Aerial tramway

An aerial tramway and cable car pendant is a cable car, in the stateroom on one or more support cables hanging between the valley and the mountain station back and forth, so commute. The aerial tramway, especially the two- rope - swing trajectory is often called the " classical" viewed cableway.

• 2.1 cabins
• 2.2 hanger
• 2.3 drives

• 3.1 Catenary wires
• 3.2 traction cables

• 4.1 drives
• 4.2 control
• 4.3 brakes

Operation

The cabin also gondola cars or fachsprachlich called driving means is connected via a hanger with the drive, which, with its wheels on the or the supporting cables runs and one or more traction cables is pulled so that the vehicles - on their respective road sides remaining - commuting between stations without Transit station with changing direction of travel back and forth. The opposite principle of construction for aerial tramway is cable car circulation.

Two lane and single lane aerial tramways

Aerial tramways are mostly two lanes. In this design, two vehicles run on its own, consisting of one or more support cables each lane. Both vehicles are integral with one in the mountain station passed over a pulley pull rope, she moved back and forth, so that a vehicle is pulled uphill, while the other is going downhill. The weight of the vehicles, specifically the slope force, it evens out largely. A force difference may result from different loads and varying slopes in the course of the route. The resulting tensile force and the force to overcome the friction has to apply the drive motor. To tension the pull rope and to compensate for the wandering rope loads, the vehicles over a deflecting plate at the base station is connected to the counter rope, so pull rope and counter rope form a closed loop.

There are also single-track aerial tramways with only one road and a vehicle. They can be designed with a closed haul rope loop, in which the pull cord runs back empty or with ballast or as so-called wind path, in which the vehicle is moved from a housed in the mountain station of the cable winch. A recent example of a single-track railway is the Wind in 2005, this cable car Lauterbrunnen Grütschalp.

Examples of a single-track tramway, the upper section of the Nordkettenbahn from the Seegrube to Hafelekarspitze and various small cable cars in Switzerland ( see below). For some two-lane pendulum cable cars that need only overcome small differences in height, separated Zugseilschleifen and drives are used for each direction ( the pull cable runs it empty, with larger chip boxes as needed to set up just for her support cables hanging back ). Such systems can be operated independently of each other; during periods of low ridership the driving operation can be reduced to one lane, as well as a recovery vehicle, a gondola for a possibly stuck gondola the other track are used. Examples of such systems are the Roosevelt Tramway Iceland since the renovation in 2010, the Vanoise Express or Urdenbahn. Funifor systems are also based as a rule on this principle.

Group Pendelbahn

It can, however, instead of the two large cabins, groups of smaller transportation devices (in practice two to five vehicles), one behind the other on the train or Rope are directly mounted on the respective tracks pendulum operate (example: the Obersalzbergbahn ). By this arrangement, narrower buildings can be built and cable car supports used with shorter cantilevers at the mountain and valley stations. In close succession suspended cabins they have to be linked together to prevent a mutual toast.

Group Pendelbahn Ankogelbahn, Section II

Einseilpendelbahnen

There are also one-cable ropeways that travel place to train and support cable only by a Rope, which combines the functions of train and suspension cable, for example, the Rosh Hanikra - cable car.

Rolling stock

Cabins

The cabins are usually closed metal structures of different sizes with normally rectangular plan. They usually have no or only a few seats, but standing for often more than a hundred passengers. With very powerful systems in individual cases, two-storey booths are used, for the first time with 180 seats in the double-decker railway Samnaun in Switzerland or at Shinhotaka Ropeway (in English) in Japan with 121 seats. The currently largest cabins are the two 200 persons which is two-story cabins of the Vanoise Express in France, fully loaded with 29 tonnes.

A special form are round cabins, where the cabin floor with the passengers during the journey revolves around itself, like the 80 persons which cabins the Titlis rotair railway in Switzerland, which the Table Mountain Aerial Cableway, the cabins of the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway in California with 80 seats and the cabins of the Funivia Malcesine - Monte Baldo, lake Garda for 80 people. The weight of a car is, for example at the Palm Springs Aerial Tramway empty and 10 tons fully loaded over 16 t.

