WO2010032086A1

WO2010032086A1 - Transportation means and universal components of transportation system

Info

Publication number: WO2010032086A1
Application number: PCT/IB2008/054035
Authority: WO
Inventors: Ridas Matonis
Original assignee: Ridas Matonis
Priority date: 2008-09-19
Filing date: 2008-10-02
Publication date: 2010-03-25
Also published as: LT2008074A

Abstract

This invention seeks to create a transportation system suitable for high-rise buildings and buildings of large horizontal dimensions, plants, and building complexes. The transportation system comprises traffic corridors - shafts, into which rails (2) are installed, and self-propelled vehicles moving along these rails. The transport vehicles have one or two chassis (6) elements and a cabin (3), which is made of internal and external parts essentially of cylinder shape. These parts are mounted into each other in a way that allows turning of the internal part around the common imaginary axis. Networks of traffic corridors include different components that allow constructing transportation systems of various complexity.

Description

Description TRANSPORTATION MEANS AND UNIVERSAL COMPONENTS

OF TRANSPORTATION SYSTEM

Technical Field

[1] This invention relates to transportation systems for conveying of human beings and cargo, particularly to transportation systems for extremely high-rise buildings and buildings of large horizontal dimensions and their groups. This invention also relates to three dimensional transportation systems. Background Art

[2] In case of construction of extremely high-rise buildings or buildings of large horizontals dimensions, there is a need for a three dimensional transportations systems for conveying humans and cargo inside the buildings operating according to the principle of a single journey from departure to destination. The traffic tracks of such transportation systems could be placed in any spatial direction and would comprise an integrated transportation network of switching branches, stop stations, transitions from horizontal movement direction to vertical and vice verse, turns, straight sections, and similar elements, allowing self-propelled vehicles to travel from a point of departure to a point of destination. Such conveying of humans and cargo is accomplished according to the principle of a single journey.

[3] The closest available patent is described in the international patent No PCT/

IB 2008/052997. This patent describes a three dimensional transportation system of self-propelled vehicles, the chassis of the vehicles being made of pinions moving in half-closed profiles. The rails in the internal part of the profiles are made of a smooth area and of a rack area. The vehicles can move in any spatial direction, transit between horizontal and vertical movement directions, and switch while moving horizontally as well as vertically. The cabin of the vehicle in this invention is attached to an end of a supporting element via a swivel; the chassis is rigidly attached to the other end of the supporting element. The cabin of the vehicle in this invention is provided with means for tilt control dampening undesirable swing of the cabin. Disclosure of Invention Technical Problem

[4] Difficulties in using the mentioned transportation system arise when a vehicle has to change from one horizontal track to a lower or higher parallel traffic track. Since the cabin is attached to the chassis by a swivel, it can only hang bellow the chassis while the vehicle is moving horizontally, i.e. the cabin cannot end up above the chassis. Extending the supporting element and moving it to a side could solve this problem, so that the cabin could freely turn around the point of attachment by 360°. However, the implementation of such system requires much bigger dimension of the transportation shafts and the construction of the vehicle itself becomes large, heavy and less reliable. There is a need to improve the construction of the vehicles for three dimensional transportation systems and to design the main nodes/junctions of the transportation system, so that a vehicle of improved design could freely get form any departure point to any destination point. The route of the journey should be as short as possible, eliminating necessity of repulsion/switching maneuvers. Technical Solution

[5] This invention seeks to improve the three-dimensional transportations system for conveying human beings and cargo inside extremely high-rise buildings or buildings of large horizontals dimensions or their groups.

[6] Saving energy and time of passengers, the self-propelled vehicles in the three- dimensional transportation system should move in the most effective and/or the fastest route, therefore unnecessary repulsion/switching maneuvers should be eliminated.

[7] Based on these criteria, the main components/junctions of the transportation system have been designed and the construction of the self-propelled vehicle have been improved in a way that such transport vehicle could easily negotiate any sector of the transportation system and pass the mentioned components/junctions maintaining basically horizontal position of the passengers/cargo. Safety of passengers/cargo and comfort of travel are ensured as well.

[8] An improved transport vehicle and the main components of the transport groups O,

X, Y, Z, and Ω constitute the essence of the invention. The cabin of the improved transport vehicle has a dual structure, the external part thereof being attached to the chassis and the internal part moving inside the mentioned external part to maintain horizontal position of passengers/cargo.

