JP2008201496A - Connecting structure of handrail and its manufacturing method - Google Patents

Abstract

<P>PROBLEM TO BE SOLVED: To provide a connecting structure of a handrail improved in the service life of a connecting part of the handrail by making thickness of the connecting part thinner than that of a handrail main body and reducing stress received by a pinch roller. <P>SOLUTION: This handrail 1 is constituted of a tensile body 2, and canvas layers 3 and decorative layers 4 constituted of a single layer or a plurality of layers, and is used for a transportation device such as an escalator. In this connecting structure 11 of the handrail 1, thickness dc of the connecting part 13 of the handrail 1 is made thinner than thickness db of the handrail main body 12 by 0.05 to 0.30 mm. <P>COPYRIGHT: (C)2008,JPO&INPIT

Description

  The present invention relates to a moving handrail connection structure (connection structure) for an escalator, a moving sidewalk, or a similar transportation device, and a method of manufacturing the same.

  A conventional handrail is composed of a tensile body, a canvas layer and a decorative layer composed of a single layer or a plurality of layers, and a cross section of a handrail body (general portion) is formed in a substantially C shape. Here, the end portion of the handrail, that is, the connecting portion has a substantially similar cross-sectional structure, but the thickness of the connecting portion is the same as or slightly thicker than the handrail body.

  Particularly in the case of a rubber handrail, the unvulcanized rubber is pushed out to both ends of the mold at the time of press vulcanization near the boundary between the vulcanized portion and the unvulcanized portion, so that a thicker portion is formed. That is, as shown in FIG. 6, in the conventional handrail connection structure 61, when the thickness d6 is seen, thick portions of about 0.10 to 0.40 mm can be formed at both ends of the connection portion 63 from the handrail body 62. I understand.

  In the past, the handrail drive system was mainly the pulley type, so this thick part was not a problem, but in the pinching type that drives the handrail that has recently become the mainstream with rollers up and down. However, the problems caused by the thickness of the connecting portion of the conventional handrail and the thickness of both end portions thereof being larger than those of the handrail body are being highlighted.

  The prior art document information related to the invention of this application includes the following.

JP-A-8-113456

  Since the conventional handrail has a thicker part than the general part at the connection part and its vicinity, when used in an escalator of a pinching type drive system, a higher pressure is applied to the thick part, There was a problem that the adhesive force between the decorative rubber layer and the canvas layer was weakened at that portion, and peeling was likely to occur.

  In addition, when a conventional handrail is used in an escalator of a pinching type drive system, there is a problem in appearance such as a loss of surface gloss because the pressure is strong with a pinching roller at a thick part. It was.

  The gist of the present invention is to eliminate the above-described drawbacks even with a handrail made of rubber or resin material, maintain the gloss of the connection portion in the same way as the handrail body, and further improve the life of the handrail. It is to supply.

  That is, an object of the present invention is to provide a handrail connection structure in which the thickness of the connection portion of the handrail is made thinner than that of the handrail body, the stress received by the pinching roller is reduced, and the life of the connection portion is improved. It is to provide a manufacturing method.

  The present invention has been devised to achieve the above object, and the invention of claim 1 includes a tensile body, a canvas layer and a decorative layer made of a single layer or a plurality of layers, and transports an escalator or the like. In the handrail connection structure used in the apparatus, the thickness of the connection portion of the handrail is 0.05 to 0.30 mm thinner than the thickness of the handrail body.

  According to a second aspect of the present invention, the connecting portion has a gloss reduction amount of 8 or less when measured at an incident angle of 60 ° after six months of operation, and the life retention is the thickness of the connecting portion and the handrail body. The handrail connection structure according to claim 1, wherein the difference is greater than 100% when the difference is 0.

  The invention according to claim 3 is the handrail connection structure according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the decorative layer is made of rubber or resin.

  According to a fourth aspect of the present invention, in the method for manufacturing a handrail connection structure according to any one of the first to third aspects, after the end portions of the handrail are connected to each other, the connection portion is formed via an uncrosslinked member. This is a method for manufacturing a handrail connection structure in which a portion is sandwiched from above and below by an upper die and a lower die that are 100 mm or more longer on one side than the portion and is press-bridged.

