WO2024078845A1

WO2024078845A1 - Guideway system comprising a support structure and cladding elements

Info

Publication number: WO2024078845A1
Application number: PCT/EP2023/076269
Authority: WO
Inventors: Nils Patrick NOESKE; Georg Schleiter
Original assignee: Tk Elevator Innovation And Operations Gmbh
Priority date: 2022-10-10
Filing date: 2023-09-22
Publication date: 2024-04-18
Also published as: EP4353662A1

Abstract

The invention relates to a guideway system (1), in particular an escalator system, having a support structure (2) with two opposing lateral wall units (2.1, 2.2), each of which comprises an upper chord (4.1), a lower chord (4.2), and a lateral wall (3) that extends between the upper chord (4.1) and the lower chord (4.2), and having at least one first cladding element (23.1) for cladding the guideway system (1) from one side, wherein at least one first lateral wall unit (2.1) has at least one first connection means (24.1) in the form of a recess for directly holding the first cladding element (23.1) against the first lateral wall unit (2.1), and the at least one first connection means (24.1) is positioned in a defined manner relative to a reference point (18) of the support structure (2). The first cladding element (23.1) has at least one second connection means (24.2) in the form of a hook for interacting with the first connection means (24.1) while holding the first cladding element (23.1) against the first lateral wall unit (2.1). The invention additionally relates to a support structure (2) and to a longitudinal section module (1.1, 1.2, 1.3) of such a guideway system (1).

Description

Guideway device with a supporting structure and cladding elements

Technical area

The present invention relates to a guideway device, in particular an escalator device, having a support structure with two opposing side wall units, each with an upper chord, a lower chord and a side wall extending between the upper chord and the lower chord. The invention further relates to a support structure for such a guideway device and a longitudinal section module of a modularly assembled guideway device with such a support structure.

Background of the invention

Guideway devices or support structures for such guideway devices are generally known from the state of the art. The support structures form the external supporting structure for components of the guideway device, such as guides with steps/pallets embedded therein, drives and electrical systems as well as for attachment and cladding elements and are usually made up of two side wall units that are opposite one another and connected via cross beams. The side wall units usually have profiles welded together as structural elements, from which lattice-like side walls and an upper and lower chord are formed.

The disadvantage of such support structures is that they have relatively large manufacturing tolerances, which are caused in particular by the welding of the profiles. Components of the guideway device that are attached to the support structure must therefore be positioned and/or aligned using very complex positioning procedures with appropriate assembly aids before they are attached to the support structure. For this purpose, appropriate fastening devices are required for a variable

Positioning/alignment of the component relative to the supporting structure and/or must be laboriously adjusted manually after positioning and/or alignment. In particular, cladding elements for covering the supporting structure are attached to the supporting structure from the outside using clamps, whereby the clamps are first laboriously positioned and then manually attached to holes that have yet to be created.

EP 1 321 424 B1 discloses a supporting structure for an escalator or a moving walkway, which has a lattice element that is designed as a single piece and as a flat, unprofiled, cut plate. The welding work required when constructing the supporting structure is thus reduced.

EP 3 109 195 B1 discloses a support structure for an escalator with several modules, wherein measures are proposed in particular with regard to connection techniques without thermal distortion in order to achieve low tolerances of the assembled support structure.

EP 3 974 369 A1 also discloses a support structure for an escalator, in which a holding frame for holding cladding elements is attached to the sides of the support structure.

Description of the invention

Based on this situation, it is an object of the present invention to enable a simplified and safe positioning/alignment of components of a guideway device.

The object of the invention is achieved by the features of the independent main claims. Advantageous embodiments are specified in the subclaims. If technically possible, the teachings of the subclaims can be combined as desired with the teachings of the main and subclaims.

In particular, the object is therefore achieved by a guideway device, in particular an escalator device, comprising a support structure with two opposing side wall units, each with an upper chord, a lower chord and a side wall extending between the upper chord and the lower chord, and at least one first cladding element for cladding the guideway device from one side, wherein at least one first side wall unit has at least one first connecting means for directly holding the first cladding element on the first side wall unit, wherein the at least one first connecting means is positioned in a defined manner relative to a reference point of the support structure and wherein the first cladding element has at least one second connecting means for interacting with the first connecting means when holding the first cladding element on the first side wall unit.

