What is a Passenger Elevator?
A passenger elevator is a type of elevator that allows people to ride in it. In some cases, these are commercial elevators used by employees or customers to travel between floors in a building. In other cases, these are private elevators that allow people to access rooms in their homes.
Passenger elevators are usually designed with safety features such as fireproofing materials, emergency brakes, and automatic shutoff systems that activate if something goes wrong while riding in the car. These features make them safer than other types of elevators used in buildings today.
What are The Types of Passenger Elevators？
Passenger elevators can be categorized based on various factors, including drive type, application, and speed. These are the 3 main types by drive system.
Traction Elevator
Traction elevators operate by using steel ropes or chains to interact with a counterweight system. They can be used in buildings ranging from low-rise to skyscraper heights and offer flexible speed configurations.
Hydraulic Elevator
Hydraulic elevators use a hydraulic pump to force oil into a hydraulic cylinder, causing a piston to rise or fall. They are suitable for low-rise buildings with high load-bearing requirements and speeds not exceeding 1.0 m/s.
MRL (Machine Room-Less Elevator)
MRL elevators mean without a separate machine room. The equipment is installed within the shaft, saving building space and reducing construction costs.
How Does a Passenger Elevator Work?
Take a traction elevator as an example: the traction machine drives the steel ropes, using the balance between the car and the counterweight, and relying on friction to move the ropes, thereby moving the car up and down.
What Is The Standard Size of A Passenger Elevator?
Typical passenger elevator car sizes range from 1000 mm × 1000 mm to 2000 mm × 1600 mm.
For detailed size charts and shaft requirements, check our full guide on standard passenger lift size.
What Capacity Should I Choose? (630kg / 1000kg / 1600kg)
The standard load capacities for passenger elevators are 450 kg, 630 kg, 800 kg, 1,100 kg, 1,150 kg, 1,350 kg, and 1,600 kg. According to international standards, the standard weight of each passenger is calculated as 75 kg. Therefore, you simply need to determine how many passengers your elevator will carry at a time and multiply that number by 75. For example, if you need to accommodate 10 passengers (750 kg), you should choose an elevator with a capacity of 800 kg.
How Many People Can a Passenger Elevator Hold?
The answer depends on the size and type of elevator, but generally speaking, it’s safe to say that an average elevator can hold anywhere from 5 to 21 passengers at a time.
How Many Elevators Does My Building Need?
The number of elevators required depends not only on the height of the building, but also on the number of people needing to travel during peak hours, as well as the elevator’s capacity and speed. For example, in a six-story building, an elevator with a capacity of 800 kg (11 people) can serve approximately 25–35 passengers within five minutes.
What Speed Is Suitable? (1.0 m/s / 1.5 m/s / 2.5 m/s)
The most common speeds for passenger elevators are 1.0 m/s, 1.5 m/s, and 1.75 m/s. These are suitable for buildings with 20 floors or fewer.
Elevators with speeds of 2.0 m/s or higher are classified as high-speed elevators, while those with speeds of 7.0 m/s or higher are classified as ultra-high-speed elevators. Both types require more sophisticated configurations and incur significantly higher costs.
What Are The Main Components of A Passenger Elevator?
A passenger elevator is made up of several different components that work together to make the elevator functional. The main parts of a passenger elevator include:
Carriage – This is part of the elevator that moves up and down as it travels between floors. The carriage houses all of the other components needed for the proper operation of the elevator, including safety devices and controls for operating the lift car on its journey up and down between floors. There are two main types of carriages: open hoists and closed hoists (also known as cabless). Open hoists have open sides, while closed hoist cabins have doors on all four sides so passengers can enter or exit while in motion.
Travelling Cable – The traveling cable is a high-tensile steel wire rope that runs through sheaves (wheel-like devices) mounted on the top and bottom side frames of each level of the lift shaft. The cable runs from the top of the elevator car to a counterweight located on the opposite side of the building, where it is anchored. It also connects to a drive motor that runs through pulleys and gears at each level of the shaft. As passengers ride in an elevator car, they push against this cable with their weight.
Counterweight – Counterweights are large pieces of metal that hang on both sides of an elevator’s carriages in order to balance out its weight so it can travel vertically without falling down due to gravity’s pull on it. Counterweights are usually made of metal, though some elevators have used concrete or other materials for their counterweight. They hang from the top of the elevator shaft, which is a vertical tunnel through which cars travel up and down. The weight of the carriages pulls on cables that run through pulleys at each floor level.
How Much Does It Cost to Install a Passenger Elevator？
The cost of a passenger elevator installation project depends on several factors. A major factor is the size of your building and the distance from the ground floor to the upper floors.
The average cost for an elevator installation project is around $20,000-$100,000. This price range also varies depending on how many floors you need to be lifted and what type of materials you want to be used in your elevator.
What Control System Is Used? (VVVF, group control)
The drive control systems in most modern passenger elevators utilize VVVF (Variable Voltage Variable Frequency) technology. Due to its energy efficiency, smooth operation, high ride comfort, and precise floor-leveling accuracy, VVVF technology has replaced older DC elevators and early AC two-speed elevators, becoming the industry standard for modern elevators.
What Standards Should Passenger Elevators Meet? (EN81-20 / CE)
Standards vary by region. First and foremost, CE certification is required. Additionally, products exported to Europe must comply with the EN 81-20 and EN 81-50 standards, while those exported to the United States must comply with ASME A17.
What Are The Site Requirements? (Shaft / Pit / Overhead)
Standard elevators require a shaft, a pit, and a machine room on the top floor; machine-room-less elevators do not require a machine room; and some frame-type elevators do not require a pit or a shaft.
Can Passenger Elevators Be Customized For Non-standard Buildings?
Of course. Non-standard projects—such as those with low ceilings or narrow shafts—require customization.
What Information Is Needed for A Quotation?
In order to better serve you, we need to know the shaft size, number of floors, floor height, and whether it is MR or MRL.
How Long Is The Service Life of A Passenger Elevator？
The service life of passenger elevators is generally between 15-20 years, but this is only a rough range. The lifespan of an elevator depends on maintenance and upkeep. The service life of a better-maintained elevator can reach 25 years.
What is the Difference Between a Passenger Elevator and a Home Elevator?
A home elevator is usually much smaller than a passenger elevator, which is why it’s more appropriate for small homes. While a passenger elevator can carry up to 20 people at once, home elevators typically hold only a few people at once.
Home elevators are also much slower than their commercial counterparts. They can take as long as an hour to reach the top floor of your home, while commercial elevators typically travel at speeds of up to 1,200 feet per minute (FPM).
When you purchase a home elevator, you’ll have to install it yourself or hire an installer to do the work for you. This means that you’ll need to ensure that the area where you plan to install it has enough power outlets and other necessary connections so that the unit can operate correctly.
Conclusion
Dazen is a highly reliable passenger elevator manufacturer in China. Here, you can find the exact product that fits your needs and budget.
Send us your building drawings, and we can suggest a suitable solution within 24 hours.