The regarding permissible load per vehicle with up to 40 tons of powerful cable car was built to transport materials to the expansion of power plants Linth Limmern in the canton of Glarus ( Switzerland ). The two suspension ropes are 90 mm thick.

In the early days of aerial tramways after the First World War, twelve-sided cabins were as they were used by Adolf Bleichert & Co. in Predigtstuhlbahn, the cable car to Montserrat or the harbor cable car Barcelona, ​​open cabins as the summer cabin in the Rax cable car, which had only one rail and could be protected from rain by a tarpaulin, or built self-contained cabins with open platforms like the Kohlerer web.

Aerial tramway in Åre, Sweden

Titlis rotair railway, Switzerland

Predigtstuhlbahn, Bavarian Alps

Masadabahn, Israel

Kohlerer track, Bozen, June 1932

Hanger

The hanger is the steel structure that connects the actual passenger cabin with the drive. It is usually rigidly to the cabin top and rotatably mounted with the drive connected to allow a longitudinal oscillation of cab and suspension gear and to allow driving on varying gradients. It must be so high that the car does not hit even at the steepest point with possible decay of the support cables. In addition, oscillations in long commuting run slower than short. Most also a vibration damper is installed between the drive and the cabin. For paths with supports an asymmetric design of the suspension is necessary so that the vehicle can travel over the bearings of the ropes on the cantilevers of pillars side with a safe distance. For aerial tramways without restraints has the hanger often a symmetrical shape like an "A", where the cables run through the top of "A", so that a derailment is excluded. When Lagazuoi cable car the symmetrical hanger does not consist of a fixed structure, but in fact only of steel cables. On the hanger is regularly a ladder attached to allow the cable car ascent from the staff cabin roof to the drive.

Drives

With the drives the cars traveling on the supporting cables. They contain - depending on the number of supporting ropes - one or several lanes, the role batteries with which the weight of the car is distributed over an extended area of ​​the or of the ropes. The drives are smaller, lighter aerial tramways have only two roles, with large cabins, drives may be several meters long and contain role batteries with 24 and more roles. The wheels have replaceable inlays made ​​of elastic material, which provide a smoother, quieter ride and keep both roles and supporting cables against wear. Is the attachment of the traction ropes, fishing the brakes and in particular the rotation, consisting of a large storage of the bolt Gehängearmes to the drives.

Ropes

Suspension ropes

Each vehicle is running on one or two supporting cables, which have the function of supporting the vehicle and lead as well as in the case of a Zugseilrisses to serve as a point of attack for the catch ( carrier truck brakes ). Carrying cables up to 90 mm ​​thick, depending on its length, the weight of the cabins and other factors. Larger and thus heavier vehicles operate mostly on two support cables at intervals of about 80 cm to dampen a swinging sideways and to avoid that the support cable to receive a high weight. Suspension ropes are usually locked ropes with a smooth surface to achieve a smooth ride as possible. For several years, they can even include electrical or optical waveguide, through which communication between the valley and the mountain station running. Between double suspension ropes V-shaped rope riders are attached at longer intervals, to ensure the distance of the ropes and simultaneously serve with a small role as support and guidance of the traction cable.

The supportless tracks with only one span the supporting cables can often be firmly anchored both at the mountain station and at the base station, since temperature and load changes in length of the ropes just cause they sag a little more or less. Perform the ropes but on cable car supports, the support cables are firmly anchored at only one station, usually at the top station. At the other end the suspension ropes are then attached via pulleys on very large, many -ton weights made ​​of concrete, which hang freely in shafts that need to be so deep that the weights can compensate for any change in length of the ropes. This tension weights ensure a consistent basic tension of the ropes to reach by vehicles and the crossing Selbiger over the supports constant voltage conditions at the migrating load on the rope lines.

On the cable car supports the supporting cables are not on casters, but in long metal rope groove on the column shoe, which allow the ropes can switch back and herwandern to compensate for moving loads of cabs; at the same time an excessive bending of the cable to the bracket when crossing is avoided. The shoes overall are formed in the longitudinal direction than clothoid in order to ensure a smooth as possible crossing the cabins.