Advantageous aspects of the claimed invention are explained below and preferred modified embodiments of the invention are described further below. Explanations, in particular regarding advantages and definitions of features, are basically descriptive and preferred, but not limiting examples. If an explanation is limiting, this is expressly mentioned.

Insofar as elements are designated by means of a numbering, for example “first element”, “second element” and “third element”, this numbering is intended purely to differentiate the designation and does not represent a dependency of the elements on one another or a mandatory order of the elements. This means in particular that, for example, a device or a method does not have to have a “first element” in order to be able to have a “second element”. The device or the method can also have a “first element” and a “third element”, but without necessarily having a “second element”. Multiple units of an element of a single numbering can also be provided, for example multiple “first elements”.

In the sense of the present disclosure, the general term "guideway device" refers primarily to escalator devices and moving walkway devices (the latter in particular in a stepless design in an at least approximately flat alignment or with a negligible gradient) as well as related passenger transport devices with a continuously rotating transport device. A guideway device comprises, for example, segments or units forming the transport device, in particular steps or pallets, which are connected to driven Chains or similar drive means and guided in guides. The guides as well as a chain (or a similarly acting traction means) and other components of the guideway device are held, for example, within support structures that extend longitudinally essentially to the side thereof, which are usually made up of two side wall units that are opposite one another and are connected to one another via cross beams and optionally also a floor unit. The term "guideway device" also refers in particular to modularly constructed guideway devices that consist of several longitudinal sections or

Longitudinal section modules, each with an individual or individually created supporting structure, are modularly constructed and can be assembled/mounted module by module.

The support structure of the guideway device or the respective module is preferably formed essentially by opposing side wall units and cross members (also referred to as crossbars) connecting them, with each side wall unit being formed by at least one side wall and in particular by an upper flange and/or a lower flange. The modular manufacturing process described here can also include the connection of a floor unit to the side wall units, but it has been shown that such a floor unit does not necessarily have to fulfill a support function, but is designed, for example, with regard to the function of collecting oil from a drive and, if necessary, draining it away, or is designed to be optimized with regard to a cover and/or accessibility from below to the support structure or the guideway device; in this respect, the floor unit is to be understood as an optional structural unit which can also be functionally provided separately from the support structure, but which can optionally also take on an additional supporting load-bearing function if desired in individual cases.

The term "side wall" refers to a side structure which, for example, runs flat in only one side plane at least in sections, but is alternatively or additionally formed and/or reinforced at least in sections by profiles, struts or supports extending beyond one/the side plane. In general, the side wall is made up of structural elements or structural sections which, as flat structural sections, absorb forces in several directions and/or, as rod-shaped or strut-like structural elements/sections, absorb the respective Absorb forces only along the longitudinal extent specified by the alignment (tension or compression). The side wall is therefore designed, for example, as a closed surface, as a pure framework or as a structure with parts of closed surfaces and parts with a framework structure. Optionally, at least some of the structural elements/sections of the side wall are made of flat material, in particular sheet metal, e.g. structurally flat sections or stiffening (in particular) curved L- or U-profile sections in the area of welded connections to other structural elements/sections.

According to the understanding of the present disclosure, a "side wall unit" comprises the side wall described above and belts assigned to this side wall as further structural elements/sections, in particular an upper belt and a lower belt, wherein the belts can be formed integrally with the side wall, integrated or separate from one another. These belts are alternatively also referred to as bands. The respective side wall/unit can also be understood as a side wall/unit provided in modules, depending on the reference to a/the respective phase of the manufacturing process of the individual modules or of the entire guideway device. In this respect, the term side wall unit can refer to the entire side structure comprising upper and lower belts, and the term side wall can refer to the side structure arranged between the upper and lower belts.

