Noise Prevention Apparatus for a Cable Winch Elevator

The present invention relates to a noise prevention apparatus for a cable winch elevator, and more particularly, to a noise prevention apparatus for an elevator in which the noise that leaks to the outside of the machine room on the top floor to which a cable winch elevator is provided, and which is caused by vibration accompanying the rotational drive of the cable winch and the like, is reduced.

In general, elevators or lifts are defined as apparatus that use electrical or other drive means to convey persons and freight up and down. These elevators, comprise a cable winch usually provided in a machine room on the top floor of the building; a main sheave; a governor and controller apparatus; a cage that runs up and down and which is positioned in a hoistway that is provided vertically so as to pass through each floor of the building; a counterweight; guide rails for both the cage and the counterweight; and shock absorbers for both the cage and the counterweight. The ends of the cable that is wound around the main sheave are fixed to the cage and the counterweight respectively, and this cable moves in both the up and down directions accompanying slight movement through the cable holes located in at least two places in the floor of the machine room.

Accordingly, when the elevator is driven on the basis of commands from operation panels provided at the elevator doors on each floor, the motor of the cable winch generates vibration noise inside the machine room with the rotation of the main sheave, and this vibration noise is transmitted downwards via the cable holes and is transmitted as noise inside the hoistway for the elevator and to the inside of the cage.

Because of this, the "Elevator Noise Prevention Apparatus" disclosed in Japanese Utility Model Application Laid-Open Publication No. 57-106670 (1983) and shown in FIG. 1, has been proposed in order to prevent the transmission of vibration noise to the inside of the elevator cage. In FIG. 1, an elevator 10 comprises a winch 11, a main sheave 12 that is mounted on the motor (not indicated in the figure) of the winch 11, a cable 13 that is wound around the main sheave 12, and an elevator cage 14 and a counterweight 15 which are fixed to respective ends of the cable 13. A control apparatus 16 that controls the drive of the motor (not indicated in the figure) is built into the winch 11 and the floor 17 of a machine room in which the winch 11 and the main sheave 12 are located is pierced by two cable holes 18 through which the cable 13 moves up and down.

The lower side of the machine room in which the winch 11 and the like are located is a hoistway 19 for the elevator on the other side of the floor 17 and the opening portions on each floor linked by the hoistway 19 are provided with doors 20 so that when these doors are opened, the elevator cage 14 is linked with the elevator hall 21 via the opening portions.

In addition, the configuration is such that the vibration noise of an elevator such as this does not leak in the direction of the elevator hall 21, the elevator cage 14, and the elevator hoistway 19 because of a conventional vibration noise prevention apparatus 25. This vibration noise prevention apparatus 25 comprises a cylindrical noise prevention duct 26 located at the floor 17 so as to allow a slight amount of sway accompanying the up and down motion of the cable 13 on the upper side of the openings of the cable holes 18, and a noise absorption material 27 that is provided so as to surround the cable on the surface of the inner circumference of the cylindrical noise prevention duct 26. Also, the entire winch 11 is not directly mounted on the floor 17 but is mounted on a damper member 28 so as to prevent the transmission of vibration noise to the lower side of the machine room. This damper member 28 also comprises the cylindrical noise prevention duct 26, the noise absorption material 27 and the vibration noise prevention apparatus 25.

However, even if the conventional vibration noise prevention apparatus 25 having the configuration described above is provided, there must be the necessary minimum gap between the cable 13 and the noise absorption material 27 so as to permit a slight amount of sway of the cable 13 when it moves up and down and there is the problem that the vibration noise that is caused by driving the winch 11 is transmitted from this gap to the elevator cage 14 and the elevator hall 21.

In this manner, there have been proposed various countermeasures for the suppression of vibration of the winch 11 itself and for the provision of vibration noise prevention apparatus 25 having the conventional configuration described above. For example, when a motor (not indicated in the figure) is provided inside the winch 11, it is fixed by bolts with rubber or some other noise absorbing material there between, and other noise absorbing material is wrapped around the outside of the motor itself, while squeaking and other noises occurring between the main sheave 12 and the output shaft of the motor are prevented by a high-precision gear mechanism and the like. The external transmission of vibration can be prevented in such a manner but when these noise prevention means are implemented for apparatus such as the winch 11 in the machine room, the apparatus itself increases in size and the effective space inside the machine room is reduced and there is the new problem of an increase in the elevator manufacturing cost.