Suspension ropes are regularly built with a lot of meter reserve as they are moved after several years in the longitudinal direction in order to avoid that always bear the same places on the shoes of the supports and are worn there. The fixing of the ropes in the stations is usually over socket connections ( Vergußkegel, collet ) or board terminals in the clamping station in which the clamping station opposite station (usually the top station ) is often chosen the drum anchor, the rope at least three times a massive concreted into the station building bollard is wrapped with several meters in diameter. , The residual stress of the free end is formed by a retaining clip. The anchor bollard is often combined with a cable reel on which the rope above reserve is stored unstrung. This anchoring manner allows for the controlled discharge of rope during the prescribed rotational basis supporting cable offsetting.

Tension cables

The vehicles are connected via a hawser anchored to the drives to each other is guided in the stations over return pulleys large. Most of the drive motor is housed in the mountain station, so this deflection pulley is the drive pulley at the same time. The pull cable is recognizable thinner than the supporting cable and differs visually by its most clearly visible strands. It is coupled to the drive as close as possible under the carrying cable, in order to prevent that the tensile forces or the deflection of the hanger rollers of the drive rope to be lifted from the support during heavy braking. The drives are connected to each other mostly downhill side on a counter rope, balance rope or ballast rope. If the drive is located in the mountain station, it serves to compensate for the traveling rope load the upper haul rope and convey the entire haul rope a minimum preload. The counter rope is often slightly thinner than the actual pull rope. However, if the drive housed at the base station, it has the immediate function of a traction cable, as the train over the mountain side pull rope and over the deflection pulley at the top station acts on the upward moving cab. The deflection sheaves are usually in the drive station opposite station (usually the lower station ) loaded by tension weights against the route line, so providing for a uniform tension of train and counter rope. And hydraulic cable clamps are used occasionally instead of the tension weights. Analogous to drive belt is called the empty pull cable " pulling strand " or " retrogressive run ".

In older aerial tramways demanded the safety of some countries that all essential components must be duplicated. Therefore, you can see (especially in Japan) still ropeways with two track ropes and two pull ropes.

To reduce the risk that the traction cable can be connected to the hard to test socket joints ( Vergusskegel ), with which it is attached to the drives fail, it has been used for several years in some tracks a continuous, endless spliced ​​haul rope. The vehicles are then clamped with two opposing metal plates with a staggered wavy profile at their respective positions on the endless traction rope. These first introduced in France terminals are " chapeau de gendarme " called ( " Gendarmenhut "). At least in France can be dispensed with in such constructions to a safety brake. In a further development, the terminal is designed as a detachable coupling. With detachable terminal connections, it is possible to determine the cabins in the stations and to withdraw from the pull rope and to inspect the now empty circulating haul rope at full length and completely and to undergo, for example, a magnetic induction test, which is very limited in split at the coupler connections ropes is possible.

Drive and brakes

Drives

Like all modern aerial cable cars are driven in normal operation by an electric motor ( main drive), which is often placed at the top station, but occasionally at the base station and acts on one or more pulleys via a transmission aerial tramways. For security reasons, there is next to an auxiliary drive, this is usually an emergency generator for the main drive electric motor or a ankuppelbarer to the transmission diesel engine, which can move the cable car in case of power failure also. As a third fallback an emergency drive unit is required, which on the drive sheaves acts directly (e.g., an oil hydraulic motor with a mains-independent diesel engine as pump drive ), and a retraction of the gondolas allowed in the stations also in case of defects or fractures of the main drive and transmission.

Control

To control the driving operation to-date information about the current location of the vehicles on the track is always required in the control booth. This information does (usually duplicate and mutually Control ) electronic or mechanical Kopierwerke ready. This will get their information from a distance at a deflecting or baffle the train or haul rope attached measuring device ( measuring). This displacement measurement and their summation allows the exact positioning of the vehicles on the track. In the stations, the path information of the copying work will be tested and in each case reset to zero. Based on the determined by the copy works route points, the controller performs the driving program. The speed reduction before the stations and at the supports crossings and stopping at the stations and at high wind speeds are automatically controlled by the system during normal operation. The control is now mostly semi-or fully automatic in the form of a PLC, whereas previously manual controls by an engineer as well as semi-automatic analog controllers were used. To determine the position of the vehicles also interwoven marking points on the supporting rope are normal, which are detected by magnetic- rope testing or other procedures.