The terms upper chord and lower chord, which are also referred to together as belts, refer to structural elements or structural sections extending longitudinally in the area of an upper edge or a lower edge of the side wall for absorbing loads in the longitudinal direction of the guideway device, in particular bending loads, which primarily lead to tensile stresses in the lower chord and to compressive stresses in the upper chord. The belts are preferably designed as profiles or profile sections, in particular as L-profiles, U-profiles or hollow profiles and thus have a favorable area moment of inertia for absorbing the bending loads. The belts therefore stiffen the support structure and form outer corner points, with the belts and/or the side walls optionally serving to attach further components of the guideway device. The belts can also be designed as components separate from the side wall; however, at least part of them is preferably the belts are formed in one piece with the side wall, for example by bending the side wall. The upper belt is particularly preferably formed as a hollow profile with four walls, two walls being formed by the L-shaped side wall made from flat material in this area, and two further walls being formed by a flat material component that is also bent in an L-shape and separate from the side wall. The lower belt is also preferably formed in a similar way as a hollow profile with four walls, two walls being formed by the L-shaped side wall made from flat material in this area, and two walls being formed by the base unit that is also bent in an L-shape and made from flat material in this area. The components forming the walls are preferably welded to one another. The upper belt and/or the lower belt can also be provided entirely in one piece with the side wall or entirely separately from the side wall (particularly in the sense of a process variation).

A cladding element is understood to be a flat element for covering the support structure from the outside, in particular from the sides and/or from the underside. Covering the support structure ensures that the guideway device blends in aesthetically with its surroundings and that the support structure and the components of the guideway device arranged therein are protected from unwanted access. To this end, the cladding elements preferably form a closed outer surface and are not designed to be easily removable from the outside. Cladding elements are provided on at least one side of the guideway device, depending on the installation situation of the guideway device in a building.

A connecting means is understood to be any device for producing a positive, non-positive or material-locking connection in at least one spatial direction, whereby the connecting means is used in particular to position and align the connected components. For this purpose, the connecting means act, for example, as a stop for the components against each other, which simultaneously forms a positive connection or by means of which the components are positioned together for welding. Defined positioning is understood to mean that in the manufacture of the guideway device or the support structure, the elements that are positioned in a defined manner relative to one another are only positioned in relation to one another. If an element such as a recess, a fastening means or a connecting means is positioned in a defined manner relative to the reference point, only the distance from the reference point is taken into account during manufacture. Any dimensional inaccuracies of other components/elements are then irrelevant for the positioning of the element. A reference point is understood to be a material point on a component to which positioning in at least one spatial direction is possible with dimension accuracy. This is, for example, an edge or corner of a component, a connecting means provided on the component and/or a recess or projection provided in the component. In particular, a round recess is provided as the reference point, which is defined as a reference point by its center and enables the engagement of an assembly aid such as a bracket or a gauge.

The solution to the problem with the guideway device described above now includes the teaching that a first connecting means is provided on the support structure, i.e. on at least one side wall unit, which is positioned in a defined manner relative to the reference point. The first connecting means is therefore arranged with high dimensional accuracy relative to the reference point, for example by producing the side wall unit using a correspondingly precise process or by inserting/attaching the first connecting means using a correspondingly precise device. By referencing the first connecting means to the reference point during the manufacture of the support structure, the first connecting means is then provided during the manufacture of the side wall unit, which is already positioned for later positioning and alignment of the first cladding element. The first cladding element then advantageously only has to be attached to the first connecting means during the further manufacture of the guideway device, without any further positioning and alignment measures being necessary. The direct fastening made possible in this way also eliminates the need for further fastening means such as clamps or the like. The present disclosure is based in particular on the concept that at least a significant portion of the side walls, which defines the overall shape, is made of flat material, in particular sheet metal, with at least one reference point being defined on the flat material. Using processing methods with very low tolerances that are currently available for flat materials, in particular processing using laser cutting tools or water jet cutting tools, reference can be made to this at least one reference point in the further course of assembly of the guideway device, so that assembly can be carried out with very small assembly tolerances and the guideway device can be manufactured with advantageously high dimensional accuracy. In this way, the comparatively exact relative or absolute positioning of individual components of the guideway device with respect to the at least one reference point can also be made possible, and additional measures for aligning and positioning the components, in particular relative to one another, can largely be dispensed with. In particular, the invention includes the teaching of introducing further references, in particular the first connecting means (in the sense of additional component-specific assembly reference points), into the flat material in addition to the at least one reference point arranged in particular in the corresponding side wall during the same processing method, on which further components can be arranged directly and thus in a defined position relative to at least one (master) reference point with high accuracy. The references are introduced in particular as recesses in areas of the flat material which can be subjected to further processing steps, in particular bending processes, following the aforementioned processing method, whereby the referencing concept described here can also be implemented for multi-dimensional positioning in space with respect to at least two or all three spatial directions. The described referencing system also has the advantage of creating a support structure that is particularly light compared to the usual truss construction.

