IMPROVEMENTS IN OR RELATING TO LIFT SHAFTS

Abstract: The invention relates to a prefabricated lift shaft comprising a stack of self-supporting prefabricated shaft modules whereby upper shaft modules are supported on lower modules. Each module contains a rectangular cross section and at each corner vertically spaced parts to define a void between two adjacent modules. The voids are filled with a resin which after joining together, forms a solid bed supporting the module in all directions. On the lower module provision is made for removable guide shafts extending vertically, being engageable with corresponding apertures in the upper module to locate the modules relative to one another during assembly of a lift shaft. When the modules are satisfactorily located, the guide shafts may be removed and replaced with bolts to secure the upper module on the lower module.

Description: This invention relates to a lift shaft comprising a stack of self-supporting, prefabricated shaft modules whereby each module having a structural strength sufficient to support the module or modules above thereby permitting supporting of the shaft from a lower module, means being provided on the upper and/or lower modules to define a void between vertically spaced parts of the modules, A lift shaft in which prefabricated concrete shaft modules are stacked on the building sites, and the procedure for the manufacture of such a lift shaft was disclosed in the French Patent FR-A-1 421 040. Each shaft module has the approximate height of one storey and contains imbeded guide attachments for the guide rails and door frame of the hoistway door of the lift. On the side of the opening for the hoistway door guide bolts and guide caps are provided to align the shaft modules. There are adjustment screws on the bottom side of each shaft module which exactly levels the upper shaft module on the lower shaft module. The thereby resulting joint between the modules is subsequently filled in with concrete, which then provides the necessary support for the load of the upper module. A similar procedure and installation became known through the Belgium Patent BE-A-568 738 where the stacking of prefabricated shaft modules build together by sheet steel and steel sections, reaching the height up to two storeys, are hoisted by crane. The butt joints between upper and lower modules are constructed in a way to enable metal vanes of the upper modules to mesh into metal vanes of the lower modules, whereby a downwards slotted hole situated on the upper module is mounted with screws, inserted in horizontally arranged holes on the lower module. Screw caps with an exterior hexagon having a convex upper surface are screwed to fixed arranged vertical bolts on the lower module enabling an exact levelling of the upper module on to the lower module. As soon as alignment has taken place, the horizontal screws in the slotted holes can then be tightend up. According to a first aspect of the present invention there is provided a lift shaft comprising a stack of self-supporting, prefabricated shaft modules whereby each module having a structural strength sufficient to support the module or modules above thereby permitting supporting of the shaft from a lower module, means being provided on the upper and/or lower modules to define a void between vertically spaced parts of the modules, said means defining a void include a pair of spaced horizontal surfaces disposed respectively on the upper edge of the lower shaft module and the lower edge of the upper shaft module, inner, outer and end barrier walls of the void being provided on the upper edge of the lower module, said barrier wall of the void includes an upstanding plate secured on the inner surface of the upper end of the lower shift shaft module and projecting above the upper edge of said module, and upper portion of said plate being inclined, and wherein the outer and end barrier walls of the void include upstanding walls of compressible foam disposed on the upper edge of the lower shaft module and on the inclined portion of the plate to define the void, said void being filled with a structural resin in liquid or plastic form which on setting forms a solid bed of resin material supporting said vertically spaced parts of the module apart. Preferably the shaft includes a plurality of beds of resin disposed at spaced locations between the adjacent modules. It is further preferable that the prefabricated shaft modules are of rectangular transverse cross-section, wherein means are provided at each corner of said rectangle for providing said voids such that, on filling of said voids with structural resin, the upper module is supported on the lower module in four regions. This provides sufficient support for an upper lift shaft module on a lower lift shaft module, the regions of support being limited to the corners of the lift shaft modules, thereby minimising the quantity of resin required to be provided to support the structure. Conveniently, voids