[Technical Field]
The present invention relates to a moving handrail driving
5 device of a passenger conveyor.
[Background Art]
As described in Japanese Patent Application Laid-Open No.
2006-219285, in a conventional handrail driving device, a
10 configuration where a part of an endless handrail provided in a
balustrade of a passenger conveyor is put around a sheave to which
a driving shaft is fixed, and plural pressing rollers to press
the handrail against the sheave are provided over a predetermined
section of the put-around handrail is proposed. Upon rotation
15 of the sheave, in this section provided with the pressing rollers,
the handrail is driven with a friction force caused between the
sheave and the handrail and slack of the handrail is prevented.
Further, in the proposed configuration, the sheave is reciprocably
supported with a sheave driving shaft in approximately the same
20 direction of a traveling direction of the handrail. Upon driving
of the handrail, the driving force is increased with driving
reaction torque of the sheave.
[Summary of Invention]
25 [Technical Problem]
2
A passenger conveyor such as an escalator is a product
requiring continuous maintenance and renewal after delivery and
installation to a customer to maintain its original function. The
passenger conveyor is expected to provide on-site installation
5 and maintainability in addition to safety and quality as a product.
Improvement in installation and maintainability reduces the number
of on-site steps, which leads to production cost reduction. In
the passenger conveyor, it is necessary to remove the moving
handrail or its driving device, or a part of its members from the
10 inside of the passenger conveyor on site, and it is necessary to
facilitate removal and attachment. More particularly, as a
rotating body of the moving handrail driving device is bound with
the moving handrail in the direction of a rotating body driving
shaft, it cannot be removed.
15
[Solution to Problem]
Provided is a moving handrail driving device of a passenger
conveyor, including: an endless moving handrail supported with
a balustrade of the passenger conveyor; a rotating body to drive
20 and run the moving handrail with a friction force caused by contact
with a part of the moving handrail; and a rotating body driving
shaft to transmit torque received with a moving handrail driving
sprocket to the rotating body via a chain, wherein the rotating
body has a divided structure divided into an inner structure and
25 an outer structure. The inner structure and the outer structure
3
are provided with a convex and concave combining mechanism and
the structures are bound to each other, and finally fastened with
bolts. Upon maintenance, only the outer structure is removed.
The binding between the inner structure and the outer structure
5 is released by removing the bolts, then the outer structure is
lifted for prevention of interference of the moving handrail, and
it is moved in the shaft direction and is removed.
[Advantageous Effects of Invention]
10 In the moving handrail driving device of the passenger conveyor,
the rotating body is divided into the inner structure and the outer
structure, and the convex and concave combining mechanism is
provided. Upon driving of the moving handrail, the inner structure
and the outer structure of the rotating body are bound to each
15 other. Upon removal, the binding between the inner structure and
the outer structure of the rotating body is released. Thus it
is possible to easily remove the outer structure.
[Brief Description of Drawings]
20 Fig. 1 is a diagram showing a whole structure of a passenger
conveyor according to a first embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 2 is a diagram showing driving of a moving handrail with
a moving handrail driving device according to the first embodiment
of the present invention;
25 Fig. 3 is a diagram showing an inner structure and an outer
4
structure of a rotating body in the moving handrail driving device
according to the first embodiment of the present invention;
Fig. 4 is a diagram showing a rotating body removal procedure
according to the first embodiment of the present invention;
5 Fig. 5 is a diagram showing the inner structure and the outer
structure of the rotating body in the moving handrail driving device
according to a second embodiment of the present invention; and
Fig. 6 is a diagram showing the rotating body removal procedure
according to the second embodiment of the present invention.
10
[Description of Embodiments]
Embodiments of the present invention will be described with
reference to the drawings.
15 First Embodiment
As shown in Fig. 1, the passenger conveyor has a main body
frame 3 installed between passenger platforms 1 and 2 of a building,
plural steps 4 connected in an endless status and circulate-moved
between the passenger platforms 1 and 2, and a driving machine
20 6 located at a machine room 5 which is provided in the main body
frame 3. Further, the driving machine 6 has a pulley 6a. A driving
chain 7 is put around the pulley 6a. The machine room 5 has a
driving sprocket 8 including a first sprocket 8a which the driving
chain 7 is put around, and a second sprocket 8b which a moving
25 handrail driving chain 15 is put around.