In one embodiment, the first connecting means is designed to hold the first cladding element in a form-fitting manner on the side wall unit. In this way, the fastening of the first cladding element is carried out in a simple manner and without further Aids are made possible. Such a form fit is sufficient for fastening the first cladding element insofar as the connecting means only bear the weight of the cladding element. The first connecting means and the second connecting means are then designed as simple form fit elements and correspond accordingly with one another.

According to the solution to the problem described above, the first connecting means is designed as a recess. A recess can advantageously be formed on the side wall unit particularly easily and with particularly high dimensional accuracy relative to the reference point. The second connecting means is accordingly designed as a hook for engaging in the recess. The first cladding element can thus be suspended in the recesses in a particularly simple manner, with the hook engaging behind the recess in such a way that the first cladding element is held in the recess in a form-fitting manner against gravity. The recess is designed for this purpose, for example, as a vertically arranged slot.

In a preferred embodiment of the above-described embodiment, the first side wall is essentially made of a flat material, in particular of a metal sheet, with the recess being formed on the first side wall. In particular, the reference point is then also formed on the side wall or the side wall is positioned in a defined manner relative to the reference point. The recess and the reference point can then be positioned with high dimensional accuracy relative to one another, with no further tolerances influencing the positioning due to the one-piece design of the side wall.

The recess is particularly preferably formed by means of laser cutting or water jet cutting, whereby a dimensional accuracy typical for laser cutting or water jet cutting is achieved. If a recess is formed by means of laser cutting or by means of a laser cutting tool, the material is severed by a correspondingly aligned and designed laser beam. If a recess is formed by means of water jet cutting or by means of a water jet cutting tool is cut through by a correspondingly aligned and designed concentrated water jet. A (corresponding) laser cutting tool or water jet cutting tool is designed in particular for processing from one direction, with a laser head or water jet head being aligned perpendicular to the workpiece and being designed to be movable relative to the workpiece in a plane parallel to the workpiece. The laser cutting tool or

A water jet cutting tool is then preferably intended for processing flat material, whereby the laser head or water jet head can also be aligned in a manner deviating from its vertical orientation. A laser cutting tool or water jet cutting tool can also comprise a laser head or water jet head that can be moved spatially around a workpiece, in particular the profile, whereby recesses can be made in the profile from any spatial direction and independently of the geometry of the profile, which is particularly advantageous. In addition, it is possible to make recesses in a wall of a profile with opposing walls, such as a hollow profile, without the laser beam or water jet damaging the wall behind the wall in its direction. Laser cutting of profiles with opposing walls, in particular hollow profiles, is also referred to as tube laser cutting.

In a further preferred embodiment, the guideway device has at least one second cladding element for cladding the guideway device from an underside, wherein the first cladding element has at least one third connecting means for directly holding the second cladding element and wherein the second cladding element has at least one fourth connecting means for interacting with the third connecting means when holding the second cladding element to the first cladding element. The second cladding element can then be or is attached directly to the first cladding element. Due to the already very precise positioning of the first cladding element on the support structure, a correspondingly precise positioning of the second cladding element on the first cladding element is possible without further connecting means having to be provided on the support structure. The attachment of the second cladding element to the first cladding element takes place without any aids. or further connecting means in addition to the third connecting means and the fourth connecting means. Particularly preferably, first cladding elements are provided on both sides of the support structure, with a second cladding element being fastened to two such first cladding elements.

In a preferred embodiment, the third connecting means is designed to hold the second cladding element in a form-fitting manner on the first cladding element. In this way, the fastening of the second cladding element is made possible in a simple manner and without any additional aids. Such a form-fitting connection is sufficient for fastening the second cladding element in that the connecting means only support the weight of the cladding element. The third connecting means and the fourth connecting means are then designed as simple form-fitting elements and correspond accordingly with one another.