may extend to either side of the apex of the corner of the rectangle at which each void is located. The lift shaft may advantageously include jacking means to permit "plumbing" of an upper shaft module and an adjacent lower shaft module relative to one another. Preferably, the jacking means is disposed on the upper shaft module and is arranged to engage the lower shaft module. More specifically, the jacking means may comprise a plurality of screw jacks disposed between an upper shaft module and an adjacent lower shaft module, there being a sufficient number of said screw jacks to permit adjustment of the relative orientation of the two modules in two mutually perpendicular planes parallel to the longitudinal axis of the lift shaft and furher to permit adjustment of the spacing between the adjacent modules. It is further preferable that the screw jacks each include a nut secured above an aperture in a lower, horizontal surface of an upper shaft module and having screwed therein a bolt passing through said aperture, the free end of which bolt may contact the horizontal surface on the upper edge of an adjacent, lower shaft module, tightening and loosening of the bolt serving to raise and lower the upper shaft module on the lower shaft module. It is preferable that guide means are provided to permit locating of an upper and a lower shaft module relative to one another during assembly of a lift shaft. Conveniently, the guide means may include a removable guide extending vertically from the lower module, said guide being engageable with a corresponding aperture formed in the upper module to locate the modules relative to one another. Preferably, the removable guide includes a vertical shaft the free end of which tapers and is engageable with the aperture formed in the upper module, a portion of the shaft having a diameter smaller than the diameter of the aperture by a predetermined distance being engageable with said aperture to permit positioning of the modules relative to one another to within a predetermined tolerance on insertion of the shaft into the aperture. An advantage of this arrangement is that, during assembly of the lift shaft, a guide member may be provided to locate adjacent modules; and when the modules are satisfactorily located, the guide member may be removed and replaced with a bolt to secure the upper shaft module on the lower shaft module. Preferably a horizontal flange extends outwardly about the upper edge of an adjacent lower shaft module, the two flanges, on assembly of the lift shaft, being aligned with one another and spaced from one another by the region of resin, the space between the flanges unsupported by the resin being at least partly filled by a compressible sealing strip aligned with the longitudinal axes of the horizontal flanges. Further it is preferable that the lift shaft includes a plurality of anchoring means secured, on assembly of the lift shaft, between a shaft module and a structure defining a well in which the lift shaft stands to restrain transverse movement of the shaft module. It is further preferable that the lift shaft includes fire- and smoke-proofing means encircling the shaft at the level of each floor of the building in which the shaft stands, comprising a Z-section retainer plate the upper, horizontal member of which extends outwardly of the shaft and rests on the floor of the building and the lower, horizontal member of which extends inwardly to intersect the lift shaft, thereby defining a channel encircling the lift-shaft to receive a fire- and smoke-proof substance. There now follows a description of a specific embodiment of the invention by way of example with reference being made to the accompanying drawings in which: Figure 1 is an exterior perspective, partly sectioned view of a corner of a lift shaft according to the invention, with the component parts exploded apart for clarity; Figure 2 is an interior perspective, partly sectioned view of the lift shaft corner of figure 1, with the component parts assembled; Figure 3 is a perspective view of a lift shaft according to the invention, with the parts exploded for clarity; Figure 4 is a side elevational view of a threaded guide bar for use in aligning adjacent modules during assembly of a lift shaft; Figure 5 is a plan view of the upper surface of a lower lift shaft module showing the location of various apertures formed therein; and Figure 6 shows a retaining bolt aperture formed in the upper shaft module. Referring to the drawings, there is shown a prefabricated, self-supporting lift shaft 10 including, as shown, a stack of four self-supporting prefabricated shaft modules 11, 12, 13, 14. Figures 1 and 2 show a corner of the joint between the adjacent modules 12 and 13. The joint is arranged to lie approximately at the level of a floor of the building in which the lift shaft stands, and the concrete floor slab 4 is visible in figures 1 and 2. Each lift shaft module is rectangular in cross-section, the cross sections