Elevator guide shoe

A guide shoe for an elevator has a rigid holding shoe for attachment to the elevator car. A U-shaped recess in the holding shoe accommodates a laminated slide member having a liner adapted to resist frictional wear and attack by lubricants and an intermediate layer between the liner and the holding shoe of cellular elastomeric material.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION 
This invention relates to a guide shoe for the car of an elevator sliding 
along a guide rail, which consists of a holding shoe and a liner arranged 
in a longitudinal recess in the holding shoe. 
Sliding guide shoes on elevators are for the safe guidance of the car. In 
view of the different functions of the holding shoe and the liner, 
different materials are used therefor. The holding shoe is made of a rigid 
material, e.g. metal or thermosetting plastics, while the liner is made of 
a different kind of plastic. 
The holding shoe is the load-bearing member, it is attached to the car and 
holds the liner in position. The liner slides on the rail. It determines 
the smoothness of travel of the elevator. It must be elastically damping, 
and having abrasive resistance and very good sliding ability. Moreover, it 
must be resistant to the lubricants used. The connection between the liner 
and the holding shoe is effected by means of pins, which are fixed 
component parts of the liner, and engage in corresponding holes in the 
holding shoe. 
The materials previously used for the liners represent a compromise between 
good sliding ability and elastic damping properties. They cannot 
simultaneously satisfy the technical requirement of optimum sliding 
ability, low coefficient of friction, in some cases even without 
lubricant, wear and greater elasticity. 
SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION 
An object of the invention is to provide a slide shoe for a car or the 
like, in which the liner can respond better than hitherto to the 
requirements to be placed upon it for sliding ability, wear and elastic 
damping properties, and in which lateral movement without longitudinal 
movement is possible. 
The sliding guide shoe according to the present invention employs an 
intermediate layer of cellular elastomer between the holding shoe and the 
liner. Any appropriate cellular elastomer may be used but best results are 
obtained with an elastomer with a polyurethane base. 
The use of different material for the liner and the intermediate layer 
better satisfy the different requirements to be placed on the sliding 
guide shoe and the liner. The liner can be made of a material which has 
extremely low coefficient of friction and high resistance to abrasion 
without requiring the compromises which would otherwise be needed to 
achieve elasticity. Although numerous materials may be satisfactory for 
the liner, in the preferred embodiment a plastic liner made of polyamides 
is preferred. The intermediate layer of cellular elastomer provides 
elasticity to the liner without itself being subjected to abrasion and 
wear from contact with the rail. In addition, the cellular elastomer adds 
the desirable property of damping noise from the sliding friction contact 
of the liner with the rail before it can propagate into the car. In the 
preferred embodiment, a cellular elastomer employing a polyurethane base 
gives the best results. 
The liner and the intermediate layer are preferably secured together into 
an integral unit, for example by glueing. Thus, the sliding guide element 
operates as a unit and combines in itself the desired technical properties 
in a novel manner which yields an unexpectedly improved result. 
According to a further characteristic of the invention, the pins of the 
liner pass through the intermediate layer of cellular elastomer in order 
to engage holes in the holding shoe. The pins are integral components of 
the liner and are made of the same material. The interengagement of the 
pins of the liner and the holes in the holding shoe is so arranged that 
relative movement in the longitudinal direction between the liner and the 
holder shoe is prevented while relative movement in the transverse 
direction is permitted. Such transverse movement can be attained in 
different ways. For example, pins having an oval shape with the maxor axis 
disposed longitudinally of the travel direction may be fitted into 
circular holes in the holding shoe. The greater size of the pins in the 
longitudinal direction corresponds to the size of the diameter of the 
holes in the holder shoe and prevents relative longitudinal motion while 
permitting transverse motion. Pins having a circular shape may engage 
transverse slots in the holder shoe. The diameter of the pins corresponds 
to the longitudinal dimension of the slots in the direction of travel thus 
limiting relative movement in this direction. The greater dimension of the 
slots extending transversely of the direction of travel permits 
substantial relative transverse movement of the pins in the slots. 
The two described measures permit the desired transverse movement, without 
permitting substantial movement in the longitudinal direction. The 
intermediate layer made of cellular elastomer absorbs transverse movement 
elastically. Shocks and travel noises are dampened and cannot be 
transmitted through the holding shoe to the car. 