Furthermore, the third connecting means is preferably designed as a recess and the fourth connecting means as a hook for engaging in the recess. Such a recess can advantageously be formed with high dimensional accuracy on the first cladding element, for example by means of laser cutting or water jet cutting. The second cladding element can then be hung in the first cladding element in a particularly simple manner. In particular, the hook engages behind the recess in such a way that the second cladding element is held in the recess in a form-fitting manner against gravity. The recess is designed as a slot for this purpose, for example.

In a further preferred embodiment, the first cladding element and/or the second cladding element is/are made of a flat material, in particular of a metal sheet. Such a flat material is particularly suitable for the purpose of the cladding elements, namely to cover the supporting structure over a large area. In addition, the third connecting means and the fourth connecting means can be fitted/attached to a flat material in a simple and particularly dimensionally accurate manner, as already described with regard to the side wall, in particular insofar as they are designed as recesses and/or hooks. In a preferred embodiment, the first cladding element and/or the second cladding element each have at least one lateral bevel, with the second connecting means and/or the fourth connecting means being formed on the lateral bevel. The second connecting means and/or the fourth connecting means are particularly preferably formed as a projection, in particular as a hook, on a front edge of the bevel by means of laser cutting or water jet cutting. The second connecting means and/or the fourth connecting means are then formed in a simple manner and with a high degree of dimensional accuracy. In particular, the second connecting means and/or the fourth connecting means are introduced into the flat material before the bevel is formed. The bevels raise the cladding elements from the support structure by the length of the bevel and stiffen them in themselves.

The second connecting means, the third connecting means and/or the fourth connecting means are particularly preferably formed by means of laser cutting or water jet cutting. The high dimensional accuracy that can be achieved by laser cutting or water jet cutting makes it possible to achieve a correspondingly precise positioning/alignment of the first cladding element and/or the second cladding element on the support structure from the defined positioning of the first connecting means relative to the reference point. The defined positioning is therefore continued by precisely manufactured components from the support structure through the side wall unit to the first cladding element and ultimately to the second cladding element, without further references having to be taken into account when positioning these components during the manufacture of the guideway device. In this respect, a referencing chain of highly precisely manufactured components is created.

In a further embodiment, the guideway device is designed to be assembled in modules from several longitudinal section modules. The term "longitudinal section module" is to be understood in the sense of the present disclosure generally as a longitudinal module of the guideway device, ie as a module that has a longitudinal or longitudinal section of the guideway device (i.e. a component that is at least structurally complete in the corresponding length range). This term therefore includes the terms "head module" and "intermediate module". The term "head module" refers to a module arranged at one of the ends of the guideway device and refers optionally to both types of head modules (upper and lower head module, also referred to as upper part and lower part); in this respect, this term can equally refer to the module at the upper or lower end of the guideway device. Head modules usually extend over one or the angle of inclination of the guideway device, i.e. they span the bend or the transition from the inclined longitudinal section to the respective horizontal section. In this context, the term "platform section" refers to the section of the respective head module that is aligned at least approximately in a horizontal plane when arranged as intended; in this respect, when describing the arrangement/orientation of the respective head module, reference is also made to the orientation of this platform section (or its main extension plane), in particular if the absolute length of the platform section is greater than the absolute length of the inclined section. The term "connecting inclined section", which is also referred to in the literature as a stub, is also to be understood in particular as the inclined/inclined section intended for connecting/marrying with another longitudinal section module and can be more or less long depending on the function of the respective head module; this means that the individual modules are intended to be connected to one another in the area of an inclined longitudinal section. The general term "longitudinal section" can refer either to a longitudinal section module or to a specific longitudinal section, in particular of the head module (i.e. platform section or inclined section).

The modular design of the guideway device means that modules can be designed as standard parts and that the guideway device only needs to be handled in its entirety at a late stage during production. The object is also achieved by a support structure for a guideway device as described above. The support structure therefore has two opposing side wall units, each with an upper chord, a lower chord and a side wall extending between the upper chord and the lower chord, wherein at least one first side wall unit has at least one first connecting means designed as a recess for directly holding a cladding element on the first side wall unit and wherein the at least one first connecting means is positioned in a defined manner relative to a reference point of the support structure. The support structure has the advantages described with regard to the guideway device accordingly. In particular, a first cladding element and/or indirectly a second cladding element can be positioned/aligned thereon in a simple manner, securely and with high dimensional accuracy.