of adjacent modules conforming with each other in the vicinity of joints as herein described. Accordingly, the lower shaft module 12 has four vertical side walls, of which two, 15 and 16, are visible in Figures 1 and 2. Each side wall is made up of a series of galvanised steel lipped channel sections secured to one another by rivets 17. Alternatively, bolts or other securing means may be used. The channel sections are arranged to present a series of vertical ribs 18 on the exterior of the lift shaft whilst the interior of the shaft is generally flat walled, as shown in Figure 2. Adjacent channel lips forming the ribs 18 have a silicone based joint sealant 19 inserted therebetween. The construction of the walls of the upper shaft module 13 is similar to that of lower shaft module 12. The upper edge of lower shaft module 12 has an outwardly extending, encircling, horizontal flange 20 and a corresponding flange 21 is formed on the lower edge of upper shaft module 13. When the modules are assembled as a lift shaft, the two flanges 20, 21, are aligned and lie adjacent one another, but they are spaced from one another by a resin-filled corner support indicated generally at 22, and a further three such corner supports disposed on the remaining corners of the joint. Corner support 22 has an upstanding, inner weir plate 23 extending above the level of flange 20 through 90° and secured on the inner wall of lift shaft module 12. A length of compressible foam joint sealant strip 24 is secured on each of two inclined portions of the weir plate 23 and interconnects the two inclined portions via a path enclosing an L-shaped region defined on the surface of flange 20 to form with the flange 20 and the inclined portion of weir plate 23 a void formed as a through to receive epoxy resin 25 during assembly of the lift shaft 10. When assembled, the joint supports the upper shaft module on the lower shaft module via the region of resin 25, and contact between the two shaft modules does not take place. A nut 26 welded over an aperture in the flange 21 on each side of the corner receives a threaded bolt 27 which acts as a screw jack to level and plumb the upper shaft module 13 on the lower shaft module 12 by virtue of contact between the free end of the bolt 27 and the flange 20. However, this contact is only significantly load-bearing during assembly of the joint, and once the resin 25 has been poured it substantially supports the load at the joint. On assembly of the joint, the resin is poured through an input aperture obscured by the lip of corner channel section 29 in Figure 1, and a weep hole 30 serves to permit escape of air as the through defined by the sealing strip 24 the flange 20 and the weir plate 23 fills with resin. A further strip 28 of compressible foam joint sealant 28 is secured around the outer periphery of the flanges 20, 21, sealing the void therebetween. The shaft modules are restrained against axial movement by a series of anchoring brackets such as 31 distributed around the module and rigidly secured between the shaft module and the concrete floor slab 14. A neoprene acoustic isolating pad 32 is inserted between the vertical face 33 of the anchoring bracket and the concrete slab. The joint is proofed against fire and smoke passing from one floor of the building to another by a fire pack consisting of a Z-section fire pack retainer 34 having an upper horizontal ledge 35 resting on the floor slab 14 and a lower horizontal ledge 36 contacting the outer wall of the lift shaft 10. A fire proof material, such as a loose-fill dry material 37 fills the channel encircling the lift shaft 10 therby defined. The fire pack retainer 34 and lift shaft outer wall may alternatively act as shuttering for a concrete fill used as a fire-proofing layer. The outer wall of the lift shaft 10 may be clad with, for example, one or more layers 38 of plasterboard screwed to the ribs 18. Such cladding assists in the seal between the fire pack retainer 34 and lift shaft 10 thereby retaining a loose fill fire proof material in place, improves the sound insulation of the lift shaft 10 and provides an easily decorated surface in the building in which the lift shaft 10 is installed. Figure 3 shows that there are three types of prefabricated lift shaft modules. A pit module 11 is located below a stack of shaft modules 12, 13, having a joint as described above on each corner thereof. A prefabricated lift motor room module 14 is secured at the top of the stack and includes all the motors and cables necessary for operation of the lift. A prefabricated lift car 39 is also included in the fully assembled lift shaft 10, and the shaft modules such as 12 and 13 have lift doors 40, control panels 41 and the other apparatus necessary for operation of the lift when assembled. Assembly of the lift shaft involves the sequential building of a stack of lift shaft modules according to the height of lift shaft required. The individual corner joints are assembled by