  According to the present invention, it is possible to improve the reliability by extending the life of the connecting portion, and it is possible to maintain the gloss of the connecting portion for a long period of time as with the handrail body.

  DESCRIPTION OF EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the invention will be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

  FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a handrail connection structure showing a preferred embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 2 is a sectional view taken along line 2A-2A.

  As shown in FIG. 1 and FIG. 2, the handrail 1 is mainly composed of a tensile body 2, a canvas layer 3 and a decorative layer 4 composed of a single layer or a plurality of layers, and has a substantially C-shaped cross section. It is formed.

  The tensile body 2 is for sharing the tensile stress and bending stress applied to the handrail 1, and is formed by arranging a plurality of metal wires 5 such as steel cords (18 in FIG. 2) in parallel. The canvas layer 3 is for increasing the strength of the handrail 1 and is configured by laminating fiber layers 6 (five layers in FIG. 2) made of natural fiber or synthetic fiber fabric. The decorative layer 4 is for protecting the canvas layer 3 and improving the appearance and the touch, and is made of rubber or resin.

  In the handrail 1, reinforcement members 7 and 7 for reinforcing the handrail 1 are further provided at both ends of the canvas layer 3. These reinforcing members 7 are fixed by winding both end portions (end portions in the width direction) of the fiber layer 6 around the outer periphery thereof.

  This handrail 1 is endless (endless) by connecting end portions (lengthwise end portions), and is used as a handrail for an escalator, a moving sidewalk, or a similar transport device (or passenger movement device). used.

  The handrail connection structure 11 according to the present embodiment is mainly composed of a handrail body (main body part or general part) 12 and a connection part 13. The handrail body 12 is a part other than the connection part, and is also referred to as a general part. The connecting portion 13 is for connecting the end portions of the handrail 1 to make them endless.

  The connection part 13 here means a part where both ends of one handrail 1 are connected when a new handrail 1 is installed. In FIG. The example of the part which connected the both ends of the rail 1 was shown.

  In the handrail connection structure 11, the wall thickness dc of the connection portion 13 is 0.05 to 0.30 mm thinner than the wall thickness db of the handrail body 12.

  The connection portion 13 has a gloss reduction amount of 8 or less when measured at an incident angle of 60 ° after six months of operation (use), and has a life retention of 0 difference in wall thickness between the connection portion 13 and the handrail body 12. When the time is 100%, it is over 100%.

  Here, the present applicants varied the wall thickness of the connection portion of the handrail, and tested the retention rate (%) of the life of the handrail. The result is shown in FIG.

  In FIG. 4, the horizontal axis is the thickness difference {(thickness of the connecting portion) − (thickness of the handrail body)} (mm). Moreover, the practical life when the thickness difference between the handrail body and the connecting portion is zero (0) is represented as 100%.

  According to FIG. 4, when the thickness of the connecting portion is thicker than the handrail body, the life is shortened, and when it is thin, the life tends to be long. In general, in the handrail connection structure 11 according to the present embodiment, the wall thickness dc of the connection portion 13 is set to the hand thickness in order to improve the life retention rate. The thickness of the rail body 12 is 0.05 mm or more thinner than the wall thickness db. Moreover, since it will appear as a step in appearance if it is made too thin, the thickness is limited to 0.30 mm thinner than the handrail body 12.

  Further, by reducing the wall thickness dc of the connecting portion 13 by 0.05 to 0.30 mm from the wall thickness db of the handrail body 12, the amount of decrease in the glossiness when measuring an incident angle of 60 ° after six months of operation is 8 or less. In addition, the life retention rate can be over 100% when the thickness difference between the connection portion and the handrail body is 0 as 100%.

  An example of a method for connecting the handrail 1 will be described with reference to FIG. First, the tensile body 2 and the canvas layer 3 at the uncrosslinked portions at both ends of the handrail 1 are connected together for each layer. As for the tensile body 2, in the case of a steel cord, it is common to shift the location, for example, stepwise so that not all are connected at the same location. Thereafter, press crosslinking with the uncrosslinked decorative layer completes the connection.

  According to this connection method, since each layer can be connected reliably, the connection reliability of the handrail connection structure 11 is the highest.