The object is further achieved by a longitudinal section module of a guideway device that can be assembled in modules, in particular an escalator device, having a support structure as described above. Such a longitudinal section module has the advantages described above with regard to the guideway device or with regard to the support structure. In particular, in a longitudinal section module, a connecting means for forming a supporting module connection of the longitudinal section module with another longitudinal section module serves as a reference point or that the connecting means are positioned in relation to the same reference point. The further longitudinal section module can then have a corresponding absolute reference point or reference an absolute reference point of the longitudinal section module, wherein the absolute reference point is preferably also referenced during assembly of the guideway device. The longitudinal section module is preferably designed as an intermediate module between two head modules.

Short description of the drawings

The invention is explained in more detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings using preferred embodiments. The wording figure is abbreviated to Fig. in the drawings. In the drawings show

Fig. la is a perspective view of a partially assembled head module of a modularly assembled guideway device with a supporting structure;

Fig. 1b is a perspective view of a partially assembled intermediate module of a modularly assembled guideway device with a supporting structure;

Fig. 1c is a perspective view of another partially assembled head module of a modularly assembled guideway device with a supporting structure;

Fig. Id is a detailed view of a support structure according to Fig. 1a to 1c; and

Fig. 2 is an exploded view of cladding elements that can be attached/are attached to the supporting structure.

Detailed description of the drawings

The described embodiments are merely examples that can be modified and/or supplemented in many ways within the scope of the claims. Each feature described for a specific embodiment can be used independently or in combination with other features in any other embodiment. Each feature described for an embodiment of a specific claim category can also be used in a corresponding manner in an embodiment of another claim category.

Figures 1a to 1c show several longitudinal section modules 1.1, 1.2, 1.3 of a modularly assembled guideway device 1, namely Figure 1a a first longitudinal section module 1.1 designed as a lower head module, Figure 1b a second longitudinal section module 1.2 designed as an intermediate module and Figure 1c a third longitudinal section module 1.3 designed as an upper head module. The head modules extend beyond bends or have a bent stub. The longitudinal section modules 1.1, 1.2, 1.3 each have a support structure 2 with each has two side wall units 2.1, 2.2 extending mainly in a longitudinal direction L and cross members 2.3 extending in a transverse direction Q. Each side wall unit 2.1, 2.2 in turn has a side wall 3, an upper flange 4.1 extending in the longitudinal direction L and a lower flange 4.2 extending in the longitudinal direction L.

The structure of the support structures 2 is shown in detail in Figure 1d. The side wall 3 is made of a flat material in which structural sections 6.1 and structural sections 6.2 are formed by recesses 5. The structural sections 6.1 divide the side wall 3 or the side wall units 2.1,

2.2 consequently into fields. Furthermore, structural posts 7 with supporting elements 7.1 and the cross braces 2.3 are arranged or attached, in particular welded, to the structural sections 6.1.

The side wall 3 is also formed integrally with the upper flange 4.1 and the lower flange 4.2. Thus, a first wall 8.1 is formed by the flat material forming the side wall 3 and a second wall 8.2 of the upper flange 4.1 is bent in an L-shape from the first wall 8.1. A third wall 8.3 and a fourth wall 8.4 of the upper flange 4.1 are formed by a further element made from an L-shaped bent flat material and welded to the flat material forming the side wall 3. In the same way, a first wall 9.1 is formed by the flat material forming the side wall 3 and an L-shape from the side wall 3 and a second wall 9.2 of the lower flange 4.2 is bent in an L-shape from the first wall 9.1. A third wall 9.3 and a fourth wall 9.4 of the lower chord 4.2 are formed by an L-shaped bent floor unit 10.

