, for example, when the load is concentrated at the center of the step or when a plurality of passengers board a single step, depending on the load conditions, only the both ends in the width direction as described above are used. Support can cause deflection beyond the tolerance in the center of the step, preventing proper movement of the step. Therefore, as a solution to such a problem, a roller is also arranged on the lower surface of the central part in the width direction of the step, a guide rail is provided to support the roller, and the load of the step is supported at three points. Attempts have been made to suppress the bending that occurs at the center (see, for example, Patent Document 1).
JP 58-172181 A

  However, as described in Patent Document 1, in the case where the roller is also arranged on the lower surface of the central portion in the width direction of the step, there is a concern about a significant increase in cost due to an increase in the number of parts. For this reason, it is desired to make the individual rollers as simple as possible to reduce the unit price and to suppress the cost increase as much as possible. In addition, a roller with a general structure is prone to aged deterioration such as peeling and wear because the rolling surface is made of resin, and regular maintenance and inspection and parts replacement are required. If a roller having a simple structure is additionally installed in a number of steps, there is a concern that the number of man-hours for maintenance work will increase significantly and the maintenance work will become extremely complicated. For this reason, it is desired that the increase in the number of man-hours in maintenance work can be suppressed as much as possible by making the roller structure less susceptible to aging.

  The present invention was devised in view of the above circumstances, and in the cost increase and maintenance work by adding a roller while adding a roller to the central portion in the width direction of the step to effectively suppress bending. It aims at providing the passenger conveyor which can suppress an increase in a man-hour as much as possible.

  The passenger conveyor according to the present invention has a plurality of steps connected by a pair of chains at both ends in the width direction, and a pair of rollers rotatably attached to both ends in the width direction of the steps. A pair of guide rails that support the pair of rollers to guide the progress of the step, an intermediate roller that is rotatably attached to the center in the width direction of the step, and an intermediate guide rail that supports the intermediate roller The portion of the intermediate roller that rolls on at least the intermediate guide rail has higher hardness than the portion of the intermediate guide rail that the intermediate roller contacts.

  According to the passenger conveyor according to the present invention, it is possible to suppress as much as possible the cost increase and increase in the number of man-hours in maintenance work due to the addition of the intermediate roller while effectively suppressing the step deflection by the intermediate roller.

  Hereinafter, embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the drawings. In the following embodiments, as an example of a passenger conveyor to which the present invention is applied, a moving sidewalk that conveys passengers by moving a number of steps continuously in the horizontal direction is illustrated. Further, the present invention can be effectively applied to an escalator that conveys passengers across the upper and lower floors by moving a number of steps continuously in a vertical direction.

  FIG. 1 is a schematic diagram schematically showing the overall structure of a passenger conveyor. The passenger conveyor shown in FIG. 1 is configured as a moving sidewalk. By circulating a large number of steps 2 connected by an endless chain 1 between the entrance 3a and the exit 3b, the entrance 3a In this structure, the passenger boarding in Step 2 is transported to the exit 3b.

  This passenger conveyor is provided with a main frame 4 called a truss. In the main frame 4, for example, a driving device 5 having an electric motor, a speed reducer, and the like and a driving sprocket 6 driven to rotate by the driving device 5 are arranged on the exit 3 b side, and a driven sprocket 7 on the entrance 3 a side. Is arranged. An endless chain 1 is wound between the drive sprocket 6 and the driven sprocket 7. The endless chain 1 is transmitted with the driving sprocket 6 as it is driven by the driving device 5, and circulates between the entrance 3 a and the exit 3 b within the main frame 4.

  A number of steps 2 are each provided with a pair of rollers (only one shown) 8 at both ends in the width direction. The pair of rollers 8 in each step 2 is connected to the endless chain 1 at a predetermined pitch. Thereby, many steps 2 are mutually connected by the chain 1, and each step 2 circulates between the entrance 3a and the exit 3b as the chain 1 circulates. In the main frame 4, guide rails 9 for guiding the movement of step 2 are laid on the outward path side and the return side from the entrance 3 a side to the exit 3 b side. The rollers 8 provided at both ends in the width direction of each step 2 are supported on the guide rail 9 and roll on the guide rail 9 when the chain 1 is driven. Thereby, the circulation movement of step 2 between the entrance 3a and the exit 3b is guided.

  Although not shown, a pair of balustrades are erected in parallel on the main frame 4 at a predetermined interval corresponding to the width of step 2, and a handrail is mounted around the balustrade. . The handrail serves as a handrail to be gripped by the passenger boarding the step 2, and the driving force of the driving device 5 is transmitted to circulate around the balustrade in synchronization with the circulation movement of the step 2.