5
A control panel 12 to control the driving machine 6 and the
like is provided in the machine room 5. Further, the passenger
conveyor has a balustrade 13 provided along a travelling direction
of the steps 4 on the main body frame, and a moving handrail 14
5 supported with the balustrade 13 and moved in synchronization with
the steps 4. In accordance with a signal outputted from the control
panel 12, the motive power of the driving machine 6 is transmitted
via the driving chain 7 to the driving sprocket 8, and is transmitted
via the moving handrail driving chain 15 to a rotating body driving
10 shaft (moving handrail driving shaft) 10 to which a moving handrail
driving sprocket 9 is fixed. A rotating body 11 of the moving
handrail driving device in contact with a part of the moving handrail
14 is fixed to the rotating body driving shaft 10. By rotation
of the rotating body 11, the moving handrail 14 is driven so as
15 to circulate-move between the passenger platforms 1 and 2.
As shown in Fig. 2, the rotating body 11 has a divided structure
including an inner structure 16 fixed to a shaft and an outer
structure 17 other than them. As the rotating body 11 is divided
into the inner structure 16 and the outer structure 17 and a convex
20 and concave combining mechanism is provided, upon driving of the
moving handrail, the inner structure 16 and the outer structure
17 of the rotating body 11 are bound to each other. Upon removal,
the binding between the inner structure 16 and the outer structure
17 of the rotating body 11 is released, and the outer structure
25 17 is easily removed.
6
In the present embodiment, as shown in Fig. 2, the moving
handrail driving device brings the rotating body 11 bound to the
rotating body driving shaft 10 into contact with the moving handrail
14, to drive the moving handrail 14. The rotating body 11 has
5 a divided structure including the inner structure 16 fixed to the
rotating body driving shaft 10 and the outer structure 17 other
than them. The rotating body 11 is generally not divided. As
the rotating body 11 is fixed to the rotating body driving shaft
by welding, shrink-fitting or the like, it is not possible to remove
10 the rotating body 11 to the outside of the passenger conveyor.
Even when the rotating body 11 has a structure removable from the
rotating body driving shaft 10, it may interfere with other parts
in the passenger conveyor, and may not be removed to the outside
of the passenger conveyor. More particularly, when the rotating
15 body 11 is removed from the rotating body driving shaft 10, it
is necessary to move the rotating body in the shaft direction.
However, the rotating body is bound in the direction of the rotating
body driving shaft 10 with the moving handrail 14, and it is difficult
to move the rotating body. As shown in Fig. 3, in the present
20 embodiment, the convex and concave combining mechanism is provided
in the inner structure 16 and the outer structure 17 divided from
the rotating body 11. The inner structure 16 has three convex
shapes 16a, 16b and 16c. The outer structure 17 has a convex shape
17a and a concave shape 17b. The inner structure 16 has a round
25 outer shape except the convex shapes 16a, 16b and 16c, and a round
7
hole 23 in which the rotating body driving shaft 10 is fitted.
The outer structure 17 has a ring portion 24 and a bottom portion
25. The inner structure 16 is accommodated inside the ring portion
24 of the outer structure 17. In the present embodiment, the ring
5 portion 24 of the outer structure 17 has a round inner shape except
the convex shape 17a and the concave shape 17b. As described later,
the inner shape of the ring portion 24 of the outer structure 17
is larger than an outer shape of the inner structure 16 to cover
projection height of the convex shapes 16a, 16b and 16c such that
10 the outer structure 17 is rotatable with respect to the inner
structure 16. The ring portion 24 of the outer structure 17 has
a round outer shape, and in contact with the moving handrail 14.
An elliptic hole 26 is formed in the bottom portion 25 of the outer
structure 17, a long axis direction of the elliptic hole 26 is
15 aligned with the position of the concave shape 17b, such that the
outer structure 17 is slidable with respect to the rotating body
driving shaft 10 as described later. The inner structure 16 and
the bottom portion 25 of the outer structure 17 are provided with
plural bolt insertion holes 27 to which bolts are attached. The
20 outer structure 17 is integrated with the inner structure 16 via
the bottom portion 25 using bolts 18.
In the present embodiment, upon maintenance in accordance
with Fig. 4, the rotating body 11 of the moving handrail driving
device is removed. Hereinbelow, with reference to Fig. 4, a removal
25 procedure will be described. (A) Positioning in a rotation
8
direction is performed with the convex shape 16a and the convex
shape 17a. The outer structure 17 is bound in a circumferential
direction with the convex shapes 16a, 16b and 16c, and is fastened
with the bolts 18. That is, a locking mechanism is provided in
5 the inner structure and the outer structure of the rotating body.