lowering an upper shaft module 13 over a lower module 12 already secured in place. To assist in locating adjacent modules, a guide bar formed as a tapered guide pin 50, as shown in Figure 4, may be attached to the top of the lower module. A number, say 3 or 4, of guide pins 50 is screwed into suitable threaded apertures 51 formed in the upper edge 52 of a lower module 53 as shown in Figure 5, so that the guide pins 50 extend vertically from the lower module 53 with their tapered ends 54 uppermost. The guide pins 50 engage with apertures formed in the lower edge of the upper module to guide the upper module progressively to the correct seating as it is lowered. When the taper of each guide pin 50 has passed into its corresponding aperture, the horizontal position of the shaft modules relative to one another has been adjusted to within a few millimeters of the required position, since the diameter of the cylindrical portion of each guide pin 50 is smaller than the diameter of its correspondingly aperture by only a small amount, say 3 millimeters. The guide pins thus act as a coarse horizontal position adjustment. Fine adjustment of the horizontal positions of two adjacent modules is effected by the engagement of the ends of the lift car guide rails on the upper and lower modules. On assembly of adjacent modules to form a lift shaft, once the coarse adjustment of the horizontal relative positions of the modules has been effected using the guide pins 50 as described above. The guide pins are subsequently removed and replaced with retaining bolts inserted downwardly through the upper module to engage the threaded apertures 51 to form an anchorage between the two adjacent modules. A number of similar apertures 55 to apertures 51 is distributed about the upper surface of lower shaft module 53 to receive further retaining bolts. The retaining bolts are threaded into threaded apertures such as aperture 60 formed in the lower edge of an upper flange module 61 as shown in Figure 6. The apertures 60 consist of plain apertures having nuts 62 secured, for example by welding, over them to form the threaded portions. The screw jack bolts 27 are inserted in the nuts 26 prior to fitting an upper module into position to permit levelling and plumbing of the upper shaft module 13 relative to the lower one 12 by virtue of the bolts 27 supporting module 13 clear of module 12. The vertical separation of the two modules is also finally adjusted by means of the bolts 27. When the two modules are aligned, the through is flooded with resin 25 which supports the upper module on the lower module and when the level of resin is visible at a predetermined height on the inclined section of the weir plate 23 as viewed from inside the shaft module 12, pouring of resin is ceased and the resin sets to support the upper module 13 on the lower 12. The resin 25 supports substantially all of the load formerly borne by the screw jack bolts 27 during adjustment of the shaft module relative positions. In an alternative arrangement, in which, for example, two or three shafts are assembled adjacent one another by the use of shaft modules having more than one shaft formed therein, bracing members may extend across the top and bottom of the shaft. It will be clear that resin-filled joints may be formed at the resulting intersection of a bracing member and a shaft wall, although such a joint will not be located at a corner of the shaft itself.

Claims: 1. A lift shaft ( 10 ) comprising a stack of self-supporting, prefabricated shaft modules ( 12 , 13 ) whereby each module having a structural strength sufficient to support the module ( 13 ) or modules above thereby permitting supporting of the shaft ( 10 ) from a lower module ( 12 ), means being provided on the upper ( 13 ) and/or lower modules ( 12 ) to define a void between vertically spaced parts of the modules, characterized thereby , that the means defining a void include a pair of spaced horizontal surfaces disposed respectively on the upper edge of the lower shaft module ( 12 ) and the lower edge of the upper shaft module ( 13 ), inner, outer and end barrier walls of the void being provided on the upper edge of the lower module ( 12 ), said barrier wall of the void includes an upstanding plate ( 23 ) secured on the inner surface of the upper end of the lower lift shaft module ( 12 ) and projecting above the upper edge of said module ( 12 ), an upper portion of said plate ( 23 ) being inclined, and wherein the outer and end barrier walls of the void include upstanding walls of compressible foam disposed on the upper edge of the lower shaft module ( 12 ) and on the inclined portion of the plate ( 23 ) to define the void, said void being filled with a structural resin ( 25 ) in liquid or plastic form which on setting forms a solid bed of resin material supporting said vertically spaced parts of the module apart. 2. A lift shaft according to Claim 1, characterized thereby, that a plurality of beds of resin ( 25 ) are disposed at spaced locations between the adjacent modules ( 12 , 13 ). 