[9] Also, this transport vehicle could have 2 or more chassis elements, thus increasing travel safety and allowing for transport vehicles of larger dimensions, accommodating more passengers and/or cargo. Description of Drawings

[10] Fig.1 - the vehicle of the improved design with one chassis element in transition from vertical to horizontal movement direction;

[11] Fig.2 - the vehicle of the improved design with one chassis element in transition to rail branch;

[12] Fig.3 - the vehicle of the improved design with two chassis elements;

[13] Fig.4 - fundamental scheme of Ω group component with indicated directions of movement of vehicles; [14] Fig.5 - fundamental scheme of O group component with indicated directions of movement of vehicles;

[15] Fig. 6 - fundamental scheme of Z group component with indicated directions of movement of vehicles;

[16] Fig. 7 - fundamental scheme of X group component with indicated directions of movement of vehicles. Description of the Preferred Embodiment

[17] The preferable implementation scenario for this invention - transportation system for conveying humans and cargo inside extremely high-rise buildings and buildings of large horizontals dimensions . The system is comprised of self-propelled vehicles of improved design and a network or transportation corridors, made of recurring structural elements - components of transportation system - connected by straight or non-straight sections. In the preferable implementation the transport corridor is comprised of a shaft (not shown in the drawings) and two rails (2), installed reciprocally or, in the case of a rectangular shaft, on opposite walls of the shaft (Fig. 3). The basic components could be grouped into four primary groups named O, X, Z, and Ω.

[18] O group components essentially correspond with traffic rings that are intended to change the movement direction of a transport vehicle by 180° or similar angle, as shown in Fig. 5. These components are essentially circular or oval and are installed between two traffic corridors with opposite traffic directions.

[19] X group components are installed between two traffic corridors with identical traffic direction and allows transfer of the vehicles from one corridor to the other, while maintaining essentially the same movement direction, as shown in Fig. 7.

[20] Z group components allow the transport vehicles to turn into branches by changing the movement plane and then changing the movement direction, as it is shown in Fig. 6. Such components fit very well in places where other corridors nearby prevent the transport vehicles from turning in the same plane. In this component the vehicle (3) rises above or descends below the adjacent traffic corridor when turning.

[21] Ω components change the movement direction of a transport vehicle by a right or similar angle and transfers the vehicle into a different plane, as it is shown in Fig. 4. Ω components usually can be constructed by combining two Z group components.

[22] Combinations of the above mentioned basic components are sufficient for constructing a three dimensional network of transport corridors and adapt it to structures of a building or of their groups.

[23] In preferable implementation all transport corridors and components are built from shafts with one or two rails (2) mounted inside. If two rails (2) are installed in a shaft, they are positioned reciprocally, i.e. on opposite walls of the shaft. The construction of rails (2) is known from the level of engineering. They are made of partially closed profile of rectangular cross-section and racks and/or smooth sections of rails mounted inside the profile. Since the object of the invention is not the rail, the construction of the chassis, or their engagement, application of other types of rails and chassis for movement of self-propelled vehicles is possible.

[24] Self-propelled vehicles moving in a network of traffic corridors described above are made essentially of a cabin (3) and a chassis (6). The chassis of the transport vehicles is also known from the level of engineering - essentially it is made of pinions, supporting elements and a drive device, such as en electric engine. As mentioned above, other types of chassis could be used as well. As indicated in Fig. 1 and Fig. 3, the chassis element of the transport vehicle is made of two groups of pinion pairs (4 on each side) and a supporting element (1) for each group, and these supporting elements (1) can bend relatively to each other around the pivot, which is constructed at the end of the intermediate supporting element (9). The transport vehicles in this improved transportation system can have one chassis element (6) as well as several, mounted on the same or opposite sides of the cabin (3). In the preferred implementation these chassis elements (6) are attached to external part of the cabin (3) via intermediate supporting element (9), containing a swing joint (8).

[25] In cases when two chassis (6) elements are attached to opposite cabin sides, their construction should allow the wheels moving in the rails (2) to slip in sections, where the transport vehicle is passing transitions from vertical to horizontal movement direction, and in other track sections, where the movement paths of the wheels have different curvature radius. Utilization of two chassis (6) elements increases safety and reliability of the transport vehicle, yet makes the construction of the rails (2) more complicated - distance between rails should be maintained constant everywhere, the rails should be connected with C-shaped elements in switching sections, switch devices of both rails should be coupled mechanically, so that both switches operate even after failure of the electric part of one of the switches.

[26] When a transport vehicle has one chassis (6), it moves along one of the rails (2) in the shaft and the mentioned additional constructions that are unnecessary for two- chassis (6) vehicles become redundant. Depending on required configuration of the transport system, two or more rails (2) are usually installed in transportation shafts essentially on any wall of the shaft even in cases of single-chassis (6) vehicles. The reason for this is that in a complicated network of transport tracks transport vehicles change their orientation and the chassis can end up on a rail (2) mounted to any of the shaft walls.

