RESTRICTION DEVICES ON ELEVATOR CAR DOORS
TRAINING NOTEBOOK
Often as a last resort, firefighters have found it necessary to force entry into stalled elevator cabs from an elevator landing. Quick removal of occupants from the car becomes a necessity when someone is seriously ill or injured. Elevator repair personnel may not be on hand to assist the fire department in removing the trapped people.
A recent code change to the American Society of Mechanical Engineers (ASME) Standard A 17.1, 1989, has made forcible entry into elevator cars slightly more difficult. Rule 111.12 of ASME A 17.1 now includes a provision intended to prevent elevator cab occupants from opening the car door when the car is outside the landing zone. This change necessitates a reevaluation of current firefighter elevator rescue procedures.
The landing zone is considered to be the distance between the elevator landing and the car floor. (It is also known as the unlocking zone.) The actual distance is a minimum of three inches above or below the floor landing to an allowable maximum of 18 inches above or below the floor landing. Within these distances an elevator car door should be openable from inside the car.
To prevent elevator occupants from opening the car door when the car is outside the landing zone, a restrictor bar is placed on the car door near the edge on centeropening doors.
The angle-iron bar is bolted at the top and bottom with 1/2-inch bolts. The most important feature of the bar, however, is a spring that “ties” the bolt and bar together. (Note that the arrangement shown is for center-opening doors of one manufacturer’s elevator car door and may not be the same for other manufacturers.)
In addition to the restrictor bar, two “restrictor angles” are provided to hold back the restrictor bar if someone inside the car attempts to open the car door. The first is called the “hoistway header” restrictor angle and is placed on the hoistway side of the elevator shaft on the header above the hoistway door. The other is called the “hoistway door” restrictor angle and is placed on the bottom of the hoistway door. When the car is outside the landing (unlocking) zone, the car door can only be opened a few inches because the restrictor bar cannot pass the hoistway header restrictor angle and/or the hoistway door restrictor angle.
Opening an elevator car door fitted with a restrictor bar assembly should be relatively simple. After the elevator has been deenergized in the machine room and the hoistway door has been forced, merely turn the springloaded restrictor bar toward the elevator car at least one-quarter of an inch to clear the restrictor angles. With the restrictor bar depressed, move the car door in its normal direction of travel until it passes by the restrictor angle(s). The car door can now be moved easily to the complete open position.
If the car is stalled halfway between floors or if floor levels have high ceilings, the bar may not be easily accessible. It may be necessary to use a pike pole to turn the bar from above. In buildings with very high ceilings, the car door may not even encounter a restrictor angle if it stalls between floors. In these cases, trapped occupants who open the car door will be met with a blank shaft wall.
Restrictor bar assemblies are appearing on new elevators as well as on some existing elevators. It is advisable to inspect buildings in your district for their presence. Contact your local elevator companies to learn of restrictor bar arrangements or other methods they may be using to comply with the new ASME code change.
