Any elevator electronics experts? - Page 1
Forum section: electronics / general

author: maxwell3e10
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 29, 2022, 05:11:29 am
content: I just run across this story where they haven't been able to solve an elevator problem in NYC for several months. I have no connection to the project. It just seems to be in need of a good engineer. Probably a few hundred dollars worth of surge suppression parts can save them from spending hundreds $k.https://www.nytimes.com/2022/03/28/nyregion/nyc-elevator-outage-20-exchange-place.html"The building’s owners say that the elevator’s operating boards are routinely burned out and must be replaced often and that they have hired elevator mechanics to be on-site 24 hours a day to expedite repairs. They have also tried to buy operating boards in bulk but have been stymied by supply-chain issues, they said."“To date, we have not been presented with any plausible theory as to why the elevator problems, which have developed since work to install a new elevator system began, are related to Con Edison equipment or service,” the electric company said in a statement.

author: f4eru
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 29, 2022, 03:50:45 pm
content: 'could be the elevator itself making the surges.all conjecture:Elevators sometimes recuperate braking energy into the mains.if there's a loose connection somewhere between the elevators and mains, there could be a huge transient right there.Older simpler systems probably do not cope well with that.In any case: put a power voltage/current logger at the input of the elevator room, wait for smoke, and analyze.

author: dmills
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 29, 2022, 04:03:02 pm
content: Yep, three phase power loggers are standard sort of toys for a reason...I would note that it would be a VERY brave EE who touched this one if not employed directly by the company that designed the lift control gear. These things are surrounded by a STUPID amount of regulations, and ANY incident gets the lawyers salivating.My instinct says some poorly routed low voltage control cables or something low voltage earthed at multiple points, but who really knows.

author: f4eru
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 29, 2022, 04:39:16 pm
content: Quote from: dmills on March 29, 2022, 04:03:02 pmDoesn't mean you cannot troubleshoot and audit.As long as you don't modify anything, you're fine.You can then let the responsible technician do the changes, he'll be happy to oblige if you find out the source of trouble.

author: dmills
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 29, 2022, 04:53:35 pm
content: Troubleshooting shit like that almost always winds up opening things up and disconnecting things, it is something the technician should be doing, I mean that sort of is the job not so?Failing that the sort of consulting engineer that carries professional indemnity insurance.

author: jonpaul
author_rank: Super Contributor
timestamp: March 29, 2022, 06:55:46 pm
content: BonjourWe consulted decades ago in fields with substantial liability exposure.Medical electronics, avionics, high voltage..1/ certain regulations can require a professional engineer2/ Liability insurance is either unobtaium or crazy expensive3/ in case of an " incident" be assured that the lawyers will sue everyone even peripherallly connected4/ building management may require only factory authorized elevator service5/ We have had elevator issues due to a water leak, into the controls and due to a poorly compensated motor servo.Jon

author: maxwell3e10
author_rank: Frequent Contributor
timestamp: March 29, 2022, 08:05:31 pm
content: Presumably they are dealing with a major elevator company. Something must be miswired in a non-obvious way or a ground loop as dmills mentioned. But everyone is too afraid to touch it. It's funny the solution offered by the company is to keep a stock of replacement boards on hand.Reminds me of my time as a teenager working on an assembly line where circuit boards kept blowing up and they kept getting engineers coming from OEM to figure it out until I disconnected one little grounding wire...