[27] The cabin of the transport vehicle is made of two principle parts - the external (5) and the internal (4). In the preferred implementation the internal surface of the external part (5) and the external surface of the internal part (4) have the shape of a cylinder and are concentric. The internal part (4) of the cabin (3) moves inside the external part (5) to maintain its fundamental orientation independently of the spatial orientation of the external part (5) of the cabin (3). The internal part (4) of the cabin (3) contains a compartment (7) for passengers and cargo. While the transport vehicle moves, the compartment (7) always maintains essentially horizontal orientation. Bearings installed in the gap between the external (5) and the internal (4) parts of the cabin allow free turning of the parts relatively to each other. In the preferred implementation the internal part (4) of the cabin is provided with means for suppression of undesirable swing. These means can be geared, pneumatic, hydraulic, etc.

[28] The vehicle is attached to the chassis (6) with a rotational coupling (8), so that the transport vehicle could switch while moving vertically and could negotiate all mentioned group components. A wide variety of such rotational couplings is known in mechanics; therefore we will not analyze the construction of the coupling. If a vehicle is equipped with more than one chassis (6) element, rotational couplings (8) are installed in all intermediate elements (9) joining chassis (6) elements to the cabin (3).

[29] The mentioned rotational coupling (8) is designed to maintain essentially horizontal orientation of the imaginary axis of the external part (5) of a cabin.

[30] In preferred implementation scenario the rails in a horizontal section of a traffic corridor are placed vertically above each other, i.e. on top and bottom walls of a shaft, as shown in Fig. 4 - Fig. 7.

[31] Different configurations of chassis (6) elements are possible, including installation of several chassis (6) elements on the same side of a cabin to eliminate excessive stress/ load on a chassis (6) element in case of a large/heavy cabin (3).

[32] This invention is not confined to the implementation scenarios that are described here and its protection should encompass different configurations of rails (2) and chassis (6) elements and their arrangements that utilize the main inventive idea of this invention.

Claims

[1] Self-propelled vehicle moving on rails (2) for conveying of cargo and passengers comprising:

- a cabin for passengers and/or cargo,

- chassis (6),

- intermediate supporting element (9), joining the cabin to the chassis (6), the vehicle, characterized in that the cabin (3) is made of concentric internal (4) and external (5) parts mounted into each other, where the internal part (4) has a compartment for passengers and/or cargo and can rotate around imaginary longitudinal cabin (3) axis inside the external (5) part, so that the mentioned compartment for passengers and/or cargo maintains essentially horizontal orientation in every situation of movement.

[2] Vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that the vehicle (3) comprises two chassis (6) elements mounted on opposite sides of the cabin, so that the wheels of the chassis (6) elements are arranged to move in the rails (2) of traffic corridors mounted on opposite walls of traffic corridors at a constant distance from each other.

[3] Vehicle according to claim 1, characterized in that the transport vehicle (3) comprises one chassis (6) element that is arranged to move on any of several rails (2) installed inside a traffic corridor.

[4] Vehicle (3) according to any of the previous claims, characterized in that the mentioned chassis (6) element or elements are attached to the external part (5) of the cabin via a intermediate supporting element (9), fitted with rotational coupling (8) that allows rotating the cabin relatively to chassis (6) element(s) to maintain horizontal cabin orientation in every situation of movement.

[5] Transportation system comprising at least a network of traffic corridors and self- propelled vehicles moving therein for conveying of cargo and passengers in extremely high-rise buildings and in buildings of large horizontal dimensions and complexes thereof, characterized in that the self-propelled vehicles according to any of claims 1-4 are used.

[6] Transportation system according to claim 5, characterized in that the transport system comprises at least one of these components/junctions of the transportation network:

- O group components, arranged to change the movement direction of a transport vehicle by 180° or similar angle and are installed between two traffic corridors with opposite traffic directions;

- X group components are installed between two traffic corridors with identical traffic direction and are arranged to transfer of the vehicles from one corridor to the other, while maintaining essentially the same movement direction;

- Z group components are arranged to allow the vehicles to turn into branches by changing the movement plane and then changing the movement direction, in this component the vehicle rises above or descends below the adjacent traffic corridor when turning;

- Ω group components are arranged to change the movement direction of a vehicle by a right or similar angle and transfer the vehicle into a different plane, Ω components usually are constructed by combining a Z group component with its mirror transposition.

[7] Transport system according to claim 6, characterized in that the mentioned traffic corridors are shafts with at least one rail (2) mounted inside.

[8] Transport system according to claim 7, characterized in that it comprises one rail

(2) installed per mentioned traffic corridor and that these shafts are adapted for movement of transport vehicles with one chassis (6) element.

[9] Transport system according to claim 7, characterized in that it comprises two rails (2) installed per mentioned traffic corridor and that these traffic corridors are adapted for movement of transport vehicles with either one or two chassis (6) elements.

[10] High-rise building or a group thereof, characterized in that it employs a transportation system according to any of claims 5-9.