Brakes

The aerial tramway has several brakes, usually the service brake that is located at the propulsion and the safety brake, which must act directly on the the pull rope driving pulley in order to bring in any gear or shaft fractures the cable car to a safe standstill can. In the event that break the tension cable or a cable clutch should fail the drive, on-board brakes are housed in the drive, the act means mounted between the rollers calipers to the suspension ropes and stop the car immediately to rush in an uncontrolled manner to the valley or crash of the gondola to prevent. This board brakes are triggered by the detection of slack rope or by the cabin companion. The airing ( = re-open ) such brake can normally be made only directly to the drive with entrained in the gondola tools.

In special cases, can be dispensed with this board brakes, provided it is demonstrated through a Risikioanalyse that a failure of the traction cable is excluded. Here are a few technical requirements must be met, such as prevention of Zugseilüberschlägen during braking, lightning counter the pull cable, terminal connection (without cable hub ) for an endless spliced ​​Zug-/Gegenseilschleife, regular displacement of the drive on the hawser, consistent with magnetic inductive examination verifiable train and counter rope loops and A.

Speed ​​and capacity

Although modern aerial tramways have large cabins that travel at speeds of up to 12.5 m / s (45 km / h) ( at the cable car supports much less ), but their capacity is limited because in one direction is always only one cabin on the go. Typically, aerial tramways flow rates between 500 to 2000 people per hour per direction. Naturally decreases the flow rate, the longer the individual section is.

Routing and Spans

With aerial tramways, especially with two-cable ropeways, device subject, difficult terrain in the high alpine area can be overrun with large cable box lengths. Since two-cable aerial tramways unless a rescue train is present, the allowable distance from the ground is not limited, this system allows the bridging of ravines, gorges and steep cliffs. In rare cases it is possible to freely floating to lead the ropes from the base station to the mountain station in a span. An example is the upper section of the car to the Aiguille du Midi from 2317 m to 3777 m, which overcomes a difference in altitude of 1460 m without any support with a rope span length of about 3100 m. Other examples are the Zugspitze glacier railway, the railway to the Pordoijoch that Lagazuoi - cableway, the new Masadabahn, the Mount Roberts Tramway and turn the Vanoise Express.

Usually, however, the cables must be routed through cable car supports to ensure sufficient distance between the sagging ropes and the underground.

The track alignment must be basically straight in plan view, as only slight angular deviations are permitted to the uprights.

Inspection and Maintenance

Inspection and maintenance depend on the instructions of the manufacturer and the individual countries, but are similar in the following procedures: The daily operation begins with the review of telecommunication device, a visual inspection of the drive components and the free position of the tensioning weights and take a test drive in the paver technical values ​​for controls, while an employee the wire, the wire tab and the cable car restraints checked when sitting on the seat of the revision drive for obvious irregularities. The ropes are more precisely controlled in most monthly intervals. Before each season, all components such as cabins, hangers, supports and drives are checked, changed the role of rubber and greased the ropes. In larger distances brake tests are carried out with fully loaded rooms. At intervals of several years, the suspension ropes are moved in order to avoid the wear of the always same locations on the cable car supporting.

Recovery and evacuation

Whenever a problem occurs, the cabins can often be driven slowly with the auxiliary drive or emergency drive to the stations ( evacuation of the facility). Are the cabins blocked on the track, they can be evacuated in various ways ( rescue). If the distance to the ground is not too large and there a wegsames terrain available, the passengers of the cab can be lowered from. Otherwise, there is the possibility to recover it by helicopter from the cabin. At large distances from the base a recovery path is regularly provided, which moves at its own rope next to the cabin, so that the passengers change gradually into the small rescue gondola and can ski down to the valley. Appropriate rescue exercises are part of the regular training program of the cable car staff and the local fire department or mountain rescue.