In order to solve the problem described above, an object of the present invention is to provide an elevator noise prevention apparatus that can prevent an increase in the size and cost of the apparatus and equipment inside the machine room, and that can prevent or suppress the transmission of vibration noise from the winch and the like to the elevator shaft and the inside of the elevator cage.

In order to attain the above object, the present invention comprises a vibration detection apparatus provided for a machine room on the topmost floor of a building that detects vibration and which is mounted on a winch provided for a main sheave around which is wound a cable which moves up and down and to which an elevator cage and a counterweight are attached, a leak noise calculation circuit that processes the vibration detected by this vibration detection apparatus and calculates the vibration noise that leaks to the elevator hoistway from the cable holes, a sound signal generation circuit that generates sound signals of the opposite phase to the phase of the noise waveform calculated by this leak noise calculation circuit, and a sound generation unit that is provided in the vicinity of the cable holes and converts the sound signals of the opposite phase to the noise waveform generated by the sound signal generation circuit into an actual sound which is output.

When a winch is operated accompanying the use of the elevator, the motor that is built into the winch is rotationally driven and the magnetic apparatus such as solenoid brakes and the like are operated and there also occurs the meshing of the reduction gears. These operations generate vibration noise in the machine room because of various causes and this noise is transmitted to the inside of the elevator hoistway via the cable holes. A large proportion of this vibration noise is detected by a vibration detector in the above configuration mounted on the winch which outputs vibration detection signals to the noise calculation circuit. On the basis of the detection signals supplied the noise calculation circuit predicts and calculates the vibration noise that is expected to pass through the cable holes. There are no major differences in the vibration noise depending upon whether the direction of motion of the elevator is upwards or downwards, or whether the elevator is at full or half capacity, or empty. Accordingly, the noise that is caused by the vibration detected from a constant vibration is classified into one of several types of patterns. The predicted generated noise calculated by the calculation circuit has its noise waveform predicted, and this waveform is supplied to the sound generation circuit. The sound signal generation circuit analyzes the phase of the input predicted noise waveform, and generates sound signals of the phase opposite to that phase. These opposite phase sound signals are supplied to a sound generation unit where they are converted into actual sound and output in the direction of the sound source of the vibration noise from the vicinity of the cable holes.

A configuration and function such as has been described above outputs actual sound having a phase opposite that of the vibration noise, in the direction of the sound source of the vibration noise and from the vicinity of the cable holes and so it is possible to greatly reduce the vibration noise that is transmitted to the inside of the elevator hoistway and the elevator cage via the cable holes. In addition, the reduction of the vibration noise that is transmitted to the inside of the elevator hoistway also reduces the noise that is transmitted to the elevator halls of each floor via the doors on each floor and this has the effect of increasing the comfort of all persons using the building.

In the appended drawings:

FIG. 1 is a view showing an outline configuration of a conventional elevator noise prevention apparatus;

FIG. 2 is a side view of a partial section showing an outline configuration of an elevator noise prevention apparatus of a first embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 3 is a flowchart showing the steps for describing the operation of the elevator noise prevention apparatus of the first embodiment of the present invention;

FIGS. 4 through 6 are characteristics graphs showing a frequency analysis of the noise of reduction gears provided in a machine room in an elevator to which the elevator noise prevention apparatus of the present invention has been applied;

FIGS. 7 through 9 are characteristics graphs showing the correlation between the vibration noise of reduction gears provided in a machine room in an elevator to which the elevator noise prevention apparatus of the present invention has been applied, and the time and the acceleration level;

FIGS. 10 through 12 are characteristic graphs showing the correlation between the vibration noise of a motor in a machine room of an elevator to which the elevator noise prevention apparatus of the present invention has been applied, and the decibel level and time;

FIGS. 13 through 15 are characteristic graphs showing the correlation between the vibration noise inside the elevator cage of an elevator to which the elevator noise prevention apparatus of the present invention has been applied, and the decibel level, and time;

FIG. 16 is a side view of a sectional view showing an outline configuration of an elevator with the elevator noise prevention apparatus according to a second embodiment of the present invention;

FIG. 17 is a side view of a sectional view showing an outline configuration of an elevator to which the elevator noise prevention apparatus according to a third embodiment of the present invention; and

FIG. 18 is a flowchart showing the steps for describing the operation of an elevator noise prevention apparatus of the third embodiment of the present invention.

