Story of Elevator

Over the centuries, mankind had devised many ways to lift themselves to enormous physical heights. Animal and water power were use4d widely. It is well known that Archimedes, a Greek scientist develops an improved lifting device. His invention was operated by ropes and pulleys. In this device, the hoisting ropes were coiled around a winding drum by a capstan and levers.

Historically, medieval records contain lot of drawings of hoists lifting men and supplies to high locations. The monastery of St. Barlaam in Greece had a hoist. It employed a basket or cargo nest. In 1203 a hoist was installed at an abbey on the French Coast. It used a large tread wheel.

By the 18^th century, use of machine power was experimented in the development of a lift. Louis XV of France used a personal lift for his chambers in Versailles in 1743. It could go up only to one floor, from first to second floor. It was called the “flying chair”. It consisted of carefully balanced weights and pulleys hanging inside a chimney. Operators were stationed inside the chimney to raise or lower it at the king’s command.

To lift and lower the mi9ners in Germany’s Harz Mountains, a system, using reciprocating rods, was used in 1833. In 1835 a belt- driven elevator was used in an English factory. In 1846 the first hydraulic industrial lift, powered by water pressure was used. By 1850 steam and hydraulic elevators were introduced. As machinery and engineering developed, remarkable changes took place in devising lift. In 1852, the world’s first safety elevators was devising by Elisha Graves Otis.

In 1857, Otis installed the first passenger elevator. It was installed in a store ay Broadway and Broom Street in New York. The invention had a series of shafts and belts. It was powered by steam. Charles and Norton, Son of Otis took over, after Otis death in 1861 and continued the heritage. Over 2000 Otis elevator were installed in office buildings, hotels etc. by 1873 across America. Otis introduced a hydraulic elevator in 18738, which had speed up to 244 meters minute. In 1889 electric elevator was devised, with increased speeds. The height of Otis’ inventions came in 1903 when the company devised a new design that became the ’backbone’ of the elevator industry .It used cable wire to operate the gear less traction  machine. The cable wires are attached to the top of the elevator and coiled around the drive sheave.  The other ends are attached to a country weight that moves up and down in the hoist way on its own guide rails. Another land mark took place in 1924 when the first Signal Control System was installed. It automatically controlled the speed up and down. The power of microprocessors has been used to control every aspect of elevation in 1979.