The connection of the handrail 1 may be different from the method shown in FIG. For example,
When the decorative layer 4 is made of resin, first, the decorative layer 4, the tensile body 2, and the canvas layer 3 at both ends of the handrail 1 are disassembled for each layer, and end face processing is performed so as to match each disassembled layer. After the end face treatment, heat fusion is performed with a press to complete the connection.

  As another example, when the entire length is bridged with a rubber handrail, first, the decorative layer 4 at both ends of the handrail 1 is removed to expose the canvas layer 3, and the exposed canvas layer 3 is exposed. A part is removed and the tensile body 2 is exposed. Both end portions of the handrail 1 where the tensile body 2 is exposed are put together to perform end face treatment, and an uncrosslinked member to be described later is attached to the portion from which the decorative layer has been removed, and may be connected by press crosslinking. .

  This connection method is slightly lower in connection reliability of the handrail connection structure according to the present embodiment than the two methods described above, but can be implemented when the length of the existing handrail 1 is changed.

  Next, a method of manufacturing the handrail connection structure 11 will be described mainly with reference to FIG. In FIG. 3, the positional relationship with the metal mold | die at the time of bridge | crosslinking in the part used as the connection part 13 of the handrail 1 is shown.

  After the ends of the handrail 1 are connected to each other, an uncrosslinked member (not shown) (also referred to as an unvulcanized member since the decorative layer 4 is made of rubber in this embodiment) is attached.

  As this uncrosslinked member, a member having the same thickness as that of the decorative layer 4 of the handrail body 12 when attached is preferably used. The uncrosslinked member is one in which the decorative layer 4 is all crosslinked (hereinafter, the decorative layer 4 is also referred to as a crosslinked portion), whereas the uncrosslinked member is not crosslinked with the same raw material as the decorative layer 4 (hereinafter, the uncrosslinked member is referred to as “uncrosslinked member”). Also called an uncrosslinked portion).

  As shown in FIG. 3, a flat upper metal plate having a portion (including the boundary between the cross-linked portion and the non-cross-linked portion) that is the connecting portion 13 in FIG. The mold 31u and the flat lower mold 31d are sandwiched from above and below, and are press-crosslinked with a surface pressure equal to or higher than usual (in this embodiment, since the decorative layer 4 is made of rubber, it is also called press vulcanization).

  In the present embodiment, as the upper mold 31u and the lower mold 31d, those whose length is 100 mm longer from both ends of the portion that becomes the connecting portion 13 are used.

  By the cross-linking, the cross-linked portion and the non-cross-linked portion are connected, and the decorative layer 4, the non-cross-linked member, and the canvas layer 3 are integrated, and the decorative layer is located mainly in the pressurized portion of the upper mold 31u and the lower mold 31d. The upper part of 4 is compressed from above, and the lower part of the canvas layer 3 is compressed from below.

  Thereby, the connection structure 11 of the handrail shown in FIG. 1 in which the wall thickness dc of the connection portion 13 is 0.05 to 0.30 mm thinner than the wall thickness db of the handrail body 12 is obtained.

  As a method for manufacturing the handrail connection structure 11, for example, a method using an upper mold and a lower mold having a substantially U-shaped cross section may be used. For example, when an upper die and a lower die having a substantially U-shaped cross section are overlapped by press crosslinking, the height of the space formed inside is 0.05 to 0.30 mm lower than usual. There is a method using an upper mold and a lower mold having a substantially U-shaped cross section.

  The operation of this embodiment will be described.

  In general, the conventional handrail connection structure 61 is manufactured by cross-linking with a press. However, when the upper die and the lower die having a substantially U-shaped cross section are overlapped, the space formed in the space is defined. The height is the same as the handrail body. In addition, in order to prevent appearance defects such as preventing generation of bubbles in the decorative layer, it is manufactured so that the volume does not become insufficient, so the thickness of the connection part is generally the same as or thicker than the handrail body It is. Further, a thickened portion is likely to be formed near the boundary between the vulcanized portion and the unvulcanized portion.

  As described above, in the conventional handrail connection structure 61, the luster of the connection portion 63 is lost early when used in a pinching type that is a handrail drive system of a mainstream escalator recently. Moreover, since the decorative layer of the connection part 63 is compressed more strongly than the handrail body in the pinching type, since the decorative layer may peel off early, the reliability problem of the connection part 63 has become obvious. Is required.