FIGS. 19 to 21 are block diagrams showing different techniques for implementing the calculation circuit.

The following is a detailed description of the preferred embodiments of an elevator noise prevention apparatus relating to the present invention, with reference to the appended drawings.

FIGS. 2 through 15 are views describing a first embodiment of the present invention, and those portions of these figures that are the same as corresponding portions of FIG. 1 are indicated with the same numerals, and the corresponding descriptions of them are omitted.

In FIG. 2, a noise prevention apparatus comprises a vibration detector 30 located on a winch 11, a leak noise calculation circuit 31 that calculates the vibration noise that leaks to the elevator shaft from the cable holes 18, an amplifier 32 that amplifies and outputs the audio signals that are calculated and generated by this leak noise calculation circuit 31, and a speaker 33 that generates actual sounds for cancelling the noise on the basis of the amplifier output of the amplifier and which is mounted in the upwards direction of a noise prevention duct provided for the floor 17 of the machine room of the elevator. The leak noise calculation circuit 31 basically detects the vibration of the motor (not indicated in the figure) but in addition, simultaneously detects the magnetic vibration of the apparatus for magnetic braking, and the vibration of the meshing of the gears of the governor. The leak noise calculation circuit 31 comprises a noise prediction means that calculates the predicted vibration noise that will leak from the cable holes 18 to the elevator hoistway 19, and an opposite phase sound signal generation means that generates sound signals of a phase opposite the noise so as to cancel the predicted noise. On the basis of the sound signals of the phase opposite the noise waveform, the speaker 33 sends actual sounds in the direction of the noise source so as to cancel the noise.

In the first embodiment, the provision of the noise prevention duct 22 at the top of the cable holes 18 transforms the three dimensional vibration noise that is transmitted from the top of the inside of this noise prevention duct 22 into a waveform that is as flat as possible, generates audio signals that have an opposite phase waveform so as to cancel this flat wave and uses these sound signals as the basis for the generation of the actual sound to be used for cancellation.

The following is a description of the operation of a leak noise calculation circuit 31 in an elevator noise prevention apparatus relating to the first embodiment of the present invention with reference to FIG. 3.

First, in step ST1, the leak noise, calculation circuit 31 judges whether or not a detected output from the vibration detector 30 such as a vibration sensor or the like is being supplied. If there is no detected output supplied, then the vibration detector of the governor, magnetic brake and the motor that drives the elevator are immediately placed in a standby status until there is such supply. If detected output of the sensors is being supplied, then the vibration values that are input to the noise prediction means of the leak noise calculation circuit 31 are used as the basis for predicting the vibration noise having a flat wave and which may possibly be generated in the vicinity of the cable holes 18. This predicted vibration noise can have the predicted waveforms output in accordance with the vibration values that are detected since several typical waveforms are detected depending upon whether the elevator is going up or down, or depending upon the passenger load.

Then, in step ST3, a judgment is made as to whether or not the conditions such as attenuation the transmission delay and the like occur. The attenuation and the transmission delay are due to the provision of the duct 22 and the damper member 28. If there are conditions for the generation of attenuation and delay and the like, a correction value for this attenuation and/or delay is calculated in step ST4. When a correction value has been calculated in this step ST4, the noise prediction means of the leak noise calculation circuit 31 predicts the final predicted vibration noise amount that will leak from the cable holes 18 to the elevator hoistway 19 (step ST5).

When the vibration noise amount is predicted by the prediction means and the phase that is equivalent to the noise amount that has been predicted by the sound signal generation means of the leak noise calculation circuit 31 has been created in step ST6, a sound signal of the phase opposite that of the phase equivalent to the noise is generated in step ST7 and this signal is output to the amplifier 32.

The amplifier 32 that receives these sound signals amplifies these signals to a predetermined output in order to generate an actual sound to cancel the noise, and supplies it to the speaker 33. The speaker 33 uses the amplified signals supplied as the basis to generate a cancellation sound to cancel the noise. This cancellation sound is a flat wave of an opposite phase waveform so as to cancel the flat wave due to the noise, and is directed in the upwards direction so as to collide with the flat waveform moving from the top of the noise prevention duct 22 downwards in the elevator hoistway 19. Accordingly, the vibration noise that is generated when the motor and the like (not indicated in the figure) of the winch 11 is driven is either cancelled or reduced.