  In the passenger conveyor having the basic structure as described above, in the present invention, in addition to the rollers 8 provided at both ends in the width direction, a roller (intermediate roller) is provided at the center in the width direction in each of the many steps 2. In addition, an intermediate guide rail that supports the intermediate roller is provided inside the main frame 4 so that the deflection in step 2 due to load concentration can be effectively suppressed. In particular, in the present invention, at least the portion of the intermediate roller that rolls on the intermediate guide rail has a higher hardness than the portion of the intermediate guide rail that contacts the intermediate roller, specifically, for example, as an intermediate roller. , At least the part that rolls on the intermediate guide rail is made of metal or hard plastic, and the intermediate guide rail is made of a rail base material and a cushioning material attached to the rail base material Thus, by adopting a configuration in which the intermediate roller rolls on the cushioning material of the intermediate guide rail, it is possible to suppress as much as possible the increase in cost and increase in the number of man-hours in maintenance work due to the addition of the intermediate roller. Hereinafter, the characteristic part of the passenger conveyor to which the present invention is applied will be described in more detail.

  FIG. 2 is a view showing a state in which Step 2 is viewed from the traveling direction, and FIG. 3 is an enlarged view showing a portion A in FIG. As shown in FIGS. 2 and 3, in step 2, an intermediate roller 10 is provided in addition to the pair of rollers 8 provided at both ends in the width direction (left and right direction in the drawing). The intermediate roller 10 is attached to the lower surface of the central portion in the width direction of Step 2 by a screw member 12 via a bracket 11. An intermediate guide rail 13 that supports the intermediate roller 10 is provided below the intermediate roller 10. Similar to the guide rail 9 that supports the pair of rollers 8, the intermediate guide rail 13 is laid as a continuous rail between the entrance 3 a and the exit 3 b of the passenger conveyor.

  An example of the intermediate guide rail 13 is shown in FIGS. 4 is a view showing the intermediate guide rail 13 of this example as viewed from the direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of step 2, and FIG. 5 is a cross-sectional view taken along line BB in FIG. The intermediate guide rail 13 includes a rail base material 13a and a cushioning material 13b mounted on the upper surface of the rail base material 13a. The rail base material 13a is formed by molding a metal material having a high strength such as steel into a U-shaped rail shape so as to have sufficient rigidity with respect to the loading load in Step 2. It is fixedly supported by the main frame 4 of the conveyor. The buffer material 13b is formed of a wear-resistant resin material such as urethane or ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene, for example, and is attached to the upper surface of the rail base material 13a by screwing between the screw member 14 and the welding nut 15. Yes.

  More specifically, the rail base material 13a is provided with through holes at a predetermined pitch on the upper surface thereof, and a welding nut 15 is fixed to the back side of the position where the through holes are provided. In addition, mounting holes are provided in the cushioning material 13b at the same pitch as the through holes provided in the rail base material 13a. Then, the buffer material 13b is arranged on the upper surface of the rail base material 13a so that the mounting hole of the buffer material 13b and the through hole of the rail base material 13a coincide with each other, and the screw member 14 is inserted into the mounting hole and the through hole. The buffer material 13b is attached to the upper surface of the rail base material 13a by screwing with the welding nut 15. The mounting hole of the buffer member 13b is preferably formed in such a manner that the head of the screw member 14 is embedded in the buffer member 13a when the screw member 14 is screwed into the welding nut 15. As described above, the cushioning material 13b is continuously spread on the upper surface of the rail base material 13a so that no gaps or steps are formed on the upper surface thereof.

  An example of the intermediate roller 10 is shown in FIG. As shown in FIG. 6, the intermediate roller 10 includes a fixed shaft 10a fixedly supported by the bracket 11, and a plurality of bearings fitted to the fixed shaft 10a (two bearings in the example shown in FIG. 6). 10b. The bracket 11 has a T-shaped cross section, and a fixed shaft 10a is vertically fixedly supported on a vertical piece 11a. Further, the both ends of the fixed shaft 10a are stepped, and metal bearings 10b are fitted and fixed to the stepped portions. Here, the intermediate roller 10 is attached to the step 2 with the bracket 11 attached to the step 2 in a state where the horizontal piece 11b of the T-shaped bracket 11 is in contact with the lower surface of the central portion in the width direction of step 2. It is arranged at the center in the width direction of step 2. At this time, the fixed shaft 10a is arranged so that the axial direction thereof coincides with the width direction of Step 2, and the metal bearing 10b fitted to the fixed shaft 10a can be rotated in the advancing direction of Step 2. The