Note that upon positioning in the rotation direction with the convex
shape 16a and the convex shape 17a, the bolt insertion holes 27
in the inner structure 16 correspond with the bolt insertion holes
27 in the bottom portion 25 of the outer structure 17. (B) The
10 operator removes the bolts 18, and manually rotates the outer
structure 17 in a counterclockwise direction with respect to the
inner structure 16. The positioning in the rotation direction
is performed with the convex shape 16b and the convex shape 17a.
With this positioning, the convex shape 16c and the concave shape
15 17b are mutually oppositely positioned. (C) The convex shape 16c
is made to fit in the concave shape 17b, and the outer structure
17 is lifted and slided in a vertical upward direction with respect
to the rotating body driving shaft 10. (D) With this sliding of
the outer structure 17 in the vertical upward direction with respect
20 to the rotating body driving shaft 10, the outer structure 17 is
released from the binding with the moving handrail 14. Then it
is possible to move the outer structure 17 in the direction of
the rotating body driving shaft 10 and remove the outer structure
17. It is possible to replace a contact surface between the
25 rotating body and the moving handrail and replace the moving
9
handrail by removing the outer structure 17.
According to the present embodiment, upon driving of the moving
handrail, the inner structure 16 and the outer structure 17 of
the rotating body 11 are bound to each other, and it is possible
5 to transmit input torque from the rotating body driving shaft 10
to the moving handrail. When the outer structure 17 is removed
upon parts change or maintenance, the binding between the inner
structure 16 and the outer structure 17 of the rotating body 11
is released, and the outer structure 17 of the rotating body 11
10 is easily removed. More particularly, the positioning in the
rotation direction is performed in a predetermined position without
measurement of dimensions, by rotation in the rotation direction
until the convex shape in the inner structure 16 and the convex
shape in the outer structure 17 collide with each other.
15 Second Embodiment
Next, the moving handrail driving device according to a second
embodiment will be described based on Fig. 5 and Fig. 6. The
difference between the present embodiment and the first embodiment
is that, in the first embodiment, the rotating body 11 is divided
20 into the inner structure 16 and the outer structure 17 as shown
in Fig. 3, while in the present second embodiment, as shown in
Fig. 5 and Fig. 6, it is divided into an inner structure 19 and
an outer structure 20, and the structures are bound to each other
using a latch 21. The inner structure 19 and the outer structure
25 20 are provided with concave shapes 19a and 20a to engage the latch
10
21. The inner structure 19 has a square outer shape except the
concave shapes 19a, and the round hole 23 in which the rotating
body driving shaft 10 is fitted. The outer structure 20 has the
ring portion 24 and the bottom portion 25. The inner structure
5 19 is accommodated inside the ring portion 24 of the outer structure
20. In the present embodiment, the ring portion 24 of the outer
structure 20 has a square inner shape except the concave shapes
20a. As described later, a length L21 of one side of the inner
shape of the ring portion 24 in the outer structure 20 is longer
10 than a length L11 of one side of the outer shape of the inner structure
19 such that the outer structure 20 is slidable. A length L22 of
another side of the inner shape of the ring portion 24 in the outer
structure 20 is approximately the same as a length L12 of another
side of the outer shape of the inner structure 19. The ring portion
15 24 of the outer structure 20 has a round outer shape, and the
structure is in contact with the moving handrail 14. An elliptic
hole 26 is formed in the bottom portion 25 of the outer structure
20. A long axis direction of the elliptic hole 26 is a sliding
direction of the outer structure 17. The bottom portion 25 of
20 the outer structure 20 and the latch 21 are provided with the bolt
insertion holes 27 to which the bolts are attached. The latch
21 is attached to the bottom portion 25 of the outer structure
20 using bolts 22.
In the present embodiment, in accordance with Fig. 6, upon
25 maintenance, the rotating body 11 of the moving handrail driving
11
device is removed. Hereinbelow, with reference to Fig. 6, the
removal procedure will be described. (A) The positioning of the
outer structure 20 is performed by the own weight of the outer
structure 20. Then the latch 21 is fitted in the concave shape
5 19a of the inner structure 19 and the concave shape 20a of the
outer structure 20, and is fastened with the bolts 22. Thus the
inner structure 19 and the outer structure 20 are bound to each
other in the rotation direction, in the axis direction and in the
circumferential direction. Note that when the positioning is
10 performed by contact between an upper side of the inner shape of
the outer structure 20 and an upper side of the outer shape of
the inner structure 19, space corresponding with the outer shape
of the latch 21 is formed with the concave shape 19a and the concave
shape 20a. (B) The operator removes the bolts 22 then removes
15 the latch 21, to release the binding of the outer structure 20
in the vertical upward direction with respect to the rotating body
driving shaft 10. (C) The outer structure 20 is lifted and slided
in the vertical upward direction with respect to the rotating body
driving shaft 10. (D) As the outer structure 20 is slided in the
20 vertical upward direction with respect to the rotating body driving
shaft 10, the outer structure 20 is released from the binding with
the moving handrail 14. The outer structure 20 is moved in the
direction of the rotating body driving shaft 10 and is removed.