FIGS. 4 through 15 are for describing the status of the vibration noise that is generated about the machine room of an actual elevator, for the first embodiment described above.

FIGS. 4 through 6 are frequency analyses of the vibration noise of a governor or reduction gear provided to the winch 11 in the machine room, with FIG. 4 showing the correlation between the background noise in the machine room, and decibel level and the vibration frequency. Here, the term "background noise" refers to the noise at a place when there is not the object noise (such as the vibration noise of a governor in this case). The measured values are influenced if there is a large amount of the background noise, but there is practically no influence if the background noise is at least 10 dB less than the object noise.

FIG. 5 shows the measured values for the vibration noise to the side of the governor, for the instance when the elevator is going down normally with a light load, and when the governor is mounted on vibration absorbing rubber. According to the measured values, there are several peaks at 280 Hz, 400 Hz and 565 Hz and the like but the largest peak is at 750 Hz, so that sound of the opposite phase can be generated for these peak values to cancel the noise.

FIG. 6 shows the values that were measured in the same manner for governor vibration, and are for the vibration on the gearcase when the elevator is operating in the same manner. In this case, the gearcase is not mounted on vibration absorbing rubber, and although there peak at 565 Hz is the largest as was the case for FIG. 4.

The following is a description of the change in the vibration level with respect to time of the governor vibration, with respect to FIGS. 7 through 9. FIG. 7 uses the degree of acceleration to show the vibration when there is no load inside the elevator cage 14 and when the elevator cage is going up. In addition, FIG. 8 shows the vibration when there is 100% load inside the elevator cage 14 and when the elevator cage is going down. Furthermore, FIG. 9 uses the degree of acceleration to show the vibration with there is 45% load inside the elevator cage 14, when the elevator cage 14 and the counterweight 15 are balanced, and for when the elevator is going down and for when the elevator is going up. As can be seen from these three figures, the level of the vibration noise is such that there is a vibration peak in the vicinity of an acceleration of 300 gal, irrespective of the size of the load inside the elevator cage 14 and irrespective of whether the elevator cage 14 is going up or down.

FIGS. 10 through 12 show values that were measured as the time change of the decibel level, for the vibration noise of the motor of the winch 11 in the machine room, with FIG. 10 showing the time change of the noise level when there is running under no load, FIG. 11 showing the time change of the noise level when there is running under balanced load, and FIG. 12 showing the time change of the noise level when there is running under full load. Even under these different running conditions, the noise level when the elevator is going down and when it is going up changes between 60 and 80 decibels, and the composite of these cancellation sounds that cancel these vibration noises also have several typical opposite phase waveforms.

Finally, FIGS. 13 through 15 show the measured levels for the noise inside the elevator cage 14 of the elevator. The peak of the vibration noise which leaks from the machine room is in the level of 54 dB to 58 dB inside the elevator cage 14. However, even in elevator cages for which such sounds are recorded, it is still possible to cancel the vibration noise that leaks from the machine room when the elevator is going up and down.

The following is a description of a second embodiment of the elevator noise prevention apparatus related to the present invention, with reference to FIG. 16. This second embodiment is different from the first embodiment that uses a flat wave where the cancellation sound is of opposite phase to the vibration noise is a composite of three dimensional waves and is output in the direction of the vibration noise source.

More specifically, as shown in FIG. 16, instead of the noise prevention duct 22 and the speaker 33 of the first embodiment, a plural number of speakers 44 are arranged in the vicinity of the cable holes and facing in all directions from which the machine room can be a noise source. In this second embodiment, a total of 16 speakers 44 are arranged two in each of four directions around each of the two cable holes. These 16 speakers 44 generate cancellation sound of opposite phase to the vibration sound and cancel the vibration noise that passes through the cable holes 18. Other than the fact that the calculation apparatus changes the cancellation sound from a flat wave to a three dimensional wave, the other aspects of this configuration are the same as those of the first embodiment, and so the description of the effects and the operation as described in FIGS. 3 through 15 will be omitted here.

In the case of the noise prevention apparatus of this second embodiment, the number and the directions of the speakers that are arranged correspond to the arrangement of the machine room and data that is obtained from test results is used as the basis for setting the sound that is effective in cancelling the vibration noise. In addition, the various types of detection signals that are supplied to the control panel of the winch 11 are supplied to the leak noise calculation circuit 31 and these control elements can operate to cancel the vibration noise.