  In the passenger conveyor of this embodiment, when the chain 1 is driven and the step 2 moves, the metal bearing 10b of the intermediate roller 10 disposed at the center in the width direction of the step 2 is the cushioning material of the intermediate guide rail 13. Roll on 13b. That is, in the passenger conveyor of the present embodiment, periodic maintenance inspections and part replacements for aging deterioration may be performed on the buffer material 13b of the intermediate guide rail 13. Therefore, compared with the case where regular maintenance inspections and parts replacement are performed on the intermediate rollers provided in each of the many steps, such as a passenger conveyor with a roller having a general structure as an intermediate roller. Thus, work time and man-hours can be greatly reduced. Further, the portion of the intermediate roller 10 that contacts the intermediate guide rail 13 is a metal bearing 10b. Since this metal bearing 10b rolls on the resin cushioning material 13b, the occurrence of abnormal noise and vibration Can be effectively suppressed. Further, since the intermediate roller 10 has a simple structure in which the bearing 10b fitted to the fixed shaft 10a is a rolling element, the cost is low, and the resin material is vulcanized and bonded like an intermediate roller having a general structure. Since the joining process is not necessary, stable quality assurance can be expected.

  The intermediate roller 10 provided in the center in the width direction of Step 2 is not shown in FIG. 3 when the passenger is not on Step 2, that is, when no load is applied to Step 2, as shown in FIG. It is desirable that the thirteen cushion members 13b are arranged so as to be separated from each other by a predetermined gap amount Δ. This gap amount Δ is, for example, about 0.5 to 1.0 mm, and is a value equal to or less than an allowable value of the deflection at the center portion of Step 2.

  In this way, if the gap amount Δ is provided between the intermediate roller 10 and the intermediate rail 13, the intermediate roller can be used under no load or under a load condition in which the deflection at the center portion of Step 2 is less than Δ. 10 bearings 10a do not contact the cushioning material 13b of the intermediate rail 13, and the load is concentrated in the center of step 2 or when a plurality of passengers board one step 2 Both will be in contact with each other. Therefore, when the gap amount Δ is provided between the intermediate roller 10 and the intermediate rail 13, the bearing 10a of the intermediate roller 10 and the buffer material 13b of the intermediate rail 13 are always in contact without providing the gap amount Δ. Compared to the case, the wear of the cushioning material 13b can be greatly reduced, the replacement time can be extended, and the number of man-hours for maintenance and inspection can be further reduced.

  As described above, an example of a passenger conveyor to which the present invention is applied has been specifically described as an embodiment of the present invention. However, the technical scope of the present invention is not limited by the above disclosure, and for example, the intermediate roller 10 and the like The detailed structure of the intermediate guide rail 13 can be variously modified without departing from the spirit of the present invention.

  For example, as the structure of the intermediate roller 10, in addition to the structure shown in FIG. 6, for example, the structures shown in FIGS. The intermediate roller 10 shown in FIG. 7 uses two L-shaped brackets 16 instead of the T-shaped brackets 11, and the two L-shaped brackets 16 are fitted between the two fixed shafts 10 a. The bearing 10b is arranged. Also in the intermediate roller 10 shown in FIG. 7, it is the metal bearing 10b that rolls on the intermediate guide rail 13, and the same effect as when the intermediate roller 10 shown in FIG. 6 is used can be expected.

  Further, the intermediate roller 10 shown in FIG. 8 is provided with a metal or hard plastic ring core 10c outside the bearing 10b of the intermediate roller 10 shown in FIG. The structure is the same as that obtained by removing the outermost peripheral resin member from the roller. In the intermediate roller 10 shown in FIG. 8, it is the ring core 10c arranged on the outer side of the bearing 10b that rolls on the intermediate guide rail 13, and the ring core 10c is made of metal or hard plastic. Thus, the same effect as when the intermediate roller 10 shown in FIG. 6 is used can be expected.