Again with reference to Figures 1a to 1c, the longitudinal section modules 1.1, 1.2,

1.3 with several components of the guideway device. The lower head module (Fig. la) has a comb plate 12, a base 13, a balustrade 16 with a handrail 17 arranged thereon and several guides 14.1, 14.2, 14.3 for chain rollers (not shown), step Z pallet rollers and/or a handrail. Corresponding guides 14.1, 14.2, 14.3, a base 13 and a balustrade 16 are also shown in the Intermediate module (Fig. lb). The guides 14.1, 14.2, 14.3 rest on the support elements 7.1. The upper head module (Fig. 1c) has, in addition to the components already present in the lower head module and/or intermediate module, a drive 15 for driving a chain and/or a handrail circuit. In the illustration of the upper head module, a balustrade 16 provided is not shown.

The longitudinal modules 1.1, 1.2, 1.3 each have reference points 18 on the support structures 2, or side wall units 2.1, 2.2, or side walls 3, which are shown in Fig. 1d. In Figures 1a to 1c, the reference points 18 are covered by mounting brackets 19, which in turn are attached to slides 20. By hanging the longitudinal sections 1.1, 1.2, 1.3 on the reference points 18, it is possible to refer to the reference points 18 again and again during assembly and, ideally, only when positioning/aligning components. The reference points 18 are formed on the flat material during production of the side walls 3 by laser cutting or water jet cutting, whereby, thanks to the accuracy typical for laser cutting or water jet cutting, all other recesses or cutouts made in the flat material are positioned exactly opposite the reference points 18 and can therefore in turn serve as references for the positioning/alignment of components. This applies in particular to connecting means 21 provided for connecting the longitudinal section modules 1.1, 1.2, 1.3 and slots 22 for receiving components of the guideway device 1 such as the support elements 7.1. By means of the reference points 18 and in particular the suspension of the longitudinal section modules 1.1, 1.2, 1.3, an exact alignment of the longitudinal section modules 1.1, 1.2, 1.3 to one another is also possible when they are connected to one another via the connecting means 21.

Figure 2 shows an exploded view of the support structure 2 and of the cladding elements 23.1, 23.2 to be arranged on the first side wall unit 2.1, namely a first cladding element 23.1 designed as a lateral cladding element and a second cladding element designed as a lower cladding element.

Cladding element 23.2. The cladding elements serve to cover the supporting structure 2 for aesthetic and safety reasons. In the side wall 3 of the supporting structure, in addition to the reference points 18 and other references, such as the slots 22, first connecting means 24.1 designed as slot-shaped recesses are arranged. The first connecting means 24.1 are formed during the manufacture of the side wall 3 from a flat material by means of laser cutting or water jet cutting with a defined positioning relative to the reference point 18 and are designed for the precise, direct fastening of the first cladding element 23.1. The first cladding element 23.1, which is formed from a flat material with folds 25 on vertical sides, has second connecting means 24.2 designed as hooks on the folds 25. The second connecting means 24.2 are formed before the fold 25 is formed on the flat material by means of laser cutting or water jet cutting. The second connecting means 24.2 engage in the first connecting means 24.1 to fasten the first cladding element 23.1 to the side wall 3 and engage behind them in order to form a positive connection 26.

Furthermore, the first cladding element 23.1 has third connecting means 24.3 formed as slot-shaped recesses on a lower side. The second cladding element 23.2, like the first cladding element 23.1, is formed from a flat material with bevels 27. The fourth connecting means 24.4 are formed as hooks on the bevels 27. The fourth

Connecting means 24.4 are formed on the flat material by means of laser cutting or water jet cutting before the bevel 27 is formed. The fourth connecting means 24.4 engage in the third connecting means 24.3 to fasten the second cladding element 23.2 to the first cladding element 23.1 and engage behind them in order to form a positive connection 28. List of reference symbols

1 guideway device

1.1 first longitudinal section module (lower head module)

1.2 second longitudinal section module (intermediate module)

1.3 third longitudinal section module (upper head module)