In these first and second embodiments, the vibration detection apparatus 30 uses a general vibration pickup to detect the acceleration, speed or phase and generates a voltage that is proportional to the detected acceleration, speed or phase. For example, when an acceleration pickup is used as the vibration detector, the configuration has a piezo-electric pickup having a built-in spring (dynamo). This type has a fixed period of vibration of 10 kHz or more and the piezo-electric element has the role of a spring and so it functions as an acceleration pickup in a frequency region which is sufficiently low.

Also, if the leak noise calculation circuit 31 predicts and obtains the phase of the noise that is generated by the vibration on the basis of the detected vibration waveform, then it can be applied whether there is a conventional analog type of frequency analyzer, a digital frequency analyzer that uses a fast Fourier transform (FFT), or whether an A/D converter and a computer are used to digitalize the vibration waveform and calculate the power spectrum.

FIG. 19 shows an analog type of frequency analyzer which passes the waveform data of the vibration through band-pass filters 31b while reproducing it from a tape recorder 31a or the like, and measures the actual values that exist in each of the frequency bandwidths and so these types of analyzer are classified according to the type of band-pass filter, into constant proportion band frequency analyzers and constant bandwidth frequency analyzers. The constant bandwidth frequency analyzer is used particularly for the measurement and analysis of mechanical vibration since it is possible to finely divide the frequencies with at high resolution, and the central frequency of the band-pass filters of these constant bandwidth analyzers is created using a heterodyne equation that is an arithmetic progression.

FIG. 20 shows a digital type of frequency analyzer is stage 31d performs a Fourier transform of the waveform data that has been sampled in stage 31c for each time interval and determines the power spectrum for frequencies in an arithmetic progression. FFT are used as the Fourier transforms. Commercially available digital frequency analyzers have a digital transient memory and are known as FFT analyzers, or spectrum analyzers. These analyzers perform digital signal processing and so facilitate various types of analyses.

FIG. 21 shows a supported frequency analyzer which extends the analog/digital converter 31e that converts the analog data into digital data, into a computer bus 31f for a computer 31g that functions as an A/D converter by either an internal or an external program. The waveform data is converted into numerical data for each time interval and stored in the user region of the internal or expansion memory of the computer. This data is inserted into array elements of a program and FFT is performed by a predetermined program and the spectrum determined.

These various types of apparatus and methods can be used to analyze the detected vibration waveform and determine the power spectrum, and use the determined waveform as the basis to predict the vibration noise that is generated and that passes through the cable holes 18. If the predicted waveform is created, then its phase can be determined and so cancellation sound signals of opposite phase can created and converted into actual sound so that it is possible to either eliminate or reduce the vibration noise.

The present invention may be constructed as a third embodiment shown in FIGS. 17 and 18 without limitation of FIG. 17 having the same numerals affixed as in FIGS. 2 and 6 are the same elements as in the prevention apparatuses of the first and second embodiments, a duplicate description is omitted. An apparatus according to the third embodiment has a different configuration in which two speakers 33 are respectively mounted on the floor surface of the machine room 10 immediately beside the cable holes 18, respectively, thereby generating the sound for cancelling the noise.

The calculation circuit 31 operates to provide the vibration noise, the leak noise and the sound signals having the opposite phase in the manner of the a flowchart shown in FIG. 18. First, the several functions are preset in the circuit 31 with respect to the noise generated by diffusion, attenuation, time lag and the like in the machine room, for use in the calculation of noise.

When the circuit 31 receives the vibration output from the winch 11, the vibration is operated as the noise having a correlation of "1:1" (see step ST11). The leak noise that is passed through the cable holes 18 and 18 of the machine room 10 to the hoistway 19, is calculated and estimated by using the functions with respect to the diffusion, attenuation and time lag (step ST12). After the leak noise is estimated, the sound signals of the opposite phase of the leak noise are calculated for cancelling the noise (step ST13).

The sound signals having a phase opposite to the leak noise are amplified by the amplifier 32 to generate sound signals corresponding to the leak noise. The amplified sound signals are supplied to the speakers 33 and 33 so as to be formed as the actual sound having the opposite phase. The actual sound cancels the noise generated by the winch 11, thereby reducing the leak noise through the cable holes 18 and 18.

Therefore, it is possible to decrease the noise transmitted from the machine room through the cable holes and hoistway to the elevator hall.