The thickness and cellular structure of the intermediate layer can readily 
be chosen by one skilled in the art for a specific application to achieve 
the properties of a predetermined stress during normal functioning, the 
necessary elastic-springing and satisfactory noise damping. The thickness 
of the intermediate layer may correspond approximately to the thickness of 
the liner, but is preferably somewhat less. It can, however, for suitable 
cellular material, exceed the thickness of the liner. 
The liner, when installed, is of substantially U-shape in cross-section. 
The material with its elastic properties permits simple assembly, and the 
liner can be inserted into the holder shoe by pressing together the two 
side walls of the liner while inserting into the holding shoe until the 
pins snap into the holes. Although the liner according to the invention 
may be molded in its final U shape, there is preferably provided another 
insertion technique for the unit. According to a further feature of the 
invention, the liner, which consists of the side walls and the base, is 
formed as a flat laminated body. The liner has two longitudinally 
extending grooves, so called film hinges, which permit bending the side 
walls up into U-form during assembly. 
The cellular intermediate layer can be stamped from a flat sheet material. 
It is applied to the flat liner on the side on which the pins are located. 
During assembly, the two outer walls of the liner are bent up, and the 
attached intermediate layer also bends without difficulty. Engagement of 
the pins in the holes of the holding shoe takes place by snap action.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT 
The guide shoe 1 has a holding shoe 2 with a slide member 4 located in a 
longitudinal recess 3. The slide member 4 consists of a liner 5 of a first 
type of plastic and an intermediate layer 6 of a different type of 
plastic. The liner 5 and the intermediate layer 6 are firmly bonded 
together at their junction to form a unitary body. The type of plastic in 
liner 5 is selected from those giving good resistance to abrasion and low 
friction such as certain elastomers and polyamides and the like, but is 
preferably polyamide. The plastic material in the intermediate layer 6 is 
preferably a cellular material and, in the preferred embodiment is a 
cellular polyurethane. In the holding shoe 2, holes 7 are provided in 
which the pins 8 on the liner 5 engage. 
The engagement of the pins 8 of the liner 4, which project through the 
intermediate layer 6 surrounding the liner 4, with the holes 7 in the 
holding shoe 2 can be arranged in different ways to attain movement in the 
direction of the depth of the hole 3 in the holder shoe 2. According to 
FIG. 4, the pins 8a have an oval shape. Thus, the dimension of the pins 8a 
transverse to the direction of travel indicated by the arrow 9 is smaller 
than the dimension of the pin 8a longitudinally of the direction of 
travel. The hole 7a has a circular shape. Alternatively, the embodiment of 
FIG. 5 shows pins 8b having a circular shape, and holes 7b having a 
slotted shape. The diameter of the pin 8b corresponds to the width of the 
slot 7b longitudinal to the direction of travel, while the greater 
dimension of the slot 7b extends transversely to the direction of travel. 
Both embodiments permit relative movement of the slide member 4 
transversely to the direction of travel, while longitudinal movement of 
the slide member 4 relative to the holding shoe 1 in the direction of 
travel is prevented. 
FIG. 6 shows the slide member 4 consisting of the liner 5 and intermediate 
layer 6 prior to assembly in the holding shoe, the view being in the 
direction of the sliding surface of the liner 5. The side walls 5a and 5b 
lie in the same plane as the base 5c of the liner. The fixing pins 8, 8a, 
8b are located on the underside of the slide member and are not shown. The 
intermediate layer 6 of cellular-elastomer is fixedly secured to the liner 
5. The liner 5 has longitudinally extending grooves 10 formed by reduction 
of the material, which provide so called film hinges. During assembly, the 
side walls 5a and 5b of the liner together with the intermediate layer 6, 
is bent along the grooves 10 into U-shape. The U-shaped body so formed is 
fitted into the longitudinal recess 3 in the holding shoe 2. The pins 8, 
8a, 8b snap into the corresponding holes 7, 7a, 7b so that the slide 
member is fixed in the holding shoe 2. 
It will be understood that the claims are intended to cover all changes and 
modifications of the preferred embodiments of the invention, herein chosen 
for the purpose of illustration which do not constitute departures from 
the spirit and scope of the invention.