Stairway with fail safe power lift for lading, the infirm, wheelchair patients, and the like

A safety power lift for use between the upper and lower levels of a building stairway comprising:

• a stairway;
• a horizontally disposed load carrying platform movable along guideway means rigidly supported along the side of said stairway between the upper and lower levels thereof;
• power means including control means therefor operable to transfer said platform between said upper and lower levels said power means including hydraulic motor means mounted along the underside of said guideway means and which power means provides for smooth acceleration by varying the flow of pressurized fluid between no flow and full flow;
• and
• weight sensor means supported by and extending along said stairway and along the approaches thereto at said upper and lower levels operable to deactivate said control means so long as a weight in excess of a predetermined value is present on any portion of said sensor means.

Power operated lifting apparatus for transferring lading between upper and lower levels comprising:

• rigid frame means having a pair of parallel guideway means adapted to be firmly supported between said upper and lower levels;
• a horizontal load supporting platform equipped with rollers confined to movement along said guideway means;
• hydraulic power means operatively connected to said platform for moving the same between said upper and lower levels, and including control means for said power means and arming means for said control means, said power means including hydraulic motor means mounted along the underside of said guideway means and which power means provides for smooth acceleration by varying the flow of pressurized fluid between no flow and full flow;
• gate means movable between open and closed positions transversely of one end of said platform employed for egress and ingress;
• and
• pressure sensitive mat means positioned on the floor at said upper and lower levels, said mat means being operatively connected to said arming means and responsive to the presence of a weight thereon at either of said upper and lower levels to disable said arming means so long as said weight is present and to enable said arming means while said mat means are free of weight thereon.

A self-contained stairway and power lift apparatus comprising:

• an elongated main frame equipped with stairs and siderails from end-to-end thereof and suitable for use by foot traffic between upper and lower levels;
• power driven lift means accommodating a wheelchair supporting passenger platform rollingly supported for movement along guideways carried by said siderails between said upper and lower levels and powered by hydraulic motor means secured to said main frame and connected to said lift means by cabling;
• barrier means movable between extended and retracted positions across the opposite transverse ends of said lift means;
• and
• means for holding each of said barrier means in the extended position thereof while said lift means is in use thereby preventing foot traffic along said stairway between said upper and lower levels, and said barrier means each being movable to the retracted positions thereof when said lift means is at said lower level thereby leaving said stairway unobstructed for free passage of foot traffic thereby.