2 Supporting structure

2.1 first side wall unit

2.2 second side wall unit

2.3 Cross member

4.1 Upper chord

4.2 Bottom flange

5 Recess

6.1 first structural section

6.2 second structural section

7 structural posts

7.1 Supporting element

8.1 first wall of the upper chord

8.2 second wall of the upper chord

8.3 third wall of the upper chord

8.4 fourth wall of the upper chord

9.1 first wall of the lower chord

9.2 second wall of the lower chord

9.3 third wall of the lower chord

9.4 fourth wall of the lower chord

10 Ground unit

12 Comb plate

13 Sockets

14.1 first tour

14.2 second guide

14.3 third lead

15 Drive

16 Balustrades 17 Handrail

18 Reference point

19 Mounting bracket

20 Sledges 21 Connecting devices

22 Slot

23.1 first cladding element

23.2 second cladding element

24.1 first connecting means 24.2 second connecting means

24.3 Third connecting means

24.4 fourth connecting means

25 Bending

26 Form fit 27 Bending

28 Form closure

L Longitudinal direction

Q transverse direction

Claims

Patent claims

1. Guideway device (1), in particular an escalator device, having a support structure (2) with two opposing side wall units (2.1, 2.2), each with an upper chord (4.1), a lower chord (4.2) and a side wall (3) extending between the upper chord (4.1) and the lower chord (4.2); and at least one first cladding element (23.1) for cladding the guideway device (1) from one side; wherein at least one first side wall unit (2.1) has at least one first connecting means (24.1) designed as a recess for directly holding the first cladding element (23.1) on the first side wall unit (2.1); wherein the at least one first connecting means (24.1) is positioned in a defined manner relative to a reference point (18) of the support structure (2); and wherein the first cladding element (23.1) has at least one second connecting means (24.2) designed as a hook for interacting with the first connecting means (24.1) when holding the first cladding element (23.1) on the first side wall unit (2.1).

2. Guideway device (1) according to claim 1, wherein the first connecting means (24.1) is designed for positively holding the first cladding element (23.1) on the side wall unit (2.1).

3. Guideway device (1) according to claim 1 or 2, wherein the first side wall (3) is formed substantially from a flat material, in particular from a metal sheet, and the recess is formed on the first side wall (3).

4. Guideway device (1) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the recess is formed by means of laser cutting or water jet cutting.

5. Guideway device (1) according to one of the preceding claims, comprising at least one second cladding element (23.2) for cladding the

Guideway device (1) from a bottom side; wherein the first cladding element (23.1) has at least one third connecting means (24.3) for directly holding the second cladding element (23.2); and wherein the second cladding element (23.2) has at least one fourth connecting means (24.4) for interacting with the third connecting means (24.3) when holding the second cladding element (23.2) to the first cladding element (23.1).

6. Guideway device (1) according to claim 5, wherein the third connecting means (24.3) is designed for positively holding the second cladding element (23.2) on the first cladding element (23.1).

7. Guideway device (1) according to claim 5 or 6, wherein the third connecting means (24.3) is designed as a recess and the fourth connecting means (24.4) is designed as a hook for engaging in the recess.

8. Guideway device (1) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the first cladding element (23.1) and/or the second cladding element (23.1) is/are formed from a flat material, in particular from a metal sheet.

9. Guideway device (1) according to claim 8, wherein the first

The first cladding element (23.1) and/or the second cladding element (23.2) each have/have at least one lateral bevel (25, 27), wherein the second connecting means (24.2) and/or the fourth connecting means (24.4) is/are formed on the lateral bevel (25, 27).

10. Guideway device (1) according to one of claims 8 or 9, wherein the second connecting means (24.2), the third connecting means (24.3) and/or the fourth connecting means (24.4) is/are formed by means of laser cutting or water jet cutting.

11. Guideway device (1) according to one of the preceding claims, wherein the guideway device (1) is designed to be assembled modularly from a plurality of longitudinal section modules (1.1, 1.2, 1.3).

12. Support structure (2) for a guideway device (1) according to one of the preceding claims, comprising two opposing side wall units (2.1, 2.2), each with an upper flange (4.1), a lower flange (4.2) and a side wall (3) extending between the upper flange (4.1) and the lower flange (4.2); wherein at least one first side wall unit (2.1) has at least one first connecting means (24.1) designed as a recess for directly holding a cladding element (23.1) on the first side wall unit (2.1); and wherein the at least one first connecting means (24.1) is positioned in a defined manner relative to a reference point (18) of the support structure (2).

13. Longitudinal section module (1.1, 1.2, 1.3) of a modularly assembled

Guideway device (1), in particular an escalator device, comprising a support structure (2) according to claim 12.

14. Longitudinal section module (1.1, 1.2, 1.3) according to claim 13, designed as an intermediate module between two head modules.