A structure having limited supportable portions has been difficult to isolate from vibration in the direction in which a load is applied. A base isolation apparatus includes a Z-axis base isolation unit, an X-axis base isolation unit, and a Y-axis base isolation unit. The base isolation unit includes a vibration-source connector, an isolated-object connector, a lock device disposed between the isolated-object connector and the vibration-source connector for switching between a state of fixing the isolated-object connector and a state of making it movable, a distance recovery device for generating a force to cause an amount of change in distance to approach zero, depending on the amount of change, and a vibration damper for generating a force in an orientation of hindering the change, depending on the rate of change in distance.

According to one embodiment, a method for monitoring hoisting ropes in an elevator system comprises measuring tension of each hoisting rope, calculating a mean value of the tension in the hoisting ropes, determining if the tension in any rope is significantly higher than the mean value and providing a signal that rope snag has been detected if the tension in any rope is significantly higher than the mean value.

An illustrative example embodiment of an elevator system monitoring assembly includes a wind detector configured to detect wind in a hoistway and to provide a wind detector output regarding the detected wind. A processor is configured to receive the wind detector output, determine whether at least one characteristic of the detected wind satisfies at least one predetermined criterion corresponding to an effect on the elevator system, and provide an indication of at least one of the satisfied criterion and the effect on the elevator system.

An elevator includes an elevator car; a counterweight; one or more ropes interconnecting the car and counterweight, one end of each rope being fixed to the counterweight, and each rope comprising one or more electrically conductive load bearing members that extend unbroken throughout the length of the rope embedded in a non-conductive surface material; a monitoring circuit comprising at least two of said electrically conductive load bearing members of the one or more ropes connected in series, and one or more connectors mounted on the counterweight and connecting ends of said at least two electrically conductive load bearing members in series, said one or more connectors comprising a switch that is movable between a conductive and a non-conductive state, whereby the state change of the switch is arranged to change conductivity of the monitoring circuit; a monitoring system connected with the monitoring circuit and arranged to monitor the state of the monitoring circuit; and a counterweight position sensor mounted on the counterweight, and arranged to sense position of the counterweight. The switch and the counterweight position sensor are connected, and the state of the switch is arranged to change in response to position change of the counterweight sensed by the counterweight position sensor. The elevator is arranged to perform one or more predetermined actions in response to a state change of the monitoring circuit.

An illustrative example method of controlling an elevator situated in a hoistway of a building includes detecting sway of the building, determining characteristics of the detected sway including a plurality of frequencies and associated periods of the sway, determining an expected sway of an elongated member of the elevator system based on the determined characteristics, and controlling at least one of position and movement of an elevator car in the hoistway based on the expected sway.

The invention relates to an elevator comprising a hoistway; an elevator car vertically movable in the hoistway; a plurality of ropes connected to the car; a rotatable traction member comprising a circumferential traction surface area for each of the several ropes; each rope being arranged to pass around the rotatable traction member resting against a circumferential traction surface area of the traction member; drive machinery for controlling rotation of the rotatable traction member. The elevator comprises means for detecting displacement of each of the ropes over a first limit position of the rope in the first axial direction of the rotatable traction member, and over a second limit position of the rope in the second axial direction of the traction member; and in that displacement of one or more of said ropes in axial direction of the rotatable traction member over the first or second limit position is arranged to trigger the drive machinery to stop the rotation of the rotatable traction member.

A failure detection device for an elevator is provided. The failure detection device includes: a mobile unit that is movable in a hoistway in an up-down direction independently of a car; a distance measurement unit that is mounted to the mobile unit and is configured to measure a horizontal distance; and a control unit including: a movement amount calculator; a car height position acquirer; a reference value storage; a measurement value acquirer; and a determiner. The failure detection device determines whether a failure has occurred in the hoistway based on the measurement value and the reference value stored in the reference value storage in association with the absolute position at which the measurement value has been measured.

An elevator car of an elevator system includes a car body, and a car frame supportive of the car body. The car frame includes two or more opposing upright assemblies, a crosshead assembly located above the car body, and a plank assembly located below the car body. A plurality of seismic retainers are located at each of the upright assemblies. The plurality of seismic retainers are configured for a non-contact relationship with a guide rail of the elevator system during normal operation of the elevator system, and configured to react guide rail loads during a sway event via contact with the guide rail.

The invention relates to a method for operating an elevator installed in connection with a building, particularly a high rise elevator, in which method the expected rope sway is monitored using building acceleration data obtained by means of a sensor to calculate a building sway, and whereby based on the building sway and the position of an elevator car a rope sway is estimated, which rope sway is compared with a threshold value to determine the amount of rope sway and to deduct operation measures for the elevator based on the amount of the rope sway, characterized by the succession of following steps determining elevator car position determining change of rope sway based on the car position and the building acceleration data if it is concluded that rope sway is not increasing, then calculating the number of rope sway cycles n(zca,) within a building sway period Tbuilding and calculating a new (decreasing) rope sway amplitude x based on said number of rope sway cycles n(zca,) and a damping factor I.

An illustrative example embodiment of an elevator system monitoring assembly includes a wind detector configured to detect wind in a hoistway and to provide a wind detector output regarding the detected wind. A processor is configured to receive the wind detector output, determine whether at least one characteristic of the detected wind satisfies at least one predetermined criterion corresponding to an effect on the elevator system, and provide an indication of at least one of the satisfied criterion and the effect on the elevator system.