Patent ID: 7331424

Claim:
An elevator apparatus comprising: a plurality of cars located within a hoistway so that the plurality of cars are adjacent to one another when located at equal height, the plurality of cars each being raised and lowered within the hoistway; a plurality of car guide rails disposed within the hoistway, for guiding the cars when the cars are raised and lowered; and a plurality of car guide shoes mounted on the respective cars, for engaging the car guide rails, wherein, at least one of the cars is defined as a first car and a car adjacent to the first car is defined as a second car, each of the first and second cars has a first pair of chamfered sides perpendicular to a diagonal line in a horizontal plane and passing through the respective car, the first car includes a second pair of the chamfered sides, each of the first and second pairs of chamfered sides being perpendicular to a respective one of two intersecting diagonals of the first car in the horizontal plane and passing through the first car; the car guide shoes and the car guide rails are disposed at the diagonally opposite first pair of the chamfered sides; and rope connecting portions to which main ropes for suspending the first car are connected are disposed at the diagonally opposite second pair of the chamfered sides.