  In the handrail connection structure 11 according to the present embodiment, the handrail 1 is connected in an endless state after being manufactured with a designated length as appropriate or after being cut into a designated length as appropriate. In the handrail connection structure 11, after connecting the handrail 1 in an endless manner, the wall thickness dc of the connection portion 13 is 0.05 to 0.30 mm thinner than the wall thickness db of the handrail body 12.

  As a result, in the handrail connection structure 11, the stress (or pressing force) applied to the connecting portion 13 by the pinching roller is significantly smaller than in the prior art even when used in the pinching type drive system. The service life can be improved and the reliability can be improved, and the gloss of the connecting portion 13 can be maintained for a long period of time as with the handrail body 12.

  That is, according to the connection structure 11 of the handrail, the problems caused by the conventional connection portion 63 are alleviated, and the long-life handrail 1 is obtained with little change in gloss.

  In the above embodiment, the example in which the decorative layer 4 is made of rubber has been described. However, a decorative layer made of a resin may be used, and in that case, the same effect can be obtained.

  Further, according to the manufacturing method of the present embodiment, the handrail connection structure 11 can be easily manufactured.

  Using the manufacturing method described with reference to FIG. 3, a handrail connection structure 11 having the configuration of FIG. 1 was produced. FIG. 5 shows the dimension of the thickness d of the connecting portion 13 of the handrail obtained in this example in the length direction.

  As shown in FIG. 5, the connection structure 11 of the handrail has a thickness of the connection portion 13 that is about 0.2 mm thinner than the handrail body 12 compared to the conventional structure described in FIG. It can be seen that the wall thickness at the boundary between the vulcanized portion and the unvulcanized portion is substantially the same as that of the handrail body 12. Conventionally, the wall thickness at the boundary between the vulcanized portion and the unvulcanized portion has been about 0.2 mm thicker than the handrail body 12, but the problem of thickening this portion has been solved by the handrail connection structure 11.

  In general, the gloss (glossiness) of the unused handrail body 12 is 70 to 80 (70 to 80 (G)) with a gloss meter (gross checker), and the gloss of the connecting portion 13 is also 70 to 80. In the measurement, the incident angle was 60 °. Table 1 shows the results of re-measurement after six months of operation.

  According to Table 1, the handrail 1 having the handrail connection structure 11 of the example has a small change in gloss during operation and a stable gloss for a long time. The reason why the gloss of the connecting portion 13 is less than that of the conventional handrail is that the wall portion dc of the connecting portion 13 is thinner than the wall thickness db of the handrail body 12, and therefore the pressing force by the pinching roller or the like is small. is there.

It is a perspective view of the connection structure of the handrail which shows suitable embodiment of this invention. It is the 2A-2A sectional view taken on the line of FIG. It is a figure explaining the manufacturing method of the connection structure of the handrail shown in FIG. It is a figure which shows the relationship between the thickness of a connection part, and a lifetime. It is a figure which shows the thickness state of the connection part length direction in an Example. It is a figure which shows the thickness state of the connection part length direction in the connection structure of the conventional handrail.

Explanation of symbols

DESCRIPTION OF SYMBOLS 1 Handrail 2 Tensile body 3 Canvas layer 4 Makeup layer 11 Handrail connection structure 12 Handrail body 13 Connection part dc Thickness of connection part db Thickness of handrail body

Claims (4)

  A handrail connection structure comprising a tensile body, a canvas layer and a decorative layer composed of a single layer or a plurality of layers, and used for a transportation device such as an escalator. A handrail connection structure characterized by being 0.05 to 0.30 mm thinner than the thickness of the main body.   The connection portion has a gloss reduction amount of 8 or less when measured at an incident angle of 60 ° after six months of operation, and the life retention rate is 100 when the difference in wall thickness between the connection portion and the handrail body is 0. The handrail connection structure according to claim 1, wherein% is more than 100%.   The handrail connection structure according to claim 1, wherein the decorative layer is made of rubber or resin.   In the manufacturing method of the connection structure of the handrail as described in any one of Claims 1-3, after connecting the edge parts of the said handrail, the part used as the said connection part via an unbridged member is one side from the part. A method for manufacturing a handrail connection structure, wherein the upper rail and the lower die that are 100 mm or longer are sandwiched from above and below and press-crosslinked.

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