  In addition to the structure shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, for example, the structure shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 can be considered as the structure of the intermediate guide rail 13. 9 is a view showing the intermediate guide rail 13 of this example as viewed from the direction orthogonal to the traveling direction of Step 2, and FIG. 10 is a cross-sectional view taken along the line CC in FIG. 9 and 10, the intermediate guide rail 13 shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 is similar to the intermediate guide rail 13 shown in FIGS. 4 and 5, and the shock absorber 13b made of a resin material having wear resistance on the upper surface of the metal rail base 13a. It is the structure which wore. However, in the intermediate guide rail 13 of the present example, the buffer material 13b is provided with an elastically deformable locking portion 17 that allows the buffer material 13b to be attached to and detached from the rail base material 13a.

  Specifically, in the intermediate guide rail 13 of this example, a part of the cushioning material 13b in the longitudinal direction covers the side surface of the rail base material 13a and extends to a position where it reaches the lower end, and the extended part. A key-shaped protrusion facing inward is formed at the tip of the. An extension portion of the cushioning material 13b having a protrusion at the tip end portion can be elastically deformed, and this portion serves as a locking portion 17 that allows the cushioning material 13b to be attached to and detached from the rail base material 13a. . When mounting the cushioning material 13b on the rail base material 13a, the latching portion 17 of the cushioning material 13b is elastically deformed to cover the rail base material 13a with the cushioning material 13b while opening the protrusion at the tip, and the latching portion The cushioning material 13b is fixed on the rail base material 13a so that the projection at the tip of 17 is hooked on the lower end of the rail base material 13a.

  The intermediate guide rail 13 shown in FIGS. 9 and 10 is welded to the rail base material 13a in order to mount the cushioning material 13b on the rail base material 13a, like the intermediate guide rail 13 shown in FIGS. There is no need to attach the nut 15 or screw the screw member 14 to the welding nut 15. For this reason, compared with the case where the intermediate guide rail 13 shown in FIGS. 4 and 5 is used, the buffer material 13b is removed from the rail base material 13a at the time of maintenance and inspection, or the buffer material 13b is newly added to the rail base material 13a. The operation | work which mounts can be performed more simply. Furthermore, since the mounting position of the cushioning material 13b with respect to the rail base material 13a is not restricted by the mounting hole forming position and can be mounted at an arbitrary position, the workability of the maintenance inspection work can be further improved. .

The schematic diagram which shows the whole passenger conveyor structure. The figure which shows a mode that the step in the passenger conveyor to which this invention was applied was seen from the advancing direction. The figure which expands and shows the A section in FIG. The figure which shows a mode that the intermediate | middle guide rail in the passenger conveyor to which this invention was applied was seen from the direction orthogonal to the advancing direction of a step. BB sectional drawing in FIG. The figure which shows an example of an intermediate | middle roller. The figure which shows the other example of an intermediate | middle roller. The figure which shows the other example of an intermediate | middle roller. The figure which shows a mode that the other example of the intermediate guide rail was seen from the direction orthogonal to the advancing direction of a step. CC sectional view taken on the line in FIG.

Explanation of symbols

1 Chain 2 Step 8 Roller 9 Guide Rail 10 Intermediate Roller 10a Fixed Shaft 10b Bearing 11 Bracket 13 Intermediate Guide Rail 13a Rail Base 13b Buffer Material 16 Bracket 17 Locking Section

Claims (5)

A large number of steps that are connected by a pair of chains at both ends in the width direction and proceed by driving the chain;
A pair of rollers rotatably attached to both ends in the width direction of the step;
A pair of guide rails that support the pair of rollers and guide the progress of the step;
An intermediate roller rotatably attached to the center in the width direction of the step;
An intermediate guide rail that supports the intermediate roller;
A passenger conveyor characterized in that at least a portion of the intermediate roller that rolls on the intermediate guide rail has a higher hardness than a portion of the intermediate guide rail that the intermediate roller contacts. The intermediate roller has at least a portion that rolls on the intermediate guide rail made of metal or hard plastic,
The passenger conveyor according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate guide rail includes a rail base material and a buffer material mounted on the rail base material, and the intermediate roller rolls on the buffer material.   The passenger conveyor according to claim 2, wherein the cushioning material of the intermediate guide rail is provided with an elastically deformable locking portion that allows the cushioning material to be attached to and detached from the rail base material. .   The intermediate roller has a bracket attached to a central portion in the width direction of the step, a fixed shaft supported by the bracket, and a bearing fitted to the fixed shaft, and the bearing is the intermediate guide. The passenger conveyor according to claim 1, wherein the passenger conveyor rolls on the intermediate guide rail in contact with the rail.   The passenger conveyor according to claim 1, wherein the intermediate roller is disposed at a position spaced apart from the intermediate guide rail with a predetermined gap when no load is applied to the step.

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