Note that the above embodiment has been described in detail
25 for explaining the present invention, and the invention is not
12
necessarily limited to an embodiment having all the described
constituent elements. Further, it is possible to perform
addition/deletion/replacement with respect to a part of
constituent elements of the respective embodiments with other
5 constituent elements.
[Reference Signs List]
1,2 … passenger platform of building, 3 … main body frame, 4 …
steps, 5 … machine room, 6 … driving machine, 6a … pulley, 7 …
10 driving chain, 8 … driving sprocket, 10 … rotating body driving
shaft, 11 … rotating body, 12 … control panel, 13 … balustrade,
14 … moving handrail, 15 … moving handrail driving chain, 16 …
inner structure, 17 … outer structure
15
13
Claims
We claim:
1. A passenger conveyor comprising: an endless moving handrail
5 (14) supported with a balustrade (13) of the passenger conveyor;
a rotating body (11) to drive and run the moving handrail (14)
with a friction force by contact with a part of the moving handrail
(14); and a rotating body driving shaft (10) to transmit torque
received with a moving handrail driving sprocket (9) via a chain
10 (15) to the rotating body (11), characterized in that
wherein the rotating body (11) includes an inner structure
(16, 19) fixed to the rotating body driving shaft (10) and an outer
structure (17, 20) other than the rotating body driving shaft (10)
and the inner structure (16, 19).
15
2. The passenger conveyor as claimed in claim 1, wherein the
inner structure (16) and the outer structure (17) of the rotating
body (11) have a round shape, and an opening opened inside the
outer structure (17) has a round shape, and wherein at least one
20 concave and convex combining mechanism is provided in an outer
periphery of the inner structure (16) and an inner periphery of
the outer structure (17).
3. The passenger conveyor as claimed in claim 1, wherein in the
25 rotating body (11), the inner structure (19) has a square shape,
14
the outer structure (20) has a round shape, and an opening opened
inside the outer structure (20) has a square shape, and wherein
a latch (21) to bind the inner structure (19) and the outer structure
(20) to each other, and at least one concave shape (19a, 20a) in
5 which the latch (21) is fitted is provided in the outer periphery
of the inner structure (19) and the inner periphery of the outer
structure (20) respectively.
4. A method for removing a rotating body (11) including an inner
10 structure (16, 19) fixed to a rotating body driving shaft (10)
and an outer structure (17, 20) other than the rotating body driving
shaft (10) and the inner structure (16, 19), in a passenger conveyor,
having: an endless moving handrail (14) supported with a balustrade
(13) of the passenger conveyor; the rotating body (11) to drive
15 and run the moving handrail (14) with a friction force caused by
contact with a part of the moving handrail (14); and the rotating
body driving shaft (10) to transmit torque received with a moving
handrail driving sprocket (9) via a chain (15) to the rotating
body (11), comprising the steps of:
20 releasing a locking mechanism provided in the inner structure
(16, 19) and the outer structure (17, 20) of the rotating body
(11);
lifting the outer structure (17, 20) in a vertical upward
direction; and
25 moving the outer structure (17, 20) in a direction of the
15
rotating body driving shaft (10).
5. The method for removing the rotating body as claimed in claim
4, wherein at least one concave and convex combining structure
5 is provided in an outer periphery of the inner structure (16) and
an inner periphery of the outer structure (17) as the locking
mechanism, and wherein the locking mechanism is released by
removing bolts (18) fastening the inner structure (16) and the
outer structure (17) of the rotating body (11), and rotating the
10 outer structure (17) counterclockwisely with respect to the inner
structure (16) until the concave and convex structures collide
with each other.
6. The method for removing the rotating body as claimed in claim
15 4, wherein a latch (21) to bind the inner structure (19) and the
outer structure (20) to each other is provided as the locking
mechanism, and wherein the locking mechanism is released by
removing bolts (22) fastening the latch (21) binding the inner
structure (19) and the outer structure (20) of the rotating body
20 (11), and removing the latch (21) binding the inner structure (19)
and the outer structure (20) of the rotating body (11).