Small cable cars

In particular, located in Switzerland, small cable cars a separate category with specific rules. They are usually operated by local cooperatives or individuals to facilitate agricultural transport or passenger traffic to a high-level inn. Unlike the "big" cable cars, they are subject to supervision by the cantonal authorities. Technically These are all aerial tramways, often in the form of single-track. The differently designed cabins correspond to very local needs. There is often in an open construction a wooden bench for two or three persons with sufficient space for luggage or other cargo transport. Not infrequently there is a cabin for people on a road and on the other side an open, called in Switzerland Barelle basket for the carriage of goods and animals, but in which people are allowed to drive also. A suspension of the car with two short hangers is more common in order to ensure stability. A particularly exposed small cable car has a consisting only of metal grids cabin to reduce the wind pressure. As a result of further development even in remote places with roads, however, disappear more and more of these small cable cars.

Special shapes

An early construction cable car to the construction of the lighthouse at Beachy Head on the south coast had all the essential features of an aerial tramway. Cable cars on exhibition parks like in Osaka there were frequent. The Whirlpool Aero Car, opened in 1916 by Leonardo Torres Quevedo has to calm any safety concerns of the public six supporting cables and a hanger used only by Torres Quevedo. The modern, largely horizontal circulating Scenic Skyway has two buckets to keep the long cab horizontally when the passengers back and forth in it. For the Skyway at the Timberline Lodge in Oregon they have hanged the body of a bus at four supporting cables. The cable car between Ireland and Dursey Iceland has ( have a drive from a wide metal frame that runs on the two very widely spaced supporting cables and attached to four short hangers cabin gives the required stability to promote even sheep precedence over human passengers ). All the above-mentioned cable cars are single-track aerial tramways.

The two sections of the aerial tramway in Bezau in the Bregenz Forest for six to eight people were one of the rare examples with small cabins. Also unusual is the Tauern railway in the house in the Enns Valley: Here run on two lanes each two cabins. If a car starts at the base station, there is another car is moving at the same time on the same cable from the central station to the mountain station. In the middle station then has to be switched in a cabin on the other carriageway, who has just come from the mountain station. This measure increases the capacity of the path clearly. In the cable car Solda, the idea was further developed on each roadway run two cabins for 110 people, in the middle station meet head to head, so that the passengers have to change only from one to the next cabin. The carrying cables in this case run continuously from the mountain to the valley station, the tension cables of both sections are coupled via interconnected deflection pulleys so that the drives move into the top station and the tension cables of the lower section.

The two aerial tramways in Madeira not carry tourists up a mountain, but those living on the high plateau farmers to their fields to the coast down. The cable car department store Weipert in Kiel was probably the first person one-cable aerial ropeway, in which the two cabins are attached to one circumferential rope that combines the functions of the suspension and the traction cable in and the cabins back and drags. The Rosh Hanikra - cable car in Israel is also such a one-cable aerial ropeway, also the cable car Punkevní jeskyně - chasm in the Czech Republic is a similar one-cable aerial ropeway.

Cable car between the Tsutenkaku Tower and the Shinsekai Luna Park in Osaka (about 1913)

Whirlpool Aero Car at the Main Station, Canada

Scenic Skyway, Katoomba, New South Wales, Australia

Skyway, Timberline Lodge, Oregon

Dursey Iceland, Ireland

Aerial tramway Bezau, Bregenzerwald ( rebuilt 2010 )

Achadas da Cruz, Madeira; Drive to the Faja da Quebrada Nova

Rocha do Navio, Santana, Madeira. Valley station bottom left, top station in the right saddle on the ridge

Rosh Hanikra - Cable Car, Israel

Abbreviations

Aerial tramways are often referred to by the manufacturers and the media with the following abbreviations: PB ( aerial tramway ); ATW ( Aerial Tramway ); TPH ( Téléphérique ).

Accessibility

Aerial tramways can be designed as accessible from a certain size of the nacelles used in smaller vehicles, it may be limitations in the door width and space for wheelchairs or pushchairs. In Switzerland must be disabled ( with the exception of ski-and chairlifts ) according to the Disability Discrimination Act cableway from nine seats per transport unit.