3. A lift shaft according to Claim 1 or Claim 2, characterized thereby , that the prefabricated shaft modules ( 12 , 13 ) being of rectangular cross section, wherein means ( 22 , 23 ) are provided at each corner of said rectangle for providing said voids such that, on filling of said voids with structural resin ( 25 ), the upper module ( 13 ) is supported on the lower module ( 12 ) in four regions. 4. A lift shaft according to Claim 3, characterized thereby , that voids extend to either side of the apex of the corner of the rectangle at which each void is located. 5. A lift shaft according to any preceding claim, characterized thereby , that jacking means is disposed between the module ( 12 , 13 ) to permit plumbing and spacing of an upper shaft module ( 13 ) and an adjacent lower shaft module ( 12 ) relative to one another. 6. A lift shaft according to Claim 5, characterized thereby, that the jacking means is disposed on the upper shaft module ( 13 ) and is arranged to engage the lower shaft module ( 12 ). 7. A lift shaft according to Claim 5 or Claim 6, characterized thereby , that the jacking means comprises a plurality of screw jacks ( 26 , 27 ) disposed between an upper shaft module ( 13 ) and an adjacent lower shaft module ( 12 ), there being a sufficient number of said screw jacks ( 26 , 27 ) to permit adjustment of the relative orientation of the two modules ( 12 , 13 ) in two mutually perpendicular planes parallel to the longitudinal axis of the lift shaft ( 10 ) and further to permit adjustment of the spacing between the adjacent modules ( 12 , 13 ). 8. A lift shaft according to Claim 7, characterized thereby, that the screw jacks ( 26 , 27 ) each include a nut ( 26 ) secured on an aperture in a lower, horizontal surface of an upper shaft module ( 13 ) and having screwed therein a bolt ( 27 ) passing through said aperture, the free end of which bolt ( 27 ) may contact the horizontal surface on the upper edge of an adjacent, lower shaft module ( 12 ), tightening and loosening of the bolt ( 27 ) serving to raise and lower the upper shaft module ( 13 ) on the lower shaft module ( 12 ). 9. A lift shaft according to any preceding claim, characterized thereby, that guide means are provided to permit locating of an upper ( 13 ) and a lower shaft module ( 12 ) relative to one another during assembly of a lift shaft ( 10 ). 10. A lift shaft according to Claim 9, characterized thereby , that the guide means includes a removable guide ( 50 ) extending vertically of the lower module ( 12 ), said guide ( 50 ) being engageable with a corresponding aperture ( 51 ) formed in the upper module ( 13 ) to locate the modules ( 12 , 13 ) relative to one another. 11. A lift shaft according to Claim 10, characterized thereby, that the removable guide ( 50 ) includes a vertical shaft the free end of which tapers and is engageable with the aperture ( 51 ) formed in the upper module ( 13 ), a portion of the shaft having a diameter smaller than the diameter of the aperture by a predetermined distance being engageable with said aperture to permit positioning of the modules ( 12 , 13 ) relative to one another to within a predetermined tolerance on insertion of the shaft into the aperture. 12. A lift shaft according to any preceding claim characterized thereby , that a horizontal flange ( 21 ) extends outwardly about the lower edge of an upper shaft module ( 13 ) and a corresponding horizontal flange ( 20 ) extends outwardly about the upper edge of an adjacent lower shaft module ( 12 ), the two flanges ( 20 , 21 ), on assembly of the lift shaft ( 10 ), being aligned with one another and spaced from one another by the region of resin, the space between the flanges unsupported by the resin ( 25 ) being at least partly filled by a compressible sealing strip ( 24 ) aligned with the longitudinal axes of the horizontal flanges ( 20 , 21 ). 13. A lift shaft according to any preceding claim, characterized thereby , that a plurality of anchoring means secured, on assembly of the lift shaft ( 10 ), between a shaft module ( 12 , 13 ) and a structure defining a well in which the lift shaft ( 10 ) stands to restrain transverse movement of the shaft module ( 12 , 13 ). 14. A lift shaft according to any preceding claim, characterized thereby , that fire- and smoke-proofing means encircling the shaft ( 10 ) at the level of each floor of the building in which the shaft ( 10 ) stands, comprising a Z-section retainer plate ( 34 ) the upper, horizontal member ( 35 ) of which extends outwardly of the shaft ( 10 ) and rests on the floor of the building and the lower, horizontal member of which extends inwardly to intersect the lift shaft, thereby defining a channel encircling the lift shaft ( 10 ) to receive a fire- and smoke-proof substance.

Inventors: POWER, LESLIE BRIAN, PREWER, JOHN RUSSELL
Applicants: INVENTIO AG
Application year: 1989
Main classification: E04F17
IPC codes: B